Lower Ab Exercises and The Gain-Pain Balance

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Anyone can set out to work their abs, but if you want to get the most from your lower ab exercises, there are some things you'll want to know and do. The simple fact of the matter is that a lot of people actually go about doing their lower ab exercises incorrectly. See, most of the time, it's very easy to rely on other muscle groups when doing lower ab exercises, and so they do not get the resistance you think they do.

One of the first things to keep in mind is that the number of repetitions you do in one fell swoop is not most important. Really, what you want to do is simply target the right muscles and cause them to respond. Generally speaking, if you are actually working your abs, you'll know it. If you are supposedly doing lower ab exercises but find that there's not much exertion, then you're probably not really getting much benefit. At the same time, of course, you want to be careful not to overdo it and blow yourself out because you need a wheelchair the next day. But you do want to get in tune with how your body is responding to your workout so you'll know that the results you want are forthcoming.

To get specific, lower ab exercises should be targeting the transverse ab muscles. So you know precisely what I mean, the transverse abdominus muscles spread out on a horizontal plane behind the rectus abdominus muscles, which are the ones that extend vertically. To get at this group, try kneeling on the ground with your palms flat on the floor before you. Next, draw in your stomach as far as it will go. Try to relax the balance of your body so as to isolate the lower abs and compel them to exert.

You have some options when tackling this and other lower ab exercises. For beginners, it's perhaps okay to hold that tense position for about ten seconds. Over time, you'll find that you can remain contracted longer. As a way to check and make sure you're doing the exercise the right way, change positions and lie on the ground and try to do the same thing. From this position, you'll be able to detect your lower abs more definitively, and they'll let you know if they're in motion.

There are really a number of great lower ab exercises. Another involves laying on your back while you move your legs so as to target this muscle group. You keep a leg on the ground while holding the other in a bent position. You want to maintain the bent leg's thigh perpendicular to the floor. Take turns with both legs this way. What it does is prevents your abdominal muscles from releasing, so they remain contracted. You should cease feeling so tight in the abs and can then break, or else do so if you have any back pain. Over time the move will get easier and you can then straighten the bent leg, which increases the exertion on your lower abs. If you want, you can also lower both legs at the same time, keeping them straight. Shoot for about 2 or 3 sets of ten to fifteen repetitions.

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