The Best Lower Ab Exercises For Sculpting Perfect Abs!
If there was just one area on your body that you could change, what would it be? If you are like the majority of clients I have worked with over the years, it would be the lower portion of your abs (around your belly button level).
I have new clients come to me all the time asking me how they can lose stubborn lower ab fat. Fortunately for them I know a few tricks but first I like to clear up a few myths about the lower abs.
The first thing I tell my clients is that their “lower abs” don’t actually exist. The rectus abdominis is the entire region (and one muscle) which when strengthened we refer to as the “6 pack”.
The front of your abdomen is covered by the rectus muscle and for this reason it’s always been a highly controversial topic whether or not you can use an exercise to train just one part of this muscle.
Let’s get to the bottom of this…the truth is that you can’t isolate just one part of the rectus with an ab exercise but research has shown that it is possible to put greater emphasis on a certain area of the rectus depending on your exercise.
The researchers who discovered this fact used EMG studies to measure muscle fiber activity during different abdominal exercises. Their findings were interesting. They discovered that abdominal exercises involving more hip flexion (i.e. reverse crunches) activated the lower portion of the rectus more than ab exercises that involved more trunk flexion (i.e. crunches).
I want to clarify what a hip flexion dominant exercise is before we move along.
Hip flexion lower ab exercises are done when the thighs are brought to the trunk during an exercise. These exercises mainly work your rectus abdominis but more importantly they seem to target the lower ab area the most. Many of my clients experience lower ab soreness when they perform these hip flexion exercises which leads me to believe that they are they best bet for targeting the lower abs.
Alright, now for the good stuff! Im going to share with you some of the best lower ab exercises around. Ill also include a detailed description so you can perform each technique properly. Here they are, from easiest to most difficult:
Low Ball Pull In- Start with feet on Swiss ball and hands on the floor in front in a push-up position-do not let your hips sag. Bring knees into chest while maintaining a neutral spine. Contract abs then extend legs back out into the starting position. Repeat.
Hanging Knee Raise- Grasp chin up bar with an overhand grip, pull knees up into chest and lower back down slowly until you have returned to the starting position. Continue until you achieve repetition goal.
Rocky Abs- Lie on your back on a bench. Reach above your head and grab onto the underside of the bench to brace yourself. Lift your legs up until your hips (and legs) are at a 90 degree angle with your torso. Now lift your hips straight up, bringing your feet towards the ceiling.
At this point, the only parts of your body that should be on the bench are your head, shoulders and UPPER back. This is the starting position. Now lower your legs until they are parallel to the floor, while keeping your hips up and off the bench. Return them to starting position and repeat.
There you have it! These three lower ab exercises are some of my favorites. I must warn you that they are not easy movements. They require hard work. But I promise that the hard work will pay off and you’ll soon be on your way to a great six pack!