5 New Ab Exercises You're going to LOVE!

Ready for betting looking abs?

The key to a great looking core is the combination of the right nutrition, training and recovery.   

Today, we are going to cover the training piece.

There has been quite a breakthrough in the past 10 years when it comes to abdominal training. 

The problem with most abdominal training is that it tends to be very unbalanced. 

The majority of prescribed ab exercises only target the rectus abdominis (think 6-pack muscles) and trains the abs to produce motion (ie- flex your spine), seen during exercises like crunches. 

This imbalance in ab training not only overdevelops your anterior abs, but can also have a negative impact on your posture and performance. 

These type of movements can also overuse and irritate your low-back and neck.

It is important to remember that everything is connected. 

Your abs attach and function to stabilize your rib cage and pelvis and actually protect your spine. 

The stronger your abs are, the stronger and more stable your spine will be. 

Our abdominal training should reflect this. 

Only training the anterior abs leave the obliques (lateral abs) underdeveloped and misses one of the key components of abdominal training – to resist motion at your spine. 

Training your abs to resist motion, seen with exercises like planks, should make up roughly 80-90% of your total abdominal training. 

This will not only improve the strength, endurance and function of your abs but will also decrease your risk of injury, especially at your low-back. 

By training to resist motion you will better train your spine to maintain a neutral position, resulting in a reduction in stress, torque, and compression at your low-back.