Best Exercise for GIRLS Lower Abs?
chachan
Posts: 31 Member
I'm looking for a couple of good exercises to work into my gym routine that focus on the lower abs. I've had two kids and certainly still have a decent bit of weight to lose in the gut, but would like to suck that stuff in as much as possible! I currently always use the Nautilus abdominal at 30/95 and the Cybex Torso at 30/90. Can you share any moves that have helped you successfully reduce your FUPPA? Thanks!
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Replies
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Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
I should not be in a calorie deficit as I have done all the calculations and am eating an average of 1600 cals plus some of my exercise calories. I'm lifting 3 times a week, after 30 minutes or so of cardio, and doing more cardio on other days (usually 2). I've upped the protein a bunch and am losing weight on the scale, but can definitely see muscles buidling (or firming?).
I'll try the leg raises, they hurt like a mother, but I have no idea what an ab wheel is!!0 -
theres this one move that i love because my lower abs annndddd my thighs feel tighter right away when i finish it.
you lay on your back with your knees up at an 90 degree angle. and slowly you drop one foot down, dont quite touch the groud then bring it back up. then repeat on the other side. make sure you keep your leg in the 90 degree angle the whole time, go slow and feel the burn and keep your back on the floor(dont let it arc up) and try to do as many as you can. i try to do at least 50 and the last ten are killer!0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
I should not be in a calorie deficit as I have done all the calculations and am eating an average of 1600 cals plus some of my exercise calories. I'm lifting 3 times a week, after 30 minutes or so of cardio, and doing more cardio on other days (usually 2). I've upped the protein a bunch and am losing weight on the scale, but can definitely see muscles buidling (or firming?).
I'll try the leg raises, they hurt like a mother, but I have no idea what an ab wheel is!!
OK. If you want to lose the rest of the gut, you will need to eat at a deficit to lose it, but that is up to you. An ab wheel is literally a wheel with handles on both sides. You can google it. Despite the fact that it sems like one of those gimmicky home ab exercise devices, it is actually good.0 -
theres this one move that i love because my lower abs annndddd my thighs feel tighter right away when i finish it.
you lay on your back with your knees up at an 90 degree angle. and slowly you drop one foot down, dont quite touch the groud then bring it back up. then repeat on the other side. make sure you keep your leg in the 90 degree angle the whole time, go slow and feel the burn and keep your back on the floor(dont let it arc up) and try to do as many as you can. i try to do at least 50 and the last ten are killer!
I love toe taps! They're fantastic for lower abs.
Captain's chair is also good for lower abs if your gym has one. More fave moves for lower abs are pike on a ball and the yoga pose lolasana.0 -
Cardio and Diet are the best things for Abs. I would maybe up the cardio a bit more and add some ab exercises. A few good lower ab ones are something I call pulses they are mini crunches and instead of having your knees bent, they are in Indian style (sorry I don't know the PC term). You only lift a tiny bit off the ground with your hands behind your head looking straight up at the ceiling. Another one is lying one your back, lift you legs up straight to the ceiling and using lower abs only try to lift your butt off the ground. Don't forget some obliques and lower back. So whatever your choice of obliques and then supermans.
Also, planks work wonders 0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
I should not be in a calorie deficit as I have done all the calculations and am eating an average of 1600 cals plus some of my exercise calories. I'm lifting 3 times a week, after 30 minutes or so of cardio, and doing more cardio on other days (usually 2). I've upped the protein a bunch and am losing weight on the scale, but can definitely see muscles buidling (or firming?).
I'll try the leg raises, they hurt like a mother, but I have no idea what an ab wheel is!!
If you're not in a calorie deficit, you should be if you want to lose that last bit of fat. Worry about your diet, that's what's going to get rid of the fat on the belly.0 -
Clean eating!0
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They have this thing in my gym - the back support padded board and the two padded bars on the sides. You bend your arms at 90 degree angle and rest your back against the back board and do leg rises with either bent knees or straight leg rises. It will make your lower abdominal muscles very strong. Another good one is doing crunches on the exercise ball - you use several groups of muscle at the some time - works magic for your stomach. And the good old bicycle crunches. I personally thing that slow crunches on the floor/ball will work much better then the one's on the machines.0
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reverse crunches.. they suck, but you'll definatly feel them0
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My problem is lower ab strength. I did zero activity post c-section and now that im working on improving my balance and core, my lower abs seem like they dont exist. I cant even hold my legs up to do Flutters.... I feel like I'm way behind the curve. However, I've lost a lot of weight in my lower abdomen area. It was always bigger than my 'spare tire', and for a while they were shrinking at the same rate, now my lower abdomen is smaller. I just havent been able to manage any of the ab work that requires sitting in a 'C' or 'V' shape. There are a ton of the lower ab stuff that I try really hard to do but I think my muscles are so weak that I need something lighter.
Perhaps a stability ball?0 -
I second the reverse crunches. I find they're the best part of my day (which is sick I know lol) but you can really feel them working plus they're way easier on your back than regular crunches.0
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Sounds like you are in a calorie deficit. You want to stay that way to shed the extra bodyfat. This link is to some excellent ab/core exercises...
http://www.tonygentilcore.com/blog/everything-pallof-press/
Eta: the best part is you're off the dang floor.0 -
I don't do any ab exercises at all and my abs are pretty flat(after two c-sections). I only do strength training but i lift HEAVY and engage my core with EVERY single move. Thus, no need to do crunches after my workout. My abs are engaged the entire time. I also try to avoid bread and dairy. Even when I get my abs super flat..those two foods will bloat me asap.0
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Barbell squat.0
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Barbell squat.
Second that! I can really feel my abs fire doing that. Not just for your legs ladies! AWESOME FOR ABS too.0 -
Definitely second the ab wheel and leg lift exercises. I will also lay down and put an exercise ball between my ankles, lift legs and arms, pass ball to arms and bring arms and legs down, reverse and repeat.
However, I think people are predisposed to store fat in a certain place, and for me its the lower abs (I have a proportionally short torso). Even when I weighed 108 (at 5'3" and age 22!) I hated that area, even when I was ripped and benched my weight, or when I could run 5 miles in under 40 minutes, it's always there!0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
This. You can work abs by themselves, but it really comes down to genetics and bf%. I don't spend more than 15 minutes on abs in a week, and the only reason I spend that much time is because it's a part of the group fit class choreo that I teach. The best workout comes from holding proper posture while rocking out free weights.
Also, you can't really work abs in isolation, they all work together.
However, of you want some old school ho-science suggestions: hanging knee ups on leg lifts, inclined reverse crunches, lay on back with you back flat legs straight into the air flex your feet and reach for your toes, or same posture as previous arms flat by your side or holding an anchor above your head and drive your heels straight into the ceiling lifting your hips ip off the ground.0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
I should not be in a calorie deficit as I have done all the calculations and am eating an average of 1600 cals plus some of my exercise calories. I'm lifting 3 times a week, after 30 minutes or so of cardio, and doing more cardio on other days (usually 2). I've upped the protein a bunch and am losing weight on the scale, but can definitely see muscles buidling (or firming?).
I'll try the leg raises, they hurt like a mother, but I have no idea what an ab wheel is!!
It's debatable if you are building muscle, but what you're seeing with more definition is more likely a reduced bf% allOwing your musculature to peek through.0 -
I love ab exercises! I have about a million. V-ups and Hip Raises, reverse crunches where you push your heels toward the ceiling after bringing your knees to your chest. Heel tap leg lifts. If you have questions add or message me. I have a bunch of ab workout videos on my blog/youtube. 0
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Two things--the ab wheel that someone else mentioned. It looks like a training wheel for a kid's bike but has a small handle/bar through the middle of the wheel. While kneeling you grab each side of the handle and stretch your body forward onto your stomach. Then pull yourself back to the starting position. Works all your core muscles. If you can do a few sets of these, your abs will be in killer shape.
2nd exercise--prone jack knife. (see New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women). You need an exercise ball. Lay on top of the ball on your stomach and walk your hands forward until you're balanced on the ball just with the front of your calves. You'll basically be in a plank/push up position on top of the ball. You'll have to use your abs to stabilize your body on top of the ball. Then using your abs and lower body bend your knees and crunch toward your arms. Return legs to starting position.
Both of these have worked my abs like no other exercises I've tried. Plank is pretty good too but I think these are harder. I still have some fat to lose on my stomach but my abs are in really good shape.0 -
I think that laying on my back with my legs up at 90 degrees and then scissoring them as I bring them down towards the ground and back up again really work my abs. That, and planking (which can be done anywhere without any equipment!)
Maybe it's just me, but I don't understand why people get all, "If you want nice abs you have to lose the fat" and such. Well duh! Would people have the same reaction if the OP had asked for the best arm exercises, or the best leg exercises? She mentioned wanting to get rid of the lower belly pudge, but had she lost a lot of BF% there would be somebody naysaying that "How can you expect to have a flat stomach if you've never worked your abs before?"0 -
I think that laying on my back with my legs up at 90 degrees and then scissoring them as I bring them down towards the ground and back up again really work my abs. That, and planking (which can be done anywhere without any equipment!)
Maybe it's just me, but I don't understand why people get all, "If you want nice abs you have to lose the fat" and such. Well duh! Would people have the same reaction if the OP had asked for the best arm exercises, or the best leg exercises? She mentioned wanting to get rid of the lower belly pudge, but had she lost a lot of BF% there would be somebody naysaying that "How can you expect to have a flat stomach if you've never worked your abs before?"
No, that would never happen. You can have a nice flat stomach/6pack without ever having done an ab exercise in your life. All it takes is losing fat until you can see the abs. On the flipside, you can do ab exercises 7 days a week and it will never make the slightest difference if you don't get your bodyfat low enough.
Ab isolation exercises are one of the most pointless things you can do unless your intent is purely to increase core strength. You will get tons of ab work in indirectly if you're doing most compound exercises anyway. Waste of time for 90% of people.
Point is, if you want to see your abs, all you have to do is get your bodyfat down. Focus on your diet as a primary concern.0 -
Maybe it's just me, but I don't understand why people get all, "If you want nice abs you have to lose the fat" and such. Well duh! Would people have the same reaction if the OP had asked for the best arm exercises, or the best leg exercises? She mentioned wanting to get rid of the lower belly pudge, but had she lost a lot of BF% there would be somebody naysaying that "How can you expect to have a flat stomach if you've never worked your abs before?"
If she had said biceps, glutes, quads, calves or whatever, she would have still been told she needed to lower bodyfat. You lower bodyfat, you see definition. There are plenty of posts where people have lost a lot of weight using cardio that are encouraged to start lifting weight in order to condition their muscles.
I also agree with the squat suggestion and would like to suggest overhead presses. You can really feel your core engage with those.0 -
Definitely second the ab wheel and leg lift exercises. I will also lay down and put an exercise ball between my ankles, lift legs and arms, pass ball to arms and bring arms and legs down, reverse and repeat.
However, I think people are predisposed to store fat in a certain place, and for me its the lower abs (I have a proportionally short torso). Even when I weighed 108 (at 5'3" and age 22!) I hated that area, even when I was ripped and benched my weight, or when I could run 5 miles in under 40 minutes, it's always there!
Yup. I have pictures of myself in high school, super lean, 5'7' and weighing maybe 120 lbs....covering up my lower pooch in every photo because I was self conscious about it! I have a short torso too and not much a waistline....almost straight down from the ribs. So I think the weight that I have there feels and looks like a lot more to me than it maybe really is....or not.
Still am working on losing...and do it mostly through lifting as that has given me the fastest results.0 -
Getting rid of a gut\fuppa is all about fat loss, not building ab muscles. If you are in a calorie deficit which I imagine you are, you won't really build much ab muscle (or any other) anyway outside of noob gains.
To answer your question, ab wheel, hanging leg raises (hang from a bar, keep legs straight, move ankles to wrist), lying leg raises with ankle weights or holding a dumbbell between your feet
I should not be in a calorie deficit as I have done all the calculations and am eating an average of 1600 cals plus some of my exercise calories. I'm lifting 3 times a week, after 30 minutes or so of cardio, and doing more cardio on other days (usually 2). I've upped the protein a bunch and am losing weight on the scale, but can definitely see muscles buidling (or firming?).
I'll try the leg raises, they hurt like a mother, but I have no idea what an ab wheel is!!
OK. If you want to lose the rest of the gut, you will need to eat at a deficit to lose it, but that is up to you. An ab wheel is literally a wheel with handles on both sides. You can google it. Despite the fact that it sems like one of those gimmicky home ab exercise devices, it is actually good.
Sorry, I misunderstood your post - yes, I am eating to lose. Cutting about 400 cals a day and upped the protein, lowered the carbs. This makes sense...that no matter how strong the abs get you won't see it unless the fat is off of them. I just wish there was a way to target fat loss!!0 -
reverse crunches.. they suck, but you'll definatly feel them
this!! They are great, in a painful awesome way.0 -
Thanks for all the suggestions everyone! I don't expect a six pack or anything, but am looking forward to a flat gut!0
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As a matter of fact, I was just thinking about stomach muscles, and just learned that often post-children stomach muscles have a condition called diastasis recti. It can be corrected, but you should do specific exercises to heal the "split" created down the middle of your gut area. Not saying you have this, but just in case you do, you should know that the average abdominal exercises can make this condition worse...thought you would like to know.:)I'm looking for a couple of good exercises to work into my gym routine that focus on the lower abs. I've had two kids and certainly still have a decent bit of weight to lose in the gut, but would like to suck that stuff in as much as possible! I currently always use the Nautilus abdominal at 30/95 and the Cybex Torso at 30/90. Can you share any moves that have helped you successfully reduce your FUPPA? Thanks!
Check out the post I just made here
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/674886-post-children-stomach-muscles0 -
I don't do specific exercises, but I started taking a belly dance class. This did amazing things for my core(I've had 2 kids). Also, the muscles you tighten while dancing are the same muscles that make adult time extra fun.
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