Do sit ups work ?

gleesonstacey
gleesonstacey Posts: 8 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi so I'm looking for some advise because a personal trainer at my gym told me sit ups and crunches are useless and planking is more effective but I'm really bad at planking and I enjoy sit ups but also don't want to waste my time ..any thoughts would be much appreciated
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Replies

  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    The trainer was 90% or so right, not totally useless but many things better including planks and plank variations.

    I've found over a number of years the exercise moves you suck at are often the ones you need to be doing. This article talks about working up to ab roll-outs which are very effective.

    https://www.t-nation.com/training/anterior-core-training
  • Keladelphia
    Keladelphia Posts: 820 Member
    What do you mean by "work" is the question. Do sit-ups help to build a stronger core? They absolutely do. Are they the most effective core strengthening exercise, no. Will they (or any ab isolation exercises for that matter) burn stomach fat or give you a flatter stomach; nope.
  • elliej
    elliej Posts: 466 Member
    KellyAnn1286 wrote: »
    What do you mean by "work" is the question. Do sit-ups help to build a stronger core? They absolutely do. Are they the most effective core strengthening exercise, no. Will they (or any ab isolation exercises for that matter) burn stomach fat or give you a flatter stomach; nope.

    +1
  • briggsykim
    briggsykim Posts: 75 Member
    All those wasted years crunching... :o
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
    You also have to figure in that most people do them wrong and don't engage their ab muscles which also decreases their effectiveness.
  • Andrewcpimpin
    Andrewcpimpin Posts: 124 Member
    Any physical activity vs sitting on your butt works
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
    Think about it this way... if you've been doing tons of sit ups because you enjoy them, but you're still really bad at planking--then apparently the sit ups really weren't doing anything to help improve your core strength...
  • Mystical64
    Mystical64 Posts: 108 Member
    The best workout for your abs is to keep your core tight when doing any and all exercises. You can do sit ups and crunches until the cows come home. But when its all said and done, planking is a very good way to tone all of your core. Here is the saying, "When in doubt, plank it out!" :wink:
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    KellyAnn1286 wrote: »
    What do you mean by "work" is the question. Do sit-ups help to build a stronger core? They absolutely do. Are they the most effective core strengthening exercise, no. Will they (or any ab isolation exercises for that matter) burn stomach fat or give you a flatter stomach; nope.

    B)
  • goldthistime
    goldthistime Posts: 3,214 Member
    I have been planking only for the last while (having read the same). But my daughter asked me to do a Fitness Blender core workout with her yesterday and I got a little reminder that planking alone isn't enough.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Once you can hold a plank for 60 secs it's time to move on

    Personally I don't plank - I do push-ups and variations .. staying still is dull :)
  • AlanahBeez
    AlanahBeez Posts: 60 Member
    unfortunatey planking is more effective than crunches, hence why crunches are "easier". But I hear ya, I hate planking too haha
  • sladey_182
    sladey_182 Posts: 98 Member
    gleesonstacey wrote: »
    Hi so I'm looking for some advise because a personal trainer at my gym told me sit ups and crunches are useless and planking is more effective but I'm really bad at planking and I enjoy sit ups but also don't want to waste my time ..any thoughts would be much appreciated

    Do both.....I have noticed the difference since I have stopped doing them
  • bspringer544
    bspringer544 Posts: 155 Member
    You could try a bit of a compromise between the two;

    Sit up in half boat pose and contract your stomach muscles to bring your finger tips toward your toes. Do three sets of 10-20, resting for 5-10 seconds between. DON'T let your feet or shoulders touch the ground at rest.
  • StencilChild
    StencilChild Posts: 60 Member
    My issue with planking is my shoulders. Being 244lbs, it puts a lot of strain on me (tweaked my left shoulder a few years back in the Army.) So, I started working my shoulders a bit more to strengthen them up, and can now hold a 2 minute plank. Doing a single muscle exercise is pretty ineffective. Instead of focusing on just crunches/situps, find something that works your entire core. It'll burn more calories, and help you all around in every day activities.
  • I_Will_End_You
    I_Will_End_You Posts: 4,397 Member
    What are you trying to achieve?
  • iecreamheadaches
    iecreamheadaches Posts: 441 Member
    all the replies +1
  • sjohnson__1
    sjohnson__1 Posts: 405 Member
    Isolation holds are most effective, IMO. The core is a stabilizer... Maintaining tension throughout the movement (whatever the movement) is very important. Crunches will work the upper abdominals, hanging knee raises and leg raises (as you progress) will smash the lower abdominals. However, that's not all there is. Planks are great for working the transverse abdominis (the muscle underneath the "six pack" abdominal muscles, used primarily for stability and support for the spine). Also, as mentioned above, I would suggest everyone work their way up to performing ab-rollouts on a regular basis with good form. For most people, this movement takes time to get down. Start with a basic knee plank with a med ball under your elbows. Roll the med ball out so your torso is extended and come back to start. And eventually you'll be able to work up to push-up plank walk outs followed by the ab rollout.
  • Toribeth23
    Toribeth23 Posts: 53 Member
    I'm glad to read all this good stuff about planks vs sit ups. I've been trying to do a 30 day plank challenge with a gradual increase of hold times. I've never been good at sit-ups, (they don't always agree with my back -probably because my form is horrible), and even though they can really difficult, I found that I can hold a plank better, and I'm hoping that getting stronger at planks will help me be able to do more strength exercises effectively.
  • chandanista
    chandanista Posts: 986 Member
    edited February 2016
    Man, I misread the Title and thought this was "Do Sit Ups At Work". I was going to say go for it, lol. But planking at work might be better.

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