Abdominal Exercises

Any activity that enhances physical fitness and helps in toning your body is known as physical exercises. There are two types of physical exercises – aerobic and anaerobic. These exercises help to strengthen the muscles and maintain the overall fitness of the body. Abdominal exercises help to tone the stomach muscles.

A Few Abdominal Exercises

Abdominal exercises have three levels - beginners, intermediate and advance. The abdominal exercises would help to strengthen one’s lower, upper and oblique muscles. A person could choose the level that suits him best and work out the same twice or thrice a week to help strengthen and tone ones abdominal muscles. It is necessary to take small breaks between various abdominal exercises. You could increase the number of repeats for the chosen level of abdominal exercise by two and gradually raise the workout number to 20 repeats. One of the best ways to tone one’s abdominal muscles is to vary the exercises and workout routines. The abdominal exercises should be performed slowly to get best results. An abdominal exercise generally tones the muscles known as rectus abdominis.

• Abs Crucnch

Use the following steps to perform the abdominal crunch exercise.

Lie on the ground with knees bent. Keep your feet flat on a leveled ground. Fold your hands under the head. Relax before you start the workout.

Keep the neck straight and the chest up. Slowly tighten the abdominal muscles.

Slowly crunch your body weight up and forward from the sternum. Raise it to the level of comfort. Now slowly lower the weight and stop just before the shoulders touch the floor. Repeat this exercise a couple of times in a week.

Always remember to keep your lower back flat on the floor. Never raise it.

• Abs Reverse Crunch

Abs reversal crunch also helps in strengthening the muscles rectus abdominis. The following steps help in toning abdominal muscles.

To perform reverse abs crunch lie on the floor with legs straight. Put your hands under your buttocks for support.

Keep the lower back on the floor and tighten the abdominal muscles.

Slowly raise your legs perpendicular to the ground. Remember not to lock the knees. The lower back should remain flat on the floor when this workout is performed.

Gradually lower your legs and stop few inches above the floor. Repeat this exercise couple of times.

• Bicycle Crunch Exercise

Bicycle crunch is an abdominal exercise that is rated among the top ten exercises. Read these steps to perform this abdominal exercise.

Relax before you do this exercise. Lie flat on the floor keeping the lower back pressed against the ground.

Keep the hands folded under the head and breath easy.

Raise your knees to 45-degree angle and move them in bicycle pedal motion.

Slowly, touch your left elbow to the right knee and vice versa.

Repeat this exercise around 5 times initially and later on increase the repeats.

Abdominal exercises help to flatten your stomach, and also tone and strengthen the abdominal muscles. The top ten abdominal workouts include captain’s chair, torso track, long arm crunch, reverse crunch, bicycle crunch, exercise ball crunch, full vertical crunch, ab rocker, plank on elbows and toes.