Abdominal Muscles & Ab Exercise

The vast majority of people who engage in countless sets and repetitions of abdominal exercises such as crunches, leg lifts, and twists fail to see dramatic improvement, as if something is lacking.  Are you among those who religiously train your abdominals, yet still fight the distending gut syndrome?

I can teach you a simple technique to reduce your midsection in as little as three weeks! By incorporating this technique, with your regular abdominal training and proper diet, it will reduce the size of your waist, and help to give you a carved midsection!

This is exciting news, but it does come along with some prerequisites which are, pre-established clean eating habits, adequate water intake, and a low to moderate body fat percentage. Depending on how you hold your weight, anywhere from 12 to 15% is acceptable.

The Stomach Vaccum Ab Exercise

Before we jump in over our heads let's discuss the reason behind this specialized technique.  This exercise I am speaking of is called the stomach vacuum.  Relax, we are not going to pump or vacuum your stomach.  This isn’t a liposuction technique.  The stomach vacuum was widely used in the early days of bodybuilding with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Corey Everson and has become what I refer to as, "the forgotten abdominal exercise."

Have you ever noticed how slim, trimmed, hard, and defined the physiques of bodybuilders were in the late 1970's and early 1980's?  Many of today's top-level bodybuilding competitors have a distended midsection.  This could be due to the drug abuse problem and growth hormone, but it is also connected to the fact that many bodybuilders have simply skipped over an important training tactic.

The Inner and Outer Abdominals  The abdominal region is composed of internal and external muscles. The external muscles are known as the rectus abdominus and the external obliques.

Crunches cause the rectus abdominus to flex.  Crunching forward a third of the way up targets the entire rectus abdominus.  Once the movement goes past this active zone your hip flexors come into play, taking emphasis off your abdominals.

Your obliques are targeted to a greater degree when any twisting action takes place, such as twisting crunches where you bring your elbow to the opposite knee.

The Real Inner Abdominals

The transversus abdominus and lumbar multifidus are the inner abdominal muscles. These muscles are rarely discussed, and are the most neglected.  These muscles lie beneath the rectus abdominus, and external obliques.

The inner abdominal muscles support posture, and control deep breathing during power movements, such as heavy squats.  They are the muscles responsible for back support.  Since they are rarely targeted they are often weaker.

By building a stronger inner abdominal wall you can limit and relieve back pain, improve posture, create a tighter midsection, and add explosive power to your training.

Benefits of the Stomach Vacuum

The stomach vacuum is an isometric contraction of the transversus abdominus.  As previously stated, a stronger transversus abdominus can create a stronger valsalva maneuver (the powerful exhale necessary to contract a muscle during an intense workload). The stomach vacuum is one of the best exercises you can perform to shrink your waistline in a very short amount of time.   Many people can lose an inch or two from their midsection in a little as three to four weeks with this technique, provided the prerequisites are met.  Also, building this area of the abdominal muscle will help you gain more control over your abs, and assist you better in explosive lifts.  Stomach vacuums take practice, but they are extremely effective.