Weight Training Exercises Mid-Section
Low Back & Abdominals
How to Build Rock-Hard Abdominals
Many people want to know the "secret" to building a firm, slender waist with rippling abdominal muscles. So many people in fact, that it's turned into a multi-million dollar industry of its own.
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Jeff Anderson, author of Optimum Anabolics & Homemade Supplement Secrets, offers some helpful abdominal training tips. |
You've probably seen plenty of the TV infomercials for some of the crazy abdominal devices. Some work so well, you only have to use them for five minutes a day and you'll miraculously have a ripped mid-section in a matter of weeks... NOT!
A set of washboard abs is in high demand, no matter what gym you train at. Everyone wants them, but few people have them.
The truth is, developing a well defined set of abdominal muscles take more than just a few minutes a day on the latest "as seen on TV" ab machines. Like any other muscle group. Your abs must be trained using the same principles, and this seems to be where many people go wrong.
Now before we get any further there is one thing that needs to be cleared up. One of the keys to building a set of well defined, rock hard abs is to have a low body fat percentage. Simply put, if you can "pinch and inch" of body fat on your stomach, your abdominals will not be visible no matter how hard you train them. Heck you might have an eight pack, but no one will know if you have a two inch layer of body fat covering it!
The Anatomy of the Low Back & Abdominal muscles
The mid-section is comprised of the erector spinae in the rear and the abdominal muscles (rectus abdominis, obliques, and transverse abdominis) in the front.
The rectus abdominis muscle is the most visible of the abdominal muscles. This muscle is what creates the "washboard" effect on the front of the stomach. It's primary responsibility is to flex the spine (including lateral flexion). For example, if you lie on your back on the floor, this muscle will come in to play both when you raise your upper body off of the floor, and when you move your upper body to the right or left.
The internal and external obliques are on the side of your trunk, to the left and right of your rectus abdominis muscle. They aid the rectus abdominis in flexion of the spine, but play a larger role in rotation of the spine.
The Transverse abdominis is not a visible as it is located behind the other abdominal muscles. The only responsibility of the transverse abdominis is to help with forced expiration and core stabilization. It does not flex or rotate the spine like the other muscles. For these reasons, we will not go in to as much detail about this muscle.
Contrary to popular belief, there is no way to isolate the lower or upper abs, or the oblique muscles. Every abdominal exercise you perform will train all of the abdominal muscles.
What you can do however is modify exercises so that they place more emphasis on specific muscles in the mid-section. For example, in order to increase the emphasis on the oblique muscles, you would want to incorporate exercises that involve spinal rotation like
Rectus Abdominis
Point of Origin: Chest of the pubis
Insertion: Cartilage of 5th, 6th and seventh ribs and the xiphoid process.
Primary Action: Flexion and lateral flexion of the spine.
The rectus abdominis is the the muscle
Exercises: All abdominal exercises will effectively train the rectus abdominis muscle.
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Vince Delmonte, the author of No-Nonsense Muscle Building, demonstrates a killer abdominal training circuit. |
External Obliques
Point of Origin: Borders of the lower eigth ribs at side of chest.
Insertion: Front of the ilium, crest of pubis, fascia of the rectus abdominis.
Primary Action: Spinal flexion, lateral flexion to right, lateral flexion to left.
Exercises: Although the obliques do come in to play during all abdominal exercises, those involve rotation of the mid-section will place more emphasis the obliques. The external obliques. Rotating to the right will target the left external oblique, while rotating to the left will target the right external oblique.
Internal Obliques
Point of Origin: Upper half of the inquinal ligament, front of the crest of the ilium, lumbar fascia.
Insertion: Costal cartilages of the eighth, ninth and tenth ribs and the linea alba.
Primary Action: Lumbar flexion, lateral flexion to right, lateral flexion to left.
Exercises: All abdominal exercises target the internal obliques to a certain extent. Unlike the external obliques, the internal obliques run diagonally in an opposite direction. This means that rotating to the right will target the right internal oblique muscle, while rotating to the left will target the left internal oblique muscle.
What are the Best Low Back & Abdominal Exercises?
- Cable crunches - Excellent abdominal exercises that allows you to increase resistance. Can be particularly effective for the obliques when you twist slowly from side to side.
- Crunches - A versatile exercises, considered a classic. Can be performed at any time, anywhere.
- Hanging leg raises - Great exercise for all abdominal muscles as well as core stabalizers. Can be substituted with upright leg raises.
- Reverse crunches - Targets all abdominals, not just the lower muscles. Can be performed on a flat or angles bench.
- Spinal extensions - A good exercise for the erector spinae muscle. Can be performed on thte ground, or using a roman chair or back-extension apparatus.
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