Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions β written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Abdominal exercise
Introduction
Abdominal exercises are those that affect the abdominal muscles (colloquially known as the stomach muscles).
Breakdowns
Breakdowns
The anterior abdominal wall is made up of 4 muscles– the rectus abdominus muscle, the internal and external obliques, and the transversus abdominus.
Effectiveness of abdominal exercises
Effectiveness of abdominal exercises
The effectiveness of abdominal exercise is measured using electromyography (EMG) relative to the traditional crunch. The following ranks abdominal exercises from best to worst in terms of activity detected by the EMG measures: [1]
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Safety of abdominal exercises
Safety of abdominal exercises
Abdominal exercises also put some degree of compressive force on the lumbar spine, putting unwanted stress on the lower back. A study of twelve exercises concluded that no single exercise covered all abdominal muscles with high intensity and low compression. [2]
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References
References
- β Mark Anders (2001). “New Study Puts the Crunch on Ineffective Ab Exercises” (PDF). ACE fitnessmatters. Unknown parameter
|coauthors=ignored (help) - β CT Axler (1997). “Low back loads over a variety of abdominal exercises: Searching for the safest abdominal challenge”. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 29: 804β810. Unknown parameter
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