Tag Archives: back

V Crunch

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I have a challenging, stomach and leg burning abdominal exercise for the Home Exercise of the Week!  It’s called the V Crunch and the lactic acid build up in your abs may make you want to cry but in the end it’s worth it!

The great part of this exercise is you will be working your upper and lower abdominals at the same time as well as your hip flexors.  That being said, if you have lower back issues I recommend only lowering your legs a little bit to keep the strain off your back or keep them up throughout the movement.

Some key points to remember when doing the V Crunch:

  • start by laying flat on your mat with your arms overhead and legs straight out
  • slowly raise your legs up keeping them straight while at the same time raising your arms and shoulders off the mat until your hands and legs meet in the middle and hold for a second before lowering
  • it’s important to keep your head in line with your spine during this move so you don’t strain your neck
  • slowly lower your arms and legs back down but stop before touching the floor.  This will keep the tension on your abs throughout the exercise
  • keep your abs flexed and your lower back pressed against the floor by pulling your belly button in towards your spine
  • exhale as you raise your arms and legs up and inhale on your way back down

So there you have the V Crunch.  Add this in to your ab routine or throw it in to a superset and feel the tear inducing burn!

Wall Sit Shoulder Press

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It’s time for another Home Exercise of the Week!  Get your legs and shoulders fired up with the Wall Sit Shoulder Press.

From the video, it may look simple enough but don’t let that fool you…this will burn!  Grown men have almost cried because of the wall sit, curses have been vocalized through clenched teeth, and sweat has poured down grimaced faces.  I know it sounds horrible and you might be thinking “Craig, why would I ever want to put myself through that?”.

Well the answer to your question is you will gain more strength and endurance in your legs, you will increase strength and mobility in your shoulders, and you will strengthen the deep core muscles of your trunk and your spinal muscles.  All that plus if you’re weird like me, you might even think it’s fun! (Ok I’ll be honest…it’s more fun making people do it than actually doing it!)

The wall sit portion of this exercise is isometric which means you are working your muscles without any movement at the joint.  This is great for building strength and endurance.

Some key points to remember when doing the Wall Sit Shoulder Press:

  • make sure your knees are directly over your ankles
  • slide down the wall until your thighs are parallel to the floor
  • keep your back pressed firmly against the wall
  • press your arms back against the wall as much as you can throughout the movement (you may not be able to maintain contact with the wall throughout the exercise at first but over time your mobility will increase)
  • exhale as your press up and inhale as you lower your arms

So there you have the Wall Sit Shoulder Press.  Start with a couple sets of 12 repetitions or a couple of timed sets of 30 seconds at the end your leg or shoulder workout and feel the burn!

Sea Turtle

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In case you just quickly read the title of this post I’m not actually going to be talking about Sea Turtles!  As cute as they are, this is a fitness website…not a wildlife one. 😉

What I am going to discuss here is the Sea Turtle exercise for the Home Exercise of the Week.

I would say this is an easier exercise compared to some of the exercises I have shown in the past but it is still very effective and will help strengthen your lower back muscles.  Along with the erector spinae muscles, you will be working your glutes, posterior deltoids (rear shoulder), rhomboids (middle back), and trapezius (large muscle that spans the neck, shoulders, and back).

Some key points to remember when doing the Sea Turtle:

  • keep your head up off the floor and in line with your spine
  • laying on your stomach can make it hard to breath but try not to hold your breath
  • squeeze your shoulder blades together when bringing your arms out to the side
  • perform at a nice even pace…not too fast, not too slow.  A good speed would be two seconds out then two seconds in

Try doing a couple sets of 20 repetitions to start off with then as you get comfortable with the movement, try a couple timed sets of as many Sea Turtles as you can do in 20 – 30 seconds.

So there you have the Sea Turtle!  It’s not just a cute animal anymore but an effective back and butt exercise!

Plank Back Row

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Is it just me or do the weeks fly by faster and faster?  It seems like I just posted a Home Exercise of the Week and now it’s that time again!

This week I would like you to try a Plank Back Row!  I know I named the exercise differently in the video but a One Arm Back Row from a Pushup Position is just way too long and not very catchy!

There are a lot of muscles being used in this exercise so the metabolic effect is very high.  The more muscles you use, the more calories you burn.  The primary muscles targeted are your lattisimus dorsi, teres major, posterior deltoids, and trapezius. (if the latin words are confusing you, you’re not alone…basically they are your back muscles, rear shoulder muscles and your neck muscles)  With the Plank Back Row, you will also be working your core as well!

Some key tips to remember when doing the Plank Back Row:

  • keep your body as straight as possible (no butts sticking up in the air)
  • pull your belly button in towards your spine to keep your abdominals flexed
  • raise your arm forward and pull your elbow back keeping it in line with your upper body
  • if the full plank position is too challenging at first, try performing this exercise from your knees instead of your toes until you get stronger

So there you have the Plank Back Row!  This is a great back and core exercise that requires no equipment whatsoever…just a small amount of room and you’re good to go!

Cross Body Mountain Climber

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This week’s featured exercise is the Cross Body Mountain Climber.  This is a fantastic exercise that will build strength and tone your abs including your obliques.  Not only will it bring you one step closer to that highly sought after “six pack”, it will also strengthen and tone your entire body!  Shoulders, triceps, chest, back, quadriceps, glutes, and calves are also working in this movement.

Some key points to remember when doing the Cross Body Mountain Climber is to keep your body straight from head to toe.  So no butts in the air on this one!  If your butt is up high you won’t be engaging your abs and too much strain will be put on your shoulders.  Another point to remember is to keep your abdominals flexed throughout the movement.  An easy way to engage your abs is to pull your belly button in towards your spine.  If you aren’t flexing your stomach then the abs aren’t being worked as effectively as they could be.

The difference between this exercise and the regular Mountain Climber is the degree to which your oblique muscles are being used.  Driving your knee to your opposite elbow will really get them working.

The Cross Body Mountain Climber can be done anywhere so by adding this great core exercise to your routine you’ll be on your way to a strong and flat stomach!