Tag Archives: upper abdominals

Cross Leg Wide Leg Situp

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Hey there! It’s time for a new Home Exercise of the Week and this week I have a great ab exercise for you to try called the Cross Leg Wide Leg Situp.

The Cross Leg Wide Leg Situp is going to work your upper and lower abs as well as your obliques. It can be challenging in the beginning to sit all the way up without your legs lifting up too so you may want to have someone hold your legs down or brace them under something. In time, as your abs get stronger, you will be able to do this without bracing your legs.

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of the Cross Leg Wide Leg Situp.

  • start by laying face up on your mat with your legs straight and your feet nice and wide
  • place your left hand under your head and extend your right arm straight up towards the ceiling
  • flex your abs and without rounding your back, sit straight up while keeping your right arm extended towards the ceiling
  • now take that right arm and reach across towards your left foot while keeping your abs engaged
  • return to the middle and slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position
  • now switch arms so that your right hand is under your head and your left arm is extended up towards the ceiling
  • repeat the sit up but this time reach across with your left arm to your right foot
  • return to the center and slowly lower yourself back down to the starting position
  • keep alternating between each side for your desired amount of reps or time

So there you have the Cross Leg Wide Leg Situp. Definitely add this to your routine to get all areas of your abs fired up!

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

Heel Touch Crunch

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Hey there! It’s time for a new Home Exercise of the Week and this week I have one of my favourite ab exercise for you to try called the Heel Touch Crunch.

The Heel Touch Crunch is going to focus on your upper abs and obliques. The move is simple but don’t let that fool you. You’re going to get a nice burn from this one! 

Let’s take a look at the key performance points of the Heel Touch Crunch.

  • start by laying face up on your mat with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor
  • flex your abs and pull your belly button down towards the floor to keep your abs engaged and your lower back flat against the floor
  • crunch your upper body up until your head and shoulders are off the mat
  • keep looking up to avoid tucking your chin in to your chest
  • from this starting position, reach your left hand towards your left foot and tap your heel (this will give you a nice contraction in your oblique)
  • return to the center and immediately reach your right hand towards your right foot and tap your heel
  • keep your abs engaged throughout and alternate back and forth for your desired amount of reps or time

So there you have the Heel Touch Crunch. Add this to your routine and fire up those abs! 

Let me know how you do in the comments below or if you have any questions.

See you next week with another new exercise!

 

Crunch and Hold Leg Scissors

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I have a core exercise for you for the Home Exercise of the Week.  It’s called Crunch and Hold Leg Scissors and if you’re familiar with Pilates then you’ll notice a similarity with this one.

Crunch and Hold Leg Scissors will work your lower abdominals as well as your hip flexors and for an added bonus the crunch and hold will isometrically work your upper abdominals.  So you know what that means….muscle burn time!

Let’s take a look at the key points to doing Crunch and Hold Leg Scissors properly.

  • lay face up on your mat and raise your legs to a 45 degree angle keeping them as straight as possible.
  • reach towards your toes with your hands by crunching up until your shoulders are off the floor.  Avoid going too high as this can strain your back and avoid tucking your chin in to your chest.
  • while holding the crunch, lower one leg until it is about an inch or two off the floor then return to the starting position and repeat with the other leg.
  • ensure that you are pulling your belly button in towards your spine to achieve optimal ab contraction and to avoid straining your lower back.
  • if you find that your back is arching or hurting while doing this exercise then don’t lower your legs as far down.  You can also just do a crunch while holding your legs up and not doing the scissor movement.

So there you have Crunch and Hold Leg Scissors.  Get those abs burning by adding a couple sets of 20 to 30 repetitions to your ab routine or add it in to a superset to get an even bigger metabolic boost!