Since this program is designed for all levels of experience, here's how to determine how many crunches you need to do each week. (You'll need a friend or family member to assist you.)
1. Lying on a carpeted floor or an exercise mat, get in proper crunch position: knees bent, feet flat on the floor, fingertips lightly touching the sides of your head and elbows out to the sides. The objective is to do as many "perfect" crunches as possible. Keep them slow -- three seconds to lift your head and shoulders, pause for a second with the abs fully contracted, and then three seconds to lower your body.
2. Check for perfect form. This is where your partner comes in. Have him count aloud one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, three-one-thousand to ensure that you don't cheat. At the same time, he should check to be sure that on each crunch your shoulder blades are coming off the floor about 3 inches -- about the width of his hand. As soon as you're unable to do the crunches in perfect form anymore, stop.
3. Do the arithmetic. Start with the number of perfect crunches you just did. Call this your "score."
If your score is between:
1 and 5, subtract 1 from your score [Level A]
6 and 10, subtract 2 from your score [Level B]
11 and 15, subtract 3 from your score [Level C]
16 or more, subtract 4 from your score [Level D]
This is your number of reps per set. That is, the number of times you need to repeat the crunch without taking a break. In our Smart Abs Workout you'll need to do three sets of each crunch described.
4. At the end of each week, retest yourself as described above. This gives you your number of reps per set for the next week. If you haven't advanced to the next level -- for instance, if your score was in Level A all week, and it's still in Level A -- repeat last week's workout.
If you scored under 4, start by practicing the pelvic tilts for a week. Then take the test again. Once you're able to complete at least 4 "perfect" crunches, you're ready to begin the three-week Smart Abs Workout.
Do three sets of each exercise.
Crunch
Lying on the floor, concentrate on pulling your rib cage and pelvis toward each other as you slowly curl your head and shoulders off the floor. Keep your head and neck in line by imagining that you're holding a softball between your chin and chest. When your hands are by your ears, don't pull on your head.
Knees bent, feet on
floor, arms on chest
Crunch with a Twist
Same as the crunch. But as you twist your upper body, concentrate on pulling your shoulder, not your elbow, toward the opposite knee.
Knees bent,
arms on chest
Reverse Crunch
Contract your abdominals, pressing your back into the floor, so that your hips come about 1 to 2 inches off the floor. Hold and then lower.
Legs on chair, no upper-body movement
No comments:
Post a Comment