BODYBUILDING: ABS(ABDOMEN) WORKOUTS

STOMACH VACUUM

To begin, stand straight with your feet shoulder width apart from each other. Place your hands on your hips. This is the starting position.
Now slowly inhale as much air as possible and then start to exhale as much as possible while bringing your stomach in as much as possible and hold this position. Try to visualize your navel touching your backbone.
One isometric contraction is around 20 seconds. During the 20 second hold, try to breathe normally. Then inhale and bring your stomach back to the starting position.
Once you have practiced this exercise, try to perform this exercise for longer than 20 seconds. Tip: You can work your way up to 40-60 seconds.
Repeat for the recommended amount of sets.

TOE TOUCH

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To begin, lie down on the floor or an exercise mat with your back pressed against the floor. Your arms should be lying across your sides with the palms facing down.
Your legs should be touching each other. Slowly elevate your legs up in the air until they are almost perpendicular to the floor with a slight bend at the knees. Your feet should be parallel to the floor.
Move your arms so that they are fully extended at a 45 degree angle from the floor. This is the starting position.
While keeping your lower back pressed against the floor, slowly lift your torso and use your hands to try and touch your toes. Remember to exhale while perform this part of the exercise.
Slowly begin to lower your torso and arms back down to the starting position while inhaling. Remember to keep your arms straight out pointing towards your toes.
Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

SEATED LEG TUCKS

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Sit on a bench with the legs stretched out in front of you slightly below parallel and your arms holding on to the sides of the bench. Your torso should be leaning backwards around a 45-degree angle from the bench. This will be your starting position.
Bring the knees in toward you as you move your torso closer to them at the same time. Breathe out as you perform this movement.
After a second pause, go back to the starting position as you inhale.
Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

Variations: You can also perform this exercise on a mat on the floor just by placing your arms to the sides. In this case, the legs will be stretched and elevated slightly over the floor. Also, as you become more advanced you can hold a dumbbell in between your feet or attach a pulley to them for added resistance. However, you have to be very careful when adding weight to this exercise as if you add too much too quickly you could get a hernia.

REVERSE CRUNCH

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Starting Position

Lie on the floor or a mat on your back, with knees bent and hands behind head. Lift legs and bend knees to 90 degrees. Keep a space between your chin and chest (looking diagonal towards the ceiling).

Action

EXHALE: Pull knees in toward chest and hold for 2 seconds.

INHALE: Slowly lower legs back to starting position.

Special Instructions

Don't use your momentum to swing your legs up. Try to keep the motion controlled by your abs.

Muscles Worked: Abs

EXERCISES BALL PULL IN

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Exercise Description and Instruction:

The exercise ball pull in uses an ab ball to isolate and work your abdominal muscles. The exercise ball forces you to keep your abs contracted and balance your bodyweight throughout the exercise.

To Perform this Exercise:

Lay on your stomach as if you were performing a pushup. Place your feet and shins over an exercise or stability ball. Keeping your back straight and supporting your weight on your hands, pull your knees towards your chest, so the ball rolls forward under your ankles. Crunch your abs and then roll the ball back to starting position straighten your legs.

Tips:

Keep your back straight as you perform this exercise.

CRUNCHES

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Step 1
Starting Position: Lie on your back on a mat with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor and heels a comfortable distance (12-18") away from your seat.

Step 2
Place your hands behind your head. Pull your shoulder blades together and your elbows back without arching your low back or causing your ribs to splay out. This elbow position should be maintained throughout the exercise. Your head should be aligned with your spine.

Step 3
Upward Phase: Exhale. Engage your abdominal and core muscles. Nod your chin slightly as you slowly curl your head and shoulders off the mat. Pull your rib cage together and toward your pelvis. Keep the neck relaxed. Your feet, tailbone and lower back should remain in contact with the mat at all times. Continue curling up until your upper back is lifted off the mat. Hold this position briefly.

Step 4
Downward Phase: Gently inhale and lower your torso back toward the mat slowly and with control. Keep your feet, tailbone and low back in contact with the mat.
Proper form is important for this exercise to prevent excessive stress on your low back. Individuals typically perform this movement too rapidly and recruit the hip flexors to assist with the upward phase. Doing this should be avoided as it causes the pelvis to tilt anteriorly, increasing the stress on the low back. The abdominals connect the rib cage to the pelvis so the movement should focus on bringing these two body parts closer together while keeping the neck and shoulders relaxed.

CABLE CRUNCHES

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Exercise Instructions

Attach the rope attachment to a high pulley cable and set the appropriate weight on the stack.
Stand directly in front of the cable machine, facing away from it.
Grasp the rope from behind your head with your palms facing inward and drop to your knees.
Your buttocks should be resting on top of your feet. Keeping your elbows bent and hands at either head height or shoulder height, crunch down as far as possible.
Pause, then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.

Cable Crunch Tips:

This exercise works best when done slowly with perfect form.
Your buttocks should stay touching your heels at all times.
Focus on crunching the abs in, not pivoting at the hips.
As you increase weight it may be more comfortable to rest the rope on your shoulders.
Don't choose a weight so heavy that your lower back handles most of the resistance.

BENT KNEE HIP RAISE

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Exercise Advice:
                                   Begin by lying on a mat on your back with your hands at your sides and your knees bent with your feet raised two inches off the floor. Bring your pelvis up and your knees up toward your chest, contracting your abdominals and hold for a two second count. Return to the start position and repeat until failure.
Things To Avoid:
                                Make sure to really watch your form on this exercise and go very slowly throughout the entire range of the movement. Performing the bent knee abdominal hip raises exercise very slowly will allow you to really feel the tension in your abs, so make sure to avoid fast and jerky movements.
Reps and Sets:
                                 The ideal repetition range for this exercise will be in the higher limit, so shoot for between 15-30 reps per set. Total sets should be 3-5 and you can combine this exercise with 2-3 additional abdominal movements to get a great overall ab workout. Rest times between each set should be 60-90 seconds in order to fully recover before your next set.