How to Strengthen and Define Your Abs

Have you been working toward a flat stomach for what seems like forever and getting nowhere? There are many myths about ab exercises that are guaranteed to generate six-pack abs, but fail to produce results. If you’re ready to target your abs by training your core and maximize your fat burning ability, the following information will be beneficial to you.

Abdominal exercises are a great way to improve the look of your body, giving you a flat, defined stomach. There are many easy, healthy exercises that can tone the muscles around the middle. However, if you’re focusing on strengthening and defining your abs by doing hundreds of crunches, you’re probably not getting the results you’ve been hoping for. In order to achieve six-pack abs, you must start by focusing on your core.

Training your core muscles with targeted workouts will maximize your fat burning ability. By taking the basic principles of cardiovascular and circuit training and combining them with challenging core exercises, you will essentially be working out all of your major muscle groups and burning fat.

So, what is the core? The major muscles of the core reside in the area of the belly, the mid back, the lower back and the hip flexors. Most movements originate with the core, so a strong core is important for preventing and eliminating many common lower back problems.

Many core exercises incorporate the use of a medicine ball. Unlike traditional abdominal crunches that work your abdominal muscles from the top down, medicine balls address the mid-section, the area where most people want improvement. Throwing a medicine ball stabilizes the core, improves your torso and helps reduce the risk of injury due to weak core muscles. Medicine ball training also increases strength and hand-eye coordination by stimulating sport-specific functions like tennis, baseball and golf swings.

Here are two examples of core exercises that incorporate the use of a medicine ball:

Medicine Ball Lunge/Twist

1. Place your feet hip-width apart.

2. With a medicine ball in your hands, lunge forward with one foot as your back knee drops down into a proper lunge. Be sure you keep your back straight so that you aren’t leaning forward.

3. Extend your arms in front of you at chest height with the ball in your hands and twist your torso toward your lead foot. This will cause everything from your torso up to twist with the ball, causing a contraction for the abdominal area. Inhale and bring your back foot up and twist back to starting position.

Medicine Ball Crunch/Toss

1. Begin seated on the floor, legs and spine straight.

2. With a medicine ball in your hands, extend out in front of you.

3. Pull your abdominal muscles in and engage the pelvis as you roll down onto the mat, while taking the ball over the head.

4. Roll back up and start taking the ball up and push the ball forward as you come back to a sitting position.

Core exercises, like those with a medicine ball, allow exercisers to set their own pace and increase motivation while the resulting adrenaline rush creates a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment toward their personal fitness goals. Noticeable benefits to core exercises and ab workouts include better balance, more stability, better posture and more energy. They may also eliminate and prevent back pain.