Current Events > What's a way to work out your abs without killing your lower back with situps?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I've been working out so I can bang more A**** chicks, and I've been doing situps for a while. But recently it's been killing my lower back so I've kinda just stopped so I don't exasperate it further >_> Is there anyway to work out my abs without straining my lower back? I've heard that situps apparently are bad for your back, so I kinda believe it now that I've had some pain recently lol

Planks, squats

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/2/9/0/AAEhCpAAETtK.jpg

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=sixpack.sixpackabs.absworkout

ThisIsAKnoife posted...

Planks, squats

I have been doing 4 sets of 30-second planks. Do squats work out your abs? I've been doing both regular squats and sumo squats

Were_Wyrm posted...

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=sixpack.sixpackabs.absworkout

lol I see that recommended all the time. Is it really good?

DKBananaSlamma posted...

lol I see that recommended all the time. Is it really good?

Its free, its not horrible, and at the very least it'll give you ideas for ab exercises that aren't situps.

8 minute abs

You could try mountain climbers
https://youtu.be/nmwgirgXLYM

There's also lots of standing exercises that can work your core
https://youtu.be/m8HScrQndpU

I haven't done mountain climbers in a long while, but I'll try them.

Were_Wyrm posted...

Its free, its not horrible, and at the very least it'll give you ideas for ab exercises that aren't situps.

I'll check it out. I hope it isnt gonna ask me for money every 5 minutes

try autofellatio

noisetank posted...

try autofellatio

I wish I could but I'm not nearly flexible enough. Plus apparently testimonials say it feels more like you're ****ing a *** than it does getting your **** ****ed. So I'll pass >_>

Pooping

DKBananaSlamma posted...

I've kinda just stopped so I don't exasperate it further

Exacerbate.

plank that shit

2 minutes of horse stance.

Lose more weight.

Do crunches, not situps. Also use the ab machine at the gym if they have it.

DKBananaSlamma posted...

I have been doing 4 sets of 30-second planks. Do squats work out your abs? I've been doing both regular squats and sumo squats

Goblet squats iirc

My ab workout is planks, mason twists, crunches, side bends, leg raises, and sometimes side planks. Look up videos for proper form, ideally you would have a mirror nearby so you can keep an eye out if you are slipping up.

But the lower back issue might need addressing, better to address pain now then have it worsen later I assure you. Do you work out your lower back, and does it hurt when you do?

I don't really work out my back because I lift heavy things at work and dont want to strain it >_> If I did situps it starts to hurt and hurts for a few hours before subsiding. I haven't done situps in a week >_>

You can try some toe touches

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/3/2/0/AAeowgAAETto.jpg

Resistance bands can be great for abs too. They're pretty cheap.

If sit-ups are hurting your back, ditch them. They place a lot of load on the lower-back and PSOAS muscles, so they're not the best way to isolate your abs. Spine biomechanic Dr. Stuart McGill recommends against them entirely.

My favorite ab exercises are ab wheel rollouts and good ol' planks.

GeraldDarko posted...

You can try some toe touches

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/3/2/0/AAeowgAAETto.jpg

Resistance bands can be great for abs too. They're pretty cheap.

FYI if your back is hurting then forcing it into a stretch can sometimes make it worse. When in pain, stability before mobility.

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

My favorite ab exercises are ab wheel rollouts and good ol' planks.

I was thinking about getting an ab roller. I'll look into it. Thanks PPP!

DKBananaSlamma posted...

I was thinking about getting an ab roller. I'll look into it. Thanks PPP!

I used to be unattracted to anything that looks like it could be sold on an infomercial but ab rollers are so good. Especially when you work up to using em from a standing position.

You'd be less likely to injure yourself if strengthen your whole core tbh, which includes lower back. Try adding some sets of back raises to your core workout maybe.

You can also try stretches, they can lower back pain and build muscle pretty safely. Supermans, bridges and seated floor touches are good and not strenuous.

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

FYI if your back is hurting then forcing it into a stretch can sometimes make it worse. When in pain, stability before mobility.

I was suggesting it for a low-impact ab exercise. I can't do sit-ups either, but that one works for me.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

lol I got modded for saying the reason I work out is to get with chicks of a certain ethnicity >_>

I mean I also want to be in better shape, perform better at my job, be healthier, have more energy, have more confidence too, etc. But I need to keep my priorities straight. Banging A**** chicks is #1. Eyes on the prize, baby!

GeraldDarko posted...

I was suggesting it for a low-impact ab exercise. I can't do sit-ups either, but that one works for me.

Not trying to shoot your suggestions down but bending down to touch your toes really isn't an ab workout, no matter what your experience level is.

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

Not trying to shoot your suggestions down but bending down to touch your toes really isn't an ab workout, no matter what your experience level is.

Rotating your torso as in the picture is...

Leg ups while on a pull up bar

GeraldDarko posted...

Rotating your torso as in the picture is...

There's no resistance profile you can claim from simply twisting your torso to say that's an effective way to load and train the abdominals.

Your abs are doing some work by merely moving, just like your bicep is working when you do something as banal as picking up a pencil, but is there any meaningful stimulus that the muscles are adapting to? Just by twisting? Hardly.

And on top of that, you really don't want to blindly tell someone with back pain to stretch their back that far. I can scan Dr. Stuart McGill's take on that from one of his textbooks when I get home.

planking

literally planking.

how in the fuck is anyone even talking about something that isn't planking.

the answer? planking

Robot2600 posted...

planking

literally planking.

how in the fuck is anyone even talking about something that isn't planking.

the answer? planking

Planks are great but you're shortchanging yourself if you ONLY do isometrics when there are so many other methods to kill the abs, too.

all these other things require back movement tho and the topic was about abs without killing back

once we in that place i think planking is indeed the answer.

also, while we at it, do some back workouts on the back machine at the gym.

Simply having lumbar flexion isn't "killing" the lower back so yeah, there's plenty of reason to recommend other exercises in addition to planks (which are excellent for treating back pain, btw). He said he has pain from sit-ups, which uniquely have a reputation for being hard on the discs and are recommended against by probably the biggest expert on spine biomechanics in the world, McGill (I still do em but they don't give me pain).

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

There's no resistance profile you can claim from simply twisting your torso to say that's an effective way to load and train the abdominals.

Your abs are doing some work by merely moving, just like your bicep is working when you do something as banal as picking up a pencil, but is there any meaningful stimulus that the muscles are adapting to? Just by twisting? Hardly.

And on top of that, you really don't want to blindly tell someone with back pain to stretch their back that far. I can scan Dr. Stuart McGill's take on that from one of his textbooks when I get home.

Damn. That was a lot. Very fair point not to take my advice.
When I do them, my obliques definitely burn. To me, that's ab stuff.

I could honestly elicit a lactic acid response and make my forearms burn from doing 30 or so reps of light wrist curls but it doesn't mean I'm doing much for my forearms (and obliques aren't abs, anyways).

PPP what's your opinion on whey protein? I take it but have plenty of water with it because I heard protein molecules are large and it's tough on your kidneys.

@Pow_Pow_Punishment

It's great for the convenience factor and is a high-quality protein source but don't be under the impression that there's anything substantially better about supplements vs whole food.

High protein diets damaging your kidneys is unsubstantiated. Most of the studies purporting that were in people with kidney damage, or diabetics.

"The available evidence suggests that, in healthy people, a high-protein diet does not adversely affect kidney function or increase the risk of CKD."
https://examine.com/categories/kidney-urinary-health/faq/3JDjn2r-can-eating-too-much-protein-be-bad-for-you/

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

It's great for the convenience factor and is a high-quality protein source but don't be under the impression that there's anything substantially better about supplements vs whole food.

Yeah I was wondering if powder is fine or if it would be better to get it from chicken/salmon or beans or whatever else

i hate ab exercises with a passion and only found 2 that didn't bring me as much grief:
ab roller
ab pulldown(cable)

i used to do both but in the end just stuck with the latter exercise since it allowed me to treat the abs as any other muscle group and enabled me to load up and get fatigued within a decent rep range instead of banging out say 10-30+ reps of random exercises where your body seems to give up before your abs do.

The Red Hot Core video of DDP Yoga helped me a lot. I have too much body fat for visible abs but my core got a lot stronger for other poses and I went back to it to help with lifting.