ShareMost Dangerous Core Exercise
If you walk into the gym, you’ll see people doing all kinds of crazy “core” exercises trying to get toned, flat abs.
Well at least in my gyms.
And the thing is…
Most of these exercises are more likely to do harm than good.
There’s plenty of ab exercises on KV’s no-no list like sit ups, weighted side bends, and crunches (not because they are super “break your back” dangerous – just not as effective as other moves)
I’m not a fan of these exercises because they put a lot of strain on your lower back.
And I love you and don’t want you to get hurt.
So skip these ones, ok.
But there’s one move that people might use to “get rid of love handles” that no one talks about and it’s super dangerous… (even though you can’t do one specific exercise to target and reduce fat from one spot)
And the most dangerous core exercise is…
Russian Twists
Why You Should Not Do Russian Twists (and the better alternatives to improve your back and get side ab definition)
You probably know what the Russian Twist looks like:
Sit on the floor and lean back at a 45-degree angle, bend your knees with your feet either on the ground or slightly elevated. Hold something in front of your chest, usually a medicine ball or dumbbell. From the starting position, twist your shoulder left to right.
And it makes sense why people do it… core rotational movements are common in a lot of sports like golf, hockey, baseball. Plus you feel it working your obliques. And yes, you’ll see people in the gym using a heavy medicine ball or dumbbell, and twisting with a flexed spine.
But here’s the thing…
You need to train your external obliques for the all of the primary movements they were designed for:
- stabilization (as in side plank)
- rotating your torso (as in a Russian twist)
- side bending (as in a side bend)
- flexing forward (as in a crunch or situp)
So if the Russian twist directly targets the obliques, what’s the problem?
Here’s why it’s a bad idea:
You put a ton of stress on your lower back.
For one thing, your lower back is only able to rotate 10 to 15 degrees. So when you’re flexing your spine and twisting at the same time in an unsupported position – you’re putting a lot of stress on your lower back. And you can seriously hurt yourself. Especially with a heavier weight.
And if you have back issues and weak obliques in the first place, you’re at even greater risk of getting injured.
OUCH.
OK so if the Russian Twist is another no-go move, what can you do instead?
Here’s a step-by-step plan:
Level 1
- Side plank (and if you’re more advanced, add in a variation like raise your knee to your chest, or lift your top foot to the ceiling.
Most new clients I see have a great plank game but struggle with the side plank. Heck I’m not surprised. It requires good lateral stability and often people do the wrong exercises to train your side abs.
Then you can develop rotational power with these exercises…
Level 2
- Standing core press (with a resistance band or cable machine)
Level 3
- Standing or Half Kneeling Woodchops (with dumbbells, resistance band or cables). this image below is a Standing DB Woodchop… Make sure you do both sides.
Yes. Now you can see that you can do hard, challenging core exercises to sculpt and tone your abs – without injuring your back in the process.
Speaking of challenging ab exercises, if you want lean, flat abs and to shrink your waistline without damaging your back then check out the Ultimate Abs Report.
It’s 100% FREE at this link below:
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Inside you’ll discover:
- Discover simple, step-by-step ab routines to replace boring, painful crunches you won’t find anywhere else.
- How to get leaner and tighter by deliberately shortening your ab workouts (Everyone thinks you need to train abs everyday, but too much exercise can slow your results. See the full story on page 11).
- 5 toughest ab exercises you should be doing (HINT: these specific exercises attack your belly fat and strengthens your core at the same time.) See page 8.
- The REAL reason 99% of people never get six pack abs from their ab workouts (It has nothing to do with counting macros or mindset. They simply lack this ONE critical training principle that can make or break your results. See page 6).
==> Click Here To Grab 7 FREE (and Tough) Ab Workouts
Have an awesome day!
Your Coach and Friend,
Kate Vidulich
One Reply
thanks