The 3 most important exercises for the lateral abdominal muscles | Training of the abdominal musculature

The 3 most important exercises for the lateral abdominal muscles

Also the lateral abdominal muscles should not be neglected when training the trunk:

• Beetles This exercise is not very easy to perform, but it is very effective. Starting position is lying on the back. The fingers touch the back of the head with bent arms and the legs are stretched out on the floor.

  Now the legs and the upper body are lifted, with the diagonally opposite limbs touching above the belly. The right knee and left elbow touch above the belly, and the left knee and right elbow touch. Whenever one knee and one elbow touch, exhale.

  When the limb is put down you breathe in again.

• The hip roll This exercise is a good beginner’s exercise and easy to learn. Lying on your back, the arms are placed on the floor at a 90 degree angle to the sides of the body. The legs are angled and lifted off the floor so that the lower legs are above the buttocks.

  Now the legs are first rolled to one side. You should always keep your upper back in contact with the floor. The legs are rolled to one side as far as possible and then rolled back over the starting position directly to the other side. The end point should always be searched for, so that in addition to strengthening, mobility is also trained.

• Abdominal twists on the machine Usually you sit on a seat and rotate your upper body alternately to the left and right against the resistance of weights or hydraulics. The advantage of exercising on the machine is the very low risk of injury, because the exercise is guided and therefore no harmful postures and positions can occur.

Abdominal muscle training at home

For the training of the abdominal muscles you do not necessarily need equipment and therefore not always a gym. At home, many exercises can be performed to train the abdominal muscles effectively. The forearm support is a simple exercise that can be performed at home on a mat or carpet.

You support the upper body with the forearms on the floor. The feet are also supported on the floor, and an attempt is made to form a bridge from the toes to the forearms. This bridge is held as long as possible.

Then one can walk into the side support. The right forearm first supports the body on the floor. The right foot is the second point of contact with the ground.

The entire body is held in the support position on the right side and forms a line from ankle to head. Here too, the aim is to maintain the position as long as possible. This exercise can be done in a rotation principle because one of the three muscle groups (straight abdominal muscles, left lateral abdominal muscles and right lateral abdominal muscles) is always working while the other two can recover.

Crunches and sit-ups are two more exercises for the straight abs that are easy to do at home. The only difference between the two exercises is that crunches only slightly lift the upper body from the floor, while sit-ups are complete sit-ups. Straight and lateral leg and knee lifting are also exercises that are well suited for your own four walls. All you need is a comfortable base and you can do the exercise at any time of the day. From a lying position, the legs or knees (with bent legs) are lifted from the floor and moved across the pelvis.