Five Awesome Pilates Exercises for the Abs
by Maia Appleby
What do people ask about the most often?
You got it -- they want to know what the best
abdominal exercises are!
I disagree with most personal trainers on this
topic. I've seen people doing sit-ups, weighted
crunches, leg lifts and all kinds of things,
but I haven't heard many of them say that they
were really happy with their results.
Resistance training is great for strengthening
and building muscles, to give you sort of a
boxer's build, but most people don't want their
abs to get bigger -- they want their waistline
to get smaller! In my experience, I have found
that the classic abdominal exercises don't do
what we want them to do.
Pilates moves are by far the best abdominal exercises. Where
crunches work primarily the rectus abdominus (the large "six
pack" of muscle in the center of the abdomen), Pilates
works the deeper abdominal muscles and the stabilizers that
help to hold it all in. It has also been shown to lengthen the
muscles substantially, giving a taller, leaner appearance. If
you want to look smaller in the waist, definitely try Pilates.
Here are five exercises that tone the abs.
There are many more, and Pilates is meant to
be done in one smooth-flowing sequence, but
to get the feel for it, you can work on these.
Most of the pictures below are of Mari Winsor
giving individual instruction. She has worked
with many, many stars, including Jamie Lee Curtis,
Daisy Fuentes and Patrick Swayze, and they adore
her. I highly recommend her book 
The Pilates Powerhouse.
Mari Winsor also has great videos and guides
at very reasonable prices, considering the high
cost of working with a certified Pilates instructor.
If you really want to maximize your Pilates
workout, you should check out her package
deal, which is currently only $39.90.
The Hundred --
Lie on your back with your knees above
your chest and extend your arms at your
sides. Now lift your chin and chest
slightly, so you're up on your shoulder
blades and raise your legs upward. Lift
your arms 6 inches and quickly pump
them up and down five times while exhaling
. Now inhale, pumping your arms five
times. Repeat 10 times to make 100 pumps.
Sound easy? Just try it! |
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The Roll-Up -- I
prefer to call this the "roll-DOWN",
since that's the important part of this
exercise. Sit with your legs straight
and your arms in front of you (see photo).
Holding your abs in, slowly roll all
the way down, feeling each vertebra
press into the mat. until you're lying
flat, being careful not to let your
feet pop up. Now raise your arms above
your chest and slowly roll your torso
up and forward, tightening your stomach,
until you're back to the starting position.
Reach your fingers out beyond your toes
(or as far as you can) and roll down
again. Do five to ten of these. |
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Rolling Like a Ball
-- Fun AND effective! Sit up and pull
your ankles in toward your buttocks,
wrapping your hands around them. Bring
your head toward your knees and lift
your feet off the mat so that you're
balancing on your tailbone. Tighten
your tummy and slowly roll backward
just until your shoulders touch the
mat -- be careful not to roll on your
neck. Immediately roll back up -- like
a ball!. Do five of these.
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The Teaser -- Lie
flat on your back with your legs straight
out and arms on the mat, stretched straight
up over your head. Lift your legs up
while raising both arms overhead until
your fingers are pointing at your toes
(see photo). Exhale and slowly roll
back down, feeling each vertebra press
into the mat, back to the starting position.
Repeat three times. This is HARD at
first.
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Crisscrosses --
With your head slightly raised, bring
your knees to your chest and place your
hands gently behind your head (don't
interlace your fingers). Inhale and
slowly twist to the right, bringing
your left elbow to your right knee while
extending your right leg (see photo).
Hold this long enough to exhale. Now
inhale and return to the starting position.
Repeat, bringing your right elbow to
your left knee. Do five sets (ten crisscrosses
total).
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