Ab Lounge? Anyone use it or other *not so expensive* equipment???

cakana

akyramoto82

'jack knife' on the ball ( push up position with shins on ball - tighten abs, pull legs in - butt goes in air) x 20,

side jack knifes ( lying on side, raise top leg, crunch with upper body touch elbow to leg) x25 each side, 

 

I love the "jack knife" and it really works the abs. I'm very uncoordinated, so I think I'd need a helmet or padded walls to try the side jack knifes . It does sound like a very intense workout. Were you able to sit up the next day?

haha!! i know what you mean! i've also found that my core is stronger on one side, which is weird - cuz when i switch during a core workout i'm fine on one side & wobbly on the other.

 I was only sore at the very top of my abs, wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I feel like my abs are one of my 'strong points' other exercises I have a really hard time with.

oh the one exercise i did that same night that made me feel completely uncoordinated was ( i can't remember the name of them - but it's from a fitness yoga class) you're in the 'chest of the deck' position - chest 5-8" off the ground, elbows completely bent, then doing 'mountain climbers' while in that position!! OMG i could barely do it.

  you can do the jack knife thing without the ball, be in the same position but with you feet a little flatter on the ground - more so than when you're doing a regular pushup. then when you tighten your abs & push your butt in the air you roll up to your toes.  same movement, no ball.

one thing i really love about my class is that almost everything we do has a mod so if you have an injury ( or a bad/weak back) you can do a modified version of it.

akyramoto82

 I was only sore at the very top of my abs, wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I feel like my abs are one of my 'strong points' other exercises I have a really hard time with.

That's where I usually feel it the most too. I hate ab work and would rather do anything else but it's the area I need to work on the most. Guess I should try your routine. Hard to imagine I wouldn't see results fairly quickly.

wow akyramoto! thanks for the info!! if you want to pass anything else you have learned on to me - feel free!!! hehe...

i just started dieting and exercising more so Im pumped up and am taking any advice thats given to me!

 ok here's another one.

this one kicked my butt too.lol

  30 regular pushups

jumping jacks x 20 (counting with cadence sooo it's actually 40 jumping jacks)

fast sprint - about the lenght of half a basketball court one end & back

 30 pushups

40 jumping jacks

fast sprint

25 'tricep' pushups ( hands are close - make a diamond with your fingers, try to touch your nose to your fingers when you go down, only go down as far as you can while keeping good form - dont let your back sag, keep your abs tight to support yourself, dont stick your butt in the air either) if you can't do these in full pushup position, then go to your knees.

40 jumping jacks

fast sprint

25 one armed pushups - if you can do that - do one arm plank position & hold for the amount of time that it would take to do 25 pushups 

40 jumping jacks

fast sprint

20 regular pushups

40 jumping jacks

fast sprint

10 tricep pushups ( again)

40 jumping jacks

fast sprint.

thats it!

at home I did 

tricep pushups on ball x 15

leg raises with ball x 20

leg raises & pass off to arms x 15 ( raise ball with your legs - whlle lying on back - raise arms up at the same time, switch ball from feet to hands, lower, raise arms & legs again, pass ball back to feet, repeat.)

situps against a wall x 25 ( lower back/midback on ball, feet on wall, roll up into a sit up)

I extend my arms in the air for added resistance

I agree with others, this is the best equipment for abs:

I got a six pack out of it a couple years ago (need to do it again) 

I agree that the balance ball is worth getting.  You can do a variety of work on it.  I think variety is the key so you are not always doing the same thing.  That way your muscles get a challenge doing different exercises.