quote:

ORIGINAL: stella41b

Erm, what is a 'crunch'?

quote:

ORIGINAL: lusciouslips19

A  pike up on an exercise ball is way more effective,

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1118

If that is too difficult even just holding a push up position works better than a crunch.

Google plank

quote:

ORIGINAL: deliciousmorsel

Like most doctors this one has no freakin' clue- so that article is worthless! Where do you guys find this stuff? Some idiot got a grant and had to use it- just like the stupid orthopedist who spent 10 million to declare that weight belts offered no spine support? Every Sports Medicine doc, physiatrist, PT, and gym rat/ athlete in the country laughed and laughed! A weight belt isn't supposed to support the spine. It supports the big muscles in the core. Two different things.

Similarly- A crunch and a sit up are two radically different things. A sit up will tear up your whole body, in fact I haven't seen one since a crummy elemantary school I was doomed to for two years.

An actual crunch is a small movement done solely by contracting the abs. It's not at all dangerous and is the preferred form of core strength development by any trainer of strength coach with any decent credentials- and I do NOT mean some three day workshop. I mean Masters in Kinesiology. If it was dangerous or even difficult physical therapists wouldn't have back patients on the floor doing them. As a massive spine trouble sort myself, if I didn't catch a hundred a day to keep them going I'd have nothing to pull my S.I. joints and lower back together with and wouldn't be able to walk at all!

What is he talking about- back arch? That's a hyperextension, which can be rough done improperly. But the man's descriptions don't jibe with anything I've seen in gyms over twenty five years.

This is a pretty typical case of got a grant, gotta publish, even without a clue what I'm talking about. And y'all do need to get some exercise. As you age core strength helps with balance and posture and not having that fall and hip fracture.

And I'm surprised you cyclists and riders aren't doing double crunchies- they'd help your form a lot. A rip or several in the stomach doesn't mean you're that strong in the core. Strengthing makes you better at your sport. If Lance does crunchies you can too.


Twenty five years in gyms and on the road made me a masochist... Or is it the other way around?

quote:

ORIGINAL: deliciousmorsel


Similarly- A crunch and a sit up are two radically different things. A sit up will tear up your whole body, in fact I haven't seen one since a crummy elemantary school I was doomed to for two years.

An actual crunch is a small movement done solely by contracting the abs. It's not at all dangerous and is the preferred form of core strength development by any trainer of strength coach with any decent credentials- and I do NOT mean some three day workshop. I mean Masters in Kinesiology. If it was dangerous or even difficult physical therapists wouldn't have back patients on the floor doing them. As a massive spine trouble sort myself, if I didn't catch a hundred a day to keep them going I'd have nothing to pull my S.I. joints and lower back together with and wouldn't be able to walk at all!