To pump up your abdominal muscles, all you need is to have a fitness training mat and know the best abdominal exercises. Additional equipment will be needed for advanced athletes. Since the upper abs very quickly get into the desired shape and are easily restored, there will be no problems with their training if you follow all the recommendations and instructions.
How to pump up the upper abdominal muscles for girls?
A complex has been developed especially for girls, which consists of 6 effective exercises.
No. 1. Rack
Despite its apparent ease, performing a stand is quite difficult. Start with 20 seconds and increase the load with each workout:
- Starting position: lying on your stomach;
- Rise up on your elbows, keeping your back and legs straight;
- Stay in this position and lower yourself to rest for 10 seconds;
- Repeat the task.
No. 2. Twisting
- Take a position lying on your back. The head is raised and the legs are kept hanging, knees bent at right angles;
- Lifting your shoulder blades off the floor, pull your chin towards your chest, twisting the upper part of your abs into an accordion;
- Stay in this position for 10 seconds;
- Return to the starting position.
No. 3. Deflections
This task also seems relatively easy, but you should not ignore it, since it is one of the best, thanks to which you can tone the upper abdominal muscles:
- Lie on the floor on your stomach with your legs and arms extended along your body;
- Lift your torso up, lifting it off the floor as much as possible. At the same time, also move your arms and legs as high as possible towards the ceiling;
- Return to the starting position after a delay of 3 seconds and repeat the task.
Breathe deeply and evenly as you perform, feeling the work of your abdominal muscles.
No. 4. Combined lifts
This task involves lifting the torso with bent knees and using dumbbells. Allows for more detailed development of muscles:
- Sit on the mat with your knees bent and your torso flat on the floor;
- Pull your torso towards your knees, while keeping your hands straight in front of you, without helping them in the process;
- Get down on the floor;
- Now pull yourself up again, but at the same time grab the dumbbells lying nearby and pull them to your chest;
- Lower yourself to the floor again.
Perform the task rhythmically, but not too quickly. The total number of repetitions is 30 times for a beginner.
No. 5. Running from a prone position
Outwardly, this task resembles climbing on the floor in place:
- Lean on your palms, keep your back straight. Bend one leg at the knee;
- Change your legs abruptly, as if jumping.
Do the task 40 times in total.
If it is still difficult for you to “run” while lying down, then you can make your work easier by simply alternating your legs, first bending one, returning it back and bending the other. It’s easier to do this way and the load is less, but then you need to try to switch to the advanced version of the task.
No. 6. Twisting from the position on hands
- Stay in the same position as for the previous task - resting on your palms and keeping your back straight;
- Pull one knee towards you, and then move it to the opposite side, performing a kind of twisting;
- Return to the starting position and repeat on the other leg.
In total you need to do this 16 times. In the advanced version, try to move your legs as far as possible, and do the task itself more slowly. This will increase the load.
Recommendations
The upper abs need to be trained in a special way. Their structure requires a diverse approach, since they support internal organs and participate in the breathing process.
Anyone who wants to get a beautiful relief or strength should consider the following information:
Number of approaches. Depending on the goal pursued, the type of load is determined. If the main goal is to get a sculpted belly with a beautiful separation border, then you do not need to do more than 20 repetitions in one approach.
For fighters, an important quality is strength, thanks to which they can take heavy blows to the body without damaging internal organs.
For them, on the contrary, you need to do as many contractions as possible to increase the amount of connective tissue.
Regularity. In the process of gaining muscle mass, the recovery period is considered an important stage. Therefore, if you performed complex movements with weights, you need to give the tissues time to rest.
But when an athlete has already been training for several months or years, and upper abdominal exercises are not accompanied by muscle pain, you can switch to daily training.
Technique. It is important to understand that even a slight change in amplitude or the inclusion of third-party muscles can lead to an undesirable result. Problems with the joints may begin or the figure will lose its aesthetics.
While performing the movement, you need to concentrate so that the main tension falls on the required group.
Breath. Before pumping up your upper abs, you need to be aware of what this will lead to.
If you do not take the time to breathe properly, you can develop serious problems with internal organs that need the elasticity of the abdomen to change pressure.
In addition, it will not be easy for the chest to overcome the resistance that the muscles will provide. Therefore, you need to breathe properly during exercise. This helps stretch compressed tissues.
Upper abdominal exercises for men
Loads for men should be higher than for women. You can start working right away with small weights and use various exercise machines to help.
#1: Angle Bench Press
To complete the task you will need a bench at an incline of 30 degrees:
- Position yourself on the bench so that your head is lower than your feet. Secure your feet to the support. Hold your hands behind your head or in front of you, crossed;
- Rise up until your elbows touch your knees. This is not necessary, but the main thing is to almost get it;
- Smoothly lower yourself back and repeat the task.
During the execution, you can use a combination of light and deep lifts. To do this, rise low on the first lift, and on the second, reach your elbows to your knees. This will provide different stress on the muscles and make them work better.
If you want to make the task even more difficult, cross your arms over your chest in front of you and rise up in this initial position. The higher the angle of the bench, the more difficult the exercise will be.
No. 2. Forward folds with a load
For this task you will need a simulator:
- Position yourself with your back to him, kneeling, and grabbing the weight with your hands. Set the weights light initially;
- Pull the weight firmly in front of you, trying to angle your arms straight toward the floor. You will achieve a prayer pose. Keep your back slightly rounded;
- Hold at the peak point for a few seconds and slowly rise up.
Start with 20 repetitions and gradually increase the load and number of repetitions.
#3: Hanging Abs with Legs Elevated
You will need a crossbar:
- Hook your hands on the bar;
- Pull your extended legs up to form a right angle;
- Stay in this position for several seconds;
- Return to the starting point.
Repeat the task 15 times. In the future, you can use dumbbells or weights to increase the load on your legs.
This exercise involves all the abdominal muscles, so it can be called universal.
No. 4. Triple complex with added load
This is a combined task of three exercises. The main thing is not to get confused:
- Lie down on a flat surface, pull your knees up, put your hands behind your head;
- Rise your torso up;
- Get down;
- Take the dumbbells lying nearby in your hands, cross your arms over your chest and lower yourself again;
- Return to the starting position, stretch your legs;
- Rise up again, this time with straight legs and dumbbells on your chest;
- Go back;
- Repeat the complex from the very beginning.
The cycle is designed to gradually increase the difficulty of the load in one approach. Repeat the complex 10 times in total.
In general, men are better off going to the gym, where they can do much more abdominal exercises, which we wrote about in this article.
How to pump up your abdominal muscles at home?
It’s easy to pump up your upper abs at home, since you don’t need to have special exercise equipment to work these muscles - just work with your own weight or supplement the load with dumbbells (water bottles).
Exercise No. 1. Lazy abs
This task can be performed early in the morning, even before getting out of bed. Take 2 minutes immediately after waking up to do it. This does not guarantee you six-pack, but elasticity and tone will definitely appear in just a couple of weeks:
- Lying in bed on a flat surface, lift your chin, looking at your feet;
- Stay in this position, feeling tension in your abdominal muscles, for one minute;
- Lie down for 5 seconds in relaxation and repeat the task again.
Start with 3 sets of 1 minute each, gradually increasing the load, observing how easy it becomes for you to perform the lazy press. If the tension is low, then the number of approaches and duration of the task must be increased.
Exercise No. 2. Classic press
The simplest and at the same time most effective task for the upper abdominal muscles:
- Hang your feet on the edge of the bed. It is best to keep your legs bent at the knees, but if you already have some training, then keep your legs straight or pull them up with your knees bent;
- Place your hands behind your head and do not help yourself with them while completing the task;
- Climb at a calm pace, forcing your muscles to tense;
- Lower yourself to the starting position.
Repeat the task 30 times. Over time, you need to increase the load and complicate the task with weights. Also, at a certain stage, you need to learn to do without support - your legs are freely fixed on the floor or hang in a bent position in the air.
In the most difficult version of the exercise, the legs can be raised to a small height.
Exercise No. 3. Oblique turns
To complete this task, you need to find a surface to put your feet on. A bed or sofa is quite suitable:
- Position yourself so that your back is on the floor and your legs are hanging (a simplified version is in a bent position on the floor);
- Clasp your hands behind your head;
- Raise your torso so that your right elbow touches your left knee and your left elbow touches your right knee alternately, while pulling your right knee towards your left elbow, and vice versa (see photo below);
- Repeat the task for each pair 15 times.
There are several options for doing this exercise. Use the heaviest one or all at once.
- Alternate repetitions . In this form, you first press your left elbow to your right knee 15 times, and then repeat the task for the other pair. It is important to maintain a calm pace of climbs.
- Pair lifts . During the task, you first raise your right elbow to your left knee, lower yourself, and then raise your left elbow to your right knee and lower yourself again. The effectiveness of the exercise does not suffer from this. The total number of repetitions for a beginner is 30 times.
- Delayed ascents . In this version of the task, you raise your right elbow to your left knee, and then immediately, without lowering, stretch your left elbow to the opposite side. Do each side 5 times and lower. Thus, you will increase the load on the abdominal muscles by holding static tension.
Read more about what abdominal exercises you can do at home here.
When and how to start training?
There is an opinion among people that there is and cannot be anything better than morning training on an empty stomach, but there is a refutation to this. The fact is that in the morning your glycemic index is close to the minimum mark, so your strength and energy are not in the best condition. In this regard, please note the following:
- Before actual abdominal training, a warm-up is required. For example, dance aerobics (belly dancing, oriental dancing is relevant), stretching or mini-cardio warm-up to ensure that the body is ready for further exercise.
- You can and should exercise in the morning, but doing “passive” exercises, preferably stretching, yoga or Pilates, will be your best contribution to the start of a new day.
- After completing the exercises, you need to provide yourself with protein (chicken breast, cottage cheese) and porridge (oatmeal), you can supplement it with fruits and a spoonful of honey.
Most often, there is enough time in the evening, so come home from work, have a healthy light dinner, and after an hour and a half you can begin warming up and strength exercises on the upper abs.
Remember, without small adjustments in your diet towards cereals, fish and plant foods, you will not be able to achieve the desired result.
