The other day during one of our Group Personal Training Sessions a member asked, "Why don't we ever do any crunches or sit ups?" This is actually a very common question and many new members are surprised to find that our workouts do not contain any crunches ever.
So here is why.
1. Crunches and Sit Ups are not the most effective way to get a six-pack or flat stomach. The idea of isolating an area to lose the fat there is false. To lose fat, whether abdominal or somewhere else, we need to clean up the nutrition.
2. Research has shown that exercises that focus on stabilizing the core (e.g. planks) result in greater muscle stimulation than crunches and sit ups.
3. The musculature of the core is designed to support the spine and provide that support through anti-flexion and anti-rotation. It is not designed to flex as in a crunch or sit up and very few of our everyday activities require us to flex through the core. Additionally, most people spend the majority of their day sitting and have rounded shoulders and poor posture. Crunches and Sit Ups just reinforce bad posture that leads to many other issues, whereas exercises like planks work on correcting the posture.
4. Leading back researcher Dr. Stuart McGill has found through his research that crunches and sit ups create 3350 newtons of stress on the lower back and that anything over 3300 is dangerous.
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St. Baldrick's "Shaving the Way to Conquer Kids' Cancer!" On March 31st, 2012 at Baden Volunteer Fire Department one of our members Kevin Blanarik is having his head shaved in support of the St. Baldrick's Foundation to raise money for kids' with cancer. Donations can be made at www.StBaldricks.org by searching his name and making a donation or by making a donation at the gym. We hope that everyone supports this great cause and help Kevin reach his goal of $1000 raised for the St. Baldrick's Foundation.
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