Workout Tips for Abs

Just before swimsuit season, people may scramble to tone their abs before hitting the beach. If your abs are more flab than fit even after exercise, you may be overlooking some of the most important components of ab exercise. By maintaining the right posture and pairing your ab workouts with cardio, you can achieve a more effective ab workout for a svelter waistline and flatter physique.

Engage your Abs

When you perform ab exercises during your workout, your posture may be just as important as the actual exercises that you complete. If you slouch your body while exercising, your abs will not receive the proper isolation, and you won't see the results that you want. In short, slouchers will have a pouch of belly fat that doesn't seem to go away, notes SpineUniverse.com. When exercising, ensure that you maintain a neutral spine and engage your abs by pulling your belly button to your spine.

Exercise Each Area

Your abdominal muscles are made up of three distinct areas: the upper abs found over your lower ribs, the lower abs beneath your belly button, and the left and right obliques, which are positioned over your hips. Regular crunches only target your upper abs, so you won't get a thorough workout with that one move. Instead, complete a variety of exercises that target each area. Reverse crunches are ideal for lower abs, and a bicycle can help tone obliques for a better rounded workout.

Add Cardio

Performing crunches day in and day out can certainly strengthen your abdominal muscles, but you still may not see the ripped core muscles that show off all of your hard work. That's because cardiovascular activity must be teamed with strength training in order to burn fat while carving muscle, notes to book "Shortcuts to Sexy Abs" by trainer Colleen Moriarty. Each time you exercise your abs, remember to include a half hour of cardiovascular activity as well, such as biking, running or time on the elliptical so you can show off your abs.

Rest Your Muscles

It may seem counter intuitive, but after you exercise your abs, you must rest them. Columbia University Health Services notes that when you exert your muscles too frequently, you can cause damage. Each time you exercise your abs, give them a day to regenerate and become stronger. Intersperse other exercise, like cardio or flexibility training, in between the days where you exercise your abs, and you'll likely see better results in your abs and in the rest of your body.