When most people think of the term "waist exercises," images of crunches and other ab exercises come to mind. Waist exercises actually refer to all the muscles of the waist from the front and around to the back, incorporating many more muscles than just the abs. If you want a toned, defined waistline, you need to do exercises for the abs, but also the lower back and love handles.
Rectus Abdominus
Because the primary job of this muscle is to flex your spine forward, rectus abdominus exercises are those that use this action. An example of a waist exercise for the rectus abdominus muscle is the classic bent-knee crunch. Simply lie on your back with your knees bent and feet resting on the floor. Place your hands behind your head and lift your head and shoulders toward the ceiling about 30 degrees off the floor.
Transversus Abdominus
The transversus abdominus, or transverse abdominus, is the deepest abdominal muscle of the waist. This muscle is primarily responsible for stabilizing your trunk. Transversus abdominus exercises are those that require pulling in the muscle and stabilizing the trunk. An example of a transversus abdominus exercise is the abdominal vacuum. Simply kneel on the floor with your spine straight and pull your belly button toward your lumbar spine.
Obliques
The muscles that criss-cross the front and sides of the waist under the love handles are the obliques. Exercises for the obliques either bend the spine sideways or rotate the torso. The obliques also assist the rectus abdominus in spinal flexion. An example of an oblique exercise is the plank twist on a stability ball. This exercise also works the psoas muscles of the hips and the quadratus lumborum
of the lower back. The psoas muscles support the abs. To perform a plank twist, dive over the top of a ball and walk your hands forward with the arms straight until the knees rest on the top of the ball. Your torso is parallel to the floor. Bend the knees, then roll the ball side to side as you twist your hips.
Erector Spinae
The erector spinae muscle group is the main group on the back of the waist. The erector spinae extend the spine backward and assist with rotating and sideways bending of the spine. An example of an exercise for the erector spinae is the weighted back extension on a stability ball. To perform this exercise, place a ball under your stomach and put the balls of your feet wide on the floor with the knees bent. Hold a weight behind your neck or beneath your chin. Start with your head near the floor, then raise your upper body toward the ceiling. You can do this exercise without a weight if the weighted version is too hard.
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