The benefits of abdominal strength and endurance are similar to strength and endurance in other skeletal muscles. Greater abdominal strength increases the amount of force that your abdominal contractions can generate against resistance. Flexing your abs repetitively or sustaining abdominal contractions for longer periods of time requires greater abdominal endurance. The unique benefits of abdominal strength and endurance derive from the function of this muscle group.
Posture
Your abdominal muscles support your posture by supporting skeletal structures, such as your pelvis and lower back. Abdominal muscles surround more than 60 percent of your lower body, says The American Academy of Spine Physicians. Abdominal strength and endurance increases spinal stability and reduces your risk of spinal injury. Abdominal weakness imposes additional stress on your lower back muscles, which can hyperextend your lower spine and cause backache.
Agility
Agility involves a combination of balance, strength, speed and coordination. Abdominal muscles control your torso movements, such as flexion, lateral flexion and rotation. Abdominal strength increases your agility by helping you exert greater force when coordinating torso movements and when changing positions. Abdominal endurance provides the energy you need to keep moving your torso, and to change directions, over extended periods of time. Strong abs also help you exert more force with your arms and legs by stabilizing those movements, while abdominal endurance helps you stabilize arm and leg movements for extended amounts of time.
Expiration
Your muscles require greater amounts of oxygen during strenuous exercise. Forced expiration helps meet greater oxygen demands by rapidly emptying air from your lungs, which lets them quickly take in more fresh oxygen for your muscles. Forcing the air out of your lungs requires abdominal strength. Greater abdominal endurance helps you sustain repeated bouts of forced expiration to continue meeting higher oxygen demands for extended periods of time.
Organs
Your abdomen is the largest cavity in your body and contains many important organs. Your stomach and other digestive organs, kidneys, bladder and most of your sex organs are all in your abdomen. Abdominal strength and endurance compresses these organs and keeps them in place by increasing intra-abdominal pressure. Weak abdominal muscles may impair digestive processes, says ExRx.net. Your ability to generate more intra-abdominal pressure reduces the trauma caused by blows to your midsection. Taking a punch in the stomach without tightening your abs is an example of weak abdominal pressure. The blow produces pain, nausea and may cause internal damage.
References
- The American Academy of Spine Physicians: 30 Tips For Better Spine Health
- ExRx: Common Muscular Weakness
- Fitness And Health Tips Today: Agility Training Develops Coordination and Precision
- http://fitnesshealthtoday.com/agility-training-develops-coordination-and-precision/
- http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/franco3.htm
- Bodybuilding.com: Perfect Abs; Ben Black
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