Your serratus anterior muscle works along with four other muscles: the trapezius, the rhomboideus major, the levator scapulae and the pectoralis minor. Those muscles move your pectoral girdle, pulling your scapula forward and downward. When you strengthen your serratus, you are also working these other muscles. Exercises such as the hand walkout, plank, plow and ab wheel target your serratus anterior muscle.
Hand Walkout
The hand walkout engages the serratus anterior muscle. Start on your hands and feet with your buttocks up in the air. Walk your hands forward away from your feet and stop in a pushup position. Walk your hands back in toward your feet. Make it harder by adding a scoop pushup when you are in the upside-down V position. Lower your nose to the floor between your hands. Glide your nose forward an inch above the floor. Your body will be arching or scooping forward until your arms are straight. Then lift your abdomen and ribs and push your buttocks up toward the ceiling until you are in an upside-down V position again. Alternate hand walkout and scoop pushup until you experience muscle failure.
Plank
A plank exercise is performed on your elbows and forearms in pushup body position. Start with the balls of your feet, elbows and forearms on the floor. Your body is up off of the floor. Make your body rigid by squeezing your thigh and buttocks muscles. Scoop up your stomach and ribcage. Tuck your pelvis downward. Hold this position while you breathe deeply three times. Challenge yourself by centering one foot, like a tripod, and lifting the other leg up behind you. You can tax your serratus muscle by planking with one foot and bending the other leg underneath your abdomen. Rotate your trunk by bringing the bent leg underneath and toward your bellybutton. Reverse and repeat until you experience muscle failure.
Plow
A plow is also performed in pushup position. Place two washcloths under the balls of your feet and assume the pushup position. Slide one foot in and bend the knee up toward your ribs. Alternate sides and continue. Do both legs at the same time. Place extra payload on the serratus anterior by sliding both feet up and rotating both knees over to one side. Slide back out to pushup position and reverse the motion. Continue until you experience muscle failure.
Ab Wheel
The ab wheel is a piece of equipment that has one rolling wheel with a handle on either side. Hold the handles and kneel in pushup position with the ab wheel directly under your sternum. Scoop up your abdomen. Inhale and roll the ab wheel forward until your body is stretched out a few inches above the floor. Exhale and roll the ab wheel back under your sternum. Repeat until you experience muscle failure. Modify this exercise by rolling out 4 to 6 inches before returning. As you get stronger, roll it out farther. Substitute a stability ball for the ab wheel. Kneel in an erect body position and place your fists on top of the ball with thumbs pointing up. Roll forward until your body is stretched out and pull back up to kneeling.
References
- "YMCA Personal Training Manual"; YMCA of the USA; 2006
- "Anatomy of Strength Training"; Pat Manocchia; 2010
- "Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology";John W. Hole, Jr.;1986
Member Comments