Free stretching techniques e-book

–> click here for Stretching Report <–

Discover the 7 stretching secrets that
90% of people aren’t using to maximize
your athletic performance and reduce
your chance of sports injuries

Plus…

- Safe guard yourself against inappropriate stretches
- Learn what type of stretching to use and when to use it
- Discover how to use stretching to speed up your recovery
- Learn advanced stretching techniques to minimize sports injuries
and take your athletic ability to the next level
- and much more…

–> click here for Stretching Report <–

The human growth hormone (HGH) which is produced by the anterior pituitary gland is one of the hormones that significantly affect our lives. HGH affects almost all cells in our body. After its secretion in the pituitary gland, HGH moves to the liver where it is converted to insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). IGF-1 stays in the bloodstream and goes all over the body where it works by reversing the first signs of aging.

The anti-aging property of HGH affects almost all cells in our body. HGH rejuvenates the skin and bones, regenerate the heart, liver, lungs and kidneys and brings the organs function back to its youthful levels. It also helps in retaining a youthful immune system thereby allowing the body to fight against diseases more effectively. With a revitalized immune system, risks for heart attack and stroke are greatly lowered while patients with lung disorders such as emphysema would have better oxygen uptake.

HGH production however reaches a critical point as one gets older. Starting from age twenty, HGH production falls 14 percent every decade until individuals reach a point when they would be wholly deficient of HGH. Consequently, the reduction of HGH levels lead to the appearance of the signs and symptoms of aging since lower levels of HGH affects the body’s ability to fight the aging process.

The question on how to keep HGH at normal levels during middle age has been answered by the availability of HGH. Initially, HGH injections were only source of HGH to help boost HGH levels. But then, HGH injections are not only expensive but using it may elicit negative response from the body since HGH injections contain the synthetic form of HGH. In addition, injecting HGH directly into the bloodstream may pose risks of ending up with excessive growth hormone.

Recently, human growth hormone supplements become available. Use of HGH supplements can be considered as the way to combat aging. One of the advantages of HGH supplements over HGH injections is that with supplements, there is no need to inject HGH directly into the bloodstream. This prevents abrupt increase of HGH levels and makes it easy to maintain the natural levels of HGH. HGH supplements contain natural stimulants that stimulate the pituitary gland to produce greater amount of HGH.

One of the important components of HGH supplements are amino acids. With age, the decrease in HGH levels is associated with an increased production of somatostatin, a known growth hormone blocker. The amino acid, arginine in HGH supplements blocks the activity of somatostatin thereby allowing natural HGH production more effective. For people who wanted to increase their HGH levels, they may opt for HGH supplements but they have to choose which HGH supplement works for them in order to prevent any negative side effects.

Click Here To Get Great Deals on Fitness Equipment.

Ab Trainers, Yukon Lat Machine Yukon Lat Machine, Weight Benches, Body Fat Monitors, Elliptical Trainers, Exercise Bikes, Heart Rate Monitors, Home Gyms, Rowing Machines, Stairmaster Steppers, Treadmills, Weights / Dumbbells, Weight Machines, Wholesale Fitness Equipment, Weight Trees / Racks, Lower Body / Leg Machines, Bars & Attachments, Leverage Squat, Fitness Equipment 12 Months Same As Cash.

Click Here To Get Great Deals on Fitness Equipment.

Supplement Warehouse Coupons from one of our partners saves you money on your supplements and accessories.

here is a limited time coupon available to our website visitors

Save an extra 10% off -
Original Lipodrene 25mg Ephedra Diet Pills

Use coupon code
lipo10
at checkout.

Save 10% on your purchase of Lipodrene at Our Partner’s Supplement Store! – Click Here

The perfect abs excises you’re about to set blazing through your midsection will be the result of a smoldering perfect set of abs you can show off at the beach or the bedroom.

While many bodybuilders crave the burn that you get from tearing up a muscle group, nothing compares to the sensation you get from this fiery perfect abs workout.

Unlike other muscle groups, ab workouts usually consist of a long, continual sets with no rest periods, maintaining constant strain and tear on your six-pack.

Hopefully, your abs will be so blazing hot from this workout that you could fry eggs on your tummy.

DECLINE SITUPS: Lock yourself into the decline bench. With your ankles lodged underneath the pads, slowly lift your upper torso off the bench. Make sure that your upper torso everything above the waist is perfectly straight. Lift only a few inches off the bench, or so that your torso forms a 45 degree angle with the floor. Make sure you are concentrating on the abdomen, squeezing the ab muscles at the contraction. Slowly lower your torso to the bench, trying to merely touch the bench with your back, not resting any of your body weight on it. Try doing 3 sets of 40-50 reps.

ROPE CRUNCHES: Connect the rope attachment to the upper hookup of the cable machine. Grab one side of the rope in each hand and turn away from the weight as you drop to your knees. Make sure that the weight is not set too high and that you are grabbing the rope on its ends. Hold the rope to the sides of your head and slowly lower your torso toward the floor. You should squeeze your abs during the exercise, stopping your elbows about six feet from the floor. Slowly bring your head back up to the starting position and repeat the motion. Try doing 3 sets of 30-40.

PIKES: Lie flat on your back on either a mat or the floor. Have your arms outstretched with your fingertips pointing to the ceiling. Bend your knees slightly. Slowly raise your shoulders and your legs off the floor simultaneously. Try to touch your toes with your hands while you squeeze your abdomen. Slowly bring your shoulders back to the mat and your feet back to the floor. Repeat the movement for 3 sets of 20 repetitions.

Of course, variations to these exercises will work different parts of your midsection. To fry those obliques, try twisting your shoulders into the movements. For instance, with decline sit ups, bend your torso to one side during the exercise and on the next rep, try hitting the other side. This twisting motion will brush through your abdomen like a raging forest fire.

How to Gain Muscle Mass

By Big Al Fortney

Most everyone who works out wants to gain muscle mass. Gaining muscle mass takes on a very different meaning for very different people. Some people want to have bigger muscle, such as bodybuilders. Other people want to gain muscle mass in order to lose body fat.

There are still others who want to increase their bone density. Building muscle mass does not necessarily mean that you are going to look like a bodybuilder. I have head many people in the gym state that they want to “tone” and not build muscle. In order to “tone”, you must build muscle, as more muscle burns fat – plain and simple.

Your body, more or less, is predisposed to building a certain amount of muscle. In addition, your body carries various types of muscle fibers which dictate how much muscle you can build. (These fibers dictate what activities you should participate in to be most successful).

For instance, sprinters and football players carry different muscle fibers than a marathon runner or cross-country skier. Nonetheless, everyone has the ability to build more muscle. Science and nutrition have come a long way over the past decade.

The first key in building muscle is to pay attention to your diet.

You have to eat more calories than what you burn off. Eating a good breakfast consisting of a high protein meal is the start.

- Protein is essential for building and repairing muscle. You should eat 1 to 1.5 grams per pounds of lean muscle mass to support muscle growth. Protein supplements are an easy way to do this. It is also important to eat carbohydrates, as they are the body’s first source of fuel.

- Carbohydrates give you energy to for those hard workouts. Carbohydrates such as rice, oatmeal and potatoes are good examples.

- Fats also plays an essential role in building muscle mass. Don’t be afraid to eat them. Healthy fats found in fish and peanut butter play an important role in hormone production. You will also find yourself in a better mood, as well. Remember to drink plenty of water. Dehydrated muscle takes longer to repair itself.

The second key to building muscle is weight training.

Simply put, if you are serious about gaining mass, then you need to use serious weight.

-Using heavier weight and lower repetition sets, such as 6-8 reps, puts more stress on the muscle and nervous system. This added stress stimulates more muscle fibers resulting in muscle growth.

-The best exercises to do are multi-joint exercises, such as free weight bench press, squat and dead lift. These three exercises should be the core movements of your workout.

The third key is using nutritional supplements.

-Vitamin C is an important vitamin. It helps to protect against damage to inflamed joints, cell damage and aides in muscle recovery.

-I believe in taking multi-vitamins daily. This is a fail-safe step. It is important to make sure that you are not deficient in any vitamins for maximum gains.

-I also recommend using creatine. This supplement causes fluid retention within the muscle creating extra energy and leverage to lift heavier weight.

-Protein is the key to building and repairing muscle. Incorporating whey protein into your diet is an easy and effective way of helping you to add 1 – 1.5 grams of protein per pound of lean body mass per day. This is also a very good source of protein to use post workout when you want to replenish you system right away. I use Eclipse Deluxe Whey. One shake is an easy and delicious way to add 40 grams of protein to your diet.

Building mass is not a complex undertaking nor is it something to fear. It is healthy for all individuals to build muscle. You have to examine and decide what your goal will be.

Whether it is bodybuilding, power lifting, specific sport performance, losing fat, or building stronger bones, the steps to reaching your goals are pretty much the same.

Granted the road that a power lifter takes to squat 1,000 pounds is varied from the road a person trying to lose body fat takes, but it is the key steps that are the same.

It is important for all individuals to maintain a proper diet that is rich in protein, weight train with a goal at hand, and supplement your diet with proper nutritional supplements.

Our genetics are responsible for the most part as to the amount of muscle we carry and the activities that we are best suited for. However, we can manipulate our genetics to optimize our performance and reach our desired goals.

Reprinted with permission from www.eclipsecec.com

This article was taken from Eclipse’s magazine, BodyTalk. Click here if you would like a free copy.

Six Pack Abs Training with FlexYourMuscles.com

Wanta a sensational six pack abs without spending hours in the gym.

Here’s an easy six pack abs training set to do just that.

CRUNCHES: Lay down on the floor, bending your knees slightly so your feet are flat on the floor. Cross your arms in front of you, putting the left hand on the right shoulder and the right hand on the left shoulder. Slowly curl your your shoulders off the mat, squeezing your abdominal muscles with each raise. Be sure not pull your neck upwards (this is why we put our handing in front and not behind the neck); rather make it a natural, smooth-flowing motion. Lift only your shoulder blades off the mat and hold that position for a span of two seconds before slowly releasing the shoulders back to the mat. Be sure not to let your shoulders completely rest on the mat before beginning your next repetition. Do 1 set of 25- 30 reps, then move right to the next exercise, only a few seconds of rest between sets.

CABLE CRUNCHES: Set up a double-rope at the cable machine, (if you don’t have a cable machine, try using an exercise band attached to something high, like a door chin-up bar). With your knees on the floor, grab the ropes with both hands, put your hands at your forehead, locking them at this point on your head. Slowly curl your body and bring your elbows – and the resistance – down to your knees, holding the contraction for a two-count. Slowly rise up to a position where your torso is parallel to the floor and repeat the motion. Do 1 set of 25- 30 reps using a moderate weight, then move right to the next exercise, only a few seconds of rest between sets.

KNEE UPS: Sit on the edge of a bench, grasping on the sides of the bench with your hands to maintain steady balance. With your legs extended outward, slowly pull your knees into your chest, squeezing the abdominal muscles during the contraction. Hold this position for two seconds and then slowly extend your legs before repeating the motion. Try to keep the rocking and bouncing at a minimum. Do 1 set of 25 reps for this exercise, then move right to the next exercise, only a few seconds of rest between sets.

KNEE RAISES: Use a chin-up bar for this one, get a firm grasp on an overhead chin-up bar with your arms spread slightly wider than your shoulders. Make sure that your feet are not touching the floor. Trying not to swing or rock, slowly culr your body up bring your knees toward your chest, as if you’re trying to bring your knees to touch your chest. Squeeze your abs and hold for a moment before slowly releasing your legs back to a straight position. Wrist straps are often used to assure a firm grip on the bar. Attempt 1 set of 10-15 reps per set, then move right to the next exercise, only a few seconds of rest between sets.

Now rest 1 to 2 minutes and repeat the exercises for a total of three 3 super sets of Six Pack Abs Training exercises

Any of these Six Pack Abs Training exercises can be done with your torso twisted at an angle in order to hit those stingy, hard-to-develop obliques. Also, abdominal muscles should be trained just like any other muscle group, which is on the average of one to 3 times a week. I personally like to train abs after my leg workout or back workouts.

Here’s what to look for in The Best Protein Shake

The best protein shake should have a combination of:

• 100% Ion-Exchanged Whey Protein Isolate – because it has the highest biological profile of any protein source and it’s very beneficial for weight lifter, bodybuilders, athletes, dieters and just about everyone!
• Low Carbohydrate and Low Glycemic Formula – to prevent sugar spikes that can contribute to body fat storage.
• Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA’s) – these are used for fule while you workout and help speed recovery after workouts.
• Multivitamin Complex: A power-packed vitamins needed for muscle support.
• Digestive Enzyme Complex – Enzymes formulated to help your body digest and assimilate proteins, fats and carbohydrates.
• Bovine Colostrum – to support the immune system, also help improve athletic performance by increasing serum insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and boost the healing powers of Growth Hormone.

Read more about our top rated (Best Protein Shake – cleck here)

7 Best ab exercises

Abdominal Power by Dr. Michael Colgan

Spreadon my desk are 22 articles on abs, taken from recent issues of muscle and fitness magazines. Not one of them correctly identifies abdominal musculature and only two show any exercises that will improve abdominal power. It s a sad commentary on the influence of bodybuilding, which focuses on improving only one of the abdominal muscles, the rectus abdominis, or six-pack. It s the main abdominal muscle you can see (and admire in a mirror).

Under this influence, millions of misguided athletes endure endless hours at crunches, leg lifts, sit-ups, Roman chairs and weird and wishful ab machines. The net result is a minor increase in ab strength and a minimal reduction in the girth of the waistline. The only virtue of these shenanigans is that they keep people off the streets. You would get better abs chopping firewood.

If you want athletic power, don t waste your time with conventional ab flapdoodle. Consider what an athlete needs in the mid-section. The abdominals and associated back muscles, called the multifidi, form the corset of your body’s core. In my book The New Power Program, I show how the core is your power center, through which power is transferred from the ground or other fixed point of leverage, up and down the body.1 Without a strong core, strong arms and legs cannot apply their power on the playing field.

Martial artists have known these things for centuries, but when bodybuilding developed in the 1930 s, its promoters were not listening, because they only wanted to develop muscles for sideshow. You see it in hundreds of bodybuilding programs. Abs are tagged onto other bodyparts, almost like an afterthought. Bodybuilders train from the outside in. Arms and legs, back and chest, then a little bit of
abs, which is usually confined to the six-pack. If you want athletic power, train your body from the inside out core first, then torso, then arms and legs.

Tight Gut

By tight I don t mean a sucked-in gut, but rather a natural inward curve of the abdominal wall when the muscles are relaxed. Without this firm support, all your soft squashable organs flop around inside, dissipating your power. A loose gut is like a sealed rubber tube, loosely filled with little rubber balls. If I hit the top of the tube with a sledgehammer, it squashes and bulges. Very little of the power of the sledgehammer blow is transferred out the bottom. But if the tube is tightly filled and firm as a fence post, almost all the power is transferred. If you watched Michael Johnson break the 400 meters at the 1999 World Track and Field Championships in Seville, Spain, you know what I mean. He had no body sway. His power transfer through super-firm abs was so precise, he ran like a machine.

Not the Six-Pack

The first big surprise to many athletes at my seminars is to learn that the six-pack has nothing to do with a flat stomach or tight gut. The six-pack is a long flat muscle whose fibers run vertically down the body from the breastbone and fifth, sixth and seventh ribs, to the top of the pubic bone. The six sought after bumps poke out through a grid of flat tendons that run down the center and across the muscle at intervals.

The function of the six-pack is to flex the trunk so that your rib cage moves toward your pelvis. In doing so, it causes the stomach to bulge, never to become flatter. There s no mechanism by which the six-pack can flatten your gut its fibers run the wrong way.2 Haven t you ever wondered why some bodybuilders have incredibly defined abs but, when relaxed, they stick out like a beer belly. That s what ab training with sit-ups, crunches and Roman chairs will do for you.

Still not convinced? Try this. Lie on your back and put one hand on your gut. Now do any type of crunch or sit-up you like. You will feel the stomach bulge immediately as the six-pack shortens and thickens.

Transversus Power

The main muscle that holds your gut flat and firm is the transversus, a thin sheet of muscle to the sides of the six-pack that joins into the connective tissue behind it. The transversus is your body s natural corset. It s fibers run across the gut, join into the back sheath of the six-pack and wrap around the sides of the body, attaching all along the rib cage, around the top of the pelvis and
into the back muscles.

The transversus is the main muscle that pulls in your gut. Despite this clearly defined function, it is hardly ever trained in conventional ab routines, probably because you can t see it in a mirror.

Internal Obliques Stability

The transversus is assisted by the main stabilizers of the trunk, the internal oblique muscles. The diagonal fibers of the internal obliques provide acriss-cross layer of support over the horizontal transversus fibers. Unless youhave strong core stabilizers, your upper body will sway like a sapling wheneveryou try to apply your power. Yet, because they are also invisible in a mirror, the internal obliques are rarely trained in bodybuilding routines. Athletic coaches, however, do realize their value, and use great side-to-side exerciseswith medicine balls to get at them.

Astrong transversus and internal obliques also reduce pressure on the vertebral discs of your back by up to 50%. Especially so when you pull the gut up and in when lifting. Weight lifting belts and back supports used by truck drivers and warehouse staff reduce vertebral pressure by only 20 30%. Natural muscle wins every time.

External Obliques Rotation

The final outer layer of muscle, which is visible, consists of the external obliques. Fibers of the external obliques run on the opposite diagonal to the internal obliques, providing a further criss-cross layer of support for the gut. They also rotate your trunk and bend it sideways, important functions for athletes.

But the external obliques are shunned in conventional ab training, because bodybuilding exercises make their lower fibers show like love handles and make the waist wider.

Most idiotic of conventional ab routines are the hundreds of standing or bent over trunk twists done with a broom pole, or worse, a barbell on the shoulders, in-vain attempts to make the external obliques smaller. The net result of this ballistic twisting is to stretch these muscles where they attach to the pelvis, and make them sag out even further.

You better get the external obliques trained right if you want athletic power. Electromyographic studies show that whenever you lift a weight in front of the body, or move to walk or run, the first muscle to fire is the transversus, followed by the internal obliques and the external obliques, and the lumbar multifidi muscles of the back. Only then does the rectus abdominis fire, and weakly at that.3,4 After all the abdominal muscles are firing and the trunk is stabilized, the prime movers of the movement begin to fire. If the transversus or internal or external obliques are weak, then all your movements are weak also.

Six-Pack Or Psoas

Once you have the transversus, internal obliques and external obliques under control, then you can consider the six-pack for its important athletic function in moving the breastbone towards the pubic bone. But even this simple movement is missed by most conventional ab training. Sit-ups, straight leg raises and Roman chairs, and lying or sitting ab machines that constrain the feet or legs, primarily exercise the psoas muscles which run from the top of the femur (thigh bone) through the pelvis to connect to the lumbar vertebrae. The psoas act to move the trunk towards the knees. Now you know why a lot of ab exercises give you a sore lower back.

The psoas become very strong whenever you arch your back to increase their leverage, and will override the six-pack, which is weak in any unsupported arched back position. Arched back means belly out, not the way you want to be for sport, or for life. Arched back with psoas under load also puts a shearing load on the lumbar spine, a big no-no for athletes.

Our rule is, bum in and round the back whenever you work your abs.

The Pelvic Floor

The floor of your pelvis, which supports your organs and intestines, is not bone, as many people seem to think. It is made of muscles. These muscles are pushed down by compression of the organs whenever you increase intra-abdominal pressure. So whenever you pull up on the transversus to tighten the abs, you should also pull up on the pelvic floor muscles to hold up your guts.

Martial arts have always recognized the importance of internal pelvic exercises to build a strong power center. Apart from these sports, however, even very fit athletes find it difficult to lift the pelvic floor, because it is neglected by all but the most sophisticated trainers. Because you can t see it in a mirror, bodybuilding training ignores the pelvic floor entirely.

Here we are concerned only with the main supporting muscles, the sphincter ani, the levator ani and the coccygeus. Together with a mesh of connective tissues, they form a muscular hammock, slung across the gap in the pelvis. As you might expect, studies show that lifting weights, and other activity that increases intra-abdominal pressure, tries to push your guts out through the pelvic floor.5,6 The stronger you can make it to resist this pressure, the stronger your core.

The way to do it is pull the anus up and in, an instant before you increase intra-abdominal pressure. That way the pelvic floor muscles are subjected to eccentric contraction (lengthening under load), the best way to strengthen them.

Women are usually familiar with these muscles because of the Kegel exercises taught to expectant mothers. But many male athletes have little awareness of their pelvic floor. To improve awareness, practice this exercise during odd times, such as sitting in traffic. Pull up and in on the levator muscles, as if you are forcibly stopping your urine stream. Hold for five seconds. Relax five seconds. Now do five pumping lifts of one second each. Relax five seconds. Repeat the whole sequence six to eight times. Within a few weeks of daily practice you will be able to hold the pelvic floor up for at least a minute.

Strong Lower Back

The last component of a powerful core is strong lower back muscles. The transversus pulls heavily on the lower back whenever you tighten it. In the event of overload, it’s usually the back that gives way. We tackle the problem with two exercises. First is the back extension roll-up on the back extension bench. Most folk you see using the back extension bench move up and down with a straight back, and even go into hyperextension not a good idea. Instead, we teach athletes to roll up their back, vertebra by vertebra, from a tightly curled position to the horizontal.

Second is the reverse back extension, popularized by Louie Simmard, in which the legs hang down and are brought up to the horizontal. This exercise used to be a power secret of powerlifters and weightlifters, who constructed their own benches to do the job. Now I see commercial reverse extension benches being advertised
everywhere. About time!

The Best Abdominal Exercises

For every ab exercise, center yourself first by pulling up and in on both the transversus and the pelvic floor. Retain this up and in posture even when breathing. Inhale on each concentric contraction and, just before each slow eccentric contraction, exhale forcibly by squeezing in more on the transversus and pelvic floor. Initially this action will be very strenuous. Without tightening the gut, you might do 50 reps of a movement such as hanging and kicking the knees to the chest. With power exercise you will be working to make 10 reps.

Because many athletes have weak abdominals, the series of five hanging exercises is listed from easy to hard. Initially you may be able to do only the first one or two. For some people even these will be too hard and you will have to start on floor ab exercises. As you progress to being able to do them all, you should reverse the order, doing the hardest abdominal exercises first.

For all of the hanging exercises, it is important to keep the back rounded and the toes pointed forward, and curl the torso as you go up, in order to minimize the action of the psoas. A good test of ab strength is Exercise 3, straight leg raise from a dead hang. If you can t do 10 reps, you need ab work real bad. Add two core exercises to each workout you do during the week. These are our Level 2
and Level 3 ab exercises. Floor ab exercises are Level 1. Level 4 ab and core exercises are not listed here. To learn all the levels you can attend one of our Power Program Camps or purchase the DVD sets which will become available during this year.

Exercise 1 Hanging Knee Kick

Hang on bar with back rounded and toes pointing forwards. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor.

Inhale. Kick knees up to chin, keeping arms straight. Hold and exhale, keeping transversus and pelvic floor up and in. Slowly lower legs to start position.

Inhale. Repeat for 6 8 reps.

Exercise 2 Hanging Half Leg Raise

Hang on bar with back rounded and toes pointing forwards. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Inhale. Raise straight legs up to horizontal, so they make a 90° angle with the body. Keep arms straight. Hold and exhale forcibly, keeping transversus and pelvic floor up and in. Slowly lower straight legs to start position. Inhale. Repeat for 6 8 reps.

Exercise 3 Full Leg Raise

Hang on bar with back rounded and toes pointing forwards. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Inhale. Raise straight legs up to touch bar between hands, keeping arms straight. Exhale forcibly, tightening transversus and pelvic floor. Slowly lower legs to start position. Inhale. Repeat for 6 8 reps.

Exercise 4 Horizontal Scissors

Hang on bar with back rounded and toes pointing forwards. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Inhale. Raise straight legs up to touch bar between hands, keeping arms straight. Exhale. Keep transversus and pelvic floor tight. Keep legs up. Scissor legs out to sides. Inhale. Bring legs in and exhale. Repeat for 6 8 reps before slowly lowering legs to start position.

Exercise 5 Vertical Scissors

Hang on bar with back rounded and toes pointing forwards. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Inhale. Raise straight legs up to touch bar between hands. Keep arms straight throughout. Exhale and tighten transversus and pelvic floor. Keep one leg at bar level and lower other straight leg to the horizontal. Inhale. Reverse legs with a scissor movement while exhaling. Repeat 6 8 reps before lowering straight legs slowly to start position. Keep transversus and pelvic floor up and in throughout the exercise.

Exercise 6 Back Extension Roll-ups

Lie face down on extension bench, with pelvic bones protruding over edge. Clasp hands to chest or, preferably (harder), behind neck. Push straight out with elbows, making back as long as possible. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Inhale. Lower trunk and curl back. Exhale. Slowly uncurl trunk, one vertebra at a time, starting from the lower back until you reach start position. Inhale. Repeat 6 8 reps, keeping transversus and pelvic floor up and in throughout the exercise.

Exercise 7 Reverse Back Extension

Lay face down on extension bench, with legs hanging vertically. Grasp post of bench and rest forehead on foot pad. Pull on post to lengthen back. Pull up and in on transversus and pelvic floor. Exhale. Raise straight legs to horizontal while pushing on the post. Inhale. Slowly lower straight legs to vertical while pulling on post. Exhale. Repeat for 6 8 reps, keeping transversus and pelvic floor up and in throughout the exercise.

Note The hanging and back extension exercises (Exercises 1 7 above) should be done without additional weights until you can do all of them for 8 reps. Then you can add strap-on ankle weight and hold a soft weight on the upper back for roll-ups, to increase the difficulty.

There are a few other secrets, but these exercises are plenty for at least a year of core training. I’ll bet a once-a-week workout with our program against 500 crunches or sit ups a day anytime.

References

1. Colgan M. New Power Program: New Protocols for Maximum Strength. Vancouver Apple Publishing, 2000.
2. Basmajian JV, Deluca CJ. Muscles Alive, 5th Edition. Baltimore
Williams & Wilkins, 1985.
3. Hodges PW, Richardson CA. Contraction of the abdominal muscles associated
with movement of the lower limb. Phys Ther, 1997;77132-147.
4. Basmajian JV, et al. Muscles Alive, 5th Edition. Baltimore Williams
& Wilkins, 1985.
5. Ibid.
6. Carter BL, et al. Cross-Sectional Anatomy. New York
Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1977.

© Colgan Institute, 2004

Excerpts from http://www.colganinstitute.com
Reprinted with permission.

Buy Ephedra Supplements

You can get these from our partner website.

And save an 10% off Ephedra supplement orders $100+

when you use coupon code:

eph10offcj at the checkout.

10% off Ephedra orders $100+