Do you want to know how to do straight leg sit ups? Straight Leg Sit Ups are a great way to work your abdominal muscles. They are also one of the best exercises for developing the upper abdominals, which is an area that most people have difficulty targeting with other types of sit-ups. If you’ve been having back pain from doing traditional sit-ups, this exercise provides relief by reducing pressure on spinal joints and discs. The following blog post will detail how to do straight leg sit ups correctly. We hope that you find it informative!
The straight leg sit up is a great way to engage the core and strengthen the abdominal muscles. The straight leg sit up offers an alternative to the traditional bent-leg sit up and can be an excellent addition for anyone looking to improve their fitness routine.
Straight Leg Sit Ups: How to Do
- The ideal way to perform sit-ups is without a foot brace, but it’s worth noting that the more stable your core muscles are when doing this exercise in general, then they will be able to withstand greater forces than if you were less conditioned. Planting firmly and tucking under any available supports makes sure there isn’t much give-and-prevention injury while achieving optimal results!
- Cross your arms over the chest and rest one hand on top of another. Please don’t put them behind you, or this will cause pain in the neck area.
- Draw your belly button down to the middle of your spine before doing each rep. Make sure that this central muscle is fully engaged for optimal performance!
- Lie on your back with one arm above you and another below. Contract the abs in both arms by pushing up off of the floor until only the head remains touching the mat, then slowly lower yourself down to the opposite side without turning your neck or changing spinal alignment from a straight line through shoulders blades (I found this hard at first so just let gravity do its job).
- Inhaling deeply, lower yourself back to the starting position. As you breathe out, slowly say “in.” imagining each vertebrae uncurling one after another until your whole spine is spread out like a bow hair trampoline (don’t forget about the belly button!). Do not hit hard on flooring when coming down!
- Lie on your back with legs extended and engage the core muscles to start a rep. Repeat until you finish this set, then take it from there!
Benefits of Straight Leg Sit Ups
Core Strength
Sit-ups are a great exercise to work your abs and other muscle groups in the body. They target all six abdominal muscles, focusing on rectus abdominis, which helps give you that “six-pack” everybody’s after!
Spinal Flexibility
Sit-ups teach people to move their spine in a way they may not have been able to do before. By practising these exercises, you can improve spinal flexibility and mobility, leading to so many secondary benefits, including reduced back pain!
Hip Flexor Strength
Your hip flexors are the muscles that allow you to bend at your hips and lift while walking. The iliacus, iliopsoas and rectus femoris all work together in this movement! Sit ups will strengthen them as well, so don’t forget about those ab exercises too!!
Prevent Back Pain
Sit ups are a great way to build up the core, which can help reduce or prevent back pain. Studies show that having strong abs is essential for keeping your spine healthy and in shape over time! A weak abdominal muscle means an unsupported backbone leading to poor posture, with muscle aches eventually following suit.
Ab Definition
There is a misconception that you can only get six-pack abs through hard work and genetics. While it’s true what they say about your ability to develop this shape depending on how much fat or muscle mass an individual has in their body, there are ways for people with little stomach muscle tissue to build up by doing sit ups correctly, which will improve the definition of existing muscles as well make them larger than usual so more visible when wearing clothes!