Exercises for the upper abs. How to build upper and lower abs: simple and effective exercises

Usually the abdominal muscles are conventionally divided into upper press, bottom press and side. The upper press is called upper part rectus abdominis muscle. It is much easier to pump up the upper press than the lower or side abs, since it is more involved in everyday life.

Basic exercises

According to experts, good abs with cubes can be obtained even with homework. It is only important that work on yourself is correct, regular and conscientious. To learn how to build your upper abs, we suggest you familiarize yourself with a number of key exercises.

Twisting

Twisting and twisting is very effective when acting on the upper press. It is performed as follows: lie on your back with your knees bent. Feet can be on the floor, lie on a bench at a right angle, or actively participate in the exercise. Hands are folded behind the head. It is necessary to slowly raise the body and turn it - first to the left, then to the right, trying to ensure that the elbow touches the opposite knee. The lower back is fully pressed to the floor, only the upper back should be involved in the exercise. The ascent is done by exhaling through the mouth, lowering by inhaling through the nose. For a start, 8-10 times 3 sets are enough. Gradually increase the number of repetitions to 50.

Raising the hips

Starting position: lying on your back, arms extended along the body, palms down. At the same time, the legs are simply straight out. You can also do this exercise on horizontal bench holding her hands behind her head. The bottom line is to raise your legs up at a right angle as you exhale and lower to starting position while inhaling. Correct technique performing this exercise for the press involves the absence of jerks, the movements should be smooth. Slight bending of the legs is allowed. When lifted, the pelvis is completely torn off the floor.

"Penknife"

Starting position: lying on the floor in an extended position ("string"), arms extended behind the head. On exhalation, the body and legs are simultaneously lifted. At the end point, you need to linger for 1 second and slowly return to the starting position. Due regard should be paid to coordination. For a better work out of the abdominal muscles, try not to lower your legs and arms to the end, holding them a short distance from the floor.

Turns of the legs

To perform in this case, you need to sit on the rug, raise your legs perpendicular to the floor, and then lower them: once straight, then on the sides. There is no need to bring your feet to the surface of the floor, it is desirable that a distance of about 15-20 centimeters remains. Note that the turns of the legs allow you to pump up the upper and lower abs cubes.

Exercises on simulators

The exercises described above are great for home use. In the gym, you can additionally perform some more.

Twisting on the block

You need to stand with your back to upper block, kneel down, then grasp the cable handle. You can hold the handle behind your head, or in front of your chest. When doing an exercise for the upper press, remember that the load increases in proportion to the height of the arms. The bottom line is to lean forward while twisting the body.

Lifting the body on an incline bench

You need to sit on the upper edge of the bench, fix your legs, lean back. Starting position - the body is almost parallel to the floor. Lift the housing perpendicular to the floor. Return to starting position. In this case, the hands can be brought into a "lock" behind the head, crossed over the chest or folded behind the back. At the top of the exercise, the stomach almost touches the hips, at the bottom, the body is parallel to the floor.

Twisting on the simulator

The technique is as follows. Sit on the simulator, fix your legs, grab the handles. Bend to the knees, twisting the body. Return to starting position. On some simulators, resistance is produced by lifting the weight, on others - by chest pressure on the stop. This exercise effective for the upper press, obliques and serratus anterior abdominal muscles.

A little more about classes

Basic exercises should be enough to achieve high results, provided that they are performed well, of course. At the same time, there are a number of other, additional exercises that will be useful if you want to pump up your abs:

try just lifting your upper body. To do this, lie down on the mat, bend your knees at right angles and start lifting. During the exercise, the upper press should be in an extremely tense state. In this case, hands must be pulled forward. Having raised the body to the top point, you need to try to maintain this position (strive for a 10-second hold);
Alternative option: when performing the exercise, clasp your hands behind your head;
Another option: the same actions, but the arms are crossed on the chest;
Sit on a bench (any other object that allows you to bend) and begin to perform inclinations. You should linger in half the fold (the longer, the better).

On the effectiveness of training

To properly pump the press, it is necessary to take into account several factors that accompany high level the effectiveness of the exercise.

First of all, it is important to consider that it is essential anatomical structure a body that cannot be changed. Nutrition also has an impact on the effectiveness of training, so it is necessary to correctly balance it. And with all this, you need to understand that it will not be possible to deal with the upper press only. Many, as they exercise, ask themselves the question: "why do not abs cubes appear, but fat still remains?" To effectively solve this problem, you must perform additional exercises. Great option- regular cardio workouts high intensity... A minimum of 20 minutes of such loads per workout is recommended.

Additional inventory

In general, upper abs exercises can be performed without equipment. Nevertheless, certain items will come in handy in some cases. First of all, we need a bench, since some exercises are performed on it. For a more comfortable and safe execution it is also recommended to stock up on a mat for practice. Finally, you will need barbell pancakes: when the exercises begin to be performed with ease, the pancakes can be used as a weighting agent.

About contraindications

Before you start pumping the upper press, you need to make sure that there are no contraindications. So, it is strongly discouraged to start training for those people who suffer from increased blood pressure, has problems with the vascular system. It will be difficult in the presence of thoracic osteochondrosis, lumbar lordosis. It is very important to pay attention to all of these factors.

With a competent approach to working on the upper press, taking into account all possible contraindications, as well as accompanying favorable factors, the result will be very impressive, moreover, it will be achieved quite quickly.

Instructions

Before starting the exercise, be sure to warm up. It could be dance aerobics running in place or on a treadmill. You can replace them by riding a stationary bike. Otherwise, cold muscles can be injured. In addition, during the warm-up, fat is burned throughout the body, including in the abdomen.

Lie on your back on the floor, raise your legs bent at an angle of ninety degrees. Put your hands behind your head. Try to reach the left knee with your right elbow and vice versa. So you train not only the upper section, but also the oblique abdominal muscles.

Lie on the floor, keep your hands in the lock at the back of your head, bend your legs at the knees. Smoothly stretch your chin to your knees. Make sure to strain exactly Press... The exercise should be performed slowly, until a burning sensation in the abdominal area is felt. This puts stress on the lower abdomen. To use the upper section as well, pull your knees up to your chin at the same time.

Lie on the floor. Raise your arms and legs at the same time, trying to reach your breasts with your knees. Watch your coordination to do the exercise correctly.

The best training for the lower abdomen is the leg lift. You can do it while lying on the floor or on a bench. Slowly raise your straight legs to an angle of ninety degrees and also lower them slowly. Avoid jerking your legs. Make sure that the muscles of the lower section work, and not the upper one.

If you have a bar, use it. Hang on it and begin to raise your straight legs to an angle of ninety degrees. Keep your heels together and your knees straight. For the untrained, this exercise may be too difficult. To make it easier, raise your legs, bent at the knees.

To have just slim stomach, exercises must be performed at a high pace and do a large number of repetitions. But in order for the muscles to stand out in relief, you should load them as much as possible at a slow pace. The number of approaches and repetitions is selected individually. But you should not do less than 3-4 sets of 10 repetitions.

If the relief does not appear for a long time, then you should also think about the diet. After all, beautiful cubes may simply not be visible under a layer of fat.

Exercises for the upper press

These exercises are aimed at working out the muscles of the upper abdomen. In addition, they remove the fatty pockets that often appear under the breasts.

Exercise 1 - Crunches

Starting position: lying on your back, legs are bent at the knees, feet are on the floor, hands are clasped behind the head.

Exhale through your mouth and lift your upper body by turning it to the right or left. As you exhale, return to the starting position. During each lift, the elbow should aim towards the opposite knee. Make sure that the shoulder blades do not come off the floor: only the muscles of the upper press should work. Don't tense your neck muscles.

Lifting the torso with a turn to one side is 1 repetition. Do 3 sets of 10 reps.

Exercise 2 - "Penknife"

Starting position: lying on your back, legs straight, arms extended behind the head.

As you exhale, simultaneously raise your straight legs and body, linger at the top point for 1-2 seconds. Then, while inhaling, return to the starting position. It is very important that the legs and body do not lag behind each other, their movements must be coordinated. If possible, try not to lower your arms and legs to the floor completely, but keep them at a height of 2-3 centimeters.

Do 2 sets of 10 reps.

Exercise 3 - Raising the Hips

Starting position:

As you exhale, lift your straight legs up until they form an angle of 90 degrees with the body. As you inhale, slowly lower your legs to the starting position. All movements should be unhurried and smooth, without jerking. If you find it very difficult to do the exercise at first, bend your knees slightly.

Do 2 sets of 7 reps.

Exercises for the lower press

Underbelly - weakness for many women, because working on this zone requires a lot of effort. The following exercises will help to cope with a difficult task.

Exercise 1 - Reverse crunches

Starting position: lying on your back, legs straight, arms extended along the body.

Raise your straight legs perpendicular to the floor. Lift your pelvis off the floor and stretch your hips towards your chest without bending your legs. Try to tense only the muscles of the lower press. Return your legs to a perpendicular position.

Do 2 sets of 10 reps. In between sets, lower your straight legs to the floor.

Exercise 2 - "Bicycle"

Starting position: lying on the floor, hands are clasped behind the head, legs are straight.

Alternately stretch your left knee to your right elbow, and then vice versa, with your right knee to your left elbow. The free leg should be straight and not touching the floor.

Do 2 sets of 10 reps per leg.

Exercise 3 - "Scissors"

Starting position: lying on your back, legs straight, arms extended along the body.

Raise your straight legs 10-15 centimeters above the floor. Do wide leg swings in a horizontal cavity, spreading and crossing them like the ends of a pair of scissors. Try to do the exercise at the highest possible pace.

Do as many reps as you can handle. Then rest for 1-2 minutes and do 1-2 more sets.

Exercises for the oblique muscles of the abdomen

Fit lateral muscles belly - pledge thin waist and a beautiful relief of the figure. Be sure to include them in your abs workout.

Exercise 1 - Seated Crunches

Starting position: sitting on the floor, the legs are bent at the knees, the feet are on the floor, the body is tilted back 45 degrees, the arms are bent at the elbows.

Turn the body alternately to the right and left, helping yourself bent arms... The pelvis and legs must remain motionless. Do the exercise at the highest possible pace.

Do as many reps as you can. Then take a short break and do 2 more sets.

Exercise 2 - Lying Crunch

Starting position: lying on the floor, arms are spread apart or clasped behind the head, palms are on the floor, legs are raised up and bent at the knees at an angle of 90 degrees, a small ball can be squeezed between the knees.

Lower your bent legs alternately to the right and left, trying not to drop the ball. Keep your knees as low as possible. The pelvis can be torn off the floor, but the shoulder blades and shoulders should be pressed tightly against it.

Do 3 sets of 10 reps.

Exercise 3 - Oblique Bridge

Starting position: lying on its side with an emphasis on the forearm and elbow, the body is straight, the legs are extended and are one on top of the other, lower thigh touches the floor, the other arm is extended along the body.

Lift your hips and pelvis off the floor so that your torso and legs are in a straight line. Your weight should be distributed between the side of your foot and the forearm of your hand on the floor. Hold at the top point for as long as you can, then return to the starting position.

Do 5 reps.

Exercise for all abdominal muscle groups

Plank - universal exercise, which allows you to strengthen the entire muscle frame. You can choose any of it, depending on your goal.

Classic plank

Starting position: lying down, hands rest on the forearms, and the legs - on the toes, the whole body is stretched out in one line.

Tighten the muscles in your back, abdomen, arms, and legs at the same time. Stay in this position for as long as possible. Make sure that there is no deflection in the lumbar region. Get down to the floor.

Repeat the exercise 3-5 times.

This set of exercises will help build your abs at home. All you need for this is to practice at least 3 times a week.

If you closely monitor your body and want to be slim and fit, then it is very important to have beautiful belly, which is the desired result of hard training. And, for sure, if you took up this issue seriously, then you have already encountered the problem of pumping upper muscles belly.

How to properly pump up the upper press? What program should be followed for this and what nutrition should be followed in order to achieve this goal? Consider key points, which will help answer these questions and "build" an attractive shape for the upper abdomen.

The "nature" of the upper press and its features

In the world of fitness and bodybuilding, abdominal muscles are usually divided into top, bottom and side Press. The upper press is in contact with lower muscles breasts.

The abdominal muscle is uniform and does not consist of different parts, but in sports, for convenience, the abdominal muscles are divided into separate zones, so we conditionally distinguish between the upper and lower abs.

Most athletes strive for perfect abs. Agree, it is pleasant to look at a sports figure with beautiful "cubes" of the abdomen, regardless of whether it is a woman's or a man's silhouette?

Exercises for the upper abdomen are especially important because this part of the press is most pronounced - it visually separates the chest and abdomen, thereby emphasizing the shape and striking the eye in the first place.

It's not only about aesthetic beauty, but also about practical value, since a trained belly is directly proportional to affects human health:

helps in the prevention of treatment of a number of diseases (stomach ulcer, gastritis, colitis, liver and biliary tract problems);
lowers abdominal pressure, which improves breathing processes;
exercises for the upper press are of increased interest for girls, since the pumped up abdominal muscles make childbirth easier.

For symmetry, in conjunction with the upper press, it is also necessary to pump the lower press. For more information on how to do this, see the article "Exercises for the lower press".

Upper Press Exercises

How to pump up the cherished upper abs and can it be done at home? Fortunately, a beautiful belly can be pumped up without a bunch of complex simulators or special equipment. Anyone can do this without even leaving home - all you need is a floor, a training mat and willpower.

If you feel pain or discomfort while doing the upper abs, reduce the load. If the discomfort does not go away, stop pumping the abs, transfer this exercise to the next workout - you do not need to work through the pain, this can lead to abdominal injury.

However, despite the fact that the press can be pumped in almost any conditions, there is regulations, which must be followed in order to achieve better result when forming a beautiful upper press:

Basic exercises for the muscles of the upper press

Raising the legs

Starting position - lying on your back. Straightened arms, pressed along the body, hold on the mat with palms down, legs straightened, feet together. As we inhale, raise our legs until an angle of 90 degrees is formed in relation to the body.

In case you want to get an intense workout, then you should not bring your legs completely to the perpendicular to the floor, so that the press is constantly in tension. As we exhale, we lower our legs, but not completely, so as not to come into contact with the floor. Perform 3-4 approaches 15-25 times.

"Penknife"

Take the same posture as when lifting your legs, only keep your arms above your head, pressing back side palms to the rug. At the same time, as you exhale, raise your arms and legs to each other until the toes touch your fingers, using the muscles of the body, as if twisting into a "ball".

On inhalation, we return to the starting position without touching the rug with our feet. The exercise is more difficult than the previous one, therefore, we reduce the number of repetitions - 3-4 sets of 10-20 times.

Twisting torso lift

Lie on your back, hands should be behind your head in a "lock", knees bent, feet on the mat. We begin to move the body to the legs, touching the right elbow to the left knee, and then lower the body back, but not completely (the back should not touch the mat), while the legs are in a fixed position.

Of course, you can pump up the upper abdomen at home, however, for a higher and quick results better use special simulators and shells. Let's move on to the main exercises for the upper press in a gym.

Raising the torso on an incline bench

Sit on the simulator, fix your legs. Put your hands behind your head in a "lock", in case it is hard for you, you can cross your arms over your chest. Begin to slowly lower the body towards the back of the bench until your back is approximately parallel to the floor, and then begin the reverse movement until almost touching your abdomen to your hips.

We breathe out on the rise, inhale on the down. During the exercise, you should not keep your back straight - this is a mistake. The abdominal muscles should work, not the back, so we keep the body slightly in a bent position. We repeat the exercise 3-4 sets of 15-20 repetitions. In the future, you can do this exercise with additional weight, holding it in front of you, pressing it tightly to your chest.

Fold on the top block

The exercise can be performed while standing or sitting on your knees. We hold the rope with our hands near the head. The fold is performed exclusively with the abdominal muscles, not the back. The most common mistake is to do the exercise, accelerating with the whole body, using the arms and pelvis. When twisting, we exhale, with the reverse movement, inhale. We perform a movement of 3-4 sets of 15-25 repetitions.

The best exercise for the upper press - video

The lying twist is a very popular upper press exercise among athletes and is performed both at home and in gym, so we will consider it in more detail in the video. The lying twist has several different ways execution. This video shows an option when the arms are extended forward when twisting.

In conclusion about the upper press

Beautiful upper press can be pumped up as in sports hall, and at home, provided that at home you will have to spend a little more time than in the hall. Upper abs cannot be pumped up with exercise alone.- you need to follow a diet and adhere to a specific training regimen.

What exercises for pumping the upper press do you prefer? Share your experience of training this muscle group in the comments.

Belly fat is almost the most common problem in girls. In order to get a nice toned upper abs instead of folds, you are encouraged to regularly conduct workouts, which include exercises specifically for this zone. What these exercises are and how to do them correctly, you are invited to find out further.

When and how to start training?

There is an opinion among the people that it is better morning workout on an empty stomach there is nothing and cannot be, but there is a refutation of this. The fact is that in the morning your glycemic index is close to the minimum mark, so strength and energy are not in the best condition. Consider the following in this regard:

Warm-up is required before direct training on the press. For example, dance aerobics (actual belly dancing, oriental dances), stretching or mini-cardio warm-up so that the body is ready for further exercises.
In the morning, you can and should do, but doing "passive" exercises, best of all for stretching, yoga or Pilates - this will be your best contribution to the beginning of a new day.
After completing the exercises, you need to supply yourself with protein (chicken breast, cottage cheese) and porridge (oatmeal), you can supplement with fruits, a spoonful of honey.

Most often, there is enough time evening time, so come home from work, have a healthy light dinner and after an hour and a half you can start a warm-up and strength exercises to the upper press.

Remember, without small dietary adjustments towards cereals, fish and plant foods, you will not be able to achieve the desired result.

Crunches are the most effective upper press exercises

Twisting is best done in two sets of 20 times. In this case, efficiency increases if you freeze for a few seconds on the rise. We felt that the muscles were "burning", we relaxed the attack. WITH different options twists can be found below:

Crunches on the floor

When performing such an exercise, the main load falls on the abdominal muscles:

Lie on your back.
Place your hands behind your head, and bend your legs at the knees.
Tighten your abdominal muscles and lift your upper body, bringing your ribs and hips as close as possible. No need to touch your chin to your chest.
Hold for 3-4 seconds on the rise and slowly lower yourself onto your shoulder blades, exhaling.

How the exercises are done correctly can be seen in the video:

Crunches with raised legs

The exercise is performed in this order:

Lie on your back, place your hands behind your head, while your elbows are directed to the sides, and your straight legs look up.
Tear off the shoulder blades, twisting the spine and straining the abdominal muscle.
On the rise, make the entrance with your mouth.
At the top point, there is a small fixation - for half a second, after which it will go down at the exit.

The exercise cannot be done with jerks, all movements are smooth and slow.

Cross crunches

The following exercise will work all the abdominal muscles:

Lie on the floor, keep your hands in the lock behind your head, with your elbows spread out to the sides. The upper body is in a twisted position.
A rotation is performed in which the right leg bent at the knee will reach the left elbow, however, there should be no touch.
A turn is made with the movement of the legs - now the left knee is pulled up to the right elbow.
For each oncoming movement of the knees and elbows, an exit is made.

Twisting is done until there is a burning sensation in the abdomen. After a short rest of 10 seconds, the exercise resumes. The number of approaches is 3-4.

In the next video, a fitness trainer will talk in more detail about the technique of such twists, and an excellent assistant will show you how to do them correctly:

Exercise "book" with a fitball

Exercise with the ball is extremely effective - lie down on the mat, wrap your feet around the ball and do the classic "book":

Lie on your back, pull the socks forward. We don't put our feet on the floor.
Take the ball in your hands behind your head.
Raise your torso and legs so as to pass the ball to your legs.
Lie on your shoulder blades, keeping the ball in weight with your feet.

Twisting to the top block

The exercise is done in the gym:

Sit on your knees with the ring near your head.
Round your back to engage your abs.
Make an entrance and perform a twist.
At the maximum point, linger for half a second and return to the starting position at the exit.

You can clearly see the female version of the exercise not on your knees, but while standing, in the video:

A set of exercises for the upper press

The rest of the exercises are no less effective, as they help to strengthen the muscles of the upper press in combination with standard twists:

Lie on the floor bent over right leg in the knee - it will be supporting. Raise your pelvis while holding left leg parallel to the floor. Do 15-20 reps with each leg.
Sit with your hands pointing east-west so that they are supporting, while your legs are slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Raise the pelvis to a height parallel to the floor and lower it. This exercise can be done at a good pace, for example, alternating with gentle twists, doing 20 repetitions.
An effective exercise is backbends. Lie facing the rug with your arms and legs extended. Start smoothly lifting your arms and legs at the same time, no frills. Do not strive to raise your arms and legs to heaven, namely, stretch and stretch and you will feel the tension and, accordingly, the work of the abdominal muscles.

"Scissors" work extremely effectively with the upper part of the press: lie on the floor, raise your legs and start crossing them alternately. An important point: the lower you perform this exercise above the floor, the more effective will be the study of the upper press.
“Bicycle” is a simple exercise that works with upper abs, whether you are pedaling while lying on the floor, or simply alternately pulling the leg towards you and pulling it off the floor.
The "Bridge" is a childhood exercise that will inevitably help you in your fight for an effective abs. The bridge can be done by stretching out your arms. The main thing is to feel the press and freeze in this position, starting from 30 seconds and above.

Lie on the floor, raise your legs perpendicular to the floor and place the lock from your hands under your hips. Spread your legs as much as possible and return them to their original position - the muscles of the upper press will "burn".
Vacuum is a gorgeous exercise that will effortlessly make your abs flare up and kick off excess. Moreover, this exercise can be done lying down, sitting on the couch, working at the computer, while driving. You just check that you are sitting upright and take a deep breath with your "belly" with the obligatory sensation that the belly is about to touch the spine. We did it, stayed for 30 seconds and exhaled. Do 3-4 sets.

In addition to the above exercises, you should not neglect the bar, as it has a general strengthening effect on the entire torso as a whole. It is good to end the cycle of exercises on the upper press with a plank, and you can do different versions of it:

on the elbows;
on outstretched arms;
lateral;
passing from the classics to the side.

The main thing is to remember that you need to stay in the bar for at least 30 seconds. Visually familiarize yourself with correct technique you can perform the bar in the video:

Video: How to Build a Girl's Upper Press?

In the next video, a fitness trainer will tell you why it is important to pump up the upper press and how to do it correctly, and also show effective exercise that you can do in the gym and at home:

The upper press is work, but work that will always answer you with beauty, so do systematically exercises aimed at the press, do not overdo it with side crunches, so as not to make a "square" waist, and follow the nutritional rules.