Crunches

dss62467

dss62467

Cathlete
I got this thing in the mail the other day which claimed crunches will give you a pooch, instead of flattening your abs. It was one of those dealies where you're supposed to order whatever information they have, so you're like...."WHAT? What am I supposed to do instead of crunches. I must order that information!!!"

Of course, I ended up throwing it away with the other stupid things I get in the mail. But I'm wondering if anyone has any insight into that. Is it just that if you don't do the crunches correctly, you'll have that problem? I do have a tiny bit of a bulge there, but I think it's more because I've got loose skin from having my daughter than because of crunches.
 
I have heard that if you don't pull your navel towards your spine while doing crunches or any other kind of ab work, you can get a pooch in your stomache. I don't know how true this is.
Debbie in OH
 
Yeah. That's what I heard too. Figured crunches couldn't be too bad or Cathe wouldn't look so awesome!
 
i've been told that it all has to do with form, if you don't hold your abs in then they get worked in a different manner? i know if i don't use proper form it looks icky with my abs poking out, so maybe there is a little truth to the 'if you keep making that face it'll stick that way' thing? but for abs?
maddie
 
Well that does has some truth to it, but I think it's a bit misleading when they put it that way. As a crunch won't give you a pouch if done correctly but yes crunches can give you a pouch if you do not do them correctly and keep in proper form for each and every rep. Also some people have a tendacy to push their stomach out, instead of in, when they start to get tire from ab work. I find this happens a lot more on fast reps then on slow ones. So no matter what make sure you are very very in control of each and every movement, no mater how fsst or slow, as you can pouch if you can't control your own body. If you notice your abs are slacking or poofing, like for example you bring your knees to far into your chest on semi reverse curls or reverse curls, then get a hand on your abs and feel when your abs poof or slack, and don't bring your knees so high, until you find where you can keep everything nice and tight when you do, that is your limit, your knees should travel no further toward your chest then that. And it doesn't matter if you can't do the full movement, as the moment yoou allow your abs to poof you lost what you want to accomplish which is nice tight abs. And yes, the stronger you get the further you'll be able to go or lift, without getting a poof, as you work the abs.

Also poofing and pouching can happen in any exercise that works the front top and lower ab section not just crunches. Just crunches are the most popular and most people have them in their workout. And it's a good eye catcher. As if they said all ab work can cause a pouch in the abs. Most people would laugh and toss it without a second thought. To me that is a dirty marketing techique to scare people into buying info that they basically already know.

Anyway, if you follow Cathe and check your form with every rep. And actually put your hand on your abs every once in a while and everything seems to be nice and tight and drawn in toward your spine, I wouldn't worry much about getting a pouch, her exercises are sound and safe with proper form, and since she explains things super well, and shows you step by step, it would be hard to screw up, and not know it.

Kit
 
Sounds silly to me. Maybe if you take a shower right after you do your crunches you'll stop burning fat & your belly will pooch? Sheesh! That's almost as bad as what my first trainer told me, which was if you don't breathe right you get air bubbles in your stomach & it'll make you look fat. :p
 
I think the question and the responses are quite fascinating.
I just follow Cathe and do the crunches just the same and don't think I will have any problems as form can't be comprised too much while doing crunches, don't really see how as your pretty much in a tight ball and can't go anywhere. JMHO
Charlotte~~
 
Sounds like your trainer was a real dork. How on Earth can you get air bubbles in your stomach from the way you breathe? Maybe if you're gulping the air? But then I'd think you'd just be burping all the time....
 
Kit - I tried these tips last night while doing KPC abs. It really helped! Thanks for the advice!

I haven't done KPC abs since I got Core Max, so I was pleasantly surprised to see how easy it seemed. This used to be one of my hardest ones, but it just seemed to be over before it started. Of course, it doesn't hurt that it's half the length of Core Max.

I think that your form-testing pointers made it easier too.

So...if you have been doing the crunches without proper form for the entire routine, and do happen to get a little pouch, can you get rid of it by doing the crunches consistantly correctly?
 
Hi Donna,

I'm really glade those tips helped someone, and yes you can get rid of the little pouch that you may have created by doing cruches wrong. As gentetics does play a little bit in pouching, as some people can pouch easier then otheres. Do, do the crunches, and do work the lower and upper abs, like with CoreMax. It will probably take you a bit longer to get the pouch down, if you created it from building up ab muscles. As that muscle is use to being in that position and it won't want to move, or spread out nice and tight, so you'll have to keep after it and make it behave.

Crunches do work the upper abs mostly but the lower abs do get a workout from crunches but you have got to have proper from to feel it, and since your tightening and stretching the upper abs it's very important to keep the lower ones pulled in, as your not only because exercising and can hurt yourself if you don't but you are stretching all the abs, and your tightening them, so you want to make sure they are all stretched so they tighten together and be come nice and flat.

A lot of my clients tell me, doing crunches on a stability ball, really allows them to feel their lower abs and actually feel them work, and so many have commented because of that it helped with their pouch. I have really noticed a difference with them, but the only reason it helped was it finally got them doing the crunches the right way. If you haven't do try to do crunches a few times on the stability ball, it is a different experience, and you have to be mindful of everything on your body. Also if you use the stability ball, do them in a table top position, your upper body should be on the ball as well as much as your lower body that will come on without having your shoulders in mid air, and then poush your legs straight and butt up and make you everything from your head to your hips in a straight line, like you are a table and you could actually sit a glass of water on you and it won't fall off. And then go into your crunch, you should really feel your whole core working as not only to pull you up, but to keep you steady.

Good exercising and I'm sure if you keep those abs tight and pulled in you'll get rid of that pouch in no time.

Kit
 
Yup - I do the stability ball crunches. In KPC abs, though, Cathe and crew are kind of slid down at an angle when doing the crunches, so the upper back and shoulders are on the ball and the lower half is angled down. Are you saying I shouldn't do that?
 
No you can do both or should do both, but you feel it more when your a stright. At least that's what I feel along with quite a few others. And since it's been a while since I did KPC, I wasn't sure if that was the one with the ball or not, and I didn't have the that DVD accessible at the time, so I just wrote up the crunch that you'll feel the most, in the lower abs. Depending on how your bulit you'll either feel that being stright is a harder crunch or being slanted like Cathe is a harder crunch. But for the reports I get back is it seems if your stright you feel it the most in your lower abs no matter which crunch you think is the hardest. Once you feel those lower abs start to really work and stretch, you can take it about anywhere, the floor or even on your step. Which can really give you a hard ab workout, I set up my step with downward angle, with three risers under one end, and only one riser under the other end, I put my head where it closer to the floor, put my butt where it's higher in the air and crunch up, and then do obliques, but for reverse curls I'll turn around so my head is the highest, and butt the lowest, I grab a hold of the step above my head and then bring my knees up. It gives and awesome ab workout, but I honestly didn't want to give you a ton of things and kind of turn you off, and think it wasn't worth reading threw everything I wrote. As I love to help people but at the same time I don't want to bore the poor person to tears. But do experiment around with floor work, step work, ball work, working your abs, as long as you got proper form and really tightening those abs each time you start a movement and keep them tight all the way through until the end, you should be perfectly fine and doing them correctly. The main thing is keeping them stretch and tight, no matter what your doing to them. It's just like a blanket on a bed, you can stretch out the top part, but if you don't do the same with the bottom part there is a poof in the middle of the bed.

I hope this helps and sorry about being confusing, I just had forgotten what all KPC had for an ab workout. But as long as you follow Cathe and keep in proper form and and your abs tight no matter what, you should have nice flat abs in no time.

Kit
 
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