Hi Doug…I was reading your comments about abdominal and core training. I take a similar approach and I was wondering if you had any good ab or core programs to drop on me…I do min on two seperate days from my training. I’m currently in a 5x5 cycle of sets and reps. Day 1- ab wheel, saxon side bend(2 sets of 5) supersetted with full contact twist (3x5) swiss ball crunch. Day 2 weighted crunch , russian twist, reverse crunch. One day outta the week I 'll add another set usually high rep of a different exercise from that day. I’ll apreciate any info you cn give, thanks…Mike
Sure bro, and your routine looks good to me. My only suggestion would be to add in some vacuums. I train the core hard twice per week. Try this…
Day 1: A: Lying Vacuum, 1 X 10… B1: Swiss Ball Reverse Crunch, hold medicine ball between feet, 2 X 15-20… B2: Woodchoppers, 2 X 15-20… B3: Broomstick Sit-ups on Incline Board (hold a broomstick behind your neck and wrap your arms around so they’re parallel to the ground), 2 X AMRAP… C: Janda Sit-Ups, 1 X AMRAP
Day 2: A: Standing Vacuum, 1 X 10… B1: Weighted Swiss Ball Crunch, 2 X 15-20… B2: Lateral Leg Lowers, 2 X 15-20… B3: Weighted Side Raises off Roman Chair, 2 X 15-20… C: Janda Sit-Ups, 1 X AMRAP
Thanks alot Doug, I forgot to mention I do about 6-9 sets of Pavel’s power breathing a y as he reccomends . 1 or two sets of those end in vaccums. 1 more question…how do you do your woodchoppers? TIA
Doug - im impressed and intrigued but have no idea what the exercises are and have never even heard of vacuums. I do slow hanging leg raises touching the bar im hanging from and super decline sit ups plus 20 pounds. Where can I find one comprehensive article on these exercises and their benefits - the Ian King one here didnt help much?
Mikey, Mike, wassup, bro! How’s everything going, my man? Getting things back on track? Sure hope so…I digress. Don’t mean to butt in for Dougie Fresh here, but thought I could help ya with the 'choppers. (Standing) Grab a medicine ball, hold it above your head with arms fully extended, and then XXPLOSIVELY move the ball downward thru your legs (which should be spread), concentrating on using your abs/core, return to the top, and repeat.
I really enjoy training abs and the core, that’s why I wanted to jump in also. Vacuums are remarkable. They can really help pop out those lower abdominals and suck in the waistline. I usually make sure to do them throughout the day. Another good crunch variation is the rope tuck, which is basically just using the rope extension on an overhead pulley and crunching down while on your knees.
I do mine weighted on a cable machine in hypertrophy/stability phases, and I consider medicine ball throws (from the side hips or shoulders) the equivalent for power phases. On a cable machine, start with both hands extended over one shoulder grabbing one of those little handles people use for cable flyes, feet in line with the cable machine. Twist and pull the cable to your opposite side waistline in a one, smooth motion.
My strength coach in college had me doing woodchoppers the way Timbo described, so maybe I should think of a new name for my version of woodchoppers.
Can someone please explain a vacuum? Is that what Ian King called “thin tummy”? Thanks in advance.
Dougie Doug…yeah, I didn’t even think about the cable version. And you’re right on, in my opinion, about the medicine ball version being more for athletic/power training (first saw them in the strength and conditioning weight room). I think Paul Chek wrote an article about them. 'Choppers still seem appropriate to me, but they almost look like you’re swinging a baseball bat w/ the cable.
Dre, baby, wassup! Which ones aren't ya familiar with. Basically the vacuums are the equivalent to King's "Thin Tummy" Just expel all the air out of ya, squeeze your abs tight as a mutha, and vision--seriously think about--pulling your lower abdominals to your spine. They're killah, killah, bro and can bring in the waistline.
Okay, I must try these vacuums. So when Doug says, 1 x 10 for vacuums, does that mean 1 set of 10 seconds? Or do you actually do reps, like squeeze in and hold for a few seconds, relax for a few seconds, and so forth? Thanks in advance.
Timbo. Things are goin ok buddy, thanks for askin. I sought out some hel with my nutrition to help me reach the next level. I’d like to think I’m pretty damn knowledgable but sometimesyou can’t be ignorant to some others wisdom…if it works i’ll be pumped , if not I’ll be pissed but i’ll learn from the situation. How about you bud…still bulking?. Thanks for clearing up the woodchoppers too. Hit me back, Mike
Thanks for all your help, I always enjoy reading your posts. You are a great wealth of knowledge. Mike
Mikey…you’ve got your head on straight it seems, bro, and that’s a good thing. You’re a youngling but you’ve got your goals, so let’s achieve them. Like you said, you can’t be short-sighted and think “my way is the highway” all the time, but then again, you can’t go following the advice of EVERY one else, switching things up all the time. There are definitely some high-quality sources of knowledge to be sought out and I’m glad you found some (Doug S included). Things are going okay for me…training very well, still need to eat more though. Working hella hard, just gotta keep pushing the envelope. Getting some of the “other” issues in place also, so that will definitely help out.
Hoser…if I were doing vacuums 1 x 10, that would mean one “set” of 10 separate vacuums or reps. Do one, take a deep breath and go at it again. I’m pretty sure that’s what Dougie’s getting at too. Of course, I do those bad boys throughout the day.
Timbo…thanks for the good words bud, Sounds like you are on track yourself…if you ever wanna hit me up by mail its Vvmuslz54 at that big American internet company thats in with time warner dot com. Haha later bro. Mike