Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

page-up — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:44:13 GMT

Very good advice. I always cringed when i saw people going like mainiacs on crunches. now i know why. back pain.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

The Messiah — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:45:01 GMT

Those obsessed with the look of their body create their own problems.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

Metal Marc — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 17:22:54 GMT

I agree, but tell this to the military.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

dbarnum11 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 17:47:25 GMT

"challenge the muscles to perform the way they're designed and expected to work in real life" ---

hey, abs to not work in "real life" --- or, at least, not much . . .

I've done 60 crunches + 50 pushups daily, except weekends, for about 10 years, and almost that amount for another 20 . . . can't say which exercise has resulted in what, but I don't have the lower back symptoms mentioned.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

sieg6529 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:16:36 GMT

I dunno...I've tried doing those leg drops, and they seem to flex the spine more than crunches.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

kimbaa1 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:22:21 GMT

When the trainers stop "tightening" the core (they say strengthening but the truth is it tightens,) then

back injuries will subside. The reason people feel like their back or core is weak, is because they're

tight. The solution isn't to tighten them more, but to go the other way.....most people need to release their core muscles....and they will become stronger. A long muscle is by far a stronger muscle. The movement is for "strengthening," but we're starting to see huge problems.....with pilates, core strengthening, people are blowing out discs more and more. Not only do tight spinal

muscles cause problems with discs....it also causes compression in the pelvic bowl and ribcage, and misalignment of legs and arms. For example, carpal tunnel comes from tension in the spine...so do bunions in the feet.....it's all related. As the spine gets tighter and tighter, so do all the peripheral muscles in the legs and arms. "Core strengthening" limits people in their bodies over time......it helps only short term....but as years go by....compression mounts and accummulates, and then we'll see not only disc problems, but hip and knee problems as well. It's always begun.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

dfreed1014 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:29:22 GMT

I enjoyed your article on sit-ups and crunches. These exercises can be most beneficial

to people who are properly trained on how to do these exercises. People today usually

start an exercise program without consulting professionals such as a fitness trainer and their

doctor. Doing these exercises improperly can lead to a major injury. Fitnessbuilding can be the secret to longevity and can doom you to a life of misery. Consult with your professionals before you begin

a fitnessbuilding program. http://fitnessbuilding.com

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

BigMucho — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:46:21 GMT

Crunches don't create a flat stomach. Diet does. This is a huge public misconception that infomercials have been capitalizing on for years.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

MortyR — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:59:01 GMT

I think I would have been a lot more inclined to believe Professor McGill if his website gave me information I could use in my workouts instead of trying to convince me to buy his books. I've been doing crunches for years. My back remains strong, my stomach is flat, and I even have a six-pack. I'm 70 years old.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

MortyR — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:02:56 GMT

I think I would have been more inclined to believe Professor McGill if his website gave me information I could use in my workouts instead of trying to convince me to buy his books. I've been doing crunches for years. I watch my diet. My back remains strong, my stomach is flat, I have a six-pack. I'm 70 years old.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

dangoldberg33 — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 00:21:20 GMT

"Think of the oft-repeated advice for movers: bend at the hips and lift with your legs, not your back. And what is a sit-up but a back bend done in a lying position?"

This comment is evidence that the person describing the above movement patterns doesn't know what they are talking about. When lifting from the ground with a flexed spine, there is weight puling the shoulders and forcefully putting the spine into FLEXION. The forces acting on the spine are pushing in into FLEXION. When you perform a sit-up, the force, gravity, is trying to put your spine into EXTENSION, the opposite of flexion.

The knee flexes and extends so does that mean that you shouldn't flex and extend that joint b/c you might wear it out? It all depends on what your goals are. If you want a 6 pack and you're not willing to do full pushups, then your out of luck.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

estewart2009 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 03:33:05 GMT

I agree with berg333 in that the article is over-simplistic in its "throw away" approach of any rectus abdominal flexion exercises. Abdominal flexion serves a purpose, sometimes we need to 'flex' the spine and at times 'extension' of the spine is warranted. Though barely a functional exercise, an abdominal crunch is still an effective way to tighten and contract the rectus abdominus. I think the point was poorly stated, perhaps what the other should have said was that spinal flexion should be balanced with appropiate extension exercises; ie back extensors etc.

When reading this article one thing, however, immediately jumped out at me. The author recommends a supinated leg lift, or leg drop. Given the deconditioned state of many of the people who will now go out and do hundreds of these 'leg drops' ...is just yet another new way to screw up the spine. Persons who do not have correct training in engaging the Transverse abdominus and other 28 muscles in the LPHC to hold the spine in its neutral alignment do NOT know how to prevent a lordotic curve (curvature in the Lumbar spine region) which will many times occur while doing a leg lift. Excessive extension in the spine is called "hyper-extension" and will cause, over time, the spinous processes in the rear of the spinal column to knock against one another possibly resulting in spinal nerve damage (the nerves of the spine innervate and exit posteriorly).

My two cents. ....Don't do leg 'drops' until you learn to hold your spine in place by core activation technique. Also, leg lifts work to concentrically, isometrically, and eccentrically contract the illiopsoas (HIP FLEXOR) musculature...not the rectus abdominus. This is basic anatomy.

Eric

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

eags72 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:27:41 GMT

I agree with the comments already made about the problems with this article. Miss Dailey clearly has some understanding of core principles, albeit with some confusion. There is no way that a basic crunch (limited to less than 30 deg. of flexion) is more harmful to the low back than a straight leg raise. That's biomechanic basics. The legs are a much longer lever arm and therefore put more strain on the low back than a brief crunch. Also, the TA is accessed with most movements and should be the initiatory action of any core (gluts, abs, multifidi, etc) exercise. Push-ups do target the abdominal groups, but saying that a push-up is a replacement for all other core exercises is a mistake. It's still at the heart a shoulder flexion exercise.

I guess my biggest concern is that the article makes a lot of assumptions and generalizations. Most people who read it don't have the expertise to sort the good information from the bad and that needs to be taken into account when writing articles that the general population will read. I don't know Miss Dailey's background and I won't assume that she has no understanding of core principles, especially since the article does address some important issues in core stabilization, but it needs to be more carefully stated and in some cases perhaps better researched.

re: Stop Doing Sit-Ups: Why Crunches Don't Work

allison pishko — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:38:51 GMT

Looks like Pilates is the way to go.....