1. PELVIC TILT: Lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, tighten your stomach muscles and gently press the arch of your back into the floor. Hold this position for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times.
1. PELVIC TILT: Lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, tighten your stomach muscles and gently press the arch of your back into the floor. Hold this position for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times.
After you have mastered this, tighten your abdominal muscles, press your lower back to the floor and lift one foot off the floor about 3 to 4 inches. Hold it for 5 seconds and then put it down. Repeat with the opposite leg. Make sure you keep your pelvis tilted using your abdominal muscles, not your legs. Repeat this 10 times on each side.
2. PARTIAL CURL: Lie on your back on the floor or another firm surface. Clasp your hands behind your neck for support, keeping your elbows pointed out to the side. Look straight up at the ceiling, tighten your stomach muscles, and slowly lift your shoulders off the floor toward the ceiling. Make sure to keep your elbows pointed out to the side and don't use your arms to lift your upper body off the floor. Hold for 3 seconds and slowly lower your shoulders to the floor. Repeat 10 times. Do 3 sets of 10.
After you have become good at the partial curl you can do a diagonal curl to help strengthen your oblique abdominal muscles.
3. DIAGONAL CURL: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Clasp your hands behind your neck to support your head. Tighten your stomach muscles and lift your head and shoulders off of the floor while rotating your trunk toward the right. Make sure you don't use your arms to lift your body off the floor. Hold this for 3 seconds. Return to the starting position. Then rotate toward your left side. Do this 10 times on each side. Do 3 sets of 10.
4. LOWER ABDOMINAL EXERCISE: Lie on your back with your knees bent, and hold your feet just off the floor. Next, hold yourself in a pelvic tilt. Your knees should be pointed toward the ceiling. Lower your right foot until it barely touches the floor and then bring it back up to the starting position. Do the same with your left foot. Remember to hold the pelvic tilt while you lower each foot until it just touches the floor. Repeat 10 times on each side.
1. PELVIC TILT: Lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, tighten your stomach muscles and gently press the arch of your back into the floor. Hold this position for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times.
2. PARTIAL CURL: Lie on your back on the floor or another firm surface. Clasp your hands behind your neck for support, keeping your elbows pointed out to the side. Look straight up at the ceiling, tighten your stomach muscles, and slowly lift your shoulders off the floor toward the ceiling. Make sure to keep your elbows pointed out to the side and don't use your arms to lift your upper body off the floor. Hold for 3 seconds and slowly lower your shoulders to the floor. Repeat 10 times. Do 3 sets of 10.
3. DIAGONAL CURL: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Clasp your hands behind your neck to support your head. Tighten your stomach muscles and lift your head and shoulders off of the floor while rotating your trunk toward the right. Make sure you don't use your arms to lift your body off the floor. Hold this for 3 seconds. Return to the starting position. Then rotate toward your left side. Do this 10 times on each side. Do 3 sets of 10.
4. LOWER ABDOMINAL EXERCISE: Lie on your back with your knees bent, and hold your feet just off the floor. Next, hold yourself in a pelvic tilt. Your knees should be pointed toward the ceiling. Lower your right foot until it barely touches the floor and then bring it back up to the starting position. Do the same with your left foot. Remember to hold the pelvic tilt while you lower each foot until it just touches the floor. Repeat 10 times on each side.
