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Thrash Your Abs!
By Elliott | June 18, 2008
Rip-up your midsection and set your metabolic dial to incinerate with five explosive core movements done exclusively with cables? Not only am I about to destroy several ugly myths about core training, but I am also going to hand you the keys to the most dynamic training circuit that has ever been designed.
If you are interested in having someone regurgitate the same old “core crap” that you are used to hearing with a new spin on it then don’t bother reading this article. I am about to expose you to a revolutionary paradigm to not only shred your abs to pieces but also create the most physically attractive and functionally sound, “rock solid” physique that you’ve ever imagined.
The first thing on the chopping block is the idea that your abs are meant to be isolated in exercise. Many of us have been conditioned to believe that in order to fulfill our physical potential we must “pick and choose” what body parts we are going to work on. This is the same idea that has pervaded Western medicine and has created a million “specialists” who continue to know more and more about less and less. When we begin to realize the “relatedness” that everything has to one another, we will experience transformation in our physiques, our vitality, our energy levels, and our minds. You are an integrated assembly of systems, and nowhere is this truth more evident than with regard to your core.
Today, our bodies are an exact expression of what our ancestors were over 100,000 years ago (4). It is believed that it takes about 100,000 years for 0.001 percent of a genome to change so you and primal man are essentially the same (6). With the generally understood stance that primal man was a hunter and gatherer, it is safe to say that our bodies are still designed with the primary objective of hunting and gathering (4).
Our nervous system is designed in such a way that its most important function is to protect the vital organs and brain so that you can get off your ass and search for sustenance in the great dangerous wilderness (3). Obviously today we can just go to the local supermarket, but this was not always the case. Primal man and even agricultural man had to hunt and work HARD for food.
Through evolution, our amazing nervous system has integrated all of our organs with our muscles. Each of your organs acts as the “soil” in which all of your external elements (arms, legs, and abdominals) have sprung forth and therefore are linked via the nervous system (7). For example, the left arm is intrinsically linked via the nervous system to your heart. This explains why the left arm of someone who is having a heart attack goes numb. The inhibitory effect on the muscles due to organ pain or inflammation is called viscero-somatic inhibition (VSI) (3).
“So what the hell does all of this mean for me and my flabby abs?”
If it is understood that the function of your muscles is contingent upon the health and function of your organs and that the primary purpose of having muscles is to hunt and gather so that you can sustain life, then I’ve just opened up a huge can of worms for you!
The strength and function of your muscles, your abdominals in particular, is severely affected by the health of your organs. Your deep abdominal wall, or transversus abdominus, is in the same nervous loop as your colon (3). So if your colon is pissed off because you fill your gut with processed foods like protein shakes, “sports drinks,” and bars, then you can expect your “enormous bellyus” to only grow bigger, even as you crunch your life away!
So the first essential prerequisite for completing the program that I have outlined below is to: clean up your insides if you want your outside to look good!
There is no ab routine in the world that is going to work for you if you continue to inhibit the muscles of your deep abdominal wall through a dysfunctional lifestyle and a poor, processed foods diet.
Next, the exercise program I’ve outlined below is “integrated.” It takes into account that your abs, being an intricate part of your “core,” are the originator of all movements and the protector of your organs. They work together with every muscle in your body and in all movement patterns as they have for thousands of years (1, 2). Imagine primal man needing to use a crunch machine so that his abs would be strong enough to propel a spear through the ribcage of a stampeding buffalo for dinner!
The exercises below are not designed to isolate your abdominals but to integrate them, the way that they were designed to work.
When you have begun to integrate your abdominals into all of your movements, you will realize a rapid increase in your core musculature (5). For example, a day after doing heavy deadlifts, my abdominals are the sorest part of my body, secondary to my legs. This is because I understand how this mechanism works, and I make a conscious effort to integrate my core into the bend pattern. You can do this too, and when you do, ab training will never be the same!
Say goodbye to boring post exercise ab routines that serve to isolate only the abs and say hello to the most exciting and effective full body, TRUE core circuit ever developed. Build sturdy legs, cannon-like arms, and dominating strength while thrashing your abs!
Thrash Your Abs Training Circuit
Complete each of these exercises back to back and take a 1–2 minute rest upon completion of the circuit. Repeat 2–5 times.
Circuit move #1: Reverse cable wood chops
Exercise: reverse cable wood chops
Reps: 8–12 each side
Tempo: XOX (explosive)
Sets: 2–5 circuits (120 second rest)
- Grab one end of a cable that is positioned low and then take a wide stance a few feet away from the machine.
- Keeping your chest up, draw your belly button drawn in and shift your weight to the inside leg.
- Staying low, shift your weight to the opposite leg and rotate the cable on an upward angle to the other same side.
- Shift your weight back to the original position and repeat.
- Do it on both sides.
Circuit move #2: Single arm cable push
Exercise: single arm cable push
Reps: 8–12 each side
Tempo: XOX (explosive)
Sets: 2–5 circuits (120 second rest)
- Grab a shoulder height cable with one hand.
- Assume a wide stance with your front foot facing forward and your back foot facing sideways.
- Draw your belly button in. Keep your back straight and initiate the push.
- Integrate your arm push with a twist in your waist and rotate the back foot forward.
- Return to the starting position and repeat.
- Do it on both sides.
Circuit move #3: Single arm cable pull
Exercise: single arm cable pull
Reps: 8–12 each side
Tempo: XOX (explosive)
Sets: 2–5 circuits (120 second rest)
- Facing the cable machine, grab a cable with an extended arm in a lunge position with the opposite leg up.
- Draw your belly button in and push off of the front leg. Rotate your torso and pull the cable backwards.
- You will end up with the front leg straight and your back leg will carry the load, as shown above.
- Be sure to keep an upright posture and your belly button in.
- Return to the starting position and repeat.
- Do it on both sides.
Circuit move #4: Cable flexion—rotation
Exercise: cable flexion rotation
Reps: 8–12 each side
Tempo: XOX (explosive)
Sets: 2–5 circuits (120 second rest)
- Assume a lunge position facing the cable machine. Grab the rope attachment with both hands.
- Keep your shoulders un-shrugged, belly button drawn in, and chest up.
- Initiate the movement by pushing off of the front leg.
- As you begin to straighten the front leg, flex over as if you were crunching and continue towards the ground with both hands.
- Maintain control of the weight as you rotate back into the original position.
- Repeat 8–12 times and then switch sides.
Circuit move #5: Swiss ball cable crunch
Exercise: Swiss ball cable crunch
Reps: 10–15 each side
Tempo: slow to moderate
Sets: 2–5 circuits (120 second rest)
- Grab the rope attachment for the cables while lying across a Swiss Ball, as shown above. Be sure to set the cable into the low position
- From this supine position, draw your belly button in and curl up one vertebra at a time until your abs are completely contracted.
- Slowly reverse the curl, ending with the head and neck.
- Repeat 10–15 times.
Get two free reports, How to Flatten Your Abs Forever and Maximum Fitness Results by visiting http://www.primal-edge.com.
References
- Chek P (1998) Scientific Core Conditioning, correspondence course and videotape series. San Diego, CA: CHEK Institute Publication and Production.
- Chek P (2000) Movement That Matters, San Diego, CA: CHEK Institute Publication and Production.
- Chek P (2005) Scientific Balance Training, http://www.ptonthent.com.
- Constable G (1990) TimeFrame: The Human Dawn. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books.
- Richardson C, et al. (1999) Therapeutic Exercise for Spinal Segmental Stabilization in Low Back Pain. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone.
- Sibley CG, Ahlquist JE (1984) The phylogeny of the hominoid primates as indicated by DNA-DNA hybridization. J Mol Evol 20:22-25.
- Chek P (2006) Before and Beyond the Core, audio interview, http://www.ptonthenet.com.
About Elliott Hulse
Like no other human performance specialist or fitness coach, Elliott Hulse has successfully integrated strength training, nutrition, and lifestyle in order to maximize EVERY facet of his clients’ physical and human potential into a single program, which he has trademarked the “Primal Edge.”
For ten years, Elliott has dedicated his life to excellence in the fields of sports science and holistic health. He is certified by the most notable institutions in the fitness industry including the National Strength and Conditioning Association (CSCS) and the C.H.E.K Institute (EC, NLC).
As the author of the groundbreaking e-book Unleash Your Primal Edge, Elliott has utterly defied conventional methodologies with regard to human performance and fitness. It’s Elliott’s firm conviction that latent within every human being lie the seeds of extraordinary health, fitness, happiness, and longing for a return to our natural and primordial lifestyles that hold the keys to our “Primal Edge.”
Get two free reports, How to Flatten Your Abs Forever and Maximum Fitness Results by visiting http://www.primal-edge.com.
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4 Responses to “Thrash Your Abs!”
Comments
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June 18th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Ok, E. How about for those of use who workout at home? (Got sick of the hunters wanting to gather me up at the gym, so workout in my basement!
Can I use bands for each of these exercises? Is the actual pulling the key? or can I use a dumbell in the same motion?
June 18th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
Holy Quads Batman!
August 17th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
Your blog is interesting!
Keep up the good work!
August 24th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
Interesting. Added message about you on my site