Monday Move: Abs of steel

I know.  I know.  I know. Ab exercises are the last thing you want to do especially after a long run or at the beginning of your day.  However, one function of abdominal muscles while running is to stabilize the pelvis while you run; therefore, weak abdominal muscles can lead to a less stable pelvis which could lead to injury further down the chain (i.e. hip and knee pain).  In this Runner's World article, Daniel Cipriani, Ph. D., assistant professor of exercise and science at San Diego State University discussed some great abdominal exercises that runners can add to their abdominal routine.  Dr. Cipriani claims abdominal strength will "better your performance."  I would argue that we are still working on confirming the current hypothetical and theoretical nature of the relationship between strong abdominal muscles and better performance.  This correlation study found that there is a link between abdominal strength and performance but further studies need to be performed to further define this relationship.  Even though the performance link is still being confirmed, there are countless other reasons to include abdominal exercises in your exercise program, especially if you are a female long distance runner.  And since one of my main goals for the day is working on my resume (which I have not started on yet), we will have to go over these countless reasons another day.

I wanted to highlight one of Dr. Cipriani's recommended abdominal exercises today.  The bicycle crunch great for building abdo strength because it not only activates the rectus abdominus (to get a picture of this muscle think of the best six pack you've ever seen) but also the external and internal obliques (to get a picture of these muscles think of a beauty pageant sash as these muscles run at an angle at the sides of your abdomen).

You've seen this one done before and probably is done everyday at your local YMCA.  But here is a review according to Runner's World:

Bicycle Crunch: Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and hands on the sides of your head. Contract your abdominal muscles as you bring your knees up to a 45-degree angle. Straighten and bend your knees as you alternate crossing and touching right elbow to left knee, then left elbow to right knee. Do two sets of 10 to 12 repetitions for each leg.

I'm not promising six-pack abs or 30 seconds of your personal best half-marathon time.  But increasing your abdominal strength can help you prevent other running injuries and therefore - keep you running...so don't skip out on this piece of the running puzzle.