Beth's Tips #2: All About Abs

Who hates doing abs? If this were an interactive webinar, you would see me bouncing up and down in my seat, holding my hand up, shaking it and saying 'oooooh, oooooh, me, me, I do I do.'

Yes, I know that abs are important, but in my opinion, they are a pain in the butt. I mean, we all like to see gains, right? I mean, visually, see gains. And unless you are an uber fit guy, or an anomaly of a woman, a six pack is hard to come by. So for me, abs inevitably get pushed to the bottom of my workout routine, which actually means they rarely get done.

But, for any of you who know me, steep climbing is my weakness. Anytime where I actually have to enact my arms or core strength, I tend to fail easily. Give me a slab and I can stand on my feet all day long. So, naturally I should be working my core way more than any of my other body parts. Especially coming back from my injury, it seems like a no brainer to lay on the floor and whip out some crunches. They are easy on the shoulder and will directly help my climbing when I can climb again. And yet, they still fall to the bottom of my list.

About a year ago, my friend was staying with me in Yosemite. He is an amazing climber and loves to train, which becomes contagious for me. At the end of our workout I was putting on my sweatshirt and packing it up for the evening when he said 'what about abs?'

Crap, I was caught. 'Oh, um, yah, cool, well, I'm feeling pretty good for the night.' But I am a sucker for new workout tips, so he showed me this.

Lie on the floor, backside down. My friend could do '10' but my best is '7'

First, whatever number you can do, let's say '5' for beginning (and for those of us coming back from injury :), you'll do for each rep.

So, put your hands above your head, legs straight, feet remain on the floor. Do 5 crunches with your arms up.

Next lay your upper body flat on the floor and do 5 leg lifts.

Next keep your legs about 6 inches off the ground and do 5 cruches with your arms above your head.

Next keep your arms about 6 inches off the ground and do 5 leg lifts.

Finally do 5 crunches bringing your arms and legs towards each other.
Whew, you're done. Good job.