Ab workout..

have you tried doing abs on that big blue ball?? MY trainer does that w/ me if you lie almost completely on the ball and cross your arms across your chest and crunch
you really feel it in the middle and lower abs!!

hmmmm there is also that bench that slants that you can lift your legs all the way up for lower

do you know there is a slim down board too? You may find more there if you search

Oh, ok, i will try the slim down board, thanks.

I wanted something new and fun. I am getting tired of the same routine ya know?

Throw downs work wonders though if anyone is interested.

I just got one of the Winsor Pilates tapes - I think it's the total body toning one. I'd never done Pilates before and I heard these tapes were good (oops - DVD I mean!) Anyway, I already have strong abs and I thought this was a good workout. My abs felt TIGHT the next day! It's only a 20 minute workout too. It supposedly works your legs as well as abs and lower back, but I didn't think it worked my legs much at all.
What I liked about this workout was that they don't do like a million reps of a single exercise. They do like 8 or 10 or something and then move on.

For lower abs I do hanging knee-ups at the gym. I hang from the pull-up bar and bring my knees to my chest. I have to have FH put his hand on my lower back so I don't swing.

I also lie on the abs bench with it on a decline - lie with my head at the top and feet at the bottom (holding on so I don't slide off) and lift my hips off the bench and aim my feet towards the ceiling.

I just saw your post about throw downs. What in the world are those?

Anniegrl- I take pilates, it's a great ab workout. My class was canceled last night and there isn't another till Thursday, so I was looking for some other variations of working out my abs. I will try the hip lift, I haven't done that in awhile now that I think about it.

Thanks!

Oh. Gotcha. And after I read what tammyjill said about throw downs, now I know what you mean

Ok, tammyjill just basically explained it. Here it is....

You lie on your back on a floor mat. someone stands behind your head and you hold onto the back of their ankles. you lift your legs up and your partner pushes your legs back down. Middle, both sides, etc. You can't let your legs touch the floor. The harder they push the harder it is. You hold up your legs from the muscles in your stomach. you should try it. It is actually fun..lol

yep- I forgot to say to hold on tight to their ankles!

I did those in karate. But the problem is that I have super-strong abs so I could day them all day!!!
Remember the physical fitness tests in school? I would kick a$$ when it came to sit-ups, but then when we had to do that darn 12 minute mile I could barely make it! I just wasn't born to be a runner!

Pilates is awesome work for your abs.