Core Exercises With The Dumbbell

For many years there has been confusion as to what proper abdominal exercise should entail. Now days we have the proper knowledge and awareness, but still many people are stuck in the old useless ways of the past.

Apart from people not knowing how to properly work their abdomens for maximum benefit, people generally dismiss the dumbbell as an ineffective workout tool. The dumbbell is not ineffective, if anything it is underappreciated.

The dumbbell can be used to target just about any muscle in the body. All it takes is a little bit of creativity.

For example, if you want to intensify your squat exercise hold some dumbbells while you do it. But the real fascinating way to use dumbbells is in your core exercises.

Years ago scientist discovered -while toying with a cadaver-that the abdomen will contract and bend the spine. So they deduced that crunches would be an effective abdominal exercise.

What they failed to realize was that the abdomens main function is not to bend they spine but rather stabilize it instead. So how has this changed modern abdomen exercises?

Well, now it is known that crunches will develop good surface muscle on the belly, which is great for broadening or widening your already apparent abs. But if you do not have abs you are not going to burn that fat to see them, rather you are just going to be building muscle on top of what is there.

By doing crunches you build more of a ninja turtle belly rather than a Brad Pitt sleek set of abs. To get the washboard effect you actually have to strengthen your abs through the function in which they were intended: balance.

That is one of the reasons yoga has become so popular these days. People have been realizing that yoga is a great way to burn calories at low impact.

Though, if you don't want to spend money on a yoga class, you can just use dumbbells to exercise your abdomen. This doesn't mean hold a dumbbell and do a crunch, but rather hold a dumbbell and twist your body at the shoulders while keeping your hips inline.

To make the exercise more effective hold the dumbbells directly in front of you. Remember this is an abdomen exercise, so don't get weights you have trouble holding.

Get a good comfortable weight that you can easily hold in your arms, and let the tension mount. Holding your back straight during the routine, at first it won't feel like an exercise; but after a few moments you will notice that the exercise getting more and more intense.

Key points to remember: keep the back straight by using the abdomen and also feel the burn. No pain no gain.

Destry Masterson is a health, fitness and nutrition expert. She has written articles about diet and exercise and recommends http://www.treadmillreviews.com for information about treadmills. Contact Info: Destry Masterson - MyOnlineArticleWriting@gmail.com - Twitter: @DestryMasterson