Sit ups and crunches

[gambo1914]

What should I do to improve my abs strenght? I want to get a strong abdomen for football ( not american football) Should I put more weights or should i do more reps?
I am doing 30 repetitions of inclined crunches + 30 low reps with weights + 1 min of plank + 30 reps of legs crunchs + 1 min of lateral planks.

[ricknadell]

What should I do to improve my abs strenght? I want to get a strong abdomen for football ( not american football) Should I put more weights or should i do more reps?
I am doing 30 repetitions of inclined crunches + 30 low reps with weights + 1 min of plank + 30 reps of legs crunchs + 1 min of lateral planks.

Crunches and sit-ups will not help improve you athletic performance. Anti-rotational work will. In essence your abs are a corset that not only keep you upright and tall but they transfer power from your legs to your arms (and vice versa). You need to know how to properly transition this power through your abs and crunches and sit-ups simply won't let you do that! The chop and lift is a great exercise that teaches you this transfer

Read athletic body in balance by grey cook. He outlines how to improve abdominal strength for sport

[krakkerz]

What should I do to improve my abs strenght? I want to get a strong abdomen for football ( not american football) Should I put more weights or should i do more reps?
I am doing 30 repetitions of inclined crunches + 30 low reps with weights + 1 min of plank + 30 reps of legs crunchs + 1 min of lateral planks.

Progress to a one-arm plank and invest in an ab-wheel. Look up Russian Twists and/or Full Contact Twists. Don't forget to work on tour hip extension as well.

[Afrozac]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but arnt sit ups and crunches bad as they put your spine into a weird shape like an unnatural curve?

[hostessfactory]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but arnt sit ups and crunches bad as they put your spine into a weird shape like an unnatural curve?

I don't know about that, but sit ups can over train the hip flexors which are normally pretty tight on people these days due to all the time we spend sitting in school/work.

[krakkerz]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but arnt sit ups and crunches bad as they put your spine into a weird shape like an unnatural curve?

There's a lot of talk about repeated flexion being bad for the back. Stuart MacGill's research is very specific on that. That's why I always recommend those alternate exercises - especially for sports. I honestly can't think of a time in sports outside jiu jitsu and MMA where the ability to crunch would be beneficial.

[krakkerz]

I don't know about that, but sit ups can over train the hip flexors which are normally pretty tight on people these days due to all the time we spend sitting in school/work.

I think there's a bit too much emphasis put on that point. Training hip flexors is good. And if you're going to do flexion exercises, I think the main purpose would be to train the hip flexors and abs together. What is bad is overdoing it and not training extension enough.