Still with the not killing myself.

[jhameia]

It takes me an average of five and a half minutes to get through a stretch of road available to me.

That's about twenty minutes worth of solid running (except for the couple of seconds I took to kick a dandelion).

My knees are achy. And my face is itchy O_o; *goes to wash face*

*comes back*

I tried doing some sit-ups. And they hurt. Because the small of my back keeps bumping on the floor. It's annoying. There's gotta be some other abdominal exercises I can do that don't hurt my back.

Comments

[nolan-ash.livejournal.com]

I really recommend the seated Russian twist as a great way to work out abs without bumping the floor. It works the abdominals, lower back, and especially the obliques (side abs). Working out the obliques with the Russian twist is especially nice because it slims the waist. You can't target belly fat, but tightening up your obliques gives you a more narrow waistline thanks to the stronger diagonal muscles underneath. It helps me look slim even with my extra pinch of belly fat and it makes Alan happily feminine because it gives him a more womanly waist instead of a rectangular guy torso.



I hold 10-lb. freeweights in each hand to increase the intensity.

[fantasyecho.livejournal.com]

Ooooh! Sounds intriguing! I'll have to look this up for sure! (And anything which works my lower back is a DEFINITE bonus) Thanks for the tip, Nolan!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_juju_/]

There's "the plank":
http://images.google.ca/images?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=s&hl=en&q=plank%20exercise&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi

No bumping involved. It's a lot of core and stabilizing muscles. Much harder than it looks! (Especially switching from plank to side plank and back).

[http://users.livejournal.com/_juju_/]

Oh, also 20 minutes of solid running?? You've got me way beat for cardio. :P

[fantasyecho.livejournal.com]

Well, jogging more than running, but yeah, continuous motion was the idea.

Of course, after it all, I was pretty beat :P

[mathius15.livejournal.com]

20 minutes Solid? That's pretty impressive, way to go girl! As for abdominal excersises, I do about 6 different ones per day :) Step one, Forget about sit-ups, they are killer on the spine, instead do short crunches, they are much safer and you'll get the sames results. The best way to do a crunch is flat on your back, knees bent, feet on the floor, and heand clasped behind your head, or to the side of your head by your ears. Now instead of sitting all the way up, then planting you back on the floor like a sit up, you are going to lift up towards your knees, but only about half the way of a sit up, you will then go back doen, but not let your back rest on the floor. Continue this motion for the desired amount of reps. For your fitness level, 50-100 will be good, in 20 rep sets with about 30 seconds of rest between them.
Another is the leg lift. Lay flat on your back, arms to your sides. Now, lift your legs 90 degrees, then slowly let them down till they are 6 inches off the ground. Hold them there for 30 seconds then lift them 90 degrees again, hold them there for about 15 seconds, then lower down again till there are again 6 inches from the ground and hold for 30 seconds. Repeat this about 6 times, or as long as your fitness will allow. My next would be the plank, but someone already covered it :) So we wil move on.
The bicycle is physically demanding, yet a great workout. Lay down on your back, hands clasped behind your head, elbows out. Bring your knees to your chest and lift your shoulder blades off the ground. Straighten your left leg and turn your body to the right (You are bringing your left elbow towards your right knee, now bring in your left leg while straightening your right let and bring your right elbow towards your left knee. You will notice that your legs moved like you were pedaling your bicycle, this is the concept. The twisting motion combing with the leg motion help contract both your lower and upper abdominals. Do this about 30 times.
There are a few more I do, but they may be a bit harder on your back. However you should be more than fine with these :)If you decide to do all these in one sitting, then do about 18-25 reps of each! Good luck!!!