Visualize yourself walking on the street and someone calls you from behind. Curious, you turn to your side. Or, you’re working at the kitchen platform half turned towards your daughter who is talking to you animatedly. The simple actions of turning the body, call upon a set of abdominal muscles to contract. They are known as the Obliques. We have two of them – Internal and External. The names internal and external obliques refer to the location (inside and outside) and shape of the muscle. Oblique means a slanting orientation and refers to the muscle fiber direction. Oblique muscles help us not only to rotate but also to bend at our side. Additionally, they have a role in stabilizing the spine.

Twisting crunches on the floor is a basic and functional movement. The position of the body is like a crunch, but has a rotational component to it. Abdominals in day to day life are used like this – bending of the spine along with a turn – like getting off a bed.

Instructions:

1. Lie down with knees bent, feet aligned with hips (about 45* angle at the hip).
2. Now take your right leg and rest your ankle on your left knee.
3. Interlace your fingers and place them behind your head.
4. Tuck your chin, keep your eye gaze towards your navel.
5. Bring your elbows close to each other keeping them parallel.
6. Inhale deeply and begin to flex and rotate your trunk.
7. Your left elbow would meet the right knee.
8. Exhale throughout the movement.
9. Come up with a lot of force, contracting your abdominals hard. Your shoulder blades should rise off the floor
10. Don’t use the arms.
11. Inhale as you rotate back to neutral position on the floor.
12. Go in for the next rep.
13. Finish 12-15 reps for one side. And then change leg position.
14. Repeat set for the opposite side of the body.

Work your abs twice a week with this exercise for 2 sets.  Aim to get 12-15 reps per set.

Twisting crunches on the bench is a progression over the one on the floor. Work your abs twice a week with this exercise for 2 sets.  Once on the bench, aim to get 10-12 reps per set.

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Lata Rajan
Senior Faculty (Exercise Science)
K11 Academy of Fitness Sciences
by
Fitness Icon Kaizzad Capadia