How to Target the Lower Abs
This lower ab workout at home will transform your midsection into a hard and well-defined six-pack, hitting your lower abs and obliques hard.
Lower Ab Workout at Home
If you’re wondering whether or not you can target your “lower ab” area, I think you can.
The argument that you can’t hit your lower abs comes from the fact that the lower abs are part of one muscle (rectus abdominis), so the whole muscle is either going to contract or not depending on the training stimulus.
It’s also a common misbelief that the lower abs are actually just your hip flexors kicking in. So, you aren’t actually doing must for your core at all when you focus on lower ab exercises. This is incorrect.
Why You Can Target the Lower Abs
When aiming to work the lower portion of your rectus abdominis, the angle of the weight will have an effect on what muscle fibers get used during the movement. You definitely would have the entire rectus abdominis firing, but how you move (or resist moving) will affect different areas of muscle fibers differently.
This is the same thought process when bodybuilding. This is why you need a variety of exercises for continued progress to building a complete physique.
Let’s look at bench press variations as an example of how certain fibers can be affected based on the angle of the load.
Three different variations:
- decline
- flat
- incline
Even though all three exercises use the same muscle, pec major, they must contract during each of these movements and the fibers that receive the most stimulation are different for each one.
The incline bench will target the upper fibers, the decline bench will target the lower fibers, and the flat bench will hit the middle fibers the most.
Now use this same way of thinking ab workouts. Although your hip flexors and the upper fibers of your rectus abdominis may be actively involved while working your “lower abs,” this doesn’t mean that you aren’t hitting the lower fibers of your rectus appropriately for growth.
Your lower abs will be primarily targeted during exercises initiated by pulling the knees upwards and lifting the hips. Bending the knees will allow a greater emphasis on the lower muscle fibers.
Engage the TA
The transverse abdominis (TA) is like your internal weight belt. This muscle group is responsible for flattening the abdominal wall providing stability to the trunk and support for the organs located there.
The transverse abdominal muscle may also assist with exhalation by compression the abdominal organs and increasing pressure in the lungs.
The TA will allow the lower fibers on your rectus abdominis to be stimulated to a greater extent as you go into spinal flexion for your lower abdominal exercises.
The TA is important when it comes to engaging the lower abs. Always fire the transverse abdominis to pull your core in before you start to flex your hips.
Body Fat is a Factor
When it comes to getting the lower abs to show, dropping body fat percentage is a must. If you aren’t already lean then you could waist a lot of time on ab exercises because if the body fat percentage is too high, no amount of ab work will get your abs to show. So be sure to keep your body fat in check.
Check out the Best At-Home Lower Ab Workout.
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