There are countless variations of abdominal exercises: sit-ups, crunches, Russian twists, leg raises and the list goes on and on. We perform these exercises solely for the purpose of achieving a strong trunk or core and shedding inches in the waist.

But is it possible to overdevelop your abdominal muscles? Well, one thing we know for sure is that larger muscles are inherently stiffer, and stiffer muscles tend to limit motion.

So, to combat this issue we should focus on achieving a balance between the muscles that flex the trunk and the muscles that extend the trunk. Also, maintaining proper extensibility of the tissues to prevent unwanted movement impairments.

First, let’s discuss how one can determine if their abdominal are overdeveloped:

• The first indication is posture. If you have a forward-rounded back this may mean your abdominal muscles are overdeveloped.

• Secondly, look at the infrasternal angle. The infrasternal angle is the angle formed between the bottom two ribs. This angle should be between 80-90 degrees.

• Next, you can perform a breathing inhalation/exhalation test to determine if your abdominal muscles are too stiff. You’re simply measuring the difference between maximal inhalation vs. maximal exhalation which should be between 2.5 - 3 inches.

Why are stiff abdominal muscles an issue?

Consider this, not only do abdominal muscles flex and rotate the spine they also add compression to the spine. So, if you’re treating your back pain by exercising your abdominal muscles make sure to maintain muscle balance and flexibility of the trunk musculature.

If you determine from the previous test that your abdominal muscles are stiff and restricting mobility here’s what you can do:

• Exercise 1: Stand against the wall with your interlaced behind your head. Let yourself fall to the side but make sure not to actively pull yourself to the side. Just simply fall to the side allowing gravity to pull you toward the ground. Imagine the axis of rotation is through the middle of your chest.

• Exercise 2: Again, stand with your fingers interlaced behind your head. Then take a deep breath raising your ribs towards the ceiling. You want to breathe in and force your ribs to move outwards.

My recommendation is to perform these simple exercises following your usual abdominal workout. These exercises will help to improve the extensibility of muscles and prevent stiffness and compression.

Hopefully, you’ve found this Pep Talk to be beneficial. If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to me at Kenneth@FittoMovePT.com