Why Sit-Ups Are A Waste Of Time (Do These Exercises Instead)

Find out why sit-ups are a waste of time. Instead, you should be doing these exercises if you want to flatten out your belly and show a six-pack.

Sit-ups are not great when it comes to building up muscle and targeting your abs. They lack variation, progression, and are not optimal when it comes to spinal health. If you are serious about getting healthier and showing off a nice-looking belly, then forget about this movement.

Why sit-ups are a waste of time? That is what Alex Lorenz, a sports teacher and YouTube fitness sensation, decided to explain. He is the co-founder of Calisthenic Movement and has trained Calisthenics since 2012, uploading videos regularly for those people interested in getting in shape using only their body weight.

Not only he explains why sit-ups are a waste of time, but he also exemplified which exercises you should be doing instead. Check it out.

Why Sit-Ups Are A Waste of Time

Instead of doing sit-ups, Lorenz talks about 3 exercises you should be doing instead:

Hollow body hold
Lock roll
Hollow body rock

When you do sit-ups, you mostly work your abs by flexing your thoracic spine. The first exercise option, the hollow body roll, is a great upper and lower abs exercise. “You flex your spine to lift your shoulders off the ground and you have to tilt your pelvis to hold your abs under tension when raising your legs.”

The hollow body roll also has different variations – the more you extend your body, the harder this movement gets.

The lock roll is a dynamic version of the hollow body hold. Just keep the position locked in and roll to the side back. You get to train your obliques and keep your spine movement to a minimum, something the sit-ups are terrible for and could cause disc damage.

The last exercise, the hollow body rock, forces you to increase the stability in your core while rocking back and forth.

So, why sit-ups are a waste of time? Because it can put your spine into unnecessary stress and doesn’t target your six-pack muscle properly, not to mention there is a lack of variations to progress over time.

If you want to know how to perform any of the exercises mentioned above, click on the video below and being your belly transformation right now.