Sit-up Program

 

The Method
 Sit ups aren't really a high strength exercise. It's a core endurance exercise. And there is really an easy compound way to get those sit up numbers up.
 The first part of the compound method is to do sit ups. Kind of obvious, right? There are a few points that you should consider in your routine though:

 * Flex those abs. Constant contraction will help build up the endurance.
 * Do sit ups very slowly and with a full range of motion. Sit up as far as possible and never use your arms as a way to boost your way up.
 * Keep a straight back.

 It should also be noted that it's probably a good idea to set up a routine and stick with it. Such as doing 60 sit ups about 3 times a week. This can be broken up into sets(such as 6 sets of 10) if you cannot do 60 straight sit ups.

 The second part of the compund method is to flex your abs and hold them there when you are just sitting around and such. Doing this will help build up your endurance and allow you to get up the volume of sit ups you can do in 60 seconds. 

The Routine
 60 sit ups 3 times a week. The goal is to be able to do 60 sit ups with the points in The Method followed(see above). If you can do this, you should be able to get about 55-63 sit ups in 60 seconds, and a routine is a good way to get there. 

 To set up a good sit up routine is easy. First, you see how many sit ups you can do in 60 seconds(use the normal CF way). Take that number and divide it by 2 or 3 or 4(depending on how hard you want to push). Now, you take that number and find how many times it goes into 60(round up always), this number is sets and the other is reps. Now, you do the number of sets and reps you got out of this 3 times a week. At the beginning of each week, try again. If you do more sit ups in 60 seconds, raise the bar. If not, keep it where it's at.

 For example:

 On Monday, I did 30 sit ups in 60 seconds, and I want to push myself. So I divide 30 by 2, which is 15. 15 goes into 60 4 times. So, I will do 4 sets of 15 on Tuesday, Thurday, and Saturday. On the following Monday, I got 40 sit ups in 60 seconds, so I now have to do 3 sets of 20  on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. And so on.

 Supersets for Sit-ups

Repeat this cycle of exercises non-stop 5-10 times:


- Regular situps - 10
- Reverse Crunches - 10
- Double crunches - 10

If you do this five times, you will have done 150 abdominal exercises in less than 15 minutes! Now that's a good foundation-building workout. You'll reach failure no matter who you are, only if you continue this workout for 10-15 times. When you reach failure and your goal is to reach five sets, rest just enough to push out a few more. That is what I mean when I say, "succeed by failing."

You have to be able to tell yourself that you can do these workouts even when you have never done over 100 sit-ups in your life. By breaking it up into little sets nearly anyone can do the above workout. Even if you can't, you still succeed and will be stronger the next time you try it.

There is a mental aspect to this type of "failure" training. Your mind will tell you that you are ready to quit before your body will usually. You have to be able to disengage that thinking process and push yourself until you truly fail. You want to not only fail at sit-ups, but fail at sloppy sit-ups too! The same goes for crunches and any kind of abdominal execises too.

 

Try these tips and watch your sit up count dramatically improve!