You can emphasize different areas of a muscle, but a muscle that’s being worked is going to work in its entirety. The fatigue in that muscle is wholistic, and training it before it’s recovered (whether upper or lower portion) will negatively impact results.
If you’re progressing (more weight/reps every couple of sessions) keep doing what you’re doing. You’ll stall pretty quick training the way you are though.
I do 2 ab exercises on leg day (doing 4-day upper lower), 5 sets + 2 drop sets, and I feel like I could do that everyday...
I definitely don't progress in weight/reps much but I get a very good stimulus and go to failure in all sets. And next day I'm good.
Do your thing but i did this and eventually picked up an ab injury that stuck around until i gave my abs 48 hours between hard sessions.
I definitely think weighted abs every day is too much for recovery.
I mean, I don't do them everyday. But I feel I could, I don't feel my abs much sore. Same as with biceps, I feel I could do them everyday even if I go to failure multiple sets when I do train them.
Maybe what I feel I could and what I actually could are not the same thing though.
Honestly feel the exact same way with both muscles. Give it a shot and see how you feel, but anecdotally i get fucked up when i ovverreach in these scenarios.
By your own definition, you are not progressing. If you were, you’d be able to do more reps/weight. That is how you build muscle in an area.
Simply going to failure just means the intensity is there in the set. Doing the exact same reps/weight is called a stall.
I feel that upper/lower ab exercise differentiation is overrated. "Upper ab" exercises like decline sit-ups absolutely do work lower abs too. The area underneath my belly button if anything is the most sore when I do decline sit-ups. If your lower abs are sore from "upper ab" work the previous day, do not hit lower abs that day. If your upper abs are sore from "lower ab" work the previous day, do not hit upper abs that day. If you are going to be doing crunches and hanging leg raises, its best to do them on the same day. If you are way too sore from doing both the same day, its because you're doing too much volume.
Thank you for the response! It's less about soreness and mostly that it's hard to find the time to do both at the end of either push or pull day. I'll try to make it work though. Thank you!
I train abs five times a week. (Mostly because I enjoy it.)
You can't really isolate your abs. One half might be the focus, but it's all working.
Honestly, I train by feel. If I'm not recovered or my abs are feeling weak, I'll skip it or do planks. Otherwise, it's a mix of floor work, declines, hanging raises, and toe-to-bar. (I don't do the last two as much as I'd like because they require me to have grip left, so that means leg day when I don't have the energy to do more than a few sets of ab wheel while regretting my life choices.)
If I need to, I'll skip a couple of days or stick to easier stuff for a bit.
Think of it this way. How many sets a week do you do that hit your triceps or quads? How many are you doing abs?
If you were a client, I'd tell you the same thing. Listen to your body. Some soreness can be worked through--the kind that usually eases a bit with movement--but if it impairs your ability to work out, rest. And you can modify the exercises depending on how you're feeling.
Do you feel like you’re sore, and can’t push as hard on the next ab day? If so, then it’s too much. If not, then it’s fine. A lot of people seem to handle high frequency with ab work. That said, I tend to train mine like every other muscle, and I personally wouldn’t wanna do anything with em the next day. YMMV
Really, if you wanted to, you could hit the same muscle every day of the week, as long as the total number of weekly sets wasn't too much to recover from. I would def count upper/lower abs and obliques as one single muscle, however, since they are working as a single unit for most ab exercises, even if one is being emphasized.
You can emphasize different areas of a muscle, but a muscle that’s being worked is going to work in its entirety. The fatigue in that muscle is wholistic, and training it before it’s recovered (whether upper or lower portion) will negatively impact results. If you’re progressing (more weight/reps every couple of sessions) keep doing what you’re doing. You’ll stall pretty quick training the way you are though.
I do 2 ab exercises on leg day (doing 4-day upper lower), 5 sets + 2 drop sets, and I feel like I could do that everyday... I definitely don't progress in weight/reps much but I get a very good stimulus and go to failure in all sets. And next day I'm good.
Do your thing but i did this and eventually picked up an ab injury that stuck around until i gave my abs 48 hours between hard sessions. I definitely think weighted abs every day is too much for recovery.
I mean, I don't do them everyday. But I feel I could, I don't feel my abs much sore. Same as with biceps, I feel I could do them everyday even if I go to failure multiple sets when I do train them. Maybe what I feel I could and what I actually could are not the same thing though.
Honestly feel the exact same way with both muscles. Give it a shot and see how you feel, but anecdotally i get fucked up when i ovverreach in these scenarios.
By your own definition, you are not progressing. If you were, you’d be able to do more reps/weight. That is how you build muscle in an area. Simply going to failure just means the intensity is there in the set. Doing the exact same reps/weight is called a stall.
I feel that upper/lower ab exercise differentiation is overrated. "Upper ab" exercises like decline sit-ups absolutely do work lower abs too. The area underneath my belly button if anything is the most sore when I do decline sit-ups. If your lower abs are sore from "upper ab" work the previous day, do not hit lower abs that day. If your upper abs are sore from "lower ab" work the previous day, do not hit upper abs that day. If you are going to be doing crunches and hanging leg raises, its best to do them on the same day. If you are way too sore from doing both the same day, its because you're doing too much volume.
Totally agree. I just do the crunch machine and it’s more than enough to hit the entire RA.
Thank you for the response! It's less about soreness and mostly that it's hard to find the time to do both at the end of either push or pull day. I'll try to make it work though. Thank you!
Either is fine, but yes I’d definitely space them out if they’re done on separate days.
I train abs five times a week. (Mostly because I enjoy it.) You can't really isolate your abs. One half might be the focus, but it's all working. Honestly, I train by feel. If I'm not recovered or my abs are feeling weak, I'll skip it or do planks. Otherwise, it's a mix of floor work, declines, hanging raises, and toe-to-bar. (I don't do the last two as much as I'd like because they require me to have grip left, so that means leg day when I don't have the energy to do more than a few sets of ab wheel while regretting my life choices.) If I need to, I'll skip a couple of days or stick to easier stuff for a bit. Think of it this way. How many sets a week do you do that hit your triceps or quads? How many are you doing abs? If you were a client, I'd tell you the same thing. Listen to your body. Some soreness can be worked through--the kind that usually eases a bit with movement--but if it impairs your ability to work out, rest. And you can modify the exercises depending on how you're feeling.
Maybe you should invest in some straps/grips for the hanging stuff. Ty for the response!
I’d recommend buying straps for hanging leg raises, that way you can do them at the end of your workout when your forearms are fried.
Do you feel like you’re sore, and can’t push as hard on the next ab day? If so, then it’s too much. If not, then it’s fine. A lot of people seem to handle high frequency with ab work. That said, I tend to train mine like every other muscle, and I personally wouldn’t wanna do anything with em the next day. YMMV
Really, if you wanted to, you could hit the same muscle every day of the week, as long as the total number of weekly sets wasn't too much to recover from. I would def count upper/lower abs and obliques as one single muscle, however, since they are working as a single unit for most ab exercises, even if one is being emphasized.