How To Use An Ab Wheel
Your abdominal muscles can generally improve your physical performance and protect you against serious back pains.
This is why Ab wheels are one of the most essential tools for working and strengthening your ab muscles.
With the ab wheels, you can reach your workout goals and get yourself solid abs, whether it’s in a gym or from the comfort of your home.
This article will guide you on how to use an ab wheel to improve your workouts without injuries.
What is An Ab Wheel?
An ab wheel is a piece of equipment for strengthening and training your core muscles. It is also referred to as rollout wheel, ab roller, or wheel crunch rollers.
Basically, they are wheels with handles at the sides that enable you to roll outward when you do conventional crunches and sit-ups.
You can use an ab wheel while standing or on the floor to make your workout more effective.
These wheels are valuable for working your core. However, they require careful handling to avoid unnecessary muscle strains and injuries.
Pros and Cons of Ab Wheel
While the ab wheel can be a great exercise tool with plenty of benefits it also has a few drawbacks.
Here is a long list of advantages these wheels offer followed by a handful of disadvantages.
Pros
- Ab wheels are effective at protecting you against back pains. They also improve your performance in sports and other activities.
- Another great benefit of an ab roller is that it targets your rectus abdominis muscle (or the “six-pack” muscle. So, if you are looking to build impressive six-pack muscles, here’s your chance!
- Using the tool strengthens your abs, lats, and your shoulders when you perform the workout correctly.
- Ab wheels are very good for increasing the blood flow to your brain. This can help you maintain proper brain functioning.
- With an ab wheel, you can activate all the muscles in your abdominal area. Fortunately, using the tool is easy, so you don’t have to worry about any complex workouts.
- You can use the tool to work your joints and ligaments. To use the wheel, you have to assume a rigid position and keep a straight body while doing this exercise. This position helps to strengthen your ligaments, thereby improving the integrity and flexibility of your joints as you regularly use them.
- One of the more desirable benefits of using an ab wheel is that it is effective at burning belly fat. It increases your metabolism, and in turn, burns calories. This is why exercises involving the ab wheel are usually recommended for people who want to lose belly fat.
- With ab wheels, you are sure to build a stronger core, improve balance, and gain good stability.
- Using the tool is generally more effective than crunches and sit-ups. This is because an ab wheel is capable of engaging your core muscles and getting you some nice rectus abdominis muscle faster.
- It offers a complete cardio workout. The process of rolling the wheel forward and backward will help increase your heart rate a lot quicker.
- It is extremely portable when compared to other abs exercise tools. This means you don’t need extra space to use the tools or store them. You can use them in the gym or from your home.
Cons
Now, let’s take a look at the not-so-good aspect of the ab wheel. Thankfully, there are only a few of them.
- As a beginner, you must start with traditional planks before attempting to use ab wheel rollouts.
- The movement on the exercise wheel is based on a good foundation of core strength. However, this may be challenging for you as a beginner who hasn’t developed that core strength yet.
- Working out the ab wheel can put strain and pressure on your neck. This means you have to get someone else to help you do it safely, especially if you are just getting started with the tool.
- Another disadvantage of the ab wheel is the pressure it puts on your lower back. For people who don’t have strong back muscles, it can result in overarching of the back.
Proper Ways to Use an Ab Wheel
Learning how to use an ab wheel is important, but you need to understand some basic techniques so that you can get the full benefits of the tool.
Also, knowing the correct way to use the tool will reduce the risks of injuries.
The in and out movement of the exercise wheel has to be based on good core strength. This can be challenging for the newbie who does not have such a base.
For this reason, it is usually a good idea for beginners to start with planks or crunches before advancing to ab wheels.
Another point to understand is that your neck can get strained while using the ab wheels.
Consequently, you should have a friend or somebody keep an eye on how you contract your neck as you use the tool, ensuring that you use it correctly and safely.
Also, it is essential to tighten your lower back as much as you can and let only the abs feel the brunt of the workout.
Consider the following techniques on how to use an ab wheel. Using these proper ways can help you achieve impressive results:
- Avoid moving other parts of your body. Instead, maintain a stable body as you do the in and out moves of the workout.
- For a more firm and steady roll, keep both your arms and knees together.
- Keep yourself safe from back injury by engaging your abdominal muscles while doing the exercise.
- Don’t start forcefully. Instead, go easy from the beginning and then gradually increase your rolling length. As you increase the rolling length, you set a new challenge for your abdominal muscles.
- Remember to maintain a steady breath rhythm – breathing in while rolling out and breathing out while rolling in.
It is also important to use a good quality ab wheel as they are constructed with different materials.
Consider getting an ab wheel with reinforced rubber and foam covering on the handles so the tool doesn’t hurt your hands while using it. Plus, it should be capable of withstanding repeated use without cracking.
Pro Tip
Here are some tips on how to use an ab wheel like a pro to get the most out of your exercise:
- Try doing the movements with your feet up on a higher platform or you can use a bench. In this position, your upper body is higher and gives you a big challenge to keep good form during the push-up.
- Using an ab rollout from an elevated position gives you the advantage of increasing your range of motion. As a result, it helps strengthen your core muscles a great deal. This can help you do away with unwanted belly fats.
Conclusion
Having and maintaining a healthy and strong core is crucial, especially if your daily work involves sitting down for very long hours.
A great way to maintain your overall fitness is to build a strong core.
Knowing how to use an ab wheel correctly is one of the most effective ways to build and strengthen your core muscles.
In addition, using the tool properly can reduce the risk of injuries.
Consider getting an ab wheel to take your core training workouts to the next level.
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