“Lower abs exercises”, uh?

When it comes to lower abs training, the query posted on many forums and online communities usually goes along the lines of; “I have notable upper abs, but my lower abs won’t show, which exercises should I be doing to target them?” This query is relatively common, yet the typical belief of targeting the lower abs via direct exercise to address the issue is somewhat flawed in the majority of cases. So, what can address the issue of making the lower abs more pronounced?

Lower abs are usually visible when body fat levels are low

No, not what most people want to hear, but true. The lower abdominal region is an area of stubborn body fat, often one of the last regions of the body to notably loose body fat when a fat loss plan is followed. The upper abdominals tend to become more notable before the lower region, with definition of the lower abs hindered by body fat.

Steps would need to be taken to reduce overall body fat to improve the definition and visibility of the lower abdominals, which often involves the manipulation of dietary intake, and the use of cardiovascular exercise.

Exercise the abdominals for muscle growth

Direct abdominal exercises, such as the crunch, will have little effect on spot reducing body fat from the abdominal region. Resistance exercise causes micro-damage to the abdominal muscle fibres, leading to potential muscle growth. It is the developed abdominal muscles, with a low body fat percentage, which makes the abdominals (the classic “six pack” look) pronounced and visible.

There are several schools of thought on the optimal repetition range for inducing muscle growth of the abdominals, although a repetition range between ten and twenty will likely provide fruitful results. Once the upper end of the repetition range is reached with the correct resistance the resistance must be increased. Increasing the repetitions will lead to some progression, but likely in the way of increased endurance, and less so in muscle growth.

Exercises which are said to target the lower abs

Abdominal exercises which involve the raise of the hips towards the ribs, such as the leg raise, or hip thrust, are said to exercise the lower abs. There may be some truth in the assessment, although the degree of truthiness is likely limited. Firstly, the rectus abdominis, the long flat muscle of the abdominals, contracts as a whole. The abdominal region is not composed of small muscle heads (the six lumps are the tendinous inscriptions, not individual muscles), but instead is one, long, flat muscle. Exercises which are said to target the lower abdominal region also stress the upper region, and vice versa.

Furthermore, there are some trainers who comment about the fatigue to the lower abdominals from hip raise exercises, leading to some people concluding the exercises do directly target the lower abdominal region in an isolated manner. We must take these comments with a pinch of salt however. The hip flexors are heavily involved in the leg/hip raise, and it is likely the hip flexors which the trainer is mistaking for the lower abdominals.

The wisest choice would be to perform an abdominal workout which is composed of a variety of exercises, with a selection of crunch and hip raise variations.