Of all the content posted to StrongFirst.com, Pavel Tsatsouline's articles shines brightest. His previous work on slow-twitch muscle-fibers could be required reading for strength athletes of all kinds — and it would benefit each of them. His ab training rules fall into the same category.
Posted earlier this week, Tsatsouline's article, "The Top Five Ab Training Mistakes" covers the main errors of ab training. These are his general thoughts:
1: CHASING THE “BURN”
The “burn” is just a manifestation of mounting acidity produced when one is in the glycolytic energy pathway, the choice pathway for amateur coaches more interested in “smoking” their victims than in making them strong.
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2: NOT FOCUSING ON THE CONTRACTION
Your muscle can contract in response to the load (feed-back) or to a command from your brain even in the absence of resistance (feed-forward). Examples of the former are the farmer’s carry and the double kettlebell front squat. Examples of the latter are, the double kettlebell clean, the hard style sit-up, and power breathing. For maximal strength development both types of training are a must.
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3: NOT USING ENOUGH RESISTANCE
Feed-back training demands high external resistance. It can be a heavy weight or poor leverage.
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4: EXCLUSIVELY ISOMETRIC TRAINING
Experience has taught me that people who have not trained their abs dynamically, a stretch followed by a peak contraction, are not fully aware how to engage them 100% statically. (Of course, such training is not for the flexion intolerant.)
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5: NOT MAKING EVERY EXERCISE AN ABDOMINAL EXERCISE
An expertly performed heavy deadlift is an exercise in both feed-forward and feed-back tension. Engaging a solid brace before the pull is the former. Staying tight under a moving load is the latter.
The full article, including a detailed explanation of each mistake, can be found on StrongFirst.com.