Is Your Quest for Awesome Abs Hurting Your Back?

For years, magazine headlines have promised exercisers stellar abdominal results: Sexy Stomach Shortcuts! Get a Flat Tummy! A Sleek Belly in One Fast Move! But if attaining a six pack is a major focus of your workouts, you may also be putting undo strain on your spine.

Part of the problem is that we've been told deep ab work gives you a more powerful core and a stronger back, but that's not necessarily the case. As a matter of fact, not only can sit-ups be more of a curse than a blessing for you back, but a recent story by That's Fit Canada reports that sit-ups alone may not be that effective in toning up your midsection.

So, what's the real story? To set you straight, most researchers define the core as the corset of muscles and connective tissue that encircle and hold the spine in place. "So if you concentrate on strengthening only one set of muscles within the core, you can destabilize your spine by pulling it out of alignment," said Stuart McGill, professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo in Canada and author of "Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance."

Instead, he suggests, a core exercise program should emphasize all of the major muscles that girdle the spine, including but not concentrating on the abs. The result will still be a sleek torso without sacrificing your back. "Side plank (lie on your side and raise your upper body) and bird dog (from all fours, you raise an alternate arm and leg) exercise the rectus abdominus as well as essential muscles embedded along the back and sides of the torso." His other favorite: Stir the pot. Get in a plank with elbows on a stability ball. Without moving your core, just use your elbows to move the ball front and back. When you've mastered that, move the ball in a circle.

And steer clear of sit-ups. They place way too much load on the disks. "Disks have a fatigue life and can only take so much flexion. If they're bent back and forth too many times, they just give out," said McGill. A modified curl begins with you lying down, palms facing down under your lower back. Don't press your back against the floor. Gently lift your head and shoulders barely off the floor. Hold for ten seconds, then lower.

Learn how core training can also boost your marathon time.