What are some alternatives to sit-ups? - Fitness

I do sit ups as a regular part of work-out. But in truth - I hate doing them. Can I break them up and do half of it before cardio and the other half after cardio? I feel like I'm not doing them right when I get toward the end of the reps. I just wasn’t sure if I needed to do them all at once for maximum benefit. (Lacey)

Let’s deal with the misconceptions first: sit ups do not target the abdominals as much as people think they do and most people do not do them correctly (the primary muscles used are the hip flexors. Most people use some momentum to get up off the floor or lock their feet under something to help the curl up, both make this even less effective). The trend has been to use your abdomen to stabilize your spine and this can be added with all of your exercises. Your core muscles are superficial and deep. Drawing in your belly will help you keep your abdominals engaged and more tone. To test if you can do this while exercising draw the belly in towards the back and keep it there while you do any exercise, even while you sit. Once you can do this you may progress to movements such as slow curls on a stability ball, the bicycle and the plank. But to take away the boredom remember to stabilize and hold the belly in, mix these new exercises in wherever you want to, between two exercises, after and before cardio, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you learn the correct technique.