Ab & Pectoral Exercises

Your abdominal and pectoral muscles, also known as simply "abs" and "pecs," are located on the front of your torso. While your abdominal muscles form the core of your body and extend from below your ribcage down to your groin, your pectoral muscles cover your breastplate and end up near your shoulders. Many fitness enthusiasts and athletes, specifically bodybuilders, tend to put a lot of emphasis on these areas and strive for "six-pack" abs and a "ripped" chest. There are several exercises that can help you accomplish this, including crunches/sit-ups, push-ups, ball exercises and weighted exercises.

Crunches / Sit-ups

Perhaps the most quintessential and popular exercises for ab muscles are crunches/sit-ups. Start by laying down on a soft flat surface and bend your knees inwards until your feet rest flat on the floor. Then, with your hands placed behind your head (or on either shoulder with your arms crossed), raise your shoulder blades off the ground and hold, according to bodybuildingforyou.com, approximately two seconds before releasing. For full sit-ups, secure your feet under a heavy object or have a friend hold them down, and raise your shoulder blades until your chest reaches your knees.

Push-ups

Push-ups can be thought of as the crunch/sit-up equivalent for the chest. Start by laying flat on your stomach with your feet together and then raise your elbows up so your palms are flat on the ground at approximately chest-level. Then, keeping your back straight and your head up, push with your palms and raise your body off of the ground. The only points of contact should be your palms and the tops or toes of your feet. (Wearing sneakers helps!)

Ball Exercises

You can find a large, inflatable, rubbery exercise ball at any local sports or fitness-supply store. While there are hundreds of different exercises you can do with the ball, for the abdominal muscles askmen.com recommends crunches (sit on the ball with feet planted and perform the basic crunch exercise) and leg raises (lie on your back with the ball between your legs and raise them up toward your body). For the pectoral muscles try doing push-ups with your hands on top of the ball. Resting it against a wall will help your balance.

Weighted Exercises

According to askmen.com, the best way to bulk up your ab and pectoral muscles is through weighted exercises. This will likely require that you visit a gym. For the abs, try doing weighted, decline sit-ups. You will need to lie on a decline bench (one that angles downward), hook in your feet, and then do sit-ups while holding onto a dumbbell or weight plate. For the pectoral muscles, bench presses are the most popular weighted exercises. Simply lie on a horizontal bench, grip a barbell with your hands wide apart, bring the bar down to your chest and then push it back up.

References

• BodY Building For You: Ab Exercise -- Ab Workout
• Ask Men: How To Get Ripped Abs