EXECUTION
• Assume a back-lying position with the legs straight or bent in the knees with the feet flat on the floor.
• Cross your arms on your chest with the elbows in front of the torso.
• Inhale and hold your breath as you raise one shoulder up and over to the other side as high and as far as possible.
• Twist the shoulder around the opposite shoulder which remains in contact with the ground during this action.
• After reaching the uppermost position, hold momentarily and then exhale and return to the initial position.
• Then inhale and raise the opposite shoulder up and over in a twisting action as high as possible. After reaching the maximum twist position, hold momentarily, then exhale and return to the initial position.
• Repeat in an alternating manner and execute at a moderate rate of speed.
PERFORMANCE:
• For best results, it is important that you raise the shoulder as high as possible as you go into the twisting action. Think of rotating the upper body around the opposite side that remains in contact with the floor.
• Do not hold the hands behind the head when executing this exercise. In this case, there is a tendency to lift only one shoulder and to bring the elbow across. This action prevents you from raising the shoulder all the way up and over. There is also a strong tendency to pull or jerk the head, which can cause injury to the cervical spine.
• Shoulder rotation is the key to targeting the obliques. Because of this it is important that you raise and turn the upper body as far as possible in order to engage these muscles.
• If you have difficulty raising and turning the chest as far as possible, secure the feet to stabilize the legs and hips, especially if your leg and hip weight is not enough to counteract the raising and twisting of the upper body. Even though this stabilization involves the hip flexors, it will not create any problems nor will you develop these muscles to any extent.
• Be sure to hold your breath as you raise and twist the upper torso. When you hold your breath, you become stronger which allows you to raise the shoulder up and over as high as possible. In addition, breath holding creates a safe environment for the lower back and you end up getting a greater range of motion. This is the key to developing the obliques.
• If you find that you cannot get a sufficiently strong contraction of the obliques in this exercise, you may wish to do the reverse trunk twist in which the legs and hips are in motion rather than the shoulders. Many women find this variant more effective because of the greater muscular involvement.
PRIMARY MUSCLES INVOLVED:
The primary muscles involved include the abdominal group which is composed of the rectus abdominis, internal oblique and external oblique. The rectus abdominis is a long slender muscle running vertically down the abdomen. It has tendonous strips that run across the muscle to provide the divisions usually seen in the “ripped” mid-section. The external obliques cover the front and sides of the abdomen from the rectus abdominis to the latissimus dorsi and their fibers run diagonally to form a “V” shape. Located directly under the external obliques the fibers of the internal obliques form an inverted “V” shape. In the lower abdomen, the fibers are fairly horizontal. If the feet are secured there will also be involvement of the hip flexors but not to a very great extent. MUSCLE/JOINT ACTIONS: When your shoulder moves up and across the body, the external oblique on the side of the shoulder rising and the internal oblique on the opposite side are strongly involved. They perform spinal rotation in which the shoulders rotate around an axis formed by the side of the upper body in contact with the floor. The rectus abdominis is also involved as you raise the shoulder but it functions more as a stabilizer as you go into the twisting action. When you rotate to the opposite side, the same muscles on the opposite side of the abdomen undergo contraction.
SPORTS USES:
This exercise is beneficial in bodybuilding and in general fitness for strengthening and defining the abdominal musculature, especially the obliques. These muscles play a major role in flattening the abdominal wall. However in sports, because the range of motion is somewhat limited in this exercise, its benefits are not as great as they can be. The rotational action of the obliques is very important in turning of the shoulders which is most important in gymnastics, diving, wrestling and in the martial arts. It is also valuable in execution of sports skills such as softball pitching, javelin throwing, the shot put, softball batting, golf and boxing.