How To Do Bicycle

Chris Freytag demonstrating a Bicycle Ab Exercise

Bicycle is a classic core body exercise meant to strengthen all of your abdominal muscles upper abs, lower abs and obliques. Done properly, this is an amazing exercise! However – it is rarely done properly. Most of the time when you observe someone trying the Bicycle in the gym, they are pulling on their neck, twisting with their elbow or going so fast it’s impossible to engage the muscles as they are needed. If you learn How To Do Bicycle properly you will get results!

The first thing to consider during Bicycle is to keep your abs pulled in so that your back stays firmly pressed into the floor and your body isn’t wobbling side to side as you rotate. Next, be sure to initiate the rotation with your rib cage rather than your elbow. Third, place your open and relaxed hands lightly under your head just for support- not to pull.

As you move from side to side keep in mind that the slower you move the better! If you start going fast you will rely on the momentum rather than the muscle. Just imagine that your torso is a heavy, wet rag that you are squeezing water out of. Try the Bicycle in my How To Get Rid of A Muffin Top workout or my lower ab workout for women!

Here are the steps to performing Bicycle:

1)Start lying on back with feet off the floor and legs in a tabletop position. Hands are behind the head and head, neck, and shoulders are flexed off the mat.

2) Bring one knee in and the opposite elbow over reaching towards it. Repeat on the other side in a criss cross motion working the obliques.

Targets: core