When it comes to abdominal exercises, few can beat the farmer ...

Who was this Farmer, and what did he know about abdominal exercises? He was Martin “Farmer” Burns (1861-1937), a world champion wrestler when professional wrestling was a real sport. In his later years he ran a gym to train young athletes, and he also created his own custom mail order physical education course, which is where this exercise is derived.

Learn to train these Ignored Muscles

What this exercise does is train two ignored groups of muscles of the midsection, the transverses abdominus and internal obliques. By making these muscles stronger, your waist will tighten. Without trying, you will always look like you’re “sucking it in”. As well, by focusing on your breath, you will be able to burn off excess fat. It is truly amazing what can be accomplished when you train your body naturally.

Exercise from the Inside Out

It should also be noted that like all great animal exercises, the stomach flattener does not only work the stomach. When performed correctly, you are also working your chest, throat, and arms. In addition, it also works your liver and bowels, and can be a great aid if you are feeling constipated.

Here is how you perform this great standing abdominal exercise:

1) Stand with arms at your sides and relaxed.

2) Inhale through the nose without letting the stomach expand, slightly tensing the stomach muscles.

3) Force the air out through a slightly open mouth while tightening the abdominals down and flat.

4) Keep your back straight at all times... avoid compressing the spine to contract your abs.

Some additional Points

The exhale, tightening portion of the exercise should last 2-5 seconds.

This exercise can be performed anywhere and usually is done from 2-5 minutes.

The importance of this exercise is in the intensity of the muscle contraction and not the length of the hold.

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