I’ve been doing ab exercises for about a year. I’ve got a decent 6 pack going. But the funny thing is that I’ve noticed that on my first set of regular crunches I do every day, my abs start to “feel the burn” around 50 or 60 crunches, and then it reaches a maximum “burn” around 80, and then it dies down and I don’t feel anything for the rest of my set (which is another 200 and some). If I keep it up and drag my set up to 600 or so they start to feel it again, but that is a lot of crunches to do and I don’t want to do them if I’m not sure that they are actually working my abs. I know that hip flexors or whatnot start to work more as your ab exercise continues, but I really wouldn’t think it would have that much of an effect. I try really hard to maintain the same form I do my crunches in, but no matter what I can’t keep a consistent “burn” on my abs for that exercise. Anyways, is this just me? Am I doign something wrong?
I’m not sure what the question is. Are you asking why you don’t feel a burn longer than you think you should, or are you asking how to get a 6-pack faster?
Doing 600 reps of any exercise is a waste of time. You should try thinking of your abs like any other muscle group. You’d never do 600 reps of 2-pound bicep curls, would you? Other than getting a nice “burn” and rushing a bunch of blood to your upper arm, you’re not doing a whole lot to build up your biceps. Try adding resistance to your crunches by holding a 25 or 35-pound weight across your chest or behind your head while you crunch. If you find that you can do over 100 reps, then either you need more resistance or you’re not doing the exercise right. Also, I think your equating “burn” with “effectiveness” is a mistake. I rarely feel any burn when I do crunches other than just plain fatigue, but I have a six-pack.