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The hamstrings are often underestimated. Usually, training focuses on the quads and calves, but the hamstrings seem to be less important. However, it should be remembered that neglecting any muscle has aesthetic and health consequences that you can avoid by working with it well. The reason you shouldn't forget about these muscles isn't just because of the symmetry and the look of your body. A weak hamstring is one of the most common causes of injuries most professional athletes have. Best Workouts for Hamstrings The best way to strengthen your hamstrings is, of course, exercising. So let’s talk about these workouts. Barbell 90The main benefit of this exercise is that you don't need lots of equipment, just a barbell. Start in a standing position with a barbell on your shoulders, keeping your back straight at all times. Bend your knees slightly, stretch your glutes, and bend forward 90 degrees. Then inhale and return back to the starting position. In addition to the hamstrings, this exercise will also strengthen your glutes and back. HyperextensionHyperextension is a great exercise for the hamstrings, as well as the muscles in the lower back and glutes. Sit comfortably on the hyperextension machine with your heels firmly resting on the platform at the bottom of the machine. Cross your arms over your chest or behind your head. Smoothly lower yourself down until you feel a stretch in the muscles of the lower back and hamstring while inhaling. Without delay at the bottom point, straighten to the level of the starting position, exhaling. Then return to the starting position. Throughout the exercise, keep your head in line with the body, keep your back straight. Tights upThis exercise can be performed on two horizontal bars on the playground, or simply put your feet on a chair or bench. We will describe the home workout option. Sit on the floor with your feet on the chair. Raise the body on your hands so that the tights are up in the air. Bend your knees and lift your tights up so that your body is parallel to the floor. Do 7-8 reps. One foot and dumbbellsThis exercise works well but requires a nice sense of balance. Take dumbbells in your hands, take one leg back and do not lower it to the floor until the end of the exercise. After that get to the previous position. Repeat this exercise a few times until you are tired. Final Word Hamstrings might seem insignificant but it doesn’t mean that you can skip working on these muscles. In fact, strong hamstrings will protect you from many injuries. So do not hesitate and start working on these muscles right now.

The path to beautiful abs should not start with the question 'How to strengthen abdominal muscles?' The thing is that the visual image of a flat stomach depends on the percentage of body fat. This means that the way your abs will look not only depends on the number of crunches you do but on the quantity and quality of your food. So today we are going to talk about the tips for getting gorgeous abs. Abs vs Food Nutrition is extremely important for getting abs. In fact, your coach will probably give individual nutrition recommendations after testing, but there is one universal rule that everyone should follow - eat healthy food. In particular, you should avoid eating bakery, sugar-containing foods, and salty snacks. On the contrary, you have to eat more vegetables, fruits, herbs, nuts and seeds, as well as meat or other high-protein foods. Getting Started Before starting a workout, it is important to obtain data on your body condition. This means that the best place to start is fitness testing. Your trainer will ask you some questions in order to learn about your lifestyle, test your ability to move, and measure you. Then the coach will recommend the activities that will be safe and effective for you. Popular Abs Workouts It is believed that the best ab exercises are the training of the rectus abdominis muscles, which perform the function of flexing the body and keeping it upright. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. You also want to work on the deep muscles, which are part of your core and include the muscles of the abdomen, back, thighs, and buttocks. Their function is to help the body maintain posture and balance in an upright position. As a matter of fact, if your core is not strong enough, you will most likely experience discomfort while doing other exercises. Strengthening the core should be your top priority and you can do that with the help of TRX loops, plank and its variations, as well other bodyweight exercises. Exercises for Strengthening Core and Abs As we have mentioned above, to have gorgeous abs, you have to make sure you not only work on your abdominal muscles but on your entire core. So here are some exercises for improving all these muscles: Diagonal twists Plank Pushups Plank push-ups Crunches Leg lifts from lying position Wrapping Up As you can see, getting gorgeous abs is totally possible if you know how to work on them. Healthy nutrition and regular exercises will help you sculpt the body of your dreams, so do not hesitate and start going toward your dream now.

Of course, everyone who is familiar with running knows the importance of strengthening the ligaments of the foot and ankles. Another thing is that sometimes it is hard to spend 5-10 minutes on training for ankle exercises: we dress, tie our laces - and run out into the street. That’s sad. After all, the good condition of the elastic ligaments reduces the risk of pain in the feet. And strong ankle muscles improve the power of the lower back and even the shoulders while running and just walking. Best Exercises for Strengthening Your Ankles Of course, there are plenty of good exercises that will help you work out your ankles, so without any further ado, let us have a look at those. Stretching towardsSit on the floor and straighten your legs in front of you. It is important to ensure that your thumb, little toe, and heel remain in the same direction as you pull the foot over. Only under this condition the muscles will be strengthened and stretched in a balanced way, which will prevent collapse on the outer or inner part of the foot while walking and running. When pulling the foot away from you, try to stretch your toes, as if you are making them longer and do not twist them under the foot. Repeat 15 times. RollingFrom a seated position with your feet in front of you, pull your feet as close to you as possible. Put your knees sideways, keeping your feet together. Keeping this position of the legs and resting with your hands on the floor, lean your body forward and raise your pelvis above the floor, trying to stay in position for a while. If you feel the potential in yourself, you can roll left and right, touching your feet with your palms. Ups and downs exerciseTraditionally, they are offered to be done on stairs, but slow doing on a flat surface will give an excellent result. Rise on your toes as high as possible, keep your heels in weight, and then bend your knees, pushing your heels forward. Place your heels on the floor, and only then straighten your legs. It is very important to make sure that your knees and ankles do not roll or fall. Dumbbell squatsSquats are good for developing your ankles and combined with dumbbells or a barbell (if you're already trained enough), this exercise becomes even more effective. Start with those dumbbells that you can lift 15 times without having to put them on the floor. For beginners, a weight of 2-3 kg is suitable. Bodybuilders need to lift more weight to build leg muscles. Perform squats as follows: stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart, arms with dumbbells at your sides and if you are doing an exercise with a barbell, hold it on your chest or behind your head. Sit down, bending your knees and lowering your buttocks to the floor. Keep your back straight and squat until your thighs are parallel to the floor. The knees should always remain directly over the feet; do not push your knees further than your toes. Push yourself back to the starting position. Do 2 sets of 10-15 squats. LungesKeep your torso straight and your shoulders back. Step forward and lower yourself until both your knees are at the 90-degree angle. Make sure that your knees do not protrude over your toes. Do two sets of 10 repetitions for each leg. Final Word Strengthening ankles is extremely important for both professional athletes and sports enthusiasts, so no matter if sport is your life or you work out just to keep in shape, you still need to work on your ankles.

Core muscles are the abs, diaphragm, and pelvic floor muscles and it’s needless to say that these muscles are extremely important. In this article, we will figure out how to correctly train your core as well as discuss the benefits of these muscles for the back and joints. What Core Muscles Are? The muscles of the core are divided into two groups: central and peripheral. The central muscles of the cortex resemble a sac, in which the abdominal cavity and internal organs are located. These muscles are divided into several parts: Front - rectus abdominis or abs and other muscles Lateral parts - oblique muscles of the abdomen and the muscles around it Back - the muscle that straightens the spine and the muscles around it Upper wall - diaphragm Lower wall - pelvic floor muscles At the same time, the peripheral muscle group includes the latissimus dorsi muscle, the pectoralis muscle, the trapezius, the muscles of the shoulder girdle, and buttocks. As you can see, the core includes many muscle groups, which is why you cannot strengthen it by simply doing crunches. Exercises for Developing Core Muscles As we have already mentioned above, in order to train your core, you have to select the exercises that involve many different muscle groups, so let us take a brief look at these workouts together: High plank Hollowman Crunches Superman Leg lifts from lying position Bridge V-sit V-ups Plank knee crosses Plank shoulder taps Elbow plank twists There is a huge variety of exercises for strengthening your core so do not underestimate them and try them next time you work out. Final Thoughts Core is an extremely important group of muscles that influence your posture, balance, as well as the ability to do other exercises. So if you want to have a strong and healthy body, you have to start with strengthening your core.

The calf muscles are often neglected in the early training stages when people concentrate on working out the chest, arms, and back. As a result, exercises for building calves are postponed or performed extremely rarely, which leads to a lack of progress. The muscles of the lower legs, as well as the deep muscles of the back, practically do not rest during the day, as they have to bear the weight of the body, help maintain balance, and stabilize the joints when walking. This means that it is focused on a low level of development and the way of working with it should be different.Here are some exercises for calves. Calves 45Among all the exercises this one is aimed at developing the calf muscles, it is also one of the most difficult ones. It's all about changing the angle of the legs, which allows you to use not only the calves but also the soleus. To perform this exercise, you need Gakkenshmidt's Machine. Depending on the design, you will be facing it or not. Set a suitable operating weight. It is calculated as the arithmetic average between the working weights in the two previous exercises. Next, select the weights according to the loads. Then you need to lower the heels, trying to stretch the calf as much as possible. Perform a toe lift. Lock in the position of extreme tension for 1-2 seconds. Calf raises with dumbbellsThis exercise is designed for athletes of any level and is considered the main one for working out the calf muscles. Stand on a wooden block. You can perform a movement in Smith, getting a step platform under your feet, and put the barbell on your shoulders. Fix the body in a straight position. If additional weight is required, dumbbells or weights should be taken. Next, you need to lower your heels below the level of the bar, trying to stretch the ankle as much as possible. Rise on your toes with a powerful impulse movement. Stay in this position for 1-2 seconds and tighten the calves. Slowly lower and get back to the starting position. Seated calf raisesThis exercise is great for lazy training and will be a perfect option for beginners. Sit on the machine seat. Place the toes of the feet on the support step. Lower your heels to the floor as much as possible. Lower the lever with soft stops on your knees and lock. Leg pressLie on a leg press machine. This uncommonly effective device for working out the legs can be used for training the calf muscles. Look for the platform where the legs would be straight. Fix the speed. You only need to do two actions. Remove the platform from the stops and squeeze it out with your toes. Return the socks to their original position. It is important to know that the effect of posture on the development of the lower leg and calf muscles is much stronger than the effect of training. Flat feet, if not taken into account and not compensated, also interfere with bringing the shape of the lower leg. To improve your calves without exercising machines, you can simply choose the right shoes and adjust your gait. Wrapping Up Developed calves not only help you perform certain exercises better but also make your legs look simply gorgeous. Therefore, take another look at these exercises and make sure to at least give them a try while working out next time.