The Power of the L

The L sit is a challenging movement. But beyond looking really cool, there is a hugely functional application to practicing this feat of strength.

Consider this:

The primary role of the abdominal wall is to stabilize the spine against outside forces (unless you are a lumberjack, in which case all those crunches will really pay off in a sport-specific function). By extending the legs beyond the bodies' mid-line, torque is created. The abdominals must stabilize against this torque or the system will fail. The further the legs are extended, the greater the force which must be overcome, the greater the strength demand. Working on a solid L sit will make other '4 minute ab' exercises look silly.

Try finishing your workouts with a few L sits. Start with something conservative, like 15 seconds. Every time you practice try to improve your time by 3-5 seconds. A solid 30 second L sit is a good start...1 minute is pretty bad-ass and 2 minutes is starting to get freaky. Or, get between two chairs right now and give it your best shot. Post best attempt to comments.

L-sits even give Jamie the power of levitation!


L,
-Boz