If you want to continue training the abdominals , but you have already checked all the exercises that have occurred to you, you can always resort to the toes to bar . Basically, it’s an advanced version of the leg raise: you hang from a pull-up bar and bring your toes up to the bar . It is very hard because it requires great strength and coordination.
This calisthenics movement , often abbreviated as TTB, is a compound exercise that will put a lot of stress on both the abdominal wall and the forearms, which are the ones that will bear the entire load of the body weight.
Apparently, it is an exercise that does not have too much mystery. You hang from the bar – any one in the park is also fine – and you begin to raise your legs up, in such a way that your toes are as high as possible. When you try it, you’ll realize the hard way that it’s not that simple to execute . So it’s best to go little by little.
First, the hollow hold
The first step to be able to perform this exercise is to practice it lying down in the form of a hollow hold , which will give the core a lot of strength, resistance and stability. In this way, when you have perfected this movement, you will be able to get an idea of ​​what to do when you are hanging . This is how to do a hollow hold:
- Lie on your back with your arms and legs straight.
- Press your lower back into the floor so there is no gap between your back and the floor.
- Lift your arms and legs off the ground. He lifts his head and shoulders off the ground, making sure not to tuck his chin into his chest.
- Hold the position for as long as you can
From this movement, it is time to drop all the weight in a vacuum while holding on with your hands. You may not be ready to bring your toes all the way up yet, so keep making progressions.
Knees to chest
The second step is to gain strength, for this you must hang from the bar and try to bring your knees to your chest. It is very likely that you have already done this exercise more than once
Knees to elbows
The third step is already more complicated. It has to go above chest height. To achieve this, the entire back must be activated by pulling the bar down to gain stability and to be able to raise the legs up to the elbows.
Fingers to the bar
This is the correct way to get a strict repeat:
- Grab the pull-up bar with an overhand grip, hands at shoulder height
- Pull down the bar to recruit the lats
- Take the initial hollow hold stance
- While keeping your body tight and not rocking, begin to bend at the hips as your legs begin to come up until your toes touch the bar
- Squeeze and lower controlledly, also without rocking
- repeat again
Perfect technique
Developing good toes to bar requires hours of practice and dedication . The process is very similar to perfecting pull-ups. And as with this dreaded lat exercise, there will be times when, due to exhaustion, you can no longer do strict TTBs and you end up in the middle of the movement. Even if this happens, the technique must always be the best possible to avoid injuries and continue progressing.
The best way to achieve this evolution is not to drop the legs on the return movement . This only kills the tension of the exercise, which means that the muscles stop working momentarily. Therefore, the movement must be controlled.
On the other hand, the repetitions have to be done without swinging . If they need five pushes to do a single rep, you’re doing it wrong. You will not be using the force of your body, but the inertia of the swing. So you’ll be having a while of suffering for nothing. If you want each rep to be effective – which is not to say strict – you will only need to use your hip flexors and core to bend .
