princessa Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 Um, so half the internet seems to suggest that women shouldn't be training their obliques because if these muscles are toned and hard, then it will make the waist appear bigger. The other half says that because the obliques are V-shaped, toning them will actually pull the waist in, resulting in a more defined waist. Who am I supposed to trust here?? Link to post Share on other sites
IfWishesWereHorses Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 I've read the same. I had been doing some oblique exercises in hopes of tightening the area. One trainer told me that the type had a lot to do with the results. Basically, she said that the side bend move with weights was going to probably produce the opposite affect of what I was looking for. She suggested the alternating crunch method. "right arm to left knee". YUC! I hate crunches, side bends are so much easier!! Link to post Share on other sites
Lights Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 Who am I supposed to trust here?? Don't know. Depends what your training goals are. Your post indicates that you may be worrying about muscle mass or size resulting from the exercise in question. With any form of training, there are methods of training that are more optimized for building mass and ways that are not. Here's a list of exercises for obliques: http://www.exrx.net/Lists/ExList/WaistWt.html#anchor1944764 Good luck. Link to post Share on other sites
climbergirl Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 I'd disagree with the statement that you could appear larger as the obliques pull toward the abdominal muscles. BTW-Dancing is a great way to shape them! Link to post Share on other sites
Author princessa Posted March 20, 2007 Author Share Posted March 20, 2007 I'd disagree with the statement that you could appear larger as the obliques pull toward the abdominal muscles. BTW-Dancing is a great way to shape them! Oh I love dancing.. But dance classes are so damn expensive! I wish I would get my exercise out of just dancing but it seems as though you can't just practice for the fun of it without paying for overpriced lessons! Link to post Share on other sites
VirtualInsanity Posted March 20, 2007 Share Posted March 20, 2007 Personally I do side bends, cruches (different kinds), and core related things. But you have to include cardio too. Link to post Share on other sites
Lovie Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Um, so half the internet seems to suggest that women shouldn't be training their obliques because if these muscles are toned and hard, then it will make the waist appear bigger. The other half says that because the obliques are V-shaped, toning them will actually pull the waist in, resulting in a more defined waist. Who am I supposed to trust here?? any kind of a health website that suggests NOT training any particular muscle group should be ignored because they don't know what they are talking about. in any workout regiment, you should work out every major muscle group no matter what your goal is. HOW you work them out is a different story though. if you're looking to gain muscle you should focus on heavier weight and if you're looking to tone down you should focus on lighter weight and more repetitions. either way though every muscle should be trained the same way and none should be ignored. Link to post Share on other sites
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