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My back, shoulders or neck aches when I hold the
abdominal "curl" position. What should
I do?
Using the back instead of the abs |
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If your lower back aches when you’re doing the “curl”, you’re probably using your lower back muscles instead of your lower abs. (See photo left.) This muscle misfire is common in students whose “lower ab” muscle (transversus abdominis) is weak. |
The solution for you is to rest on your elbows whenever you feel tension in your lower back. (See photo right.) Bar Method teachers are sympathetic to your situation and offer help if needed.
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Finding the right muscles |
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| How to find your Transversus Abdominis (lower abdominal muscle): Hold onto the front of your hips with your fingers just inside your hip bones. When your Transversus Abdominis (“TA”) engages, you’ll feel an immediate flat, hard muscle pull across your abdomen. |
Supporting the back behind the shoulders to help tight muscles relax |
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If the middle part of your back aches during the curl exercise, those muscles are probably tight and tense. You need to ease off on the position for awhile by using pieces of foam (or a semi-soft pillow) under your shoulder-blades. The soft foam will release some of the tension and allow you to focus on pulling in your abs. |
Curling with the shoulders instead of the abs |
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If your shoulders ache in the curl, they may be hunched too far forward. Try drawing them back into their normally aligned position. If the problem is that your legs are too far for you to reach while keeping your shoulders square, get a strap, loop it under your knees and use it to hold onto rather than your legs.
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Using a strap to keep the shoulders square |
Curling with the chin instead of the abs |
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If your neck aches while doing the curl, two problems may have arisen:
- You’re jutting your chin forward
- You’ve positioned yourself too low to the ground, and your neck is taking the brunt.
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If your chin is too far forward, tuck your neck back towards your throat and relax it. Then simply hold the curl position until you feel your abs doing the work rather than your neck.
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Too much flexion in the neck, not enough in the abs |
Supporting your shoulders at first can give you a better connection to your abs over the long term |
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If your head is too close to the floor, get several pieces of foam or the equivalent and put them under your shoulders to lift your head higher off the floor. Don’t worry: you’ll still get a great ab workout. The grip in your seat muscles plus your sustained effort to contract and flatten your abs will keep them working hard. |
If you are simply have trouble holding the abdominal curl position, you might be having difficulty because your back muscles are tight. Foam squares or pillows, as shown above, will help by:
- aligning you correctly for the exercise;
- gently stretching your tight back muscles; and
- relaxing your back so that you can concentrate on your abs.
Remember, you can always come down onto your elbows to reset.
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A good abdominal curl position 
Resetting position
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