Exercise scissors lying down for weight loss. Scissors exercise: how to achieve the perfect figure

There are many simulators for pumping up the press, but there are effective exercises, for example - vertical scissors, which can be performed without special equipment. This is one of the most effective, which is suitable for both beginners and fitness gurus.

The main advantage of the exercise is safety for the spine and back muscles, so even people with injuries can do it.

What muscles are working?

Despite its simplicity, the Scissors exercise affects the entire rectus abdominis muscle, and especially its lower section, which is so difficult to work out with other movements. The transverse and oblique muscles are also involved, which are responsible for beautiful waist and posture, as well as leg muscles.

In terms of their effect, “Scissors” are similar to “Bicycle”, and although they are slightly less effective, they are suitable for absolutely everyone, from children to adults, and do not burden the back at all.

Advantages and disadvantages

This basic exercise, which is recommended for both athletes and those who are recovering from injuries, as well as women who are struggling with the unpleasant consequences of pregnancy. So, this is one of the best, since the blood actively circulates through the muscles of the legs and the vessels acquire tone.

Advantages

As a result of execution, not only the lower abdomen is tightened, but its entire surface becomes flatter. The impact goes to all the muscles of the press at the same time.
The hip lines are also strengthened, tightened, and become visually beautiful. The gap between the thighs appears and becomes more visible.
The volume of the waist decreases, the folds on the sides disappear.
The lower vertebrae are strengthened and become more mobile, overall mobility and flexibility are increased.
Just 10 minutes of training burns 65-70 kcal, so if you want to get rid of extra pounds, you should include exercise in your daily routine.

Minuses

Clear press cubes with “Scissors” cannot be pumped up. This exercise is more likely for endurance, perhaps for weight loss, and for cubes you need to use weights.
There are more effective workouts for the press, and although the "Scissors" are in the top 10, they are not in the first place.

Execution technique

The exercise is good because it works for beginners, and benefits experienced athletes. you are dealing with own weight and therefore avoid muscle strain.

Basic position: lying on your back, on a hard surface (on the floor, on a gymnastic rug, towel), press your lower back to the floor, arms along the body. Bring your legs together, tighten them, and stretch your socks away from you.

Tighten your abs and raise your legs to an angle of about 30 degrees from the floor, and as you inhale, bring, for example, the right one, a little higher, and the left one a little lower. As you exhale, change the position of the legs, imitating the movement of scissors. When crossing your legs, do not take them far to the sides.

Do the Scissors exercise for a minute, then lower your feet to the mat. Rest 15 seconds and repeat again. In total - at least 3 repetitions per session.

For newbies

It is difficult to hold the legs if the press is weak. Raise them immediately to the 90-degree position, and do the exercise like this. Muscles will still work, and gradually get used to the load. After 6-10 regular sessions, you will be able to lower your legs to 60 degrees, and then up to 30.

If keeping your legs at a right angle is difficult, find something to grab onto with your hands behind your head, the main thing is to press your lower back to the floor.

For the pros

You can complicate the workout by using leg weights, or lowering your legs 10-15 cm from the floor. So the tension of the press will be maximum.

Features of correct execution

Keep your legs straight at all times. If this is difficult, increase the angle of the lift, but do not bend your knees.
The lower back should be pressed to the floor. You can put your hands under your buttocks to control the position of your back.
Don't lift your head or strain your neck. The upper part of the body should generally be motionless.
Be sure to breathe. Ideally, for each swing of the legs, there should be an inhalation or exhalation.

Variations of "Scissors"

In addition to the basic one, lying on the floor, you can perform other exercise options, pumping the muscles of the legs and buttocks that were not previously involved. It is better to move on to them when you have already fully mastered the classic version, and perform 4 sets in the “legs 10 cm from the floor” position.

Reverse scissors. You can do it on the floor, but it’s more convenient - in gym, on the bench for swinging the press. At home, you can try to adapt the furniture, but not soft (the sofa will not work). Lie on your stomach, put your hands under your head, and do scissors, vertical and horizontal, you can alternate.
Broken scissors. The starting position is basic, lying on your back. Raise your tense legs, spread apart, and connect your heels, as if kicking each other with your feet. Such loads are needed, and in addition, the inner and upper thighs work effectively.

For maximum relief. Not everyone knows how to do the exercise Scissors with increased load at home, without the use of weights. It is enough to raise the body 30 degrees from the floor in the basic position, as if you started to pump the classic press, but did not finish the exercise. It turns out that your legs and upper body are raised. According to fitness trainers, this is how the rebellious cubes of the lower press “achieve”.

In addition, increased loads are also obtained underwater, in the pool, for which you can grab your hands on the side or ladder, and try classic, reverse and broken scissors.

Learn to feel your body, do not overexert yourself and breathe properly. Speed when performing is not the main thing, technique is more important. You can work with a trainer to track down mistakes in the early stages, or you can follow the exercise with video clips. If it becomes uncomfortable, change the angle of your legs or take a rest.

In time everything will work out and you will have nice abs as well as cheerfulness and excellent mood!

Video with a slightly complicated version of this exercise:

There is quite big number exercises that work the abdominal muscles. They allow you to quickly and effectively tighten this area and make the tummy flat and attractive. However, such exercises on simulators are contraindicated for those people who have diseases or back injuries. And in this case, the well-known exercise comes to the rescue - leg scissors. But even such a simple exercise requires correct execution and has some nuances.

What's the use?

Any feasible training is beneficial for the human body. And the inclusion of leg swings in your occupation can lead to the following results.

The exercise scissors for the press helps to increase the supply of oxygen to the whole body and especially the abdominal muscles.
Incorporating scissors into your workout will benefit the most problematic part of the abs - the area just below the navel. But at the same time, absolutely all the abdominal muscles are worked out during execution, so this area of \u200b\u200bthe body will become more toned.
If you regularly make scissors, then the benefits will be not only for the press. The muscles of the thighs will also tighten and visually lengthen. And the interfemoral lumen will become more noticeable.
Such exercises well help to burn extra calories, which means they help with weight loss. It is estimated that 10 minutes of intense scissoring will burn about 70 calories. Therefore, such classes are very often included in the complex of exercises for people with obesity. Plain physical activity in such people is reduced due to high load on knee joints, and scissors help to compensate for this shortcoming, if done fairly regularly, albeit little by little.
In addition to the press and hips, such workouts help to make your waist more pronounced.
The back muscles are strengthened. Moreover, the benefit will be not only from the movement of the muscles, but also from the work of the lower vertebrae.

Expert opinion. All of the above is very important in the rehabilitation of some patients. First of all, this applies to those people who have had a fracture of the femoral neck. The inclusion of leg swings in exercise therapy complex helps speed up the recovery process. The fact is that during training, quite a lot of muscles responsible for walking and running are involved.

In addition to all this, the advantages of leg swings include the fact that it does not require any special equipment to perform, and that you can independently adjust the complexity and intensity.

The main muscles that work when performing this exercise are the rectus abdominis, oblique abdominis, rectus femoris. But besides this, many small muscles, most of which are quite difficult to work through.

According to the American Council on Exercise for 2015, this exercise closes the top ten.

Proper execution

The scissors exercise, which is performed for the press, has various levels of difficulty. And this is great, as it allows people with any degree of preparedness to include it in training. You just need to choose the difficulty that suits you and familiarize yourself with correct technique. The first workouts can be done under the supervision of a trainer, especially if you have injuries or you are a complete beginner, and in the future you can practice on your own without fear of injury or harm to your body.

Zero level

In this case, the legs during the exercise should be at an angle of 90 degrees. Starting position: lying on your back with legs pulled up to the body. The angle at the knees should be approximately 30 degrees. During swings, the body must remain motionless. For relief, you can hold your hands on the stabilizer located above your head. In the hall it's the bottom step wall bars, and at home there may be a lower part of some furniture.

After taking the starting position, adjust your breathing. It should be quite deep and set the right rhythm. Then, while inhaling, the press tightens, and the legs straighten and rise in such a way that they form a right angle with the body. Then, just as quickly, they lower and bend. Then you should repeat the straightening of the legs and vice versa. During such a movement with your legs, you should feel in which position the spine will be as comfortable as possible.

Stay at this most comfortable posture and start swinging your legs. They must interbreed and diverge in different sides. The rhythm is best observed as follows: 2 swings for each breath and 2 for each exhalation. At first, you will have to monitor your breathing, and then you will do everything automatically. After 10 breaths / exhalations, you can lower your legs to their original position and rest a little. To begin with, you should perform from 3 to 5 visits. And over time, their number can be increased.

First level

It will be possible for a beginner to switch to this difficulty when the back stops feeling discomfort when lowering / raising the legs to 60 degrees relative to the floor. If it is initially easy for you to perform the scissors exercise for such raised legs, then you can safely start from this level.

Execution starts in the same way as on zero difficulty. After completing a series of swings at a height of 60 degrees, you can raise your legs to 90 degrees to rest and do a series of swings already in this position. If such series are difficult, then you can lower your legs down and rest.

A complete transition to this level is considered at the moment when from a prone position you immediately raise your legs to 60 degrees and perform all 3-5 visits in this position.

If you want to press the relief of the press and accelerate weight loss, then with legs raised to 60 degrees, you can perform swings not only parallel to the floor, but in an up and down direction.

Second level

On average, it is believed that the transition to this complexity occurs in a month regular workouts. But do not be upset if after a month at the first level it is still difficult for you to move to the second. Each of us has a different level physical fitness body fitness. At the second level, the scissors exercise is performed at an angle of 30 degrees with respect to the floor.

All stages described in other levels are repeated, only the height to which the legs rise / fall is different. However, it is at the second level that it is necessary to carefully monitor the correct execution of the exercise. If, when raising the legs to 90 degrees, the back itself is pressed against the floor, then at 30 degrees, the lower back strives to break away from the surface. To control the correct execution, you can put your hands under your lower back and buttocks, palms down. All movements are performed by the abdominal muscles.

Advice from an expert. Many coaches do not voice this, as they consider this information to be known to everyone. However, beginners should definitely be aware that during the execution of scissors, you should ensure that the neck muscles are relaxed. The same goes for muscles. shoulder girdle. If you strain these muscles, then the effectiveness of the scissors is significantly reduced, and after training you get discomfort or even soreness in the neck, shoulders and arms.

Third level

At this level, the scissors exercise is performed at an angle of 10 degrees from the floor. It is from this level that prepared and physically developed people are advised to start.

Mahi in this position can be performed vertically and horizontally. You can even alternate different variants. The main thing is that the legs do not touch the surface. Since there is nowhere to lower your legs further, you can increase the complexity by increasing the intensity. Try to bring the number of swings per inhalation / exhalation to 4. At the same time, the legs should be straight and the toe extended forward.

Scissors lying on the stomach

Experts advise moving to this version of the exercise only when you have completed all the levels in the classic version. Performing it on the floor is not very convenient. Therefore, in the hall you can use the simulator for the press, and at home you can adapt furniture with a hard surface.

Scissors, which are performed lying on the stomach, strengthen the back well, but they have less effect on weight loss than the classic version. They also help to tighten the muscles of the buttocks and rear surface hips.

Having taken the starting position lying down, raise your legs 10 degrees from the floor and perform swings in the horizontal and vertical direction. At the same time, you need to hold yourself in the correct position with your hands.

Advice from an expert. Even if you have mastered all the levels of classic scissors and switched to reverse ones, you should not forget about the classics. Alternating will help develop muscles more harmoniously. If ordinary scissors seem too simple to you, you can try various complicated options. For example, do an exercise with weights. Or do swings with the body body raised, but at the same time carefully monitor the correct fit.

The scissors exercise is quite simple, and most of us have done it since school. However, at the same time, it is very effective both for giving relief to the press, and in general for losing weight. If you do scissors regularly, then in a couple of weeks you will notice the first results.

Such an exercise as scissors is familiar to everyone from school physical education lessons. Despite its simplicity, it is very effective in strengthening the press and forming a beautiful silhouette.

Muscle work

Scissors have a complex effect on the entire rectus abdominis muscle. At the same time, its lower part is perfectly worked out, which usually reacts poorly to the load. Regular execution exercises will strengthen the press and make the stomach flatter.

Muscles involved in the exercise.

It should be understood that neither scissors nor other strength exercises by themselves do not contribute to combustion excess fat. If, in addition to strengthening the abdominal muscles, you want to achieve a reduction in volume, be sure to combine scissors with cardio.

Execution technique

How to make scissors? To get started, take your starting position.

To do this, lie on the floor, after laying a gymnastic mat or towel on it. It is not recommended to perform the exercise on a sofa or other soft surface, as this makes it traumatic.
Raise your straight legs up, slightly lifting them off the floor (about 10–20 cm). Place your palms on the floor and place them under your buttocks. This will help lift the bottom of the buttocks and relieve excess tension from the back. You should feel the lumbar area relax and press firmly against the floor. Now you can start the exercise.

Start swinging your legs. The left leg should move to the right, and at the same time right leg- to the left. Then the movement is repeated in reverse, imitating the movement of scissors.

Make sure that the legs remain straight at all times and do not fall to the floor, and the toes are extended forward. It is also important not to bend the knees, as this significantly reduces the effectiveness of working out the press.

Scissors technique.

Do two sets of one minute each. Rest between sets should be no more than 30 seconds.

Fixing bugs

The most difficult moment for beginners is to keep the legs in an elevated position throughout the exercise. The difficulty is caused by the fact that the abdominal muscles are not strong enough and can not cope with the load.

If this happens during the second set, try increasing the rest time or reducing the number of repetitions.

If this problem occurs during the first approach, simplify the exercise. Remove your hands from under your buttocks, raise upper part body and lean on your elbows. Making scissors in this position is much easier. Over time, the abdominal muscles will strengthen, and you will be able to perform the standard version of the exercise.

Exercise variations

Stretch your arms along the floor and lift straight legs 10-15 cm from the floor surface. As you exhale, lift your left leg up, keeping it straight. As you exhale, lower it down. Repeat with the right foot.
You can try the so-called static scissors. Simply lift your straight legs off the floor and hold this position for a minute.
Exercise can be performed with weights. After you can easily do 2 minute approaches, put on special weights weighing 0.5 kg on your legs. This will give the muscles an additional load and allow you to achieve even more impressive results. Most importantly, make sure that the lower back does not come off the floor.

For best result perform scissors 3-4 times a week, not forgetting other exercises to strengthen the abdominal muscles. An integrated approach is very effective. Already after 2 months you will see that your stomach is noticeably tightened.

We will talk about the familiar exercise "Scissors". About its value, advantages, order of execution, as well as "subtle points". Follow our instructions, achieve your goal, stick to a competent diet - and slim stomach, tightened hips and buttocks, general vivacity and excellent mood are guaranteed to you

In the arsenal of pros and fitness enthusiasts there are a lot of tricks in order to quickly and effectively tighten the abdominal muscles. However, swinging on training machines, sometimes in the same angles and with repeated loads, often bothers not only us, but also our “presses”. In addition, they are contraindicated in some back injuries.

How to do the exercise "Scissors" for the press and legs, what muscles work and 4 levels of difficulty

What muscles are working?
Lying on your stomach
Complicated version
7 useful properties exercises
4 more benefits

That's when it's time to remember the familiar with kindergarten leg scissors and abs exercise! About its fitness value, benefits, execution order, as well as "subtle points" - in our article.

What muscles are working?

We are interested in the abdominal region, the so-called "press", and especially its lower part. The exercise actively involves the flexor muscles of the thigh.

What other muscles are affected by this movement:

Iliopsoas (this is the “targeted” muscle)
Synergists (adductor rectus, longus brevis, adductor brevis, and pectineus; in addition, sartorius and fascia lata tensor)
The transverse muscle, which is responsible for the centimeters of the waist, keeps the balance of our body and gives good posture
The stabilizers are the quadriceps in combination with the rectus, oblique and transverse muscles of the abdominal zone.

In terms of visual effect, we sculpt the “lower cubes” of the press, while the load is also distributed to the middle and upper sections of the abdomen.

How to do the exercise "Scissors" - 4 levels of difficulty

Masters of the "black belt" of fitness will probably be bored reading about the zero, first and second levels. However, we will conduct an educational program, following the slogan: "Art - to the masses!" These are levels for beginners, people in post-traumatic recovery periods, for women in the postpartum period, especially after a caesarean section. By the way, at overweight it is also better to start from scratch, because of the possibility of overloading the back with its own weight.

Zero level - 90°

1. Starting position- take a supine position. To make it even easier, you can grab any stabilizer behind your head with your hands (at home - any heavy piece of furniture, in the hall - the bottom bar of the Swedish wall or any other fixed lever). The main thing is that during the swings, this object remains motionless and helps you keep your back and especially your lower back in a position pressed against the surface. We pull the legs to the body of the body, without lifting the feet from the floor, thus creating a popliteal angle of 30 °.

2. Set up breathing. Always before any exercise you need to breathe a little “correctly” (half a minute or a minute is enough). That is, we breathe with the “belly”, inhaling slowly and relatively deeply (not to the point of dizziness!). Ideally, the rhythm of your breathing should set your body up for the work ahead. The easiest way is to start rhythmically counting from 1 to 10, alternately inhaling and exhaling for each count. During the exercise, you must adhere to the rhythm of breathing taken and not stray.

3. First run. We take a breath, tighten the press and quickly straighten our legs, lifting them up at a right angle to the floor. Raising and lowering your legs quickly in the first step prevents your back from being overloaded. Further - you yourself must feel the height at which the back will not experience discomfort. If you feel a noticeable tension in your back when descending from 90°, stay perpendicular. Abs, legs and back will work even at this height.

4. Active phase. Let's do the "scissors", crossing the legs from side to side, not too wide. Rhythm is your breath set at the beginning. Two swings at the same time with each leg for inhalation and exhalation. Let's count to 10 (inhale - 1, exhale - 2, etc.). Mentally focused on the lower part of the press. Then quickly lower the shins to their original position with knees bent 30° and take 2-3 deep and intense breaths - exhalations to relax. During this time, you can additionally relax your legs by stretching them on the floor surface, but also quickly return to their original position.

We make 3-5 visits of vertical scissors, preferably every day.

First level - 60°

We pass to it when it is possible, painlessly for the back, to lower the raised legs from an angle of 90 ° to the level of 60 °.

1. We start in the same way as the zero level, then just lower the legs to an angle of 60 °. We do cross swings, as described in the previous section. Then you can first raise your legs again perpendicular to the floor, and then follow the instructions as in the “0th” level.

2. If there is no back pain, it is better to immediately lower your legs or to the initial zero level- at bent legs or on the floor without bending. Gradually work your way up to this level so that you raise your outstretched legs immediately from a prone position to a height of 60°.

Do three to five passes and slowly lower to the floor.

Second level - 30°

After about a month of daily exercise, you can go to the level of 30 °.

1. In the classic Scissors version, the lower back is firmly pressed to the floor, the muscles of the upper back, shoulders and neck are as relaxed as possible. We put our hands under the lower back and buttocks, palms down. Legs at 30°

2. We do the same, watching the immobility of the lower back, focusing on the lower abdomen, working under a given rhythm of breathing. Important! Don't tense your neck muscles.

At a height of 60 °, you can do a kind of exercise - swing up and down, which will add an effect to muscle tone, and it is this approach that works more on creating “cubes”.

The main thing is at least three repetitions at a time, and at least three times a week.

Third level - 10°

This level is the initial level for trained athletes. The procedure is the same, but we raise the legs at an angle of 10 °. Mahi can be done both horizontally and vertically, the main thing is not to touch the surface.

Gradually increase the frequency of movement, doing 4 swings on one breath, and perhaps some "ninjas" will be able to do 6.

Note! The legs should be as straight as possible and the toes should be extended. The slower you raise and lower your legs from the starting position and back, the greater the load on lower part press.

Let's sum up. We can consider ourselves masters of the scissors exercise while lying on our back, when we perform it painlessly when lifting our legs at 10 °, 4 swings for rhythmic inhalation and exhalation (that is, a little more than a second), at least three sets 3 times a week .

Lying on your stomach

As you know, standing still is rolling back. Therefore, having mastered the classics, we move on to the 2nd grade of the Scissors exercise. That is, in the supine position. This type of exercise is most conveniently done in the gym on a press swing simulator. But you can have this machine at home, or be creative - adjust the piece of furniture, as long as the surface is solid.

This configuration of "Scissors" not only gives variety, but also significantly advances our body in the knowledge of its own capabilities. Working in the position on the stomach, we perfectly strengthen, first of all, the back, tighten the buttocks and the back walls of the thighs.

If you start this subspecies after mastering the classics, feel free to work in the right horizontal position, alternating 10-20 swings horizontally with 10-20 swings vertically. At the same time, keep yourself motionless on the surface with your hands. It would be ideal if now you alternate the days of "Scissors" classic with the days of "Reverse".

Complicated version

If you want to compete with yourself - do "Scissors" with a raised pelvis. To do this, from the starting position lying down, we move to the position of the “tilted birch”, holding the lower back and pelvis with the palms.

The main thing is to observe the principle of immobility of the back when swinging the legs.

Want to add an effect to give more relief to the abdominal wall? Then, during the exercise, raise the body to the maximum, bending your elbows, as if performing an unfinished classic swing of the press. Stay in this position throughout all runs.

Love gym equipment? Do cross swings with your legs, lying on your stomach on a large gymnastic ball.

This is interesting! Tired of working only in the gym or at home? Try it in the pool, holding on to the ladder or side. "Scissors" will burn twice as many calories in water, just do not overeat after a workout!

7 benefits of exercise

Why is it so useful? We list a few characteristic properties:

1. Like any physical training, "Scissors" contribute to an excellent supply of oxygen to the whole body, and especially the abdominal muscles.

2. This is one of the best exercises for the tightening problem area abdomen - below the navel. But the entire "landscape" of the abdominal region is visually "flattened". At the same time, absolutely all abdominal muscles are worked out and strengthened.

3. Pull up, acquire a beautiful silhouette and visually lengthen the outer lines of the thigh. The interfemoral "clearance" increases.

4. 10 minutes of intense movements burn up to 70 kcal, which will undoubtedly make Scissors be included in the list of routine "to-be-done" of both those who scrupulously conquer the millimeter peaks of timid fat deposits, and don quixotes who dared to fight the mills perennial kilograms.

5. When regular classes the waist is "pulled" literally at times.

6. The benefits for strengthening the back are undeniable, especially for people with problems in this area. And not only due to the work of the muscles. During its implementation, we somehow involve the area of the lower vertebrae, the mobility of which is responsible for the mobility of the whole body.

7. Exercise promotes better recovery from fractures., for example, the femoral neck, due to the complex study of the muscles responsible for walking and running.

4 more benefits

So, after we have considered all the possible options for movement, we briefly list the advantages:

1. You work with your own body, therefore, at least, it is insured against serious overloads. As a result, this exercise is universal. It can be performed by both children and adults. Moreover, professional bodybuilders and amateurs will equally benefit. Even for people with back injuries, this activity is suitable, and in some cases it can be included in the complex of post-traumatic therapy. Exercise is extremely useful for getting rid of unpleasant traces of pregnancy.

2. The movement is easy to execute, can start with small loads and gradually increase, whereby people can safely proceed to it without preparation.

3. It does not require additional equipment and too much space.

4. Exercise "Scissors" is one of the top ten for the abdominal muscles and is one of the complex, due to focusing on the whole range of components muscle mass. At the same time, its effectiveness allows you to turn to training sometimes no more than twice a week with maximum benefit for almost the entire body.

Follow our instructions, achieve your goal, stick to a competent diet, be positive - and a flat stomach, tightened hips and buttocks, general vigor and good mood are guaranteed to you!published.