Why do my abs hurt 3 days later!?!?!?!?!
Question:
Why do my abs hurt 3 days later!?!?!?!?
I worked out on Thursday, and today is Sunday -- and my abs STILL hurt! That was the first time I worked my abs in about 3 or 4 months, could that be why? Either that, I or I did a killer workout. I didn't do normal crunches ... I held each crunch for about a minute (maybe 2 minutes) with my legs in the air (to engage the lower abs), and then went towards a 180 degree position (laying flat) without ever letting my back or legs completely touch the ground..... and then went right back up again. I did this for about 20 minutes, and my abs were like shaking! The reason I chose to do this is because regular crunches never made me sore the next day, so I figured they weren't really working. Well, did I seriously hurt myself or did I just do a really intense workout? And when do you think I can start doing some crunches/other ab exercises?
Thnks!
Answers:
Ouch, girl!
That's probably the results of over-exerting yourself during your workout.
Take it easy and lay off the ab reps for another day or two, or at least until you start to feel a little better. I doubt that you seriously hurt yourself. Try a heating pad.
And by the way, don't configure your lifting sessions to the clock. That can be dangerous. Do reps instead--5 reps of 12, 4 reps of 20, etc. It will put less strain on your poor aching body.
Also, if you haven't worked a major muscle group in a while, don't start off so strong! You won't see major results for a while anyhow.
Good luck!