i only do mine twice a week - as i still have stomach fat covering what i may or may not have; are your abdominal strong? doing it so often when incapable (hurts, tires you out) might be a let down.
If you do, do it, make sure you work your entire core - which includes the back. there are some yoga and pilates moves that incorporate the back with certain moves.
To me abs are a muscle group and I don't train them everyday. I do upper body (inlcuding abs) one day and alternate to lower body the next day.
To be truthful there is nothing I hate more than ab work I hate crunches and anything of the sort. I get through it by thinking of it as "core work" which makes me feel like I'm building an inner girdle.
I'm happy just to do it 2-3 times a week and you couldn't pay me to do any more than that.
If you are just doing crunches (almost any variation) then it is safe to do them every day. If you notice that your abs get extremely sore, then cut back - but otherwise you should be fine!
Personally, I do cardio every day and strength training 3x/week, and strive to do pushups, crunches, and planks every day.
I TRY to do abs every day, The diet I am on seems to flush lactic acid. normally I couldn't do it DUE TO THE BURN. I do several moves but only til exhaustion. I don't try to force myself to do continuous reps past that point.
I work out the whole girdle
lower abs, upper abs, obliques, back (superman is perfect for this). Also do an exercise called the plank. Get in pushup position pull your abs in and stay there for a couple of seconds--you'll really feel that one.
Years ago, I used to do them daily. Then I read that they are a muscle group and that they should not be done completely daily but it would be ok to do upper and lower one day and obliques the next. So I was doing that for a while. Now I am back with a trainer and she is having me doing lots of abs daily. (Lots = 5 mins on ball, 4 mins on machine, 5-10 mins on floor 2x wk. Then we meet 2x week in which we do all kinds of ab stuff)
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I do something every day in my warm-up for abs (except for rest day 1x/wk), just 1 exercise, usually 2 sets of 10 or 15, nothing major. About once or twice a week, my trainer gives us a workout that involves some sort of ab torture. On those days, I will skip or cut down on my usual abs warm-up, since I figure the workout covers abs that day, and the next day, I might skip it again, if I'm still really sore or feel they need a recovery day.
I think it all depends which way you want to approach it. If you're just doing 1 or 2 sets, to warm them up, or a beginner routine that isn't shredding them, I think you can do them daily. If you're doing six different types of isolation work, or adding weight, or doing a bazillion reps, then I think they need a rest day or two after that, to facilitate recovery.
Abs are no different than any other muscle group. Work them but make sure to give them at least one day recovery. I don't do abs - my chinups use enough core to make them 'burn' the next day. I have defined abs.
Besides, abs are made in the kitchen. You can do crunches until the cows come home, but if you are not eating a super clean diet, you will not see them.
Ab exercises: Daily or 3x week??
