Need help with Ab exercises - nothins happenin here!

I'm having trouble with my workouts because well - i have no abdominal muscles. None. No really - 3 kids and umpteen extra pounds for all this time - they're shot. Anyways, I've been doing various crunches working upper, lower and obliques. Some just on a mat, some with  a stability ball, some with a medicine ball. Some given to me by my trainer (who I plan to talk to about this tomorrow).  Buuuut - I never feel the burn. I never FEEL like I've done an ab workout - yanno? On top of that I'm not making any real PROGRESS - I still can't do ONE more crunch or hold my plank for another 5s or anything so I know I am not getting what I need out of this. So - what are your favorite exercises? What tips can you give me? What to dooooo? Disclaimer: I know ab exercises will not eliminate skin or give me a 6 pack, this is NOT my goal. My goal is core strength and overall health. Working all other major muscle groups is showing progress, this is my one challenge.

I'm a big believer to make abs stronger you need to train them like any other muscle, 2 or 3 days a week with lower reps than what most people do. If you ever look at the abs of those world record situp guys that do 25,000 situps kind of thing...they have no six pack. So doing countless crunches every day won't do the job. First I don't know what kind of rep speed you're using but if you're not feeling it in the abs when you're doing crunches, you're probably doing them too fast. Try slowing down the reps and squeeze and contract your abs on every rep. Hold the contraction for 2 to 5 seconds. If you do it right you really shouldn't be able to do more than 20 or 25 reps. If it's just too easy, put a barbell plate behind your head and do the crunches. Don't be afraid to use a heavy weight and do lower reps of 8 to 12. Something tells me you'll be able to feel your abs. Hanging leg raises are another killer ab exercise that if done slowly and really contracting and holding the reps at the top can do amazing things for abs strength. All the ab exercises work. You just have to get a mind - muscle connection going so you can feel the abs and not think so much about doing 100 reps. Just do 1 rep at a time. Good luck Earl

Thanks for the tips Earl - I'd love to do those hanging leg raises but I don't know if I could hold myself up lol I guess I only have to start with 1 right?

I have seen improvement by constantly tightening my abs when I go through the day.  I just couldn't seem to feel my abs until I started tightening my butt first.  It seemed to automatically tighten my abs. To feel the burn and find the ability to locate the muscles to tighten, I like an exercise using the stability ball.  Lay on the floor with your legs and arms stretched out and flat on the floor.  Pick the stability ball up with your hands.  Keeping your arms and legs straight bring them up to exchange the ball from your hands to between your calves.  Slowly bring both your arms and legs down to the ground.  Lift them again and exchange the ball from your legs to you hands and return to the original position.  Do this as many times and you can with control in the time span of a minute.  Trust me, you will have to work up to the minute. Let me know how it goes. Katy

Some of the best advice I've been given about abs is that a lot of problems with abs comes from poor posture. Good posture is essential for easing back pain and overall mobility.

The exercises I personally like to use are the bridge (plank), the side bridge (side plank), the 6-inches exercise, and another exercise I got from a colleague that I still don't know what to call it.

It's a lot like the 6-inches that we all hate (). The difference is that after you raise your legs, you hold for 1s then bring your legs toward your body and bend your legs then straighten your legs and push them out to the starting position. I know this sounds strange, but just think about someone sitting beside you and you trace a circle with your legs together for them to see. The reverse of this exercise is the same just tracing a circle underneath.

If you don't get it, just let me know and I'll post a video of it. Hope I helped!

that's funny that the person before me mentioned the plank, and side plank, that's what I was going to suggest.  OMG does it burn!  It's amazing! 

Thanks everyone for the suggestions :) I've been working the plank - im up to holding for 20s! woo! amazing how a simple thing like that can be so hard lol