Flutter Kicks

This ab exercise is used extensively in the military and focuses on the lower abdominal muscles and hits the hip flexors. Start out laying flat on your back with your legs straight out in front of you. Lift both legs straight up off the ground about six inches. Begin alternately kicking each leg straight up in the air. Now its up to you how high you want to go up on each kick, but it should be somewhere between 45 and 70 degrees from the ground. One thing you want to avoid is swinging your legs up and letting gravity or the elasticity of your body determine how high to raise them. Instead you should set a height in your mind and bring your legs up to that height and stop them there in a controlled manner. When bringing a leg down from a kick, be sure to stop at six inches above the ground (starting position). Arm placement affects how challenging this workout is. For instance if you place your hands underneath your glutes the exercise becomes easier. The further you move your arms from your legs the harder the workout becomes, but doing this does put more strain on the lower back. Adding a bend to your knees also makes the exercise easier (may be necessary if your not real flexible). Conversely, you can make the exercise harder by pointing your toes (or by wearing heavy shoes). Remember to breath through out the exercise.