There is a chance that sit-ups are not just wicked garbage made up by some sadist who was obsessed with a made up concept called “core strength”, but at the same time, there is a strong possibility that sit-ups are not suitable for you. Let’s just say; they may not be right for your back.
Sit-ups are not precisely as terrible as smoking three packs of cigarette daily and drinking an entire bottle of vodka, but still, sit-ups will not do too much good for you in the long run (you may pull one of the discs from your spine).
This is according to the information made available by one professor of spine biomechanics in Canada, Professor Stuart McGill.
This Professor carried out a study on pig corpses to find out the long-term effects of all the crunching on their spinal discs, and his findings were not so suitable for the pigs.
From what BBC report pointed out, it is apparent that we human who engage in sit-ups do not do them as often as the frequency at which the pig spines get manipulated. Oh, and we are humans, not pigs.
Per the BBC’s report, “Research published in 2005 on soldiers stationed at the U.S. military’s Fort Bragg attributed 56% of all the injuries sustained during the two-yearly Army Physical Fitness Test to sit-ups.”
With that pointed out already, not many of us do the kind of sit-ups that soldiers are required to do. Additionally, there are a thousand other reasons why a person may suffer a devastated back with pulled discs. Problems like genetics of heavy liftings could cause a ruptured disc.
If you are looking for other ways to avoid injuries from sit-ups, there are so many options apart from avoiding them altogether.
If we decide to go with information from McGill’s book titled Back Mechanics, then we can reduce the stress on our lower back by putting our hands on our lower back. You can also do this by keeping your head and shoulders slightly off the ground.
If you decide to experiment with bending one of your knees and keeping the other knee extended.
What about the many other studies that claim sit-ups don’t cause any harm? Let’s just say they are enough reason to knock yourself out. Want to share your thoughts? Please leave a comment below.
