One of my least favorite moves when it comes to my Pilates classes? The hollow dam This one sounds relatively simple—sit on your sit bones with your arms and legs raised—but it’s an isometric exercise with a lot of value for your money, and it really works your core hard.
like many of the The best Pilates abdominal exercises., the hollow hold strengthens the abdominal muscles while also working the muscles of the lower back. When done correctly, the hollow hold works the transversus abdominis (the deepest core muscles), the rectus abdominis (the outer ‘six-pack’ muscles), and the obliques, as well as the erector spinae, flexors hip, quadriceps and inner thighs. To get more information and really dig into the exercise, I did a three-minute hollow hold every day for a week; read on to find out what happened.
Looking for more weird and wonderful workout inspiration? Read what happened when I drank a gallon of water a day for a month, and when I did 50 walking planks every day for a month. here.
How to make a hollow clamp
To do a hollow grip with the correct form, lie on your back on one of the best yoga mats, with arms and legs stretched out. Think about activating your abs by tucking your belly button in toward your spine, and lift your arms and legs a few inches off the floor, as well as your head and neck, keeping your chin tucked into your chest. Stay here.
Make sure your lower back remains pressed into the mat at all times during the hold. If this is too difficult, opt for dead bugs instead. (Here it is how to make a dead bug with the correct form). Alternatively, if you find that your back is coming off the mat, hold your arms along your body, pointing toward your feet.
When hollow grips become too easy, you can progress to hollow body swings, where you rock back and forth, while holding the grip position, or add weight by holding a adjustable dumbbell or weight plate in your hands.
This is a challenging abdominal exercise, but if you suffer from lower back problems, it’s worth consulting with a doctor or personal trainer before practicing hollow grips.
I did a 3 minute hollow hold every day for a week, and the results amazed me.
To test my core strength, I did a three minute hollow hold every day for a week, here’s what happened.
Three minutes never felt so long
On the first day of this challenge, I wondered why he had given me the three-minute challenge. this was a length time, and in the early days of the challenge, I divided the sets into three one-minute takes, with a short break in between.
I also found that I had to really think about my core during this move – be lazy and it’s easy to get sloppy with your form. Your shoulder blades should be off the ground during this movement, and the lift should come from your stomach, not your arms and legs.
2. I learned to find joy in a trembling heart
This made my heart tremble. By the end of the week, I managed to hold the hollow position for three minutes without a break, but my entire midsection was shaking. I could feel my abs really working to stabilize my body. The overall goal during this exercise is to keep your body still, and while this one didn’t send my heart rate skyrocketing, I could feel my abs working hard to do it.
3. My core strength improved and my inner thighs got a workout
Of course, doing just any exercise for a week won’t make a visible difference to your body—visible abs are a product of a low percentage of body fat, not endless core workouts. (Here it is how to calculate body fat percentage and why it matters.) That being said, I definitely felt like I was able to hold the hollow grip longer at the end of the week.
Like I said in the introduction, this wasn’t just an ab workout. I found that my inner thighs also got a lot of work during hollow grips as I focused on keeping my legs straight and toes pointed.
4. Practice makes perfect (well, a little)
I love this exercise after doing 21 minutes over the course of a week? Definitely not. But by getting deeper into my form and working on it for a week, I am much more confident with my hollow grips and even managed to add a 3kg dumbbell set on the last day of my challenge. As a runner, core strength is important to help me run faster and stronger, and avoid time out from injury, so this is definitely an ab exercise I’ll be incorporating into my routine in the future.
Looking for more ab workout inspiration? Look at this 15 minute dumbbell abdominal routineplus this Pilates workout that targets your abs and glutes.
