MilitaryForums.co.uk

This may sound odd but I can't do proper sit ups - not the ones in the RAF booklet anyway, where you have to touch your knees with your elbows. Does this just get better with practise or is there some sort of technique I could use?
Thanks

Pretty much, practice most things and you get better at them, it may hurt at the start but pain is only temporary.

Enjoy

If you have never done them before, or are not used to doing them, you will find you cannot do them, have difficulty trying, or even get pain from them. Basically your abdominal muscles in this case are not used to this type of exercise.

To overcome this, you need to get them used to it!!!

Start off doing normal situps. This is, arms crossed accross chest, hands on oposite shoulders, and come up in a situp position. Aim for about 10, then rest, then do as many as you can afterwards, even if its only half the amount. Obviously if you find you can do more, increase this number, the same applies for when you get more used to it.

A variation you may try, is a "rolling situp". Basically you are in the situp position with arms accross chest, and rolling your body back and forth in a situp motion, with your feet together, not been raised more than a foot from the ground. Basically this variation used momentum, however, also uses your abdominal muscles. A good exercise for those who arnt very good at situps.

A final alternative, is to hook your feet under a bench or similar, then perform normal situps. However, be aware that although this works your abdominals, it uses your upper leg muscles as well, and these may start to ache after a while.

Apart from that there are several other variations of situps you can try. But the ones above may help you get started. Good Luck!

Thank you both, will try those!

I can only do pressups with my legs under something...I have a pretty large upper body and scrawy little legs...so when i try to do situps my legs come up instead of my body...anyway I can stop this?

I have the same problem as you. Just keep trying and eventualy your feet will stay on the floor, but i can tell when im getting tired as my feet start to raise.

I'm going to jump in with another question on sit ups.

Are you meant to keep your stomach muscles tense all the time, so keeping them tense on the way down. or are you meant to only tense them as you come up?

I'm totally lost on the proper way of doing them.

Its really easy, put the remote control between your toes You blokes reach for it and get it first every time. - problem solved

OMG I am so thick! Just found out I can actually do sit ups! - but only if i have feet under something or someone holding them. but why does that matter and how do i do them on my own? cheers

for the tests you should have someone holding them down for you, well at least thats for the marines course, might be different for the RAF