"Do you have abs that are too big? Is that a problem for you? Probably not. Get on this and do it." - that's just honest and straightforward direction..luv it! Luv it! Thank you for the vids!
This is the first time I hear this exercise called candlestick. The hardest variation is called dragon flag. One of my favorite. Bruce Lee was big fan of it if I remember well. Awesome video! Awesome progression!
@@RenaissancePeriodizationthe biggest difference is for dragon flags you keep your lower body off the bench for the entire movement; hard as hell, and the stretch feels nasty in the abs.
@@RenaissancePeriodization - I just returned to this video after watching it earlier and yea the Dragon flag version you keep your lower back off the bench as you lower your legs and midsection then raise yourself back up before your butt touches down. Bonus points for pausing for a few seconds with your legs fully extended and your butt 1cm above the bench This has been my go to ab work out for many years, 3 sets of whatever the hell you can do will destroy your abs and you need to roll off the bench as sitting up ain't an option! 😄 Most people starting out with this will be lucky to do 1 strict rep . . .
I do the expert version just fine, but I think that's because I have 5lbs chicken legs that I neglected for years. Now I'm working on a leg-focused program and I think the candlestick will get harder in time with added mass!
@@RenaissancePeriodization I can also do the expert version and I am also skinny - does this mean I am an elite level athlete when it comes to abs ? lol ... thats what you said in the clip about people who can do the level 3 on this exercise ... also my abs are still not visible even though I am skinny on the rest of my body - yet I can do the original candlestick - I find it very weird
@@ShovelChef not many reps... max 10... I feel sore the next day but not that sore... just normal sore... yet I still don't see my abs... still skinny fat lol
I actually saw the "abs are made in the kitchen" statement make people in the gym completely disregard ab exercises altogether. Now I'm the only person in our gym with actual thick abs cause I was doing these last couple of years. Going slow is the key! I also like - and would recommend trying out - doing loaded half-bosu ball crunches.
You made the right choice. I got lean and skinny as fuck a few years ago and still had virtually no abs. I'm so much heavier now and I'm barely even taking my diet seriously anymore but just because I put on more muscle my abs look fucking way better. "Abs are made in the kitchen" is absolute horse shit hahaha
Dude thank you so much for doing this video. I was having such a hard time getting sore from crunches and couldn’t really do hanging leg raises that well, but as soon as I tried these I felt it after the first set.
I do the intermediate version on the concentric to full vertical like the pro version, and then I "try" to do a pro eccentric. It feels the natural progression for me, because the true candlestick (or dragonfly raises, as I've known them) are just too hard. But it is crazy how you can make progress with these. So rewarding.
This channel has really increased my enjoyment of exercise. I finally am starting to understand some of the science of muscle growth and am starting to see some interesting results.
I do these every day but on the floor with hands placed near the thighs, I also don’t allow my feet to touch the floor. This has improved my hanging leg raise incredibly, and my abs
Thanks Dr Mike! Back into fitness at ~30 after a long break. Summer 2024 prep started about a month ago. Squeezed most of the juice from crunches already, so I've been looking to add in something a bit more challenging. This exercise is great. Felt a burn up and down the entire muscle, which crunches don't accomplish. Your point about the highest loading occurring at the point when the muscle is stretched the most is (obviously) spot on. Felt amazing. Thanks again Dr. Mike.
Thanks for just giving us the movement progressions and science behind this exercise! The videos you make where you raise your eyebrows and make fun of people have a place but I appreciate just raw info! Thanks!
I used to do the expert version all the time. Just got back into lifting after decades off, so it's been a minute. Right now, squats and deadlifts give me my core workout, but I will have to see if I can still do these next time I am at the gym. So glad I found this channel!
Thank you so much,I'm glad I've found you,I'm on my 9th week training,and have felt pain everywhere else except my core, I've tried this technique but not consistently,but today is a new day,will give you an update .
The first day I had these programmed in the rp app. These killed me the next 3 days. My core has never bene that sore. Ever since this has been a staple for me!
I like the "Have you ever seen anyone with too big [insert whichever muscle]? " argument because you can use it for any muscle and it will always sound like a valid reason to get the muscle bigger.
It doesn’t work for every muscle though. I have seen bodybuilders with biceps so large that they can’t bend their arms all the way any more. I would consider that “too large” personally. There’s even a video of Dr Mike showing his home gym and he explains that he had to attach duct tape handles to his squatting barbell because some of his muscles were too big for him to properly hold the bar with his hands.
Yeah I've definitely seen other muscles be too big, but never the abs. Once in awhile I've seen abs that are a bit too big in comparison with chest or glutes I suppose, but that's just an aesthetic opinion. Other muscles can get so big they interfere with daily life.
Actually, I've seen women with too big legs... At a point they begin to look like cattle. I personally don't like it. Muscular, big thighs yes. Wads of meat breaking through their yoga pants is a nono for me at least
Lots of people have muscles that the average person would consider too big, I’m not saying it’s something you should be worried about. However this attitude some bodybuilder types have of ‘if someone doesn’t want to look like me they’re lying to themselves’ is so vain it’s ridiculous
Works perfectly, thanks for posting 🙏 I was looking for for exactly this, one exercise to do it all. Did sets of 20 for 3, abs sufficiently sore day 1 and day 2 in all the right places 💪👍
It's crazy I've been doing this shit on my bench for years as a rest between presses but never really focused on the resistance down unless I was trying not to tear bench up lol. Thanks for the idea.
Although the video was great, I didn't see any actual science/research presented. Something I wish this channel did more of considering how much of the Dr (PhD) and "Science" is emphasized. Like I said though, love the channel. Just surprised that I hardly ever see references presented.
omg, many thanks for this! I hate ab exercises because they take forever and are more cardio than anything else. One set of 10 of these and I can feel my abs more than 3 sets of 60 bicycle crunches!
A kettle bell is a good grip for that when doing it at home on the floor. I always liked the candlestick so good to learn it can be adapted to an abs exercise like that!
I like this one. Another favorite is scooting your butt down so it partially hangs off and doing leg raises with your lower body cantilevered. This allows greater depth, stretch, and therefore even more emphasis on the eccentric
Men's gymnastic training really seems to develop the upper body in a remarkably aesthetic and reliable way. The guys who can do a routine on the rings are all jacked.
I find that a modification somewhere between the beginner and intermediate is really nice as well. You bend your knees and bring your legs up, straighten them up into the air, and then (like in the intermediate) keep your legs straight on the descent. My lower back has been killing me lately and bringing my legs straight up on the ascending movement irritates it, but for some reason lowering them back doesn’t and it still allows me to fry my abs more than the beginner version does for me.
there is. just do it. it doesn't take much time... and aside from bodybuilding, its an exercise that musicians do for singing and playing winds. i will shape your belly, will strengthen your brace and will allow you to bellow properly at your next pr. @@thedudewhoabides69
@@thedudewhoabides69vacuums are great for TVA! As are hollow body holds and rocks, dead bugs done correctly, and drawing in/bracing the abs while in a bridge position.
Holding a weight between your feet sitting horizontal on a bench slight lean back and bring your knees to your chest. Thats my favourite and most effective ab exercise
I’ve been looking for a new abs exercise and the universe has delivered. Thanks dr Mike. Edit Nov23: I’ve been doing these for the past meso and I’m up to intermediates for 4 sets of 15 on Tue and Fri. But… I’ve been touching my feet to the floor on the eccentric and it has been kicking my ass. I was thinking of adding some ankle weights - any thoughts on that? The proper advanced version still seems too hard, having tried it. Thoughts?
You can level up even more with a small plate on your feet with a tie down strap. Or, you can raise the incline. It is amazing how much harder this is with an incline added.
Hey Mike, love your stuff. Could you make some couching sounds that we could listen too, while we work out. “Go, one, slow, slow, go again” every time I see you doing that in a video I wish I had it. Love the content!!
I've done the 2nd version of this for a while. Kicks my ars every single time. He isn't kidding, you have to go slow on the way down. Resistance bands work nicely if you're trying to push yourself. Haven't been able to do the 3rd version of this due to an old back injury. You'll get the abs you want inside a few solid months if your consistent, but abs you can be proud of.
I'll give it a go. Thanks. I found when doing leg pullovers, it's important to flex the abs before each rep, or it works your hip flexors as much as the abs.
Been doing the beginner version for ages, called it reverse crunch. Try letting your tailbone be just off the bench, adds an awesome stretch under load that'll kill your soul.
There's another version that I do, it's between the second and third techniques, you start by lifting up your lower body with the second technique and then do the eccentric part with the the third technique, very hard but doable, Give it a try!
I actually started doing these recently as an alternative to normal crunches. Oddly enough I struggle with those because I have a bad back and for some reason these seem to work better for me. With this in mind I will continue to do them.
So funny, I just tried this a few days ago from reading an old rp article on ab training and it gave me DOMS for days, with zero load on my spine. 10/10
Oh man I am currently working on hollow body and man this exercise is the best for abs but feel much more better on partial currently. For sure I will be working on it. Thanks
I thought this was just reverse ab crunches but a higher intensity version. Ive been doing this actually and the burn is real. Been doing the intermediate variations Thanks for the tips and guides
There is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and fitness instructor who used to train Rickson Gracie named Steve Maxwell. He has a circuit for combat conditioning in which he does Hindu Squats, Hindu Push Ups, Pull Ups, and something fairly similar to this candlestick exercise that he called Leg Raise to Plow. You would start off like a normal leg raise with a flat body heels on the ground, perform a leg raise, but keep going over your head until your toes touchs the ground on the opposite side of your head.
Insane ! I got the intermediate version but at the end of movement I'm completly vertical like the true candlestick and that without training my abs for years. I'm shocked. But I think that I might fall in love with this exercise. Thanks for sharing :D
This is a great ab exercise, one of my favorites. Cool to see Nick Shaw on your video. I was in the Top 5 with him at the NPC Universe when he won his pro card.
Started doing these unknowingly after I injured my shoulder and couldn’t do hanging leg raise… might keep them in the routine now 😂 also the view of your own quads it’s pretty beast when doing this.
"Do you have abs that are too big? Is that a problem for you? Probably not. Get on this and do it." - that's just honest and straightforward direction..luv it! Luv it! Thank you for the vids!
This is the first time I hear this exercise called candlestick. The hardest variation is called dragon flag. One of my favorite. Bruce Lee was big fan of it if I remember well. Awesome video! Awesome progression!
Ugh "Dragon Flag" sounds so much cooler than "candlestick!" Damn you, cruel world! - Dr. Mike
I was literally thinking the same thing: "Isn't that called a dragon flag?"
Also there's a dragon walking variation walking uphill as you rise from horizontal
@@RenaissancePeriodizationthe biggest difference is for dragon flags you keep your lower body off the bench for the entire movement; hard as hell, and the stretch feels nasty in the abs.
@@RenaissancePeriodization - I just returned to this video after watching it earlier and yea the Dragon flag version you keep your lower back off the bench as you lower your legs and midsection then raise yourself back up before your butt touches down. Bonus points for pausing for a few seconds with your legs fully extended and your butt 1cm above the bench
This has been my go to ab work out for many years, 3 sets of whatever the hell you can do will destroy your abs and you need to roll off the bench as sitting up ain't an option! 😄
Most people starting out with this will be lucky to do 1 strict rep . . .
Best fitness channel on UA-cam. Period.
*ization
@@vecto8695 LMFAO you beat me to it
@@ReizokoRyuLmfao you beat to saying “Lmfao you beat me to it”.
@@schultemeister6975 🤯🤯🤯
@@schultemeister6975 Lmfao you beat me to saying “Lmfao you beat to saying “Lmfao you beat me to it” ".
This style of video is awesome ! Don’t get me wrong, the jokes are fun, the rants are fun, but this is MONEY!
I do the expert version just fine, but I think that's because I have 5lbs chicken legs that I neglected for years. Now I'm working on a leg-focused program and I think the candlestick will get harder in time with added mass!
Work on that ghetto booty😅
As your legs get bigger, keep doing the candlesticks so that you can have an auto-progression for your abs! - Dr. Mike
@@RenaissancePeriodization I can also do the expert version and I am also skinny - does this mean I am an elite level athlete when it comes to abs ? lol ... thats what you said in the clip about people who can do the level 3 on this exercise ... also my abs are still not visible even though I am skinny on the rest of my body - yet I can do the original candlestick - I find it very weird
@@Dark_Angel555, this might be where Mike asks, "How many reps, how many sets, how many times a week, and how sore do you feel after 2 days?"
@@ShovelChef not many reps... max 10... I feel sore the next day but not that sore... just normal sore... yet I still don't see my abs... still skinny fat lol
I actually saw the "abs are made in the kitchen" statement make people in the gym completely disregard ab exercises altogether.
Now I'm the only person in our gym with actual thick abs cause I was doing these last couple of years.
Going slow is the key! I also like - and would recommend trying out - doing loaded half-bosu ball crunches.
"abs are made in the gym, but revealed in the kitchen"
You made the right choice. I got lean and skinny as fuck a few years ago and still had virtually no abs. I'm so much heavier now and I'm barely even taking my diet seriously anymore but just because I put on more muscle my abs look fucking way better. "Abs are made in the kitchen" is absolute horse shit hahaha
Because a lot of exercises train abs indirectly. Overhead presses, deadlifts, rows, pull/chin-up,...
As a teenager I ate whatever the fuck I saw and still had better abs at 16 than I do now.
I do my ab work in the kitchen
Dude thank you so much for doing this video. I was having such a hard time getting sore from crunches and couldn’t really do hanging leg raises that well, but as soon as I tried these I felt it after the first set.
I do the intermediate version on the concentric to full vertical like the pro version, and then I "try" to do a pro eccentric. It feels the natural progression for me, because the true candlestick (or dragonfly raises, as I've known them) are just too hard. But it is crazy how you can make progress with these. So rewarding.
I check youtube in the middle of dragonfly sets and this is what I get
I do this exercise just fine and a few months ago I learned they are actually called DRAGON FLAG.
Same hahaha
@@harzemyalcinkaya damn that name is way more cooler
Dragon flag is static.
When you go up and down it becomes fly's.
Just like a human flag is a static exercise.
@@luffebassenhuman fly
This channel has really increased my enjoyment of exercise. I finally am starting to understand some of the science of muscle growth and am starting to see some interesting results.
I do these every day but on the floor with hands placed near the thighs, I also don’t allow my feet to touch the floor. This has improved my hanging leg raise incredibly, and my abs
Awesome video Mike! Loved the dumbbell leg video as well, waiting for the rest of the DB only series!
Thanks Dr Mike!
Back into fitness at ~30 after a long break. Summer 2024 prep started about a month ago. Squeezed most of the juice from crunches already, so I've been looking to add in something a bit more challenging.
This exercise is great. Felt a burn up and down the entire muscle, which crunches don't accomplish. Your point about the highest loading occurring at the point when the muscle is stretched the most is (obviously) spot on. Felt amazing. Thanks again Dr. Mike.
Been doing the beginer version of this for years as my go to for abs. Cool to know it's the best. I'll be 60 November!
💯
🔥
🤘
CONGRATS ON 700K SUBSCRIBERS, so happy that more and more people can get to know you guys and your amazing information
Thanks for just giving us the movement progressions and science behind this exercise! The videos you make where you raise your eyebrows and make fun of people have a place but I appreciate just raw info! Thanks!
I used to do the expert version all the time. Just got back into lifting after decades off, so it's been a minute. Right now, squats and deadlifts give me my core workout, but I will have to see if I can still do these next time I am at the gym.
So glad I found this channel!
Good to know I've been incorporating the #1 ab exercise into my workouts for the past 20 years
Oh, just as I was recommended this exercise for abs due to hip issues, RP gives a proper guide for it. Great.
Dr. Mike, your channel is really coming through for me. Great format with demonstrating the exercise and getting expert explanations with it. Thanks!
It's a real treat having access to this type of knowledge and teaching.
Absolutely 👍🏻
Thank you so much,I'm glad I've found you,I'm on my 9th week training,and have felt pain everywhere else except my core, I've tried this technique but not consistently,but today is a new day,will give you an update .
The first day I had these programmed in the rp app. These killed me the next 3 days. My core has never bene that sore. Ever since this has been a staple for me!
I like the "Have you ever seen anyone with too big [insert whichever muscle]? " argument because you can use it for any muscle and it will always sound like a valid reason to get the muscle bigger.
It doesn’t work for every muscle though. I have seen bodybuilders with biceps so large that they can’t bend their arms all the way any more. I would consider that “too large” personally. There’s even a video of Dr Mike showing his home gym and he explains that he had to attach duct tape handles to his squatting barbell because some of his muscles were too big for him to properly hold the bar with his hands.
Yeah I've definitely seen other muscles be too big, but never the abs. Once in awhile I've seen abs that are a bit too big in comparison with chest or glutes I suppose, but that's just an aesthetic opinion. Other muscles can get so big they interfere with daily life.
Actually, I've seen women with too big legs... At a point they begin to look like cattle. I personally don't like it. Muscular, big thighs yes. Wads of meat breaking through their yoga pants is a nono for me at least
Lots of people have muscles that the average person would consider too big, I’m not saying it’s something you should be worried about.
However this attitude some bodybuilder types have of ‘if someone doesn’t want to look like me they’re lying to themselves’ is so vain it’s ridiculous
@@sideskroll WHERE ARE THE WOMEN WITH CATTLE SIZED LEGS?
One of the best fitness channels out there!!! Thanks and God bless!
This is my go-to exercise for Abs, I also ad a twist when I raise my hips upwards to activate obliques.
Most underrated exercise for midsection
Great video... I just found your channel. There is a ton to learn here. I'm slowly absorbing it.
This is awesome! Thanks dr Mike!
Great video!! More like this PLEASE!!!
Completely agree! Dragon flags (I/E the hardest variant) took my ab development to a whole new level.
Awesome format for the technique videos.
Great video, I been looking to up my ab game. this is perfect.
Your workout insights are amazing. I've changed my tempo/increased range-range/speed on negatives. Seeing amazing results.
I always took this to be a reverse crunch, either way, man oh man does this burn my core to a crisp, love it
Absolutely outstanding work
I'll try adding this to my routine! Thanks!
Tried yesterday and it felt tremendous, especially when doing slow. Thanks a lot!
Thank you so much Dr. Mike. Is there any video on obliques on the channel?
Really felt the abs burning coming down slowly with this
This is awesome. Thanks do much for this one
Did this once in the workout park just to see how it feels, never had more soreness on my abs. Amazing exercise!
Dr. Mike, I tried these the other day, and oh man did it fry my abs. One simple and super effective exercise. Love it! Thank you Sir.
you're great at what you do Mike, keep it up
Thank you!
Works perfectly, thanks for posting 🙏
I was looking for for exactly this, one exercise to do it all.
Did sets of 20 for 3, abs sufficiently sore day 1 and day 2 in all the right places 💪👍
It's crazy I've been doing this shit on my bench for years as a rest between presses but never really focused on the resistance down unless I was trying not to tear bench up lol. Thanks for the idea.
Exactly what i was lookin for
I did a very similar movement to the modified, I am glad to see I was on the right track. I'm gonna try these hopefully I get good at the technique.
Nice job - great video.
Always with the spot on info and science based explanations, thanks Doc!
My pleasure! - Dr. Mike
Although the video was great, I didn't see any actual science/research presented. Something I wish this channel did more of considering how much of the Dr (PhD) and "Science" is emphasized. Like I said though, love the channel. Just surprised that I hardly ever see references presented.
omg, many thanks for this! I hate ab exercises because they take forever and are more cardio than anything else. One set of 10 of these and I can feel my abs more than 3 sets of 60 bicycle crunches!
A kettle bell is a good grip for that when doing it at home on the floor. I always liked the candlestick so good to learn it can be adapted to an abs exercise like that!
Thanks Dr. Mike.
Love it!
Introducing these to my clients programs 🙌
great video!
Thanks for this, I might be able to train abs again!
Hell yeh! Great vid
I like this one. Another favorite is scooting your butt down so it partially hangs off and doing leg raises with your lower body cantilevered. This allows greater depth, stretch, and therefore even more emphasis on the eccentric
I wanna do that but scared about lower back, would be awesome if you're strong enough tho
This video was almost enough for me to consider training abs for the first time
Men's gymnastic training really seems to develop the upper body in a remarkably aesthetic and reliable way. The guys who can do a routine on the rings are all jacked.
I'm always searching for another move to add onto my tummy routine, and this is it... Thanksman!👍
I love you Mike!!!!❤❤ and I love this exercise
This is the video that got me to subscribe. I guess I know what I will be trying in the gym tomorrow.
I find that a modification somewhere between the beginner and intermediate is really nice as well. You bend your knees and bring your legs up, straighten them up into the air, and then (like in the intermediate) keep your legs straight on the descent. My lower back has been killing me lately and bringing my legs straight up on the ascending movement irritates it, but for some reason lowering them back doesn’t and it still allows me to fry my abs more than the beginner version does for me.
This is so great, thank you so much! Would it be possible for you to do a “best exercise” for both the obliques and the transverse abdominis as well?
I'd like that too! I remember reading about training the transverse abdominis and the vacuum-pose came up a lot. I wonder if there's any truth to that
there is. just do it. it doesn't take much time... and aside from bodybuilding, its an exercise that musicians do for singing and playing winds. i will shape your belly, will strengthen your brace and will allow you to bellow properly at your next pr. @@thedudewhoabides69
Agree!!!!
I believe for the transverse, vacuum variants are the only way to reach it.
@@thedudewhoabides69vacuums are great for TVA! As are hollow body holds and rocks, dead bugs done correctly, and drawing in/bracing the abs while in a bridge position.
Holding a weight between your feet sitting horizontal on a bench slight lean back and bring your knees to your chest. Thats my favourite and most effective ab exercise
Great, I’ve been doing this from day one - newbie 1 month at the gym 💪
I’ve been looking for a new abs exercise and the universe has delivered. Thanks dr Mike.
Edit Nov23: I’ve been doing these for the past meso and I’m up to intermediates for 4 sets of 15 on Tue and Fri. But… I’ve been touching my feet to the floor on the eccentric and it has been kicking my ass. I was thinking of adding some ankle weights - any thoughts on that? The proper advanced version still seems too hard, having tried it. Thoughts?
Stalone did that sht in Rocky 4 and it was awesome lol
Dude this gave me abs for the first time in my life. Thanks so much Mike the Bike!
the self validation i receieved after this vid, i've been doing this for months
Hanging leg raises is my go to. Will give these a go
*Thanks for the video!
You can level up even more with a small plate on your feet with a tie down strap. Or, you can raise the incline. It is amazing how much harder this is with an incline added.
Hey Mike, love your stuff. Could you make some couching sounds that we could listen too, while we work out. “Go, one, slow, slow, go again” every time I see you doing that in a video I wish I had it. Love the content!!
I've done the 2nd version of this for a while. Kicks my ars every single time. He isn't kidding, you have to go slow on the way down. Resistance bands work nicely if you're trying to push yourself. Haven't been able to do the 3rd version of this due to an old back injury. You'll get the abs you want inside a few solid months if your consistent, but abs you can be proud of.
That looks gnarly. I like it!
I'll give it a go. Thanks. I found when doing leg pullovers, it's important to flex the abs before each rep, or it works your hip flexors as much as the abs.
Been doing the beginner version for ages, called it reverse crunch. Try letting your tailbone be just off the bench, adds an awesome stretch under load that'll kill your soul.
There's another version that I do, it's between the second and third techniques, you start by lifting up your lower body with the second technique and then do the eccentric part with the the third technique, very hard but doable, Give it a try!
Same all the loading on the stretch but can’t do the up part!
I actually started doing these recently as an alternative to normal crunches. Oddly enough I struggle with those because I have a bad back and for some reason these seem to work better for me. With this in mind I will continue to do them.
Wow, haven’t felt my abs like that before , thabks❤❤❤
Love it
Excellent
So funny, I just tried this a few days ago from reading an old rp article on ab training and it gave me DOMS for days, with zero load on my spine. 10/10
Oh man I am currently working on hollow body and man this exercise is the best for abs but feel much more better on partial currently. For sure I will be working on it. Thanks
The lighting is, well...LIT! Production values FTW.
Amazing
More of these videos please
I thought this was just reverse ab crunches but a higher intensity version. Ive been doing this actually and the burn is real. Been doing the intermediate variations
Thanks for the tips and guides
There is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and fitness instructor who used to train Rickson Gracie named Steve Maxwell. He has a circuit for combat conditioning in which he does Hindu Squats, Hindu Push Ups, Pull Ups, and something fairly similar to this candlestick exercise that he called Leg Raise to Plow. You would start off like a normal leg raise with a flat body heels on the ground, perform a leg raise, but keep going over your head until your toes touchs the ground on the opposite side of your head.
banging music scott!
Those with a standard crunch on an exercise ball with feet held down is the bulk of my abs workout
Insane ! I got the intermediate version but at the end of movement I'm completly vertical like the true candlestick and that without training my abs for years. I'm shocked. But I think that I might fall in love with this exercise. Thanks for sharing :D
I do something similar but twist left/right each time at the top
Idk why I find these videos so gd funny. I watch em MOSTLY for that anymore.
This is a great ab exercise, one of my favorites. Cool to see Nick Shaw on your video. I was in the Top 5 with him at the NPC Universe when he won his pro card.
Used to do these back in the day. Rocky did them. I also did incline situps with 45 lb plate for full sets.
Wow! Just WATCHING this video blasted my abs!!!
Started doing these unknowingly after I injured my shoulder and couldn’t do hanging leg raise… might keep them in the routine now 😂 also the view of your own quads it’s pretty beast when doing this.
I'm not gonna lie, the "expert" version was way easier than you made it seem. Definitely felt a burn though.