Comrade Pavel States:

"Crunches and high reps belong on the junk pile of history next to Communism! GET YOUR ABS PAVELIZED!"

"Comrade! I have forged bullet-proof abs for the Special Forces of the Evil Russian Empire. You are next! If you don't know how -I'll teach you. If you don't want to -I'll make you."

Comrade Pavel's answers to frequently asked questions about the Pavelizer

What is the perfect ab exercise?

It is universally accepted that the perfect ab training device/exercise -the Ab Pavelizer (tm) -meets the following criteria:

• maximizes isolation of the abdominal muscles

• reduces lower back stress by minimizing the involvement of the hip flexors

• fool-proofs the exercise by the nature of it performance

Doesn't the crunch isolate the abs and reduce back stress?

No. The fact that you have eliminated the 'sitting up' movement in the hip joint does not mean that you have shut off the hip flexors which pull on your spine. Do this test: make a tight fist and bend your wrist. Do you feel tension in your biceps? Why do you, you have not tried to flex your biceps or bend your elbow? -Because of the neurological phenomenon of irradiation. Tension spreads from any contracting muscle to its neighbors. Therefore, the crunch still involves the hip flexors -especially if you have weak abs!

How does the Ab Pavelizer (tm) keep the hip flexors out of the loop?

Through a different neurological phenomenon -reciprocal inhibition. Just like a driver who never pushes the gas and the brake pedal at the same time, your nervous system relaxes the muscles opposite to the ones contracting to assure efficient movement. Eastern European Prof. Vladimir Janda, M.D., the world's leading expert on back problems and the consultant on rehabilitation for the World Health Organization, devised a state of the art situp which forces the trainee to contract the muscles antagonistic to the hip flexors: the glutes and hamstrings. The hip flexors get slack, relieve the spine, and force the abs to work super hard!

Few Americans knew about the subtle and complex Janda situp and those lucky few who did needed an experienced training partner in order to correctly perform this deadly efficient exercise. Not any more! Enter the Ab Pavelizer (tm)

How do I use my Ab Pavelizer?

• Your knees should be at the ninety-degree angle -square as the corner -and the pads should hit you about half way between your ankles and your knees. Adjust them accordingly.
  

• Ab Pavelizer situps are difficult and your best bet is to start by doing 'negatives', or only the lowering half of the drill. Sit upright with your knees at a ninety-degree angle, your calves touching the pads, and your feet flat on the floor.
  

• Keep your arms nearly straight and your hands on the floor by your sides. Take a normal breath, squeeze your butt as hard as you can, and slowly lower yourself to the ground WHILE MAINTAINING THE TENSION IN THE GLUTES, keeping your feet down and exerting pressure against the roller pads -as if you are pawing the ground. Initially you may have trouble keeping your feet down. It will pass.
  

• Descend slowly, especially during the last couple of inches above the ground. You will only be able to do so if your keep your glutes tight! Take three to four seconds to get all the way down. Keep your chin tucked in until your shoulders touch the floor. Stay tight until your head reaches the floor.
  

• In the beginning it is a good idea to hold on to the bungee cord for extra assistance; Ab Pavelizer^tm situps are a lot more challenging than they look! We have installed a bungee cord rather than some solid object to hold on to because a rubber band gives you immediate feedback on the amount of help you are getting. The more assistance you need, the closer to the device you should grab the cords. Hold your breath when you are in motion -UNLESS YOUR DOCTOR TOLD YOU OTHERWISE!
  

• Once you have reached the bottom, rest your head on the floor and totally relax for a few seconds. Get up in any comfortable manner that is not hard on your body, for example rolling off to the side or helping with your arms. Do three to five sets of three to five reps with three to five minutes of rest in between. 3-5, it is easy to remember!
  

• You can Pavelize your abs daily, but you will also get good results from every other day training. Once you can easily do 5x5 (five sets of five reps), bend your elbows and hold your fists by your face like a boxer. The next stage is holding your arms straight over your head. Once this stage is mastered, it is time to do the full drill, down and up!
  

• After the first negative, relax, then take a normal breath, squeeze your glutes, and SLOWLY get up while keeping your glutes flexed and your feet flat. Once you have reached the upright position, exhale and relax. Feel free to rest for a couple of seconds, then inhale and perform the negative as described earlier.
  

• It should take you three to four seconds to get up. It is not just a safety measure. You cannot have a high level of muscular tension if you move fast; therefore you will not gain much strength or muscle tone. It is much better to move slowly through the full range of the exercise with the humbling assistance of the bungee cord than to mindlessly knock off quick reps!
  

• As before, start with the easiest version of the Ab Pavelizer^tm situp, with your arms by your sides, and even holding on to the bungee cord, eventually work up to the 'boxer' position, and then the arms overhead position. One option is to lower yourself in a more challenging position than the one you used for getting up.
  

• If even the most challenging position becomes easy, hold a light barbell plate or something like a soup can in your straight arms. Even if you are a stud, don't scoff at the soup can; it may take you a long time to work up to it!
  
  

When I do 'negatives', I can do the top three quarters of the movement very slowly, then I just 'fall through' near the floor. What should I do?

Pace yourself so it takes you 3-4 seconds to evenly go from the upright position to the floor, rather than taking 4 seconds for the top part of the drill only to collapse to the bottom in a fraction of a second. Keep your glutes locked tight. Consider getting some assistance from the bungee cords for the last hard inches.

On the way down on the last rep of every set you may also hold on to the bungee cord and pause for a 1-5 seconds at your weak angle. You will quickly strengthen your sticking point with this powerful Russian technique. If you choose to use it, do not hold your breath during the pause!

Do I have to try to curl and uncurl my back?

As long as you move slowly, without jerks, Ab Pavelizer^tm situps will take care of the proper lower back alignment. Your back will curl without you having to worry about it.

My lower back muscles feel tight when I do Ab Pavelizer situps. Any suggestions?

Prof. Janda recommends stretching your lower back if you have this problem. Beyond Stretching is the book for you. Order on-line or call (888) 551-1137.

I have a serious back condition. Can I do Ab Pavelizer^tm situps?

Only with your doctor's approval. Chances are that you will get it. Ab Pavelizer^tm situps are surprisingly easy on the lower back. Usually Comrades with bad backs report that their backs feel AWESOME from Ab Pavelizer situps -even if they hurt from any other ab drill, including crunches.

My neck usually bothers me when I train my abs. Will this be a problem with Ab Pavelizer situps?

Not likely. We only do three to five reps per set, that is not long enough to exhaust your neck muscles. Besides, you are supposed to take a brief rest every time you lie down and sit up. Also, do not place your hands behind your neck.

You recommend very low reps in your Ab Pavelizer program. Don't I need high reps get my abs 'cut'?

You have tried high reps. You went for the 'burn'. It did not work. Why do you insist on doing the same thing and expect a different outcome? The 'burn' you feel from high reps is from lactic acid, or muscle 'exhaust fumes'. It does absolutely zilch-zero-zippo for toning up your abs! Muscle tone is residual tension in a relaxed muscle. The logical way to increase this tension is by training with tension. Tension means force. You can only exert a high level of force when you do a challenging exercise such as the Ab Pavelizer situp and keep you reps low, no more than five per set. Go out on a limb, try it, Comrade! The results will be immediate.

Is it true that the key to cut up abs is low body fat?

Although high body fat prevents you from displaying your abs to their best advantage, leanness alone will not give you that shredded look. Just check out the abs of a marathon runner to finish that argument once and for all.

Why do you recommend relaxing between reps and even half-reps?

Two reasons. First, recall that we focus on muscular tension, not fatigue, to harden the midsection. Taking a short break between the reps enables you to delay the onset of fatigue and to better focus on tension. Second, relaxing your muscles between bouts of high tension helps to normalize your blood pressure (which does not let you off the medical check-up hook if you are hypertensive or have heart problems).

Do I have to sit all the way up? I heard that you only work your abs as you come off the floor.

Yes, sit all the way up. You will get to work your abs in a static contraction; besides you will get that extra break on the top which will translate into greater concentration on tension and better gains in muscle tone.

Does the Ab Pavelizer strengthen and tone all the muscles of my midsection?

You bet, Comrade! For extra emphasis on your obliques, or the 'love handle' muscles, descend with most of your weight on one foot (you don't need to twist). Alternate your sides every rep, for example left-right-left-right for a four rep set or left-right-left-right-straight for five repetitions. Do not use this technique until you have mastered the basic Ab Pavelizer^tm situp.

Will the Ab Pavelizer make me a better athlete, or are my newly shredded abs just for looks?

I have never compromised function for form in my training programs. Pavelized abs are as strong as they look.

What can I expect?

Nietsche said, "The abdomen is the reason the man does not easily mistake himself for a god." Within a few months, if your body fat is low enough, you may be mistaken for a Greek god or goddess!

We regret that, until further notice, the Ab Pavelizer is available for shipment to addresses within the United States mainland only