Closing off week 9 of BBG and I still can’t do jack knives 😩 Help!

[lanieloo]

^ Title

I really don’t know what it is or how to improve and actually make progress from here, but I can’t do a jack knife to save my life. My weighted bent leg jack knives are better than my straight legged ones. For the latter, my whole upper back goes rounded and always comes off the floor cause I’m trying to reach my legs which won’t come all the way straight up. What i end up doing is holding my legs straight in the air and just reaching for my ankles, sort of like a crunch motion.

Halp! What do?

 

[dawn16]

@lanieloo I don't have any advice, but I did BBG for the full 12 weeks and still couldn't do them. I'm assuming my core just still wasn't strong enough by the end of the program.

 

[devorgilla]

@lanieloo just an FYI, there's a sub for BBG.. might find some helpful info in there:

r/kaylaitsines/

 

[dawn16]

@lanieloo you are not supposed to be able to do everything in 3months.
It took me one year to learn how to squat properly (deep, back straight, sit between your hips etc)

 

[shoeshavetongues]

@lanieloo Keep upper body on the floor and just raise the legs ( lying leg raises ) instead. Still activates the abs, but with less risk of injuring your back.

 

[lifematter]

@lanieloo I've done bbg and honestly I wouldn't really worry about that. I would either just do them as best as you can, or replace them with another ab exercise (for the same # reps). Your bbg results won't be impacted because you can't do jack knives. FWIW I can't really do them right either, I always end up bending my legs or putting my hands behind my head to support my neck.

 

[johnsone]

@lanieloo If it’s easier with bent legs, that’s probably a combination of two things: first, being strong enough in your core to hold your legs up, second, hamstring flexibility. If your hamstrings are tight, it is WAY more work to pull your legs up to a 90-deg angle.

Can you bend over and touch your toes with your legs straight? If you’re close, can you do it with a bit of a warmup and stretch? Maybe a bit of pre-workout stretching to loosen up your hamstrings will help, or working out in the afternoon instead of the morning (mornings are harder flexibility-wise).

It’s important that your lower back stay glued to the ground, or you’re just outsourcing the ab workout somewhere else. Modify by raising your legs less (aim for 30, 45 or 60 degrees instead of 90- no higher than where you can keep your back on the floor) and focus on how much lift you can get from your core, not how close you are to touching your legs.

It’s also not going to destroy the program to sub in an exercise that is better suited to your mobility, but keep in mind that the exercises we like the most are the ones we need the least.

 

[catqueen]

@lanieloo Hmmm I've never attempted these past the age of 18 because they didn't seem beneficial in relation to how horribly they hurt my back/neck/tailbone. Is there another exercise you can replace these with?