Cheat Codes
“Nothing is really fun unless it’s hard.” – Mike Leach
Someone Else’s Deep Squats (Thoughts)
When was the last time you thought about the AbMat? (And not just the RASH you might get after using it.)
If you’ve been doing CrossFit for a while, you’ve probably used one. It’s been a staple since the beginning.
But somewhere along the way, people stopped understanding why they’re using it. Programming moved away from it. That little curved piece of foam started collecting dust in the corner of the gym.
And that’s a problem, because the AbMat does something specific and valuable that nothing else quite replicates.
Let’s talk about why this simple tool matters and how you should actually be using it.
Why CrossFit Doesn’t Endorse Much Equipment
First, some context: CrossFit is pretty minimal when it comes to equipment endorsements. We keep things basic — barbells, pull-up bars, rowing machines. The fundamentals.
So when CrossFit does specifically talk about a piece of equipment and includes it in foundational education, there’s a reason. That equipment does something. It works. It provides genuine benefits and results.
The AbMat is one of those pieces of equipment.
The Problem With Regular Sit-Ups
Let’s start with what happens when you do a sit-up without an AbMat.
You’re lying flat on the ground. There’s a gap between your lower back and the floor because of your natural spinal curvature. You start the sit-up, and here’s what happens:
Your back loses contact with the floor pretty quickly. Once that happens, your abdominals stop working dynamically (creating movement) and start working as stabilizers instead. Your hip flexors take over and pull you through the rest of the range of motion.
So, the actual range of motion where your abs are working to create movement? It’s surprisingly small. Basically a crunch.
The rest of the sit-up? Your abs are just holding position while your hip flexors do the work.
That’s not necessarily bad; isometric ab work has value, and hip flexor strength matters. But if you’re doing sit-ups to train your abs, you’re getting a lot less than you think.
What the AbMat Actually Does
The AbMat fills that gap between your lower back and the floor.
Now, when you try to sit up, your lower back is under constant pressure against something. It stays in contact with support throughout the entire movement. And because of that sustained contact, your abdominals can work dynamically through a much larger range of motion.
Instead of losing the ability to create movement once your back leaves the floor, your abs continue to drive the movement all the way up.
In practical terms, the AbMat turns a crunch plus isometric hold into a true full-range sit-up where your abs work dynamically from start to finish.
That’s a fundamentally different stimulus. You’re training the abs differently, through a larger range of motion and more dynamic contractions.
Why Range of Motion Matters (More Than You Think)
One of CrossFit’s core principles is maximizing useful range of motion. And there’s a concept that matters here: new range is weak range.
What does that mean? Any range of motion that isn’t traditionally used is probably a weak range for those muscles.
Think about someone who doesn’t squat deep; the bottom range around their knees is weak because it never gets trained. The same principle applies to your abs.
If your abdominals never contract dynamically past that initial crunch range because your back bottoms out on the floor and your hip flexors take over, that extended range is probably weak.
And why does that matter? More than you might think.
If you’ve ever wrestled, done martial arts, or any sport requiring trunk rotation under load, you know there are situations where you need your abdominal musculature to work past that short initial range. Trying to twist someone off you. Explosive rotation in throwing mechanics. Stabilizing through extended positions.
You don’t want weak ranges of motion in your abdominal capacity — not for performance and not for injury prevention.
The AbMat helps eliminate that weak range by training your abs dynamically through the full movement.
How to Actually Use The AbMat
The AbMat can be used in multiple contexts, but the application matters.
Conditioning Workouts
Think about a workout like Annie: 50-40-30-20-10 reps of double-unders and sit-ups. In this context, you’re using the AbMat and probably anchoring your feet to go as fast as possible. You want every bit of mechanical advantage you can get.
When your feet are anchored and you’re using an AbMat, both your abs and hip flexors work through the full range of motion together. That’s actually ideal; you’re training both muscle groups through complete movement under time pressure.
This is about performance. This is about getting the best time possible.
CLICK HERE for the rest of this article by Stephane Rochet from CrossFit HQ.
See you in class.
Tim
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Tim’s Takeaway: The Cheat Code is that there is no cheat code. Life and success require hard work to get the results we want. It’s fun to look, find and try some secret menu items. But, don’t make it a habit. I thought it would be cool to see all the different “Secret” off-menu options for popular restaurants. Maybe save some for taking your kids out to look cool. LOL.
“Life with a cheat code isn’t life. Our existence isn’t something to be engineered or optimized for the avoidance of pain. That’s what it is to be human — the beauty and the pain, each meaningless without the other.” – Blake Crouch
Thank you for your support.
I look forward to what we will do together.
