Is It Bad to Flex Your Stomach All Day?

If you're self-conscious about your stomach, you might find yourself flexing your stomach muscles all day to make your stomach look flatter. While this isn't usually dangerous, it can lead to some minor aches and pains. Perhaps more importantly, it's not the most effective way to tone your stomach, and it requires lots of concentration.

  1. Ab Toning Basics

    • Toning your abs is a product of two separate endeavors: reducing fat via aerobic exercise and diet, and increasing muscle through ab-toning exercises. Tensing your abdominal muscles does provide some minimal toning benefits. The effect is negligible, though, and you will see better results -- in less time -- with a more traditional ab exercise program.

    Isolating the Abs

    • One of the challenges of tensing your ab muscles all day is that it's hard to isolate your abs. For example, people doing crunches often overcompensate with their back and thigh muscles, so it's even easier to do the same thing when you're simply tensing muscles. You may end up tensing your back, or only tensing the abdominal muscles on one side or one location.

    Pain and Tension

    • Some people experience muscle tension in their stomachs when they're anxious, so constantly tensing your abdominal muscles could begin to make you feel anxious. Equally important is the fact that constantly tensing any muscle can lead to strain, tension and pain. If you don't correctly isolate your abs, you may end up tensing your back and legs, leading to pain in these areas as well.

    Breathing Difficulties

    • Your diaphragm, which controls your lungs, is located near the top of your stomach. Proper breathing technique requires that you breathe using your stomach instead of your chest. Consequently, constantly tensing your abdominal muscles can make it difficult to practice proper breathing techniques, potentially increasing muscle tension or leaving you dizzy and exhausted.