The oughties have been and gone. Now, along with sweatbands, excessively loud grunts and Etnies sneakers, people look at you weird if you still do sit-ups. In fact, up until the recent lockdown, if you did any kind of core workout that didn’t involve some fancy pant equipment – or one without a holistic, integrated approach, one would feel sneered at.
Cristiano Ronaldo, the greatest athlete (and arguably the best player) the football world has ever seen, recently said ‘screw that’ to this close-minded philosophy (in action at least). Ronaldo took to Instagram on Monday with a workout challenge that takes us all back to basics, and which will see the men (and women) of the world doing an exercise we’ve spent the last 10 years hearing is a waste of time: crunches.
Ronaldo completes 142 crunches in 45 seconds. He also invited followers to join this ‘Living Room World Cup’ (though compared to the five-time Ballon d’Or winner, we’d imagine we’re all going to be feeling pretty shabby).
The former Juventus striker has taken to Instagram numerous times over the last two months to showcase his home fitness routine, with everything from gratuitous six pack shots breathing tips…
… to leg presses…
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… to yet more ab busting exercises.
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Suffice to say, if you’ve been avoiding working out your abs, in favour of your mindless routine of bicep curls, shoulder press, dips and chest press, then now’s the time to start.