The Best Ab Workouts
The good news is that you don't need access to a gym to perform these ab exercises. This is one area of the body that you can totally get in shape at home, with minimal equipment needed to really feel the burn in your belly.
How to Do Each Abdominal Exercise
Each of these ab workouts is a mini-circuit that you can do at the end of your main program. The circuits are designed to work as many muscle fibers as quickly and efficiently as possible, so you'll do the four moves in order, with the reps and rest periods listed. The first move in each circuit is the hardest, and it gets progressively easier as the reps per move increase. This works your abs harder and puts them under more tension for longer, which stimulates muscle growth. After the last move, rest for the allotted time, then repeat the circuit.
1 Dumbbell Crunch
Reps 10 Rest 10sec
Lie on your back, holding a dumbbell or weight plate (check out our guide to the best Olympic weight plates you can buy) across your chest in both hands. Raise your torso, then lower it, maintaining tension in your upper abs throughout the exercise.
2 Flexion and crunch
Reps 15 Rest 10sec
Lie down with your hands by your head and your legs raised, knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Simultaneously lift your torso and bring your knees toward your chest. Keep your fingers by your temples throughout the exercise and start each repetition smoothly without lifting your torso. Do not let your feet touch the floor between repetitions.
3 Modified V-seat
Reps 12 Rest 10sec
Lie down with your legs lifted off the floor and extended out in front of you so they are parallel to the floor, and your arms extended out to the sides, keeping them off the floor. Keep your arms straight as you lift your torso and bring your legs back, bending your knees, so that your chest meets your knees at the top of the movement. Then lower yourself back down, controlling your position.
4 Crunch
20 repetitions Rest 90 seconds
Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet planted, and arms crossed over your chest. Raise your torso using your abs, then lower. Your upper abs will already be close to fatigue, but try to hold the top position of each rep for at least a second to work them as hard as possible.
LOWER ABDOMINAL WORKOUT
1 Hanging leg raise
Reps 10 Rest 10sec
Warning, this tough exercise sets the tone for what will be a brutal workout featuring four different hanging exercises. Start by hanging with your legs straight, knees and ankles touching. Keep them together by using your lower abs to lift them up, then lower yourself back down to the start with control.
2 Hanging knee twists
Reps 12 on each side Rest 10sec
Start by hanging with your legs straight and your knees together. Twist your body and raise your knees to one side, then return to the starting point. Continue alternating sides.
3 Hanging knee raises
Reps 15 Rest 10sec
This slightly easier variation of the hanging leg raise still puts a lot of pressure on your lower abs. Start by hanging and powerfully raise your knees to further activate the muscle fibers in your lower abs. Return to the starting point, controlling yourself to avoid swinging.
4 Hammer lift
20 repetitions Rest 90 seconds
Start by hanging from the bar, but with your knees already raised to the height of your abs, then raise them as high as possible. Return to the starting point while maintaining control and keeping your abs engaged.
OBLIQUES AND CORE TRAINING
1 Inclined board with foot contact
10 reps on each side Rest 10 seconds
Get into an incline plank position, supporting yourself on your forearms and your feet on a bench. Your body should form a straight line from your heels to your head, and the goal is to maintain this position throughout the exercise. Lift one foot off the bench and move it to the side to touch the floor, then return it to the bench. Continue alternating sides.
2 Seated Russian Twist
Reps 12 on each side Rest 10sec
Sit on the floor with your knees bent and your heels on the floor. Your torso should be at the top of the crunch position, forming a 45-degree angle with the floor. Rotate your torso from side to side, moving in a fluid, controlled manner.
3 Bicycle Crunches
Reps 15 on each side Rest 10sec
Lie on your back with your hands by your temples and your legs raised, knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Bring your right knee toward your chest while lifting your torso and twisting so that your left elbow meets your knee. Then lower yourself and do the same on the opposite side. Keep your shoulders and feet off the floor to force your abs to work hard to stabilize your torso.
4 Plank
Maximum rest time 90 seconds
Hold a strict plank position, with your hips lifted, your butt and core engaged, and your head and neck relaxed. Breathe slowly and deeply and hold the position for as long as possible.
TIPS FOR ABDOMINAL TRAINING
Look Beyond Deadlifts
In the age of CrossFit and Strongman, it’s often claimed that deadlifts are enough to work your abs. That’s not true. In fact, the most recent study comparing key exercises found that push-ups and planks were more effective than heavy back squats and deadlifts for activating your core. While the weighted movements produced the greatest force on the lower back, the bodyweight movements were more effective on the rectus abdominis and external obliques.
What is the frequency?
There was a time when the myth was that abs, as an “endurance” muscle, needed to be trained every day. Today, it’s more common to hear that you only need one strength training session per week, but the truth lies somewhere in between. “Two to three ab sessions per week is optimal for most people,” says trainer Jonny Jacobs. “Splitting it up into separate days—for static work, anti-rotation work, and dynamic movements—is a good option.”
Bring back the flexion
You should know by now that doing hundreds of sit-ups isn’t good for your back, but that doesn’t mean you should ditch spinal flexion altogether. In 2017, back health expert Dr. Stuart McGill co-authored an article explaining, “If flexibility is important…the trainer may want to select full-body curl-ups and crunches…if maximal muscle development is the goal, including the crunch and its variations may help.” Translation: a few are good.
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Ab Exercises You Shouldn't Do, According to Research
If visible abs are made in the kitchen, a strong core is vital for a good run. But what are the best exercises to work the core?
A new study, published by the American Council on Exercise, looked into the matter and ranked the best and worst ab exercises based on their effectiveness.
The study looked at the results of a number of different exercises, from the traditional crunch to the ab roller, in 30 healthy men and women aged 20 to 45. Participants were either casual or regular exercisers. The results were studied by analyzing muscle activity during each of the 13 different exercises using electromyography equipment.
According to the study, the best exercises to strengthen the core are:
1. Bicycle abs
According to the study, the bicycle crunch is the most effective exercise for analyzing abdominal muscle activity.
To perform a bicycle crunch, lie on your back with your lower back pressed to the floor, bring your knees toward your chest, and lift your shoulder blades off the floor. Straighten your right leg, while rotating your upper body to the left, bringing your right elbow toward your left knee.
2. Captain's chair
For this exercise, you need to be in a gym. Using a captain's chair or a chair without a seat with a back and armrests, let your legs hang before raising your knees towards your chest. Engaging your abs, slowly lower your legs back down and repeat the exercise.
3. Abdominals on an exercise ball
According to the study, the third most effective abdominal exercise is the simple crunch, but on a medicine or balance ball. Lie on the ball with your hands behind your head and perform the simple crunch, using your core muscles to lower yourself and bring yourself forward.
According to the researchers, although crunches on an exercise ball generate less activity in the obliques and rectus abdominis than some of the other exercises on the list because they generate less activity in the leg muscles, they are more targeted to the abs and are the best overall exercise.
The worst exercises for working the core:
The researchers found that the least effective exercises on the list were the traditional crunch, a pull-up on an exercise tube using a resistance band, and using an ab rocker. The researchers noted that "the ab roller was no more effective than the traditional crunch, while the ab rocker was up to 80 percent less effective."
For best results, the study author recommends adding several of the top-rated exercises to a five-minute daily routine.
The 13 exercises used, ranked as most or least effective, are as follows:
1. Bicycle abs
2. The Captain's Chair
3. Exercises on an exercise ball
4. Vertical leg crunch
5. Torso path
6. Long arm crunch
7. Reverse Crunch
8. Crunch with heel thrust
9. Abdominal roller
10. Hover
11. Traditional Crunch
12. Exercise tube pull
13. Ab Rocker
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