By AshlyEmma Ab muscles, also known as core muscles, are important for posture and balance. They help reduce back pain and sports-related injuries. Strengthening them will improve your ability to perform full-body exercises like push-ups.
However, doing sit-ups alone won’t give you defined abdominal muscles. Challenging your ab muscles with a variety of exercises can help speed up the process.
1. Sit-Ups
The basic sit-up is an important foundational 10 BEST AB WORKOUTS. It works your rectus abdominis and obliques to build core strength, and is an excellent choice for beginners who may have back or neck issues that make crunches uncomfortable.
If you want to up the challenge, try a Janda sit-up, which disengages your hip flexor muscles and increases the work required by the abdominal muscles. Or add resistance with a medicine ball for a higher-impact workout. You can also perform a weighted sit-up.
2. Crunches
Crunches are one of the most commonly performed ab exercises, but they’re not the only way to get a toned stomach. Many trainers prefer other core-strengthening moves, such as planks.
When performing crunches, try to avoid using momentum by moving slowly and deliberately. This increases the time your muscles are under tension, which helps increase muscle activation. Perform these crunches two to three times a week for maximum benefit.
3. Leg Lifts
Leg lifts target the muscles in your core and help you build lower ab strength. They also work the hips flexors and inner thighs.
Lie on your back and raise your legs straight up into the air, keeping them away from each other. Lower your legs slowly, without letting them touch the floor.
A strong core does more than give you a six-pack; it improves posture, helps reduce back pain and increases your strength for other exercises. Incorporate this workout into your weekly routine to strengthen and tone your abs.
4. Tricep Dips
Tricep dips are one of the best ab workouts for everyone. They don’t require any special equipment and can be done at home or the gym.
They can be modified to make them easier or harder depending on your fitness level. For instance, you can add weight plates to the bar or use a bench to support your body weight.
Having strong core muscles helps your body perform everyday tasks with ease, reduces back pain and injury risk and improves posture and performance in sports or work. Try to train your core at least two to three times a week.
5. Leg Raises
Whether done on the floor or hanging from a chin-up bar, leg raises build strength and definition in your lower ab muscles. To perform this classic exercise, keep your legs straight and slowly lift them to a 90 degree angle above the floor or ceiling.
Then, lower your legs back down and repeat. Avoid swinging your legs, which recruits the hip flexors and takes the focus off of your core. Perform 10 reps on each side.
6. Push-Ups
Push-ups are an incredibly important exercise for the ab muscles. They help stabilize the core, prevent back pain and improve performance in nearly every sport and activity.
To increase the intensity of this workout, try adding a medicine ball dropset (letting go of the medicine ball when you hit failure) and/or elevating your feet or performing torso rotations. This will force your abs to work even harder. Aim for 3 sets of 10-12 reps. Rest 1 minute between each set. This workout is a great addition to any routine, and an amazing way to end your workout.
7. Side Planks
Unlike other stomach movements that flex the abs, side planks hold your body weight in an isometric position. That helps build strength and stability, and it’s a great way to train your obliques.
To up the challenge, lift your top leg for 30 seconds without lowering back down. That’s one rep. You can also add a rotation to the movement. Try touching your right knee to your left elbow or tapping your right heel to your left heel for additional core and balance training. The rotation helps you deepen your abdominal connection and increase the difficulty of the exercise.
8. Abdominal Crunches
Despite their age, the humble crunch is still an effective core exercise. It controls spinal flexion (forward bending) and extension stability and also helps to contract the obliques to provide rotational power.
This simple movement is a great way to work your core from home without needing any equipment. By alternating between bringing your right elbow to your left knee and back again, you engage both the obliques and rectus abdominis muscles. You’ll quickly start to feel the burn. Try doing 10 reps on each side.
9. Abdominal Rows
Having a strong core isn’t just for show; it improves posture, stability and balance. That’s why we teamed up with New York City fitness instructor Jennifer Simpson and functional strength coach and UESCA running coach Melissa Kendter to bring you this eight-move ab workout.
The pressing down of your hands hits the serratus anterior and the twisting motion hits the obliques, making this exercise a great all-around abdominal workout. Perform it two to three times a week.
10. Leg Raises
Leg raises are a simple but effective exercise for building lower ab strength and definition. They work the core more thoroughly than sit ups or crunches, and are a great progression from them if you’re looking for more challenging moves.
Conclusion
A strong core can help reduce back pain, injuries and everyday aches and pains. For a more challenging variation on this workout, try raising your legs to shoulder level. This increases the demand on your core, making it even more difficult to perform correctly. To prevent injury, only do this more advanced version when you’re able to maintain proper form.
