Ab Exercises
32
About.com Food Health Home Money Style Tech Travel More o Autos o Dating & Relationships o Education o Entertainment o en Español o Careers o News & Issues o Parenting o Religion & Spirituality o Sports Share Pin Tweet Submit Stumble Post Share Advertisement 3 exercise false
description
abdominal exercises
Transcript of Ab Exercises
About.com
Food Health Home Money Style Tech Travel More
o Autos o Dating & Relationships o Education o Entertainment o en Español o Careers o News & Issues o Parenting o Religion & Spirituality o Sports
Share
Pin
Tweet
Submit
Stumble
Post
Share
Advertisement
About.com About Health Exercise Abs - FAQ's, Workouts and Information
3 exercise false
Top 10 Best Ab Exercises
By Paige Waehner Exercise Expert
Share
Pin
Tweet
Submit
Stumble
Post
Share
Sign Up for our Free Newsletters
Thanks, You're in!
Living Healthy Health Tip of the Day Exercise You might also enjoy:
Staying Active Parenting Sign up There was an error. Please try again.Please select a newsletter.Please enter a valid email address.Did you mean ?Thank you,,for signing up!
Exercise Categories
Abs - FAQ's, Workouts and Information Butt, Hips & Thighs Cardio Basics and Workouts Exercise Equipment and Apparel Exercise for Beginners
Exercise and Weight Loss Programs Fitness Tools & Calculators Exercise & Health Obesity & Exercise - Resources for Managing Your Weight Nutrition Personal Training - Finding a trainer and becoming a trainer Strength Training and Specialty Workouts Videos, Music & Fitness Software Exercise and Weight Loss Resources Yoga, Pilates & Flexibility Lose Weight With Exercise Workouts Exercises By Muscle Group Updated Articles and Resources Expert Videos
1 of 10
Bicycle Exercise
Use to navigate.
Photo Credit: Paul Bradbury/OJO Images/Getty Images Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Bicycle
1. Lie face up on your mat and place your hands behind your head, lightly supporting it with your fingers.
2. Bring the knees in to the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the floor without pulling on the neck.
3. Rotate to the left, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee as you straighten the other leg.
4. Switch sides, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee.5. Continue alternating sides in a 'pedaling' motion for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
View this video for more detailed instructions.
If you have difficulty with this move, you can try a modified version.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Captain's Chair
Need more motivation to stay active? We’re here to help – sign up for our newsletter of fitness tips, tricks, and trends – a healthier, happier you is just around the corner!
1 of 10 Show All 1 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 2 of 10
Captain's Chair Leg Raise
Use to navigate.
Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Captain's Chair
1. Stand on the chair and grip handholds to stabilize your upper body.2. Press your back against the pad and keep the shoulders relaxed.3. Bend the knees and contract the abs to lift the knees to hip level.4. Try not to arch the back or swing the legs up.5. Slowly lower back down and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
The captain's chair leg raise, usually available in most gyms, works the rectus abdominis as well as the obliques.
If you don't have access to a captain's chair rack, you can try holding onto a pull up bar () or ab straps ( ). You can also substitute with a ball roll out.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Ball Crunch
2 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 3 of 10
Exercise Ball Crunch
Use to navigate.
Exercise Ball Crunch. Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Ball Crunch
1. Lie on the ball, positioning it under the lower back.2. Cross your arms over the chest or place them behind your head.3. Contract your abs to lift your torso off the ball, pulling the bottom of your ribcage
down toward your hips.4. As you curl up, keep the ball stable (i.e., the ball shouldn't roll).5. Lower back down, getting a stretch in the abs, and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
An exercise ball is an excellent tool to strengthen the abs.
It's much more effective than floor crunches because the legs tend to be more involved when you're on the floor. When you're on the ball, the abs do more work.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Vertical Leg Crunch
3 of 10
Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 4 of 10
Vertical Leg Crunch
Use to navigate.
Vertical Leg Crunch. Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Vertical Leg Crunch
1. Lie on the floor and extend the legs straight up with knees crossed.2. Place your hands behind the head for support, but avoid pulling on the neck.3. Contract the abs to lift the shoulder blades off the floor, as though reaching your chest
towards your feet.4. Keep the legs in a fixed position and imagine bringing your belly button towards your
spine at the top of the movement.5. Lower and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
The vertical leg crunch is another effective move for the rectus abdominis and the obliques. It's similar to a regular crunch, but your legs are straight up, forcing you to use your abs to do all the work and adding intensity to the exercise.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: The Torso Track
4 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 5 of 10
Torso Track
Use to navigate.
Photo Credit: Image Courtesy of Pricegrabber
Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Torso Track
1. Grip the handles of the Torso Track and pull the abs in without holding your breath (as though bracing them).
2. Exhale and glide forward as far as you comfortably can.3. If you collapse in the middle and feel it in your back, you've gone too far. Shorten
your range of motion as needed to protect your back.4. Contract the abs to pull your body back.5. Add tension by using more tension chords.
If you don't have a Torso Track, you can substitute by trying the ab roll out on the ball.
The Torso Track comes out as number 5 for effective ab exercises, but this is one of my least favorite exercises because it can cause lower-back pain, particularly if you roll out too far. In fact, in the ACE study, researchers found that a significant number of subjects reported lower-back pain, so you may want to skip the expense, and discomfort, of this one and choose other exercises that can target the abs with equal effectiveness.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Long Arm Crunch
5 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 6 of 10
Long Arm Crunch
Use to navigate.
Long Arm Crunch. Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Long Arm Crunch
1. Lie on a mat and extend the arms straight out behind the head with hands clasped, keeping the arms next to the ears.
2. Contract the abs and lift the shoulder blades off the floor.3. Keep the arms straight and avoid straining the neck. If you feel neck pain, take one
hand behind the head while keeping the other arm extended.4. Lower and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.5. You can add intensity by holding a light dumbbell if you need more of a challenge.
The long arm crunch is ranked the 6th most effective ab exercise, changing the traditional floor crunch by straightening the arms behind you. This adds a longer lever to the move, adding a bit more challenge and difficulty. This move also emphasizes the upper part of the abs, although it's important to remember that your rectus abdominis is actually one long muscle that travels from your lower chest to your pelvis. While you can emphasize one part, any exercise you do will work the entire muscle.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Reverse Crunch
6 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 7 of 10
Reverse Crunch
Use to navigate.
Reverse Crunch. Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Reverse Crunch
1. Lie on the floor and place hands on the floor or behind the head.2. Bring the knees in towards the chest until they're bent to 90 degrees, with feet together
or crossed.3. Contract the abs to curl the hips off the floor, reaching the legs up towards the ceiling.4. Lower and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.5. It's a very small movement, so try to use your abs to lift your hips rather than swinging
your legs and creating momentum.
The reverse crunch comes in 7th place for effective ab exercises, with a focus on the rectus abdominis. With this move, you're curling the hips off the floor, so you'll feel this in the lower part of the abs. The key to this move is to avoid swinging the legs to raise the hips. This is a small, subtle move, so you only need to lift your hips a few inches off the floor.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Crunch With Heel Push
7 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes
8 of 10
Crunch With Heel Push
Use to navigate.
Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Crunch With a Heel Push
1. Lie on your back with the knees bent and the hands gently cradling the head.2. Flex your feet and keep them flexed as your contract the abs, lifting the shoulder
blades off the floor.3. Try not to pull on the neck with your hands, but lightly support your head.4. At the top of the crunch, press your heels into the floor while pressing your back
against the mat and slightly raising the glutes off the floor.
1. Lower and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
The crunch with a heel push looks like a traditional crunch, but in this version you push your heels into the floor, which engages the rectus abdominis muscles more than regular crunches.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Ab Roller
8 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8 9
Ab Roller 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 9 of 10
Ab Roller
Use to navigate.
Photo Credit: Image Courtesy of Pricegrabber Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Ab Roller
1. Sit on the Ab Roller and grab the bars in each hand.2. Contract the abs and rock forward, originating the movement from the abs rather than
using momentum.3. Release and repeat for 1-3 sets of 12-16 reps.
4. Go slowly to reduce momentum. Try to focus on the abs rather than pushing with the arms.
The Ab Roller is number 9 for targeting the rectus abdominis and you've probably seen this around the gym (or under your bed) for the last several years.
What's nice about this that it provides neck and arm support, something that might be helpful for people who feel strain in the neck when doing regular crunches. If you don't have an Ab Roller, you can still get a great workout with a variety of core exercises.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
Next: Plank
9 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes 10 of 10
Plank on Elbows and Toes
Use to navigate.
Plank. Photo Credit: Paige Waehner Written or medically reviewed by a board-certified physician. See About.com's Medical Review Policy . Updated October 29, 2015.
Plank
1. Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor.2. Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows.3. Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels.4. Tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking
up in the air or sagging in the middle.5. Hold for 20 to 60 seconds, lower and repeat for 3-5 reps.
The plank exercise ranked number 10 in the ACE study and is a great way to build endurance in both the abs and back, as well as the stabilizer muscles.
This move is also great for building strength for pushups, an exercise that requires quite a bit of core strength.
View this exercise in the Best Ab Workout.
If this is difficult for you, try this modified plank.
Source:
American Council on Exercise. (2001). American Council on Exercise (ACE)-sponsored Study Reveals Best and Worst Abdominal Exercises [Press release].
Retrieved from http://www.acefitness.org/pressroom/246/american-council-on-exercise-ace-sponsored-study.
10 of 10 Show All 1
Bicycle Exercise 2
Captain's Chair Leg Raise 3
Exercise Ball Crunch 4
Vertical Leg Crunch 5
Torso Track 6
Long Arm Crunch 7
Reverse Crunch 8
Crunch With Heel Push 9
Ab Roller 10
Related Articles
The Top 3 Tummy Toning Exercises Try This Sequence of 5 Fantastic Ab Exercises Build Core Strength with This Tough Crunch Beginner Abs & Back Workout Body Shaping Full Body Workout Ball Exchange Ab Exercise
Our Expert Recommends
The Truth About Flat Abs Best Ab Workout Video: Bicycle Ab Exercise Top Myths About Your Abs The Best Ab Exercises - All Exercises Ranked
Total Core Workout Exercises for Your Abs All About Abs Ab Workouts
Exercise Essentials
Lose Weight and Keep It Off: A Common Sense Guide to Weight Loss
Weight Loss Basics
New to Exercise? How to Start a Plan for Beginners
Beginner Exercise Basics
Can We Really Get Flat Abs?
Abs - FAQ's, Workouts and Information
5 Dumb Things We Do When We're Trying to Lose Weight
Getting Results from Your Weight Loss and Exercise Program
The Real Reason You're Not Motivated to Exercise
Get and Stay Motivated to Exercise
Health Slideshows
4 Female Celebrities Speak Out on Sexual Harassment
Sexual Health
5 Healthy Snacks with 100 Calories or Less
Diet Advice
6 Viruses That Can Lead to Cancer
Medical Treatments
Meet 4 Social Innovators in HIV Advocacy
AIDS & HIV
Acute Low back Pain? Try This First
Physical Therapy
Readers Recommend
Total Body Strength Circuit Workout - A Killer Workout for Your Entire Body The Top 10 Best Ab Exercises The 10 Best Cardio Exercises for Weight Loss and Health 8 Ways to Get Rid of Belly Fat Burn calories and save time with this timesaver circuit training workout
Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement
About.com About Health Exercise Abs - FAQ's, Workouts and Information Top 10 Best Ab Exercises
About Health Follow us:
We deliver. Get the best ofAbout Health in your inbox.
Sign up Thanks for signing up!There was an error. Please try again.Please enter a valid email address.Did you mean ?You can opt-out at any time.. See our privacy policy.
Our Story Advertise With Us Site Map Help
Write for About
healthsl
Careers at About Terms of Use & Policies
© 2015 About.com — All rights reserved. Also from About.com: Calorie Count
