Abs workout

 

Plank

The plank is an excellent abdominal and core exercise. To ensure you keep your core strong and stable. The plank exercise can also be used as the basis for a core muscle strength and stability test. The plank is more of a strength-building exercise than a cardio exercise, but by engaging a range of muscles it can also help to boost your calorie burn.

1. Begin in the plank position, face down with your forearms and toes on the floor. Your elbows are directly under your shoulders and your forearms are facing forward. Your head is relaxed and you should be looking at the floor.

2.Engage your abdominal muscles, drawing your navel toward your spine. Keep your torso straight and rigid and your body in a straight line from your ears to your toes with no sagging or bending. This is the neutral spine position. Ensure your shoulders are down, not creeping up toward your ears. Your heels should be over the balls of your feet.

3. Hold this position for 60 seconds. 

Mountain Climber

Mountain climbers are great for building cardio endurance, core strength, and agility. You work several different muscle groups with mountain climbers—it's almost like getting a total-body workout with just one exercise.

1.Get into a plank position, making sure to distribute your weight evenly between your hands and your toes.

2. Check your form—your hands should be about shoulder-width apart, back flat, abs engaged, and head in alignment.

3. Pull your right knee into your chest as far as you can.

4. Switch legs, pulling one knee out and bringing the other knee in.

5. Keep your hips down and run your knees in and out as far and as fast as you can. Alternate inhaling and exhaling with each leg change.

Leg Raises

The leg raise is a strength training exercise which targets the iliopsoas. Because the abdominal muscles are used isometrically to stabilize the body during the motion, leg raises are also often used to strengthen the rectus abdominis muscle and the internal and external oblique muscles.

1. Lie on your back, legs straight and together. 

2. Keep your legs straight and lift them all the way up to the ceiling until your butt comes off the floor. 

3. Slowly lower your legs back down till they’re just above the floor. Hold for a moment.

4. Raise your legs back up. Repeat.

V-up

The V-Up is a full-body move that works your core, legs, back and shoulders. The exercise is beloved by fitness fanatics for its ability to work the upper and lower abdominal muscles simultaneously. A V-Up involves sitting on the floor or a mat and positioning the body in the shape of the letter “V.”

1. Start by lying down on your back either on the floor or a mat. Extend your arms behind your head and your legs straight out, with your feet touching.

2. Keeping your feet together and toes pointed, slowly lift your legs up at the same time as you lift your upper body. Reach for your toes with your hands and squeeze your abdominal muscles in.

Bicycle crunches

The bicycle crunch is an effective ab exercise, reaching not only the usual abs but also the deep abs and the obliques. If you want to work your core, this air bicycle maneuver is a great choice. It's a no-equipment, beginner's level exercise you can do anywhere. Use it as part of your core strengthening workout or add it to a full body workout.

1. Start by lying on the ground, with your lower back pressed flat into the floor and your head and shoulders raised slightly above it.

2. Place your hands lightly on the sides of your head; don’t knit your fingers behind. Be careful not to yank your head with your hands at any point during the exercise.

3. Lift one leg just off the ground and extend it out.

4. Lift the other leg and bend your knee towards your chest.

5. As you do so twist through your core so the opposite arm comes towards the raised knee. You don’t need to touch elbow to knee, instead focus on moving through your core as you turn your torso. Your elbow should stay in same position relative to your head throughout – the turn that brings it closer to the knee comes from your core. It might be best to think shoulder to knee as you move, rather than elbow to knee.

6. Lower your leg and arm at the same time while bringing up the opposite two limbs to mirror the movement.

7. Keep on alternating sides until you’ve managed 10 reps on each, aiming for three sets of 10 in total, or add the bicycle crunch into circuit training and just keep going for as long as the timer runs.