“Don’t just focus on sculpting a six-pack; it’s appealing, but many people don’t realize that the core actually stretches from your glutes to your traps, and wraps 360-degrees around the middle of your body,” explains dancer, gymnast andOpenfit trainer Julian Daigre. “It’s important to make sure it’s strong all of the way around.” Because the ab muscles are at the core of everything (pun intended), experts stress that it is one of the most important places to focus on when starting a new exercise routine. This is because, as Daigre notes, the ab muscles are only a piece of the puzzle and makeup just a part of what we refer to as the core.
Why are strong ab muscles so important?
Our core is a vital part of our body, playing a role in so many of our day-to-day movements. If you have weak abdominal muscles, this weakness can actually affect other areas of your body and result in things such as poor posture and back pain. “Your abs are part of your core, and as such, they play an essential role in stabilizing your body and helping you move powerfully,” explains Daigre. “Without a strong core, you cannot effectively train the rest of your body.” Mazzucco adds that some of the benefits you’ll notice from strengthening your core include:
better posture, alleviation of lower back pain,improved balance and stability, and improved endurance, to name a few!
It is important to remember these benefits when starting ab work, especially if you are hoping to focus on your lower abdominal muscles because this is the area where you won’t see those six-pack muscles. Many postpartum women can benefit from core strengthening, especially, to help strengthen pelvic floor muscles and correct diastasis recti, or a separation of the abdominal muscles.
How often should you do ab exercises?
Ab exercises don’t need to—and shouldn’t be—done every day. As with exercising any part of the body, it’s important to have recovery time. Health professionals encourage abdominal exercises roughly two to three times per week, as a part of a well-rounded exercise routine. “Believe it or not, your core is involved in every exercise so by theory it’s always being worked; it’s just a matter of feeling them through engagement,” notes Mazzucco.
6 Best Lower Ab Exercises
Hoping to target the lower portion of your abdominal muscles? Here are a few moves trainers recommend to add to your core routine. These can be done for time or by a number of repetitions, it’s up to you! Feel free to add one or two of these exercises into your current routine—it’s a choose your own adventure, of sorts.
Reverse crunches
“Reverse crunches work the rectus abdominis and target the lower muscles,” notes Mazzucco. Do the move:
Start by lying on the floor and bending your knees at a ninety-degree angle, with your feet planted on the ground. Keep your arms by your side and curl the hips and knees toward your chest. Your shins should be parallel to the floor, and your lower back should come off the ground slightly.Lower your legs down slowly to the starting position and repeat.
Three-way climber
There’s a reason this is one of the moves in Openfit’s Just Bring Your Body (JBYB) program—Daigre notes it’s one of the best ways to target all around the core. Do the move:
Start in a high plank (or push-up position) with your feet shoulder-width apart.Take one of your legs (whichever you choose to start with) and drive that knee first towards your elbow on the same side and pull it back to starting position.Then take that leg and drive it toward the center of your chest and pull it back to starting position.Then drive it toward the opposite elbow before returning to the starting position. Repeat, this time with your other leg. Continue alternating legs with each rep.
Dead bugs
“Dead bugs engage the hips, abdominals and oblique muscles and will improve deep core strength,” shares Mazzucco. Do the move:
Lie on your back and bend your knees at a 90-degree angle with your legs in the air.Lift your arms toward the ceiling, and extend one leg straight and hold your straight leg above the ground. Don’t let your back arch, and return your leg to the starting position.Switch legs and repeat.
Half circle crunch
“The half-circle crunch is my version of a new and improved reverse crunch,” explains Daigre, “which will make your abs burn in the best way!” Do the move:
Start by lying on your back with your knees bent, feet about two inches off the ground, and arms by your sides, palms down.Your neck and shoulders should also be slightly off the ground and kept neutrally aligned with one another.Using your hands as balance in line with your hips, push your palms into the ground as you crunch your knees in a half-circle, rotating them across your chest (first toward one side and then across to the other side before returning to the starting position). Once finishing that half-circle, retrace that same line by creating a half-circle in the opposite direction.Keep alternating directions with each repetition.
Sit-up with punches
Daigre made this part of the JBYB challenge because it is a much more fun way to do sit-ups. Do the move:
Start by lying on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the ground and arms up behind your head with your fingertips touching lightly behind your ears.Engage your abs, raise your shoulders off the ground and then sit fully up (your lower back should be the last thing off the ground).Once up, channel your inner Muhammad Ali and give me two punches—one with each arm—at the top.Lower yourself back to the starting position with your lower back touching down first.
Scissors
“The scissor exercise works the transverse abdominals and the abductors, increases lower ab strength and works on your core endurance,” explains Mazzucco. Do the move:
Lie faceup with your hands by your side, and lift your head and shoulders off the floor.Extend your legs straight out, lift them off the ground and alternate lifting one leg up and one leg down, keeping them elevated throughout.
Next up, read up on other ways to beat your belly bulge for good, plus the best butt workouts.
Sources
Cleveland Clinic: “Planning to Start Exercising? Start with Your Core First.”Cleveland Clinic: “Why a Strong Core Can Help Reduce Low Back Pain.”Healthbeat, Harvard Health Publishing, April 2014, “How to add core exercises to your workout routine.”Jessica Mazzucco, an NYC-based certified fitness trainerJulian Daigre, a dancer, gymnast and Openfit trainer
