My 3 Fave Ab Exercises (no sit-ups allowed)

Everyone wants a flat tummy, right? I've got some effective and safe ab exercises for you below.

I’m personally not a fan of direct ab training, I find it redundant because every exercise you do, you ideally should be bracing your core correctly. That means you’ll always be training your abs while you’re exercising.  You know the idea of doing bicep curls is so your biceps get bigger?  Yep, transfer that thought process through to doing lots of sit-ups – you’re actually training your stomach muscles to get bigger (or bulge).  Correct me if I’m wrong, but that’s not what most women are looking for.

In those years where I was boxing 5 times a week we did thousands of crunches and twists and while I could certainly take a punch to the stomach (probs not your goal) I had endless back trouble.

Good posture, good nutrition (<< the most important path to a flat belly), and smart ab training will get you that flat stomach you want so let me share my fave ab exercises I add into most of my classes.  And no, there’s not a crunch in sight.

You see, your 'rectus abdominus,' or six pack muscle, is the worst choice of abs muscles to train, since it doesn't stabilise your spine at all, and it's not part of your 'true' core.

A 'traditional' sit-up or crunch -- where you lie on the ground and raise your shoulders and back off the ground, contracting your abs -- works more of your hip flexors than it does your 'abs.'

When you do sit-ups, and you do them regularly, you will further tighten your hip flexors, cause arching of your low back, and even possibly create low back pain.

A smart way to train your abs is to train for functional movement, i.e. resisting lumbar spinal movement rather than creating extra movement like with a crunch.  By training sit ups, Russian twists (a true spinal nightmare) and other crunch type movements, not only are you missing out on the major role of the core but your opportunity to get stronger, be more efficient in your movement and maintain health and mobility.

These three exercises are all based around the plank.  You’ll work your core muscles in a functional stabilising role , get a full body workout (more muscles used equals more calories burned) and build strength rapidly.  Without hurting your back!

Knees or toes, doesn't matter - just so long as you can control this movement and keep a tightly braced body.  Keep your hips tucked slightly so you don't end up with your bum in the air and shrug your shoulders down your back away from your ears.  Because you're working with reduced points of stability as you raise your hands, it's ideal to spread your knees or feet wider to prevent rolling of the hips.  Try and keep your body as still as possible as you alternate hand lifts and shoulder touches.  (Note - a simple tap will suffice, no need to whack yourself :))  Try 5 taps each side and as you get stronger, progress to a few more reps.

This is an awesome plank!  Too often in our movement we focus on the sagittal plane alone (moving forward or backward). It's really important to work the body through rotation movements as well (transverse plane), this is where we are typically most weak and most stiff.

Assume a plank position on elbows and knees or toes (this is a strong move so don't get too excited).  Remember, regress the movement to an easier level and master that level before rushing ahead and performing the movement poorly. Keep shoulders tucked away from ears, tuck hips (this is a plank NOT a downward facing dog!) and as you rotate the arm, rotate your whole body twisting from the feet NOT your lower back. Your body should stay tight through the movement.  Shoot for 2 minutes of rotations, resting and stretching as you need.  Keep good form!

And the simplest plank (and the most poorly executed generally!) is the dynamic elbow plank.

Set up a plank position on your elbows with heels and legs tightly squeezing together.  Squeeze your thighs and bum as tight as you can, which will help you brace your abs as well.  Keep your shoulders back and gaze forward and maintain tension through your body as tightly as you can.  Don't forget to breathe.  Your goal is to maintain positive tension throughout your body as long as you can.  And no, you won't be holding this one for 2 minutes!  Hold this properly and you'll be doing well to hold it for 30 seconds!

With all strong ab exercises I suggest a specific breathing pattern, if only to remind you not to hold your breath.  Breathe in to prepare for the movement, breathe out on the strongest part of the exercise.

There you go - my fave ab exercises that provide strong core and back benefits as well as full body strength and heart rate.

Give these a go this week.