Ab exercises / Routine suggestions

choccyswag

choccyswag

Active member
I've always had trouble getting good abs but I like working on them just the same.

My program is P/P/L and I been told that I can do abs anytime I want just not before leg day tho.

Atm I do weighted crunches, hanging leg raises and planks. But I want to know if you do any other exercises that can help get good ab gainz. cheers!
 
Scissor kicks are good for that burn feeling! You can do them until you wanna puke. we don't have ankle weights in the gym.

Today the PT got me to try side bends with kettle bells. I like how they stretch and work my sides. and ab rollouts but my shoulder hurts so can't do them right now.

What i like is 2 maybe 3 exercises to work on because i don't believe abs need that much variety and i only have 1hr during lunch to train.
 
choccyswag said:
Scissor kicks are good for that burn feeling! You can do them until you wanna puke. we don't have ankle weights in the gym.

Today the PT got me to try side bends with kettle bells. I like how they stretch and work my sides. and ab rollouts but my shoulder hurts so can't do them right now.

What i like is 2 maybe 3 exercises to work on because i don't believe abs need that much variety and i only have 1hr during lunch to train.
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The best ab exercises are the hardest ones... hanging leg raises, cable crunches, etc. You're on the right track... One thing to remember though is that just like any other muscle, abs need some weight to add mass. You wouldn't do 50 reps of bicep curls to get bigger bi's (not regularly anyways) so make sure you're applying the same principles with abs... less reps (think 10-20) and more weight will lead to more mass.

The biggest factor for abs though is body fat. If it's too high, no matter how big your abs are, they'll never show. Get that diet down pat and drop the bf and you'll see them for sure.
 
choccyswag said:
Scissor kicks are good for that burn feeling! You can do them until you wanna puke. we don't have ankle weights in the gym.

Today the PT got me to try side bends with kettle bells. I like how they stretch and work my sides. and ab rollouts but my shoulder hurts so can't do them right now.

What i like is 2 maybe 3 exercises to work on because i don't believe abs need that much variety and i only have 1hr during lunch to train.
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The ab wheel is probably my favorite ab exercise.

I also like hanging leg raises and hanging crunches where you pull yourself to be almost parallel to the ground. This one's kinda hard to explain but think of basically an inverted row position where you're hanging from the pull-up bar and then bringing your knees to your chest.

For stability training you can't go wrong with Pallof presses either.
 
V-ups and pulldown crunches are some other options.


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*suck in stomach as hard as you can while the weight stretches you, then crunch to pull the weight down.
 
booneman77; oh thanks I never thought of it that way. like i can do planks for ages but it doesn't feel like its as good as weighted crunches (burn YES but for strength not sure). i just finished a cut last month so i hope my abs will be visible fingers crossed!

JXiiXViii; aren't hanging leg raises and the crunches kindof like the same thing? if you had to choose between one or the other, which one would you do?

Rodja said:
Are you looking to strengthen the core or more for aesthetics?
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both, of course! :)
 
choccyswag said:
both, of course! :)
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I'm not a big fan of trunk flexion for abs because most use way too much ROM and take away from the tension. I'm a huge fan of anti-extension (e.g. ab wheel), anti-rotation (e.g. Pallof press) with occasional hip flexion (e.g. hanging leg raises). Like any other muscle group, they still need periodization, which is often forgotten.
 
choccyswag said:
aren't hanging leg raises and the crunches kindof like the same thing? if you had to choose between one or the other, which one would you do?
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The "inverted crunches" (can't think of what they are actually called) are a lot harder than hanging leg raises. It requires a ton of core strength to hold your body parallel to the ground from a pull-up bar.

Most people would start with hanging leg raises and slowly progress to the more advanced version.

You can also do hanging pikes and as your legs are coming back down, resist the eccentric portion. Eventually you will get to the point where you can hold the position.
 
Super slow leg raises and maximum contraction planks are my favorites, especially using tabata for planks is time and equipment efficient.
I'll have to try those inverted crunches though
 
elhosk said:
Super slow leg raises and maximum contraction planks are my favorites, especially using tabata for planks is time and equipment efficient.
I'll have to try those inverted crunches though
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How do you use Tabata for planks?
 
Maximal contraction planks for tabata is knackering and more intense than just chilling out in a plank position for minute + reps. Just my experience.
 
I like ab wheel and cable crunches (I do them with bodylastics bands), but I also find squats and chin-ups great for abs. People don't realize how good chin-ups are for abs. And biceps. And back, obviously.
 
Rodja said:
Ab wheel superset with planks
Full hanging leg raises (heels to ceiling)
Pallof presses (this is mainly to maintain balance amongst the muscles)
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I tried pallof press and I like it very much thanks!

The gym doesn't have ab wheel anymore and doing them with a BB and weights is superhard for some reason.

Anyway guys I am noticing the following when i do abs
- crunch machine works top abs
- hanging leg raises the bottom abs
- kettlebell side bends the side abs

does this make sense at all?. I am just going by feel lol (burn and soreness day after)
 
choccyswag said:
I tried pallof press and I like it very much thanks!

The gym doesn't have ab wheel anymore and doing them with a BB and weights is superhard for some reason.

Anyway guys I am noticing the following when i do abs
- crunch machine works top abs
- hanging leg raises the bottom abs
- kettlebell side bends the side abs

does this make sense at all?. I am just going by feel lol (burn and soreness day after)
Click to expand...

An ab wheel is worth the investment as they're really cheap. While true to an extent on the first two, side bends primarily work a spinal stabilizer called the quadratus lumborum.
 
1) Lay on the floor and hold your legs off the ground one inch for one minute at a time. Repeat as many times as you can.

2) Inverted situps - hold on to something above your head and use your ab muscles to pull your legs up and back towards your hands (you can find example videos on youtube)

3) Lay on the floor with your feet flat and your knees bent as if you are going to do a sit up. With a weighted medicine ball sit half way up and go side to side with the medicine ball with your ab muscles tighten to keep your balance.


Do these 3 plus the general crunches on a workout ball and you should feel some burn!
 
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