Our beginner serratus exercise is the Plank Push Away. So when it comes to strengthening the lower abs, what you're actually strengthening is the lower part of your rectus abdominis. You don’t want to swing the legs down and up, down and up. Our advanced version of the serratus exercise is the Plank Punch Out. EXERCISE NOTES: For beginners, perform 30-60 seconds of Seated Ab Circles alternating clockwise and counterclockwise movements, followed by 30 seconds of rest. You see, your core is made up of three major muscles: the rectus abdominis (the muscles that run down the front of your body and create a six-pack effect); the obliques (the muscles along your sides); and the transverse abdominis (the deepest layer of ab muscles that corset the waist and support the hips). Place your hands behind your head with your shoulders lifted off the mat. Then, repeat three more times for four total rounds. Perform 15 reps on each side, then immediately continue on to your next exercise. Once you've finished all of your movements, rest for up to one minute. Number one: It’s more difficult because we have to lift the weight of our legs, as opposed to having the knee bent. Continue to alternate. Continue by elevatating your pelvis to raise your glutes from the floor. Tuck your pelvis in towards your belly button and pull your ribs down as if you've just taken a big, relaxing exhale. Extend your legs straight out in front of you and place your hands behind your head with your shoulders lifted off the mat. Especially at this point in the workout. How to: Start standing on left leg with a weight in right hand, palm facing toward thighs. But I promise I’m not going to let you guys down with this one! We’ll be following my ‘Six Pack Progression’ sequence as we choose each of the beginner and advanced ab exercises for each abdominal movement type. Hanging from a pullup bar with arms straight, lift the legs in a straight line, performing a hip twist at the end of the movement by bringing your left knee toward your right elbow, lower your legs and then switch to bring your right knee toward your left elbow. To get our top stories delivered to your inbox, sign up for the Healthy Living newsletter. Build up the duration if you need to. Bracing your core, slide your left knee to meet your left elbow, then slide it back to a high plank. Engage glutes and press back up through heels to starting position. Perform 15 reps, then immediately continue on to your next exercise. Once you've finished all of your movements, rest for up to one minute. Return to starting position, then repeat with the opposite leg. Keep left leg slightly bent. Keep that leg bent at a 90-degree angle and foot flexed, then press up through foot to kick leg straight up until knee is in line with hip and parallel to floor. We’re going to kick off this Perfect Abs Workout with a bottom up movement. You’ll feel this activate the serratus muscles which will create some stability of the shoulder blades as they relate to your entire ribcage. With The Keto Diet And IF’, ‘The CICO Diet Helped Me Finally Lose 100 Lbs.’, ‘I Lost 20 Pounds Doing An F45 Challenge’, ‘I Learned Proper Portion Control Through WW’, ‘Daily 30-Minute Workouts Helped Me Lose 70 Lbs.’, ‘I Got Hooked On Caribbean Dance And Lost 86 Lbs.’, ‘I Lost 66 Lbs. During the Banded Pull Down pull the ribcage down and forward toward the pelvis. We want to do bottom-up exercises for the lower abs at the point in the workout when we’ve got the most energy. Hold for a moment, then return to start. Start in a low plank position balancing on your forearms with your spine straight. Try to hold the position for 30 to 60 seconds. Lie on your back with your hands tucked under your rear and your legs lifted straight up toward the ceiling. How to do froggers with gliders: Get into a high plank with your toes firmly on top of a pair of gliders or hand towels. Clean out expired products and clutter to make way for a healthier you. That's one rep. Then, repeat three times for four total rounds. You guys know I’m not a huge fan of the standard plank, because it gets to be too easy very quickly. (You're doing at least three.) (You're doing at least three.) That said, you can't isolate your lower abs when you're working your core, but there are exercises that help target and activate those muscles more than others. We’re going to kick off this Perfect Abs Workout with a bottom up movement. On A Low-Carb, Fasting Diet', ‘I Lost 90 Lbs. Perform 15 reps, then immediately continue on to your next exercise. I’ve created my Six Pack Progression to help ensure that muscles are worked in an order that allows for optimal energy in training each movement type and abdominal muscle. 1. Next, you want to incorporate rotation into these lower ab movements (bottom-up rotation), followed by the rotationally driven oblique exercises. Why trust us? Hold two weights in hands, bend arms, and place them behind shoulders onto back. Keeping foot flexed and leg straight, raise left leg into the air until in-line with hips and parallel to floor. Instructions: Choose at least three moves below. Continue to alternate legs. Pause for a moment and then bring your legs and arms back to the starting position. (You're doing at least three.) Bracing your core before the Banded Pull Down will create stability and help you avoid dropping the pelvis toward the heels in this exercise. Then, repeat three more times for four total rounds. Rest for 15 seconds, then move on to the next one. How to: Start lying on back with arms by sides, legs bent to 90-degree angles (shins parallel to mat), and feet on stability ball (or elevated surface, like a couch). This exercise gives us a great opportunity to work it. Push hips back and bend knees until thighs are nearly parallel to the ground bringing hands to clasp in front of chest. How to do the Pilates 100: Lie face up on a yoga mat with your arms straight by your sides and your legs lifted, feet up towards the ceiling. Pro tip: Move quickly—but with proper form—to make it a cardio exercise. Sticking with the rotational theme, we’re now moving up to the obliques. The transverse abdominis runs like a weight belt around your waist, and it helps to drive stability. That’s one rep. Hold and then bring your legs back to the starting position. Instead we want to isolate the lifting of the pelvis, and we’ll do a better job of hitting the abs, which is what this exercise is supposed to be doing! EXERCISE NOTES: For beginners, perform 30-60 seconds of Opposite Side Elbow to Knee alternating right to left, followed by 30 seconds of rest. The Seated Ab Circle is our beginner version bottom up rotation exercise. Engaging your core and glutes, jump straight up lifting your knees to meet your hands. The abs also control motion in the opposite direction, pulling you back from spinal extension. 29 Amazing Glute Exercises to Tone Your Butt and Thighs, 5 Ways Using a Barbell Can Help You Sculpt a High, Toned Butt. Tiffany Ayuda, a senior editor at Prevention and certified personal trainer through the American Council on Exercise, has specialized in fitness, health, and general wellness topics in her previously editorial roles at Life by Daily Burn, Everyday Health, and South Beach Diet. When extending your legs in the air, don’t go beyond your eye level with your toes. This is your starting position. Tip If you feel pain in your lower back, your hips are sagging. This exercise is more challenging and tougher because of added resistance and muscles being under tension for longer period of time as well. "When you have a weak core, hyperlodosis—the unnatural arching of the lower back—can occur. The theory of bottom-up processing was introduced by psychologist E. J. Gibson, who took a direct approach to the understanding of perception. Health.com may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Engaging your core, slide both feet in toward the outsides of your hands, and then slide them back into plank. We talked about how the rectus abdominis attaches at the ribcage and the pelvis. Then, bring your arm and leg to the starting position and repeat on the other side. We’ve got to hit the main abdominal movement types in an order that allows us to have optimal energy for training each. For those of you who are advanced, we’ve got a great opportunity with the Sledgehammer Swing to build some explosiveness into a rotational, ground-based movement. Didn't think so. Bend your knees in 90 degree angle and raise your thighs until they are perpendicular to the floor. Lie on your back, knees bent and feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart. How to: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Place your right foot on top of your left. Equipment needed: none. Jump your legs back up to stand and extend your hands overhead. How to do a mountain climber to downward facing dog split: Start in a high plank position with your shoulders directly over your wrists. Stomach crunch. You’ll really feel the serratus doing the work! For those of you who are advanced, we’re going to move the top down and the bottom up, but we’re going to do them at the same time, PLUS we’ll add a little bit of a twist with this Scissor V-Up. It has an important function in stabilizing the trunk by keeping the shoulder blades in contact with the rib cage. Especially for your lower abdominal region. My ‘Six Pack Progression’ works the ab muscles in this sequence to get optimal results: To make sure we’re covering all of our bases with our Perfect Ab Workout, let’s take a look at the many functions of the abs.