It’s no wonder people are so confused about how to get better abs. Seems like every week there’s some new fitness gadget or magic weight loss pill promising to give you the six-pack of your dreams in no time.
And then there’s the endless barrage of so-called “experts” on social media constantly dishing out conflicting information on how to get lean and shredded. It’s overwhelming and confusing, and it’s not helping you get results.
Truth is, getting better abs is pretty simple. Not easy, but simple. Get your diet dialed in, and hit the gym consistently and with intensity – not just cardio, but resistance training as well. And yes, block off time to train your abs.
But those ab workouts don’t need to be fancy or high-tech. You can get it done at home with absolutely ZERO equipment if you do the right exercises. Keep it simple, keep it basic, hit it hard, and stay consistent.
What are the right exercises? Here are three of them: planks, crunches, and lying leg raises. Collectively, you’re hitting the abs top to bottom, inside and out, with this trio. Planks work the entire core, including those deep muscles that are important for boosting athletic performance, strength gains in the gym, and reducing injury risk. Crunches target the upper abs, and leg raises zero in on the always-stubborn lower abs. Boom! Done.
Next time you’re at home and want to get in a quick ab workout, do the below routine. If you’re at the gym, you can do it there as well – either tack it on to the end of whatever body part or full-body workout you’re doing, or start your routine with abs to prioritize your six-pack development.
Do this workout 2-3 days a week in addition to training all other major muscle groups and being conscientious of your diet (high protein, healthy fats, moderating carbs), and you’ll see those abs start to pop before long!
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|
Plank |
2 |
45-60-second hold |
|
Crunch |
3 |
20 |
|
Lying Leg Raise |
3 |
12-15 |
Start: Get into a modified push-up position by balancing your body on your forearms and toes with your body in a straight line from head to feet.
Execution: Hold this position for the prescribed amount of time while pulling your abs in and keeping your hips from dropping toward the floor.
Tip: To make this exercise more difficult, hold one foot up off of the floor for half the time, and then switch legs for the other half of the set.
Start: Lie on the floor with your knees bent, feet and lower back flat on the floor.
Execution: With your hands cupped loosely behind your head, contract through your abs to lift your shoulders and upper back off the floor. Hold this position for a second before slowly lowering back to the start, making the negative portion of the rep as slow and deliberate as the positive portion.
Tip: This exercise can be made more difficult by holding a weight plate on your chest.
Start: Lie down face up on the floor with your entire body straight and your hands under your glutes to stabilize your torso. Hold your legs a few inches off the floor.
Execution: Raise your legs up toward the ceiling until they’re just short of perpendicular to the floor. Slowly lower your legs back to the start.
Tip: Another variation of this exercise (often called the “reverse crunch”) involves bent knees and simply lifting your hips straight up off the floor by contracting your lower abs.
