Standing abs, plank abs and mat abs – we’ll use three completely different coaching methods in as we speak’s core exercise routine to construct sturdy, purposeful abs and core. I personally love including dumbbells to my ab exercises – it’s one of the best ways to construct power and muscle definition in all of the muscle tissues that make up your core.
LET’S GET STARTED
Obtain Your FREE Exercise Plan Right here
Obtain the PDF calendar for this exercise plan so you may simply entry your each day exercises.
I’ve been a private coach for over ten years, and I hardly do fundamental crunches when coaching my core.
Customary crunches aren’t a nasty core train, however I imagine that there are many more practical functional core training workouts I’d prioritize first (like plank drags).
Day eight of our 2-Week Perform 20 Dumbbell Workout Plan is a purposeful core circuit exercise; constructing core power and stability by way of a mixture of standing ab exercises, plank ab workouts and mat ab workouts.
Every circuit of this purposeful core exercise focuses on a unique technique of coaching abs, permitting you to get the advantages of a number of varieties of coaching:
- Standing Abs: mimic on a regular basis actions, permitting you to carry out your each day duties (similar to lifts, pivots and twists) extra simply.
- Plank Abs: will increase power and stability all through your complete backbone, which may help enhance posture and cut back decrease again ache.
- Mat Abs: enable us to isolate particular muscle teams, particularly within the deep core, such because the rectus abdominis, obliques, and transverse abdominis.
I’ve additionally constructed a mobility train into every circuit; functionally coaching our core with a mixture of power, stability, rotation and anti-rotation actions.
Newbie and superior modifications are supplied, making this a terrific core exercise for all health ranges.

Useful Core Exercise To Goal These Deep Core Muscle mass
Construct a powerful core at dwelling with this core exercise routine with weights.
A mix of rotation and anti-rotation ab workouts construct power and stability all through the core. This purposeful model of coaching prepares you on your actual life actions, like pivots and twists.
I recommend doing abs and core workouts like this one as soon as per week as a part of a well-rounded workout routine.
Exercise Tools:
Medium-to-heavy set of dumbbells. We’re utilizing 15-25 lbs.
Exercise Directions:
Comply with together with the guided Ab Workout Routine on YouTube, led by licensed private coach and health teacher, Lindsey Bomgren.
Your Exercise Appears Like This:
- 3 Exercise Circuits (2 purposeful core workouts and 1 mobility train per circuit)
- Timed Intervals (30 seconds of labor, 15 seconds relaxation; full as many repetitions as you may within the timed interval)
- Repeat Every Circuit x2 Units
Exercise Define
CIRCUIT ONE: Standing Abs
- Abs: Uneven Squat Thruster, Entrance Rack and Single Leg Crunch
- Abs: Step By way of Dumbbell Chop
- Mobility: Jefferson Curl and Squat Pry
CIRCUIT TWO: Plank Abs
- Abs: Uneven Entrance/Again Plank Drags
- Abs: Weighted Facet Plank Hip Lifts
- Mobility: Forearm Dolphin Plank to Inclined Again Fly
CIRCUIT THREE: Mat Abs
- Abs: Half Turkish Get Up
- Abs: Flutter Kicks and V-Sit
- Mobility: Clamshell Diagonal Attain
6 Ab Workout routines for Power and Stability
1. Uneven Squat Thruster, Entrance Rack and Single Leg Crunch
Targets: Legs, glutes, hamstrings, quads, hips, shoulders, abs and core.

How To Do Uneven Squat Thrusters and Single Leg Standing Crunches
- Begin standing, toes shoulder-width aside and knees barely bent. Maintain one dumbbell in your proper hand at your proper shoulder.
- Along with your weight in your heels, sit your hips again as you decrease right into a squat, striving for a 90-degree angle between your hips and knees.
- Then, drive by way of your heels, squeezing your glutes to face tall. As you stand, press the dumbbell overhead, wrist stacked over shoulder.
- With management, decrease the dumbbell to your shoulder.
- Then, shift your weight to your proper foot, bringing your left knee up and rotating your torso to faucet your left knee together with your proper elbow.
- With management, decrease your left foot to the bottom, returning to the beginning place.
2. Step By way of Dumbbell Chop
Targets: All of the abs and core muscle tissues — higher abs, decrease abs, obliques and deep transverse abdominals.

How To Do Step By way of Dumbbell Chops
- Stand with toes hip distance aside and staggered, left foot barely in entrance of proper foot. Maintain a dumbbell in each arms horizontally at your proper hip.
- Brace your core as you deliver the dumbbell out of your proper hip over your left shoulder, stepping your again proper foot parallel to your left foot as you drive the dumbbell up. Consider powering the motion out of your hips and glutes quite than your arms.
- With management, decrease the dumbbell to your proper hip and step your proper foot again, returning to the beginning place.
3. Uneven Plank Drag
Targets: Chest, shoulders, triceps, higher again, mid-back, abs and core muscle tissues.

How To Do Uneven Entrance/Again Plank Drags
- Begin in a excessive plank place together with your shoulders stacked over your wrists, toes hip-width aside. Place one dumbbell on the ground outdoors your proper hand.
- Seize the dumbbell in your proper hand, then bend your knees to shift your hips again in the direction of your heels, pulling the dumbbell again and putting it outdoors your proper foot.
- Shift your hips ahead, returning to excessive plank place.
- Then, shift your hips again, grabbing the dumbbell in your proper hand and dragging it ahead, putting it outdoors your proper hand and returning to the beginning place.
Modification: Kneeling plank or incline plank.
4. Facet Plank Hip Carry
Targets: Inner and exterior indirect muscle tissues and transverse abdominus.

How To Do Weighted Facet Plank Hip Lifts
- Begin mendacity in your proper aspect, proper forearm on the mat, proper shoulder stacked over proper elbow. Choice to position a dumbbell in your left hip.
- Press into your forearm and carry your hips. Steadiness on the skin fringe of your proper foot, stacking your left foot on prime of your proper foot. Interested by forming a straight line out of your head by way of your heels.
- With management, decrease your hips 2-3 inches in the direction of the bottom.
- Then squeeze by way of your obliques (aspect of your torso) to carry your hips, returning to a aspect plank place.
Modification: Knee down aspect plank.
5. Half Turkish Get-Up
Targets: Higher abs, decrease abs, obliques, shoulders, chest and triceps.

How To Do Half Turkish Get-Ups
- Lie in your again, holding a dumbbell in your proper hand prolonged above your proper shoulder, palm going through in. Set your gaze on the dumbbell in your proper hand
- Prolong your left arm out at a 45-degree angle, urgent your palm into the mat.
- Bend your proper leg, putting your proper foot flat on the mat simply outdoors your proper hip.
- Then push by way of your proper heel and your left elbow as you squeeze your core to carry your neck, shoulders and torso off the mat. Left shoulder must be stacked over left elbow, proper arm locked overhead, and gaze in your dumbbell. Goal to take a seat up tall, shoulders stacked over hips.
- With management, reverse the movement by slowly rolling again all the way down to the mat. Once more, maintain your proper arm prolonged overhead all through the motion.
Modification: Useless bug or chook canine.
6. Flutter Kicks and V-Sit
Targets: Transverse stomach (deep belly muscle tissues beneath your rectus stomach or six pack ab muscle tissues), decrease abs and hip flexors.

How To Do 4 Flutter Kicks and a 4-Second V-Sit Maintain
- Lie flat in your again. Maintain a dumbbell between each arms above your chest; wrists stacked over shoulders. Have interaction core to push your decrease again into your mat (rib cage pulled in).
- Prolong each legs straight above you, aiming to maintain legs as straight as potential. Choice to bend knees to scale back the depth.
- Have interaction core to maintain your hips secure, then alternate decreasing your heels to hover off the mat, “scissoring” your legs so they’re at all times in movement, performing 4 flutter kicks.
- Then, maintain your legs prolonged and floating off the mat as you roll up, lifting your higher physique off the mat. Take into consideration forming a “v” form between your head and toes. Goal to maintain your arms straight and dumbbell prolonged overhead. Maintain for a four-count.
- With management, roll again onto the mat, returning to the beginning place.
Modification: Alternating leg lifts or knees bent leg lifts.
FAQs
Planks and push ups require a specific amount of wrist mobility, however overextension by way of the joint could cause ache and irritation. Try these wrist pain exercises for extra modifications and alternate options if you happen to expertise wrist ache throughout planks and push ups.
Feeling ab workouts in your thighs, decrease again and hips or hip flexors could be a signal the train is just too superior on your core, inflicting the stronger muscle tissues in your decrease physique to take over. Strive lowering vary of movement or scaling again to the newbie model of every train to construct core power.
When individuals speak about “deep core” muscle tissues, they’re typically referring to the transverse abdominis and pelvic flooring. These are completely different from the extra seen rectus abdominis “six-pack” muscle tissues. To have interaction them, take into consideration squeezing a blueberry in your stomach button.

Carry out 20: FREE 2-Week Dumbbell Exercise Plan
A 2-week efficiency primarily based power coaching program designed to construct muscle in 20 minutes a day.
In case you appreciated this purposeful ab routine at dwelling, obtain the FREE 2-Week Dumbbell Workout Plan.
Pin This Exercise: Ab Exercise Routine for a Sturdy Core
