After many studies, fitness and sports science in general have shown the effectiveness of a well-worked core. But we are not referring only to training the abdominal area for aesthetic reasons, but to the development of specific routines for the hips and lower back. Thus, in the next sections we will give you ideas to create your own exercise cycles for the core .
Regardless of the sport you practice, having a firm abdomen is synonymous with effectiveness and performance. It not only makes you stronger, but more stable and resistant. Not to mention all the benefits of maintaining posture and avoiding associated ailments.
With total security, you will know and have performed some type of exercise to stimulate your abdomen. The classic abdominals, or crunch, are the most recommended exercises . However, they are not enough to maintain a robust and strong core. You should look for more global exercises that involve a greater number of muscles and, therefore, congestion.
11 Core Exercises You Should Include In Your Training
Before presenting the exercises that allow you to have an iron abdomen, you should analyze your physical state. And it is that working this area in particular is a bit expensive. Even for many athletes who tend to forget their abs routine, despite maintaining high levels in others.
So do not despair if at first you can not do many repetitions or the muscle tension is very great. It is just an indication of how little you have worked on this area and how important it will be from now on.
Lower abs: work with your legs
After the abdominal crunch , the inclusion of the legs to work this group of muscles is the most accepted option. In addition, it does not require any type of material, apart from a comfortable surface on which to lie. It can be a simple towel or a mat.
1. Leg raises
To start working your lower abs, lie flat on the floor . Continue leaving your arms on both sides of the body and focus all your energy on the abdomen and legs.
Begin the exercise by raising your legs; together and without flexing . Ideally, you should be able to form a 90 degree angle with your body, but it may take some practice. Once you reach the maximum point of elevation of your legs, begin to lower them slowly. It is very important that you retain the fall of the same, this will make each repetition even more effective. And, very importantly, before your heels hit the ground, you need to get your legs back up, energetically.
Begin by doing as many reps as you can and resting for short intervals of time. It is also very effective if you alternate series of this type of elevations with which we quote you below.
2. Alternate leg raises
Another possibility to continue exercising your core is to alternate the lifts . By this we mean that you can do it first with one leg and then with the other, like scissors. As in the previous exercise, do not forget to keep your legs off the ground with each repetition.
With this version you will be able to add a little more difficulty and intensity to the movement. This can be enhanced with changes in rhythm and the width of the opening .
3. Bend of the knees (lying down)
Begin in the same way as in the other leg lift exercises: lying on your back. The exercise begins with the legs slightly off the ground. Just enough so that there is no support on him. And you should bend your knees and bring them to your chest.
Later, after retaining the posture for 2 or 3 seconds, extend the legs again without touching the ground. Always in tension during all the repetitions that you have each series.
4.Tap of fingers
Continue with your back on the ground. In this case, we are going to add a small abdominal crunch to the leg lift. To do this, lift your legs up to a 90 degree angle with your abdomen. Leave them fixed these and try to touch the balls of your feet with the fingers of your hands. It allows you to work a large part of the abdomen in just one exercise.
Planks: maximum tension in your workouts
The “planks” are a series of exercises that, in addition to the core, involve other muscles. Their effectiveness is guaranteed and they are very intense because in the end you work with the weight of the whole body.
To master these exercises, we are going to give you some tips along with their main versions.
5. Abdominal plank
This can be one of the simplest abs exercises you can do. More than a movement, what we are looking for is the tension of our core. To do this, start in a push-up position, but resting your elbows and forearms on the floor.
You must keep your body completely straight (hence its name), as if it were a board. If you haven’t done a lot of abs exercises before or have a lot of accumulated weight, you may find it difficult to maintain the position . Still, it is a very effective exercise; Practice it even if only for seconds.
With perseverance, you will be able to dominate them; We advise you to consider it as a challenge. Start by doing series of 10 seconds and increase depending on your possibilities.
6. Side plank
Once we have mastered the main core exercises, excitement can be added. Although this does not last long, at least the motivation to see how you resist in the exercises is much greater.
Performing the plank laterally generates a great involvement of the obliques. Stand on your side and rest your elbow on the floor, along with the part of your forearm, raise your hips and hold the position.
It is important that you perform these types of exercises both on one side and the other.
7. Plank with balance
In the starting position of a front plank we can add intensity. To do this, simply remove a fulcrum alternately. That is, with the body in tension, we will raise one arm for a few seconds and we will return it to its position. Next, we can raise the other, or combine it with the elevation of one of the legs.
You may find yourself unable to hold your posture at first, but gradually you will gain stamina and precision.
8. Plank with knee lift
This is a version of the plank that is also known as a climbing or Spiderman plank .
Start with the front plank pose. Once you have the body in tension, you should bring one of your knees up to the elbow in front of you. This is an alternate exercise. It adds quite a bit of difficulty and also considerably strengthens the work of the obliques.
Exercises with greater abdominal involvement
9. Roller or abdominal wheel
One of the best exercises for the core is the abdominal wheel extension. It is a simple wheel, traversed by an axle that allows you to hold onto it. Starting on our knees, supporting our weight on the wheel, we must move it forward and retract.
It is an exercise with a long distance and, therefore, a great activation of the core.
10. Include strength exercises
With the help of a pulley, to be able to be high, we can do crunches with weight . By getting on your knees and holding a bar attached to a pulley, you can do weighted contractions. By simply adding some weight to the pulley and shrinking the abdomen you will be exercising your core with greater intensity. It is important that you do not overdo the weight.
11. Don’t forget your lower back (lumbar)
Within this list of the best exercises for the core They could not miss some that are oriented to work the lumbar. If you go to the gym you will surely find a machine that allows you to do lumbar flexion . Otherwise, at home, on a flat surface, they can also be worked. You should only do slight vertical inclinations of your lower body while lying on your stomach.