As we lean more towards making a career, our lifestyles have started changing and becoming more sedentary. Waking up and sitting on a chair while glued to your computer screens is a common practice, and the only time we can get for ourselves and our body is while working out. But even when we choose to work out, we often forget to target the main group of muscles that provide us with the strength it takes to move our bodies – the abdominal muscles!
Commonly known as abs, we don’t realize how often we have to engage our abs, like performing the most basic tasks of bending, standing up, etc. Moreover, not only can your abs give you the stability and flexibility to move effortlessly every day, but a strong core also prevents fatal back injuries while working out – talk about being the ultimate savior! And since you use your abdominal muscles daily, it’s about time you show them some love by adding specific exercises targeted for the core into your daily workout routine.
5 Best No-Equipment Core Exercises for Beginners
Let’s explore five of the best core exercises top trainers swear by! Mind you, these exercises don’t require weights. If you are searching for the best core exercises, I even have that for you! So, keep reading further.
- Forearm Plank
You don’t realize how long a minute is until you do a plank. Talk to a fitness trainer about following an ab routine, and I am sure they will never miss the infamous plank. Even a study by the NIH on middle-aged men states that the elbow plank exercise, if performed for four weeks, improves your physical fitness.
- Benefits:
- Planks don’t work in isolation to only target your abs as they are great for your legs and arms.
- They work on strengthening your abs, neck, chest, back, and shoulders to improve your posture.
- Butterfly Sit-up
A butterfly sit-up forces your body to maintain good form by eliminating the use of your hip flexors. And if you are looking for an exercise that will tone your midsection and make it look fabulous and summer-ready, butterfly sit-ups are your answer!
- Benefits:
- You reduce the risk of injuries by tightening, strengthening, and toning your core. It helps in easing your daily activities.
- A 2016 study concluded that older women who regularly did any type of sit-up in their workout routine were on the lower side of the risk scale to develop Sarcopenia, which is related to poor physical function and low muscle mass in older people.
- It helps your hip muscles, lower back, and pelvis to coordinate with your abdominal muscles, creating more stability and balance in your body.
- Dead Bug
Dead bug – a rather entertaining name for an exercise that is far from being entertaining. This ab-strengthening workout got its fascinating name from its starting position, where you lay down on the mat with your arms and legs like a dead bug.
- Benefits:
- This workout is great for helping your mind connect with your core muscles to strengthen your deep core muscles.
- It might reduce your risk of developing low back pain by strengthening your erector spinae, a set of muscles in your lower back.
- Dead bug is great for beginners as there is less to no risk of injuries when performed correctly.
PRO TIP: Avoid arching your lower back from the ground by pushing your belly button towards the spine and allowing it to press your lower back into the mat.
- Side Plank
Yes, I am back with the planks! By now, you must have realized that where there is a mention of abs, there will be a plank, rather, a variety of them. Side plank might seem basic, but this unilateral core workout actually engages your entire body.
- Benefits:
- Aside from targeting the core, side planks work your obliques, legs, glutes, hips, chest, wrists, lower back, and shoulders.
- Since this workout strengthens your core, patients with chronic lower back pain can benefit the most!
- Side planks are perfect for working out your spinal stabilizing muscle, quadratus lumborum, to reduce injuries.
- Leg Raise
The lower abdominal area is the most challenging body part to aim to lose lower belly fat. Leg raises can help you work this area by lengthening and strengthening your hip flexors and promoting more hip mobility.
- Benefits:
- Better balance and stabilization give you a better grip on your overall body!
- It works your inner thigh, which is also a part of your core muscles in Pilates, and your lower abs, making you flexible.
- As this workout isolates your rectus abdominis, it is the best workout for toning your abdomen.
4 Best Core Exercises With Weights
- Seated Russian Twist
One of the most popular exercises among athletes, the seated Russian twists are known to effectively build your shoulder and core muscles with the help of rotational movements.
- Benefits:
- Increasing the intensity of this workout by adding weights can burn calories in your obliques and muffin tops, commonly known as love handles.
- By burning calories and using the stored fat in your belly, it reduces your risk of cardiovascular diseases.
- It prevents slouching, promoting a good posture!
- Renegade Row
Renegade row is a compound weighted exercise that engages your back and core muscles. It helps activate your upper body muscles to challenge your stability while simultaneously engaging the rhomboids, obliques, and triceps.
- Benefits:
- It is essential for your core to maintain the balance of the movements during this workout, hence requiring it to work hard.
- Renegade row targets multiple muscles at the same time, which helps in increasing your core strength, body awareness, back strength, control, and upper body strength.
- Leaning Camel
Unlike any of our previously mentioned exercises, the leaning camel can target your core in a completely different way. This weighted core exercise helps strengthen your abs by stretching your quads.
- Benefits:
- The leaning camel helps tone your core and trim your waist by stretching your front body and targeting the abdominal walls.
- Leg Drops
Leg drops allow your body to stay stable while only moving your legs, allowing you to focus more on your lower abs. This helps in attacking the stored fat in your lower belly, which is the toughest to target.
- Benefits:
- This exercise trains your transverse abdominus to stay strong and strength to escape injuries, back pain, and poor athletic form.
- It teaches your core to stabilize when the rest of your body is in motion.
Keep Your Form in Mind!
Every exercise listed in this article helps you stabilize your core muscles, strengthen them, and help you perform daily activities exercises better. While at it, ensure you don’t forget to maintain a proper posture for each exercise, as improper form could lead to injuries. To ensure you are picking the correct posture, you can watch online videos and then record your workout to correct any mistakes.
