Best Ab Exercises to Do At-Home

Are you eager to build a strong core? Maybe your goal is to get 6-pack abs… Whatever the case, you’re likely wondering where to start. Lucky for you, we’ve got you covered!

In the following guide, we’ll be sharing the best at-home ab exercises that you can implement into your daily fitness regimen so that YOU can begin to build the abs of your dreams. ,

Remember, however, that abs are ultimately made in the kitchen. So while the following exercises are an integral component of building abs, they’re not the only component. With that said, let’s get right into it! Below are the top 5 exercises YOU can do to build a strong and aesthetic core.

The 5 Best At-Home Ab Exercises

Before diving in, it’s important to first outline some basic pointers on how to properly and effectively perform a given abdominal exercise. Though each exercise is different, all require the same level of competency in order to correctly execute the movement.

First, always warm up prior to the workout itself. Not only will this prime your body for the upcoming exercise but it will reduce the likelihood of injury and improve overall performance.

Second, Always ensure that each portion of the exercise is being executed properly; remain neutral through the spin, tuck your chin so as to keep your neck neutral, and brace the core during every contraction.

Finally, don’t be afraid to adjust the movement to your fitness capacity and current ability level, whether that means an increase or decrease in difficulty. Luckily, most ab exercises are scalable, so this shouldn’t be a problem…

Standard Plank

As a staple in any abdominal workout routine, the plank is considered a standard exercise that’s largely accessible for most people, remaining a baseline core exercise for good reason.

Not only does it build stability throughout the entirety of the core but it promotes strength throughout the entirety of the posterior chain, ultimately providing foundational support that will result in strength gains across activities.

The best part about a plank is that it can be scaled up and down according to your current fitness and ability levels. As always, however, always seek to perform the movement properly and with correct form.

Here’s how:

Begin face down with forearms and toes supporting the body
Be sure to tuck in your chin, elbows, and pelvis, extending your legs behind you
Contract the core and hold this position

As you’ll learn, the plank will become your secret weapon when it comes to building a strong base and achieving an aesthetic abdominal region.

Hollow Rock

Comparable to the plank in that it involves an isolation hold, the hollow rock is largely an inverted plank, providing the core with similar stimulation to the standard plank. The major difference between the two, however, is the level of stability required…

With the plank, it’s a completely isolated hold. With the hollow rock, however, there’s a moving variable. The challenge of balance is what ultimately makes this ab exercise a killer.

Here’s how to properly execute the hollow rock/hold:

Begin face up while laying on your back
Engage by extending your arms behind your head and your feet away from the torso
Start to raise the torso slightly off the ground, putting your body in a V-shape.
Either hold this position with arms and legs off the ground or begin to rock for additional stability challenges.

The hollow rock/hold is arguably the most challenging of ab exercises on the list. Don’t believe us? Give it a try and you’ll quickly understand!

Superman Hold

An often ignored but effective ab workout is the Superman, noted as a fairly simple and boring exercise… For those who have tried it before, however, you know how difficult and effective it is, not only for the core but the entire posterior chain.

More of a full-body exercise than anything, the Superman stimulates muscles you never thought existed! Best of all, it requires no equipment. Here’s how to execute the perfect Superman:

Begin face down on the floor in a pronated position
With legs and arms fully extended, engage the core while keeping everything else neutral.
Once you’ve reached the position, we hold the contraction in isolation for a period of time and release it after a prescribed duration.

In addition to the standard version of The Superman, there are other variations that can be executed to further add levels of difficulty to the movement. Some of the more popular variations include “The W”, the Alternating Superman, and the Medicine Ball Superman.

Ab Rollouts

As the only exercise that involves a piece of equipment, the ab roller remains an effective and engaging ab exercise that can be done at home or anywhere else for that matter.

In any case, the roller itself is both affordable and convenient, making it worth the investment and more… Here’s how to perform the movement to perfection:

Begin from a standing position, bending down to initiate the movement, nearly touching your toes in the process.
Keeping your legs straight, roll forward.
Once you reach the bottom of the moment, roll back up to the starting position.

As you can imagine this is quite a difficult movement to achieve from the starting position. Most who perform this exercise begin on their knees instead!

Dragon Flies

Last but certainly not least, Dragon Flies simply requires the participant to begin in a fully horizontal position on the ground. Finding a sturdy surface that you can hold with both hands for stability and extending your legs, begin to lift your hips to the sky and kick your legs up in unison.

Although it’s an extremely challenging movement for some, once mastered, it can elicit tremendous results, not only for strength but balance and mobility as well.

Sample Workout

EXERCISE (INTERMEDIATE)	REPS/TIME	SETS
PLANK	1 MINUTE	3
HOLLOW ROCK	45 SECONDS	3
ROLLOUTS	15	3
DRAGON FLIES	20	3
SUPERMAN HOLD	30 SECONDS	3

Understandably, the above program is deemed an intermediate-level program. In order to adapt the program to your experience level, increase or decrease the reps, sets, and rest times accordingly.

As you can see, this particular workout is a quick one. It’s worth noting that our core musculature doesn’t require the same stimulus as the back or chest, for example…