5 Exercises to Get Your Abs Stronger and Leaner

You want a six-pack and a strong core, but you don't want to do crunches. What do you do?

Thankfully, there are plenty of exercises that work your abs without also working your neck muscles. In this article, we'll look at a few ways to strengthen and tone the midsection while getting rid of stubborn belly fat.

Exercises for Stronger Abs

Here's a look at five such exercises:

#1 HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

HIIT (or High Intensity Interval Training) is a great workout to include in your fitness routine.

It can help you burn fat, build muscle and get in shape fast. HIIT workouts are short and intense, usually lasting between 10-30 minutes. You can do them at home or at the gym, although they're often done outdoors, as they require more space than many other forms of exercise.

HIIT workouts focus on alternating between vigorous and moderate exercise rather than just alternating between rest periods and aerobic activity, as many people assume. This type of training helps stimulate metabolism so that more calories are burned even when you aren't working out.

#2 Plank

Planks are an effective way to strengthen the core and back muscles. They also help improve posture, increase flexibility and reduce back pain.

Moreover, they're a great way to build up endurance if you're planning on doing other exercises that require you to hold yourself in a plank position for more than 30 seconds (like push-ups).

To perform a regular plank:

Lie face down with your forearms flat on the floor beneath your shoulder joints, palms facing down.
Keep your legs extended behind you with toes on the floor or knees bent at 90 degrees.
Engage your abs; straighten your spine, and hold the position for as long as possible without losing good form.
Think about pulling the belly button towards the spine throughout the exercise. Don't let your hips sag towards the floor (or allow the lower back to round).
You can modify this exercise by placing your feet on a chair or bench instead of resting them flat on the floor if it's too difficult for your body type/habits.

#3 Russian Twist

The Russian twist targets all three layers of abdominal muscles: transversus abdominus, internal obliques, and external obliques. That makes it one of the best exercises for targeting overall core conditioning.

To do a Russian twist:

Sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat.
Lean back slightly so that you can brace your bodyweight against a wall or chair behind you.
With arms extended straight out in front of you, begin rotating from side to side.
Try to keep your upper body as still as possible; only twist from your waist area as much as is comfortable for you.

Keep progressing with this exercise by adding resistance bands around each leg. That will help train both sides of the abs equally while providing extra resistance when they're fully engaged during rotation.

You can also try holding a medicine ball in between both hands while performing the exercise. This combination will give maximum benefits for strengthening and toning up those hard-to-reach lower abdominal muscles (rectus abdominus).

#4 Hanging Leg Raise

To perform this exercise, you must use a pull-up bar. Having a strong back and stellar grip strength is an added bonus, as it will stabilize the body during the exercise and help you engage your core more efficiently.

Proceed as follows:

Once you're comfortable holding this position, begin raising and lowering your legs as if they were weights.
Aim for 10 repetitions on each side before resting.
Make sure to breathe throughout the exercise.

If that's too easy for you, try adding more repetitions or sets by increasing the difficulty level through variations such as pulsing (where one raises their legs to about waist height for several seconds before slowly lowering them back down) or lifting one heel off the mat while keeping the toes pointed upward.

#5 Ab Rollout

Ab rollouts are among the toughest ab exercises, as they fully stretch the ab muscles, unlike any other abdominal exercise.

Here's how you do it:

Get in a push-up position with your arms straight, feet on the floor, and body facing away from the anchor point of the ab wheel.
Roll the wheel forward till you feel it under your ankles.
Roll back to the starting position to complete one rep. Repeat for ten reps (or more if needed).
Use only as much weight as you can handle without compromising form.
Hold onto a dumbbell or kettlebell for extra resistance as you roll back and forth across the floor till you've completed all 10 reps. Rest 60 seconds before moving on.

Takeaway

There are a ton of options for abs workouts. If you’re looking for one that can give you results quickly and efficiently, try out the aforementioned exercises. They are all simple to do, but they can challenge your core muscles and improve balance as well.