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When you’re trying to achieve a ripped six-pack, you might think that crunches and sit-ups are the only ab exercises that you need. Anyone looking to build muscle, burn fat, or just get fitter should be doing some abdominal exercise, which means there are than just those two routine moves. Experimenting with different kinds of single-joint and multijoint movements will ensure that your body has gets all-round exercise to keep fit at its best.
If you’re wondering what to do to build a sturdy set of six-pack abs, here are five of the best ab exercises for men to ensure that your core is strengthened effectively. They are also safe for any level.
Six Great Ab Variation Exercises for Men
Abdominal exercises are popular as they lead to a well-defined midsection. They are also essential to improve flexibility at the hips, which can increase your agility.
1. Ab Rollout
The ab rollout strengthens the core by lengthening it, a technique for targeting what’s known as eccentric strength. By improving core stability and recruiting new muscle fibers, the ab rollout is a great way to engage nearly every muscle in your midsection.
How should you do it?
- Lie on your belly and grab an exercise wheel or a barbell loaded with round plates.
- Keep your hands set shoulder-width apart, extend your hips toward the floor, and let your chest sink forward toward the ground to perform a lat pulldown.
- Resist the temptation to arch your lower back too much, as this will make it hard to complete the exercise correctly.
- Squeeze your lats and pull yourself back to the starting position.
2. Weighted Plank
The plank is a classic core move that involves holding the top of a push-up position for a duration. The weighted plank is a more advanced ab variation that increases the plank's difficulty by adding more downward force to the exercise.
How should you do it?
- To do this exercise, get into a plank position with your forearms or hands on the floor.
- Make sure your back is flat and your stomach is tight.
- Have a friend place a weight plate below your shoulder blades.
- Then press down hard on your arms, hold the position, and keep doing it for as long as you can.
3. Hollow Hold
The hollow hold is another ab variation of the plank that adds challenge by making you balance on your butt, with both feet and hands off the floor. The hollow hold has you extend your arms and legs away from your center of mass, decreasing stability and requiring increased abdominal strength.
How should you do it?
- Lie on your back, extend your arms straight up, and press your legs together.
- Lift your legs and torso off the floor.
- Keep your arms and legs straight as you rock back and forth in this position, minimizing movement at the hip and shoulder joints.
4. L-Sit
The L-sit is a popular gymnastic exercise that's great for focusing on balance and strength. It forces the core to stabilize the body as it's suspended off the ground with legs out in front. Practice it, and you'll gain a stronger abs and more upper body muscle.
How should you do it?
- Lie on the floor with two dumbbells or kettlebells positioned next to your sides.
- Keeping your back straight, drive your body up so that you're in an L-sit position, with your torso upright and legs extended out in front of you.
- To make the exercise easier, tuck your legs closer to your body.
- To make the L-sit more difficult, raise your legs higher off of the ground.
- While in the L-sit, be sure to maintain tension in your upper back.
5. Sit-Up
The sit-up is a classic bodyweight ab exercise done by lifters of any experience level. It primarily targets the rectus abdominis (six-pack) and will help to grow the muscles for better definition. It's simple, straightforward, and useful.
How should you do it?
- Lie on the floor, bend your knees at 90 degree angles, and put your hands across your chest.
- Push up with your abs and lift yourself up to meet your knees.
- Hold it at the top for a second, then slowly let yourself down again. Repeat as many times as you can.
6. Hanging Knee Raise
The hanging knee raise is an easy exercise that works the abs and is excellent for beginners. It’s quite scalable, too. You can straighten your legs or hold a dumbbell between them to make it harder.
How should you do it?
- Hang from a bar with a shoulder-width or slightly wider grip, and pull your knees up to your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together.
- If you're feeling extremely adventurous, try lifting your knees to 90° before returning them to the starting position.
Takeaway
You should remember that these six ab variation exercises for men will only work if you commit yourself to doing them in the correct way, watching your movement and posture. A good fitness routine is built on a base of good core strength and stability. If you skip the fundamentals, your progress will be limited. But if you do commit yourself to a strong core workout routine, then these ab variations can provide you with plenty of variety in your training, and help you strengthen your core from multiple directions.
