Standing Ab Workout: 4 Core Exercises You Want to Add to Your Routine

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Standing Ab Workout: 4 Core Exercises You Want to Add to Your Routine! Basic moves that lead to incredible results! 

Although the effects of gravity and the weight of your trunk make lying or seated core exercises a bit more challenging let’s not push standing core exercises to the side! Especially with some added weight, these are no joke! They are also an excellent option for those that are experiencing back pain or any other discomfort during more traditional core exercises. 

Prone exercises like sit-ups and crunches have a place in any core routine, but they primarily work the superficial abdominal muscles that lie just below the skin. Standing core exercises, on the other hand, strengthen the deep core muscles and those hard-to-target obliques that keep you stable. 

That’s why I put together this series of four standing ab exercises. They’ll not only breathe new life into your usual core routine, but they’ll also build better functional strength to support your training.  

When performing standing ab exercises, be sure to engage your core: draw your belly button in toward spine and close your ribs. You should feel like you’re bracing your midsection as you do when you laugh. This will help keep the work in your abdominals instead of in your hip flexors or arms. 

You will need:

All you need is a dumbbell and your own body weight!

The dumbbell weight should be challenging but not so heavy that you begin to feel the burn in your shoulders or arms instead of your abs for these moves. 

Standing Ab Workout Details:

Standing oblique crunch 

Standing crunches 

Standing diagonal chop 

Standing knee to elbow lunge 

Complete 10 reps (each side) of each exercise for 3-4 sets 

30 seconds rest in between exercises 

Instructional Videos for At-Home Exercises:

Standing Oblique Crunches

Standing Crunches

Standing Diagonal Chops

Standing Knee to Elbow Lunges

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