The best core workouts strengthen this mid-body muscle, helping improve your posture, reduce the risk of injury, and develop the connection between your upper and lower body.
Your core refers to the central part of your body, and it plays a vital role in helping you go about your day-to-day. Be it getting up out of bed, sitting properly at your desk, or picking up a pair of dumbbells. It’s composed of multiple muscles that work hard behind the scenes to support and stabilize your body.
Functional benefits aside, many people roll out a yoga mat and crunch, sit-up, or plank their way to a more toned stomach. But remember: no amount of Russian twists alone will help you gain a six-pack, as you'll need to pair core workouts with high-intensity training and a balanced diet.
But to help you develop mid-body muscle, we've consulted personal trainers and compiled an expert-backed guide on the best core workouts you can do at home or the gym, with no equipment required.
To help you reap these rewards, Martin Sharp, personal trainer, multi-award-winning fitness & lifestyle coach, and founder of Sharp Fit For Life, has shared a core workout, complete with three sets.
Although you can program these exercises however you wish, even adding them into your existing routine, Sharp suggests aiming to complete 10 reps in the first set, 12 reps in the second, and continue to perform reps until failure in the third set.
“Remember that your mind gives in a lot sooner than your body does,” Sharp adds. “So push yourself.” Try to breathe through each exercise and focus on your form. And, as is the case with all exercise, if it causes pain, stop and seek professional guidance.
Muscle targeted: Obliques
Synergistic muscles: Iliopsoas
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Muscle targeted: Rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Obliques
How:
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Muscle targeted: Rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Gluteus maximus, quadriceps
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Muscles targeted: Iliopsoas, rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Gluteus maximus, obliques, quadriceps
How:
Tips:
Muscles targeted: Iliopsoas, rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Gluteus maximus, obliques, quadriceps
How:
Tips:
Muscle targeted: Rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Deltoid anterior, gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, obliques, sartorius, tensor fasciae Latae
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Muscle targeted: Rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Gluteus maximus, iliopsoas, quadriceps, sartorius, tensor fasciae latae
How:
Tips:
Muscles targeted: Iliopsoas, rectus abdominis
Synergistic muscles: Gluteus maximus, obliques, quadriceps
How:
Tips:
Whether you prefer bodyweight core exercises or weighted alternatives, the benefits of training your core trickle into most aspects of everyday life. Doing so can improve pulmonary function (how well your lungs work) and even promote better functional movement (the kind of daily moves you make without thinking).
“A strong core helps support the spine and pelvis, promoting better alignment and reducing the risk of poor posture-related issues such as back pain and rounded shoulders,” certified personal trainer Amanda Place, founder of Sculptrition, explains.
“Core strengthening exercises can also help alleviate and prevent lower back pain by providing support to the spine and improving spinal alignment and stability.”
So, along with your pelvic floor muscles and diaphragm, your major trunk muscles include your rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, internal & external obliques, erector spinae, multifidus, and quadratus lumborum. Therefore, the top core exercises tend to target one (or more) of these muscles.
According to the Orthopedic Online Research Journal, carving out a stronger mid-region can also help enhance stability and balance which, research published in the Physical Therapy of Sport journal concluded, can lessen the risk of lower-body injury.
Plus, whether you’re training to become an athlete or not, one research paper published in the Behavioral Sciences journal found that core training can have a ‘large effect’ on general athletic performance.
Better yet, you don’t need to sweat it out for hours on your mat all day, every day to see and feel the rewards. According to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, you should aim for two strength-training sessions (like core workouts) a week.