6 Core Exercises To Give You Shredded Abs

Well-defined abs are sought after by gym-goers far and wide.
Having a rigorous and varied ab routine in your workout is crucial as core muscles are engaged across a number of exercises that target other body parts. The good news is there’s no shortage of movements to help build up your stomach muscles.

Here, Built for Athletes takes a look at six that will give you ripped abs.

Bicycle Crunches
Lie on the floor with your hands on your temples and legs slightly raised. Bring your right knee up to touch your left elbow and then repeat with the other arm and leg. Do this continuously for time or repetitions.

V-Sit
Lie on the floor with your legs slightly raised and hands extended by your sides, just off the floor. Raise your knees and torso so that your body tucks into a V position, keeping your arms straight, before returning to the starting position in a controlled fashion. Repeat for the prescribed number of reps.

Jackknifes
Lie on the floor with your legs slightly raised and arms extended above your head. Bring your toes and arms powerfully up to meet each other and then slowly return to the starting position, taking care not to let your feet touch the floor. To advance the exercise, touch one foot to the opposite hand and use alternate arms and legs on each rep.

Ab Rollout
Kneel on a mat with a barbell in front of you and grasp the bar. Now slowly roll the bar forwards, keeping your core muscles tight and your back straight, until you are as low as you can go. Take a second’s pause and then slowly roll back up to the starting position.

Hanging Knee Raise
Hang from a bar with your hands a comfortable width apart. Raise your knees up towards your chest before slowly lowering back to starting position, taking care not to swing as you do so.

Hanging Leg Raise
The slightly more advanced version of the knee raise. Hang from a bar again, but this time bring your legs up straight, without a bend at the knee, to a 90-degree angle. Then lower your legs back with control.