BEST LOWER AB WORKOUT?
First and foremost, before we even begin this conversation, let me clear up a common misconception.
The rectus abdominis is a single muscle group, and it’s not possible to isolate the lower abs from the rest of the abs.
But, you CAN influence the contribution of different fibers to a contraction, by working in the direction of movement of the area you’re looking to emphasize.
With this in mind I’ve built an ab workout featuring all “lower ab” movements.
This lower ab workout will cover the major functions of the lower abs by including bottom-up movements, which are some of the best for influencing lower ab muscle fiber recruitment. It will also include rotational movements which train the core as it’s meant to be trained.
Clocking in at only 6 minutes, this routine proves that an ab workout does not have to be long to be effective! Short, intense daily ab workouts will create the results you’re looking for, because you can make them short enough to make it easier to train the abs consistently.
Let me show you these challenging lower ab exercises and introduce you to a powerful new tool for your ab training.
USING 6 PACK SHUFFLE FOR UNLIMITED AB WORKOUTS
To generate this lower abs workout, I’m going to be using the 6 Pack Shuffle feature that comes with all of our ATHLEAN-X programs.
6 Pack Shuffle allows you to choose a region of the abs to emphasize, so we’re going to choose the lower abs.
We’re going to choose the ‘no equipment’ option and choose level 2, and it will deal up a 6 minute lower ab workout for us.
Now you might not need any equipment for this, but you WILL need a heavy dose of determination to try and resist the burn of these exercises as you do them.
Remember, the pain from ab training is usually only temporary. As soon as you finish the exercise and the lactic acid starts to clear the abdominal muscles, you’ll feel normal again.
See if you can follow the entire lower ab workout along with me, resting when I do.
If you need extra rest, don’t be ashamed – take it. Maybe you can only do 45 seconds of one of the 60 second exercises. That’s ok, do what you can and rest for the remainder of that exercise. As you get stronger on these you will be able to do the whole thing without extra rest.
6 MINUTE LOWER AB WORKOUT
Here’s the lower ab workout the 6 Pack Shuffle feature has delivered for us for today. Remember, Shuffle can deal up a large variety of options for you depending on your requirements, so your ab workout can be different every single day.
1. Figure 8’s for 30 seconds
Exercise Notes: As you make your 8, every time you come up to the top, lift your pelvis off the ground to clear your tailbone.
2. Hands Back Raises for 60 seconds
Exercise Notes: Lift and crunch yourself toward your legs. Try not to lift with your legs or use your hip flexors for this move and all the exercises in this workout. Believe it or not, my abs are already burning at this point, so if yours are too, that’s normal.
3. Twisted Pistons for 60 seconds
Exercise Notes: We want this to be explosive. Rotate in and rotate out. If you have to rest, drop to your knees and resume as quickly as possible.
30 SECONDS REST
4. Seated Ab Circles for 60 seconds (Clockwise)
Exercise Notes: You can see me beginning to get tired. Check in with yourself to make sure your abs, and not your hip flexors, are doing the work.
5. Seated Ab Circles for 60 seconds (Counterclockwise)
Exercise Notes: Really dig in here as you start to tire out. If necessary, close your eyes and go to your happy place.
6. Scissor V Up’s for 30 seconds
Exercise Notes: At this point, it’s getting harder to lift up, but you have to just keep pushing. Remember, if you need to take a brief rest, do so and then continue.
7. “21” Crunch for 30 seconds
Exercise Notes: In your final 30 seconds, just push as hard as you can. I know your low abs are on fire!
Why did this lower abs workout feel so difficult? Our low abs tend to be a little bit weaker, and by virtue of having to lift the weight of our legs, lower abs exercises are technically weighted exercises. Our top down movements are far less weighted and don’t have as much resistance.
Even if you had to stop and rest a few times along the way, you can use that as a measure of progress. Keep working on this routine until you don’t have to stop for rest at all.
I have given you a complete no equipment lower ab workout you can do at home that will get you started on getting that six pack you’ve always wanted. I recommend brief daily ab workouts just like these to help you get the best results. If you’re looking for this exact 6 Pack Shuffle tool, we include it in all of our ATHLEAN-X programs.
- The rectus abdominis is a single muscle group and it’s technically not possible to isolate the “lower abs,” but you can make exercise choices to preferentially activate this area of the abs.
- The best types of movements for emphasizing lower abs are bottom up and rotational based ab exercises.
- We’ve used the 6 Pack Shuffle feature included with all of our ATHLEAN-X programs to deal up a lower abs workout that is only 6 minutes long but extremely effective.
- Ab workouts with a lower abs emphasis are typically more difficult than other types of ab workouts because the low abs tend to be weaker, and we are hitting them with weight as we move our legs toward our core.
If you want to get not only a six pack, but a complete ripped athletic physique, you need a plan to help you get there. Our ATHLEAN-X Training Programs include all the workouts you need to make it happen, and a meal plan to help you make sure your diet plan is adequate to help you reach your goals.
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