Abdominal Targeting Exercises

No matter whether you’re gunning for that elusive eight-pack or just want to bolster your core, it’s likely lower ab workouts are the missing link in your training arsenal. Though just one muscle – the rectus abdominis – runs down your abdomen, most abs movements primarily activate the ‘upper’ section, making your otherwise impressive rig a little top-heavy in terms of strength.

Not only are lower abs tricky to target, they’re even harder to show off. Your body is predisposed to storing excess fat in that area – from an evolutionary standpoint, belly fat is part of your body’s energy stockpiling system – so making those muscles pop takes serious dedication (and mostly comes down to your diet). However, there’s more than a washboard stomach at stake.

Your body may be a temple, but it’s also pretty lazy when left to its own devices. If part of your core is weak, other body parts will be recruited to burden the load, not just in the gym but during everyday activities like sitting at your desk or driving. If your lower abs are lacking, ultimately your back and hips will pay the price.

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“Due to our modern lifestyle, a large percentage of the population suffer from an anterior pelvic tilt; where your pelvis is rotated forward, forcing your spine to curve, ” explains Tom Donaldson, head coach at Orangetheory Fitness Wandsworth. Strengthening your core helps bring your pelvis back into a neutral position, he says, improving your posture in the process. This is important since dynamic posture, which is how you hold yourself as you move, has a direct impact on your athletic performance.

“In order to generate the maximum amount of power with the upper and lower body, the pelvis and spine needs to be stable, ” Donaldson continues. “This stability is achieved when the core muscles and glutes are strong and highly functioning. This is particularly important for anyone who plays sports and will allow athletes to lift heavier weights, run at a faster speed and change direction quicker.”

Now you’re on board with lower ab workouts, seven gut-strengthening moves await you below. To get the most out of each exercise, breathe in during the ‘eccentric’ part of the exercise – the lowering phase – and breathe out during the ‘concentric’ part (as you return to neutral), suggests Emily Juniper, trainer at F45 Central London, which spans London Bridge, Leadenhall Market and Cannon Street studios.

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Brace your core, lift your shoulders off the floor and reach down to touch your right heel with your right hand, then your left heel with your other hand. That's one rep.

Top Tip: This exercise predominantly targets the lower abs, obliques and hip flexors, Juniper explains, and can be made harder or easier by adjusting the distance between your heels and glutes. Don’t worry about speed, by the way. Controlling the movement is way more effective than looking like wacky waving inflatable arm-flailing tube man.

Set up on the floor as though in a sprinter's blocks, with one foot positioned beneath your waist and one back, with your leg straight.

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Shoulders should be stacked in line with your hands placed on the floor and your body should maintain a neutral plank position throughout. Swap foot positions.

Top Tip: To really double down on your lower abs, make the movement slow and controlled, suggests Donaldson. “Imagine you have a glass of water balanced on your lower back to keep your hips and spine as still and level as possible throughout the movement.”

Lie on your left side with your knees straight and prop your upper body up to take its weight on your forearm.

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Brace your core and raise your hips until your body forms a straight line. Hold this position while breathing deeply. Then roll over and repeat on the other side.

Top Tip: “A side plank doesn’t just target the transverse abdominal muscles and obliques – it’s also great for the glutes, quads and hamstrings, ” says Juniper. Challenge yourself by raising your upper leg or arm.

Bend your knees and bring them towards your chest by contracting your abs. As they rise, roll your pelvis to lift your hips off the floor.

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Top Tip: This exercise really challenges your rectus abdominis, says Juniper. Want to set your six-pack on fire? Incorporate resistance bands or a cable machine.

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Put your right hand behind your head, elbow flared out, and your left palm down perpendicular to your torso.

Contract your abs to lift your shoulders off the floor and rotate your body to bring your right elbow towards your left knee. Slowly lower and repeat all your reps before swapping sides.

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Top Tip: “This exercise is great for strengthening your obliques and surrounding core muscles, ” says Juniper. “To make it harder, lift your legs a few centimetres off the ground for the duration of the movement before switching sides.”

Lie back on the bench with your legs extended in front of you off the end. Use your hands to grip the bench and steady yourself.

Keeping your legs straight as possible, exhale and raise them until they make a 90-degree angle with the floor. Slowly lower to the starting position.

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Top Tip: Feel your back arching? “To take the strain off your lower back slightly while still working your lower abs, go one leg at a time, keeping the other at a 90-degree angle, ” says Donaldson. To add more resistance, “lift your glutes off the floor at the top of the motion each time or hold a Swiss ball between your ankles, ” adds Juniper.

Grab a medicine ball and lie down on your back holding the ball over your head. Your arms and legs should be outstretched with your hands and feet lifted just above the floor.

Begin the exercise by simultaneously raising your torso and legs up to touch the medicine ball to your feet. Then slowly lower back towards the floor. That's one rep.

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Top Tip: “I love this exercise because you can feel the burn straight away, ” says Juniper. “It works nearly 12 muscles in the body mainly targeting the rectus abdominis.” For an extra push, try to keep your feet off the ground between reps, she adds.

“TRX straps are brilliant for working your core, as well as being easily adaptable for any experience or skill level, ” says Donaldson. To perform the move, “stand upright, with your shoulders relaxed, belly button sucked in and glutes squeezed, holding TRX straps in front of you at arm’s length and shoulder height, ” he says. “Slowly lean forward, lifting your arms up so that your body is in line. Ensure your abs are braced the whole time. Then lower your arms down to reset.” The more acute the angle between your body and the floor, the more challenging the move.

For this move, be sure to keep your abs braced and maintain constant tension throughout, Donaldson says, so you don’t strain your lower back. “Start by lying on your back on the floor, pick up your feet up and bend your knees to a 90 degree angle, ” he explains. “Extend your arms directly in front of shoulders, suck your belly button into your spine, brace your core and slowly drop one leg and the opposite arm to the floor. Return to the start position and repeat with the opposite arm and leg.”

Exercises That Target Upper & Lower Abs

You now know the moves, now it's time to put them together to form a workout. Luckily, we've written one or two articles on ab workouts over the years. Here's five of our favourites.Take an informal poll at the gym about which body part is hardest to target, and you’ll probably get some strange looks. But you’ll also likely hear “lower abs” more than anything else.

So if you feel like all those crunches aren’t showing dividends at the lowest portion of your abdominals, you’re not alone. Below, we’ll explain why and recommend a few trainer-approved exercises that will get the job done.

“There are four primary muscle groups in your core but only two main muscle groups in the abs: the rectus abdominis and transverse abdominis, ” says Trainer Kenta Seki.

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He explains that the rectus abdominis is the top layer of the abs, so it is the most visible and generally the easiest to target.

The transverse abdominis, on the other hand, makes up the underlying abdominal muscles. According to Seki, it “connects to a deeper part of the pelvis, so it takes more focus to engage.”

Having a flat stomach is not the same as having a strong core. The former may look good, but the latter is central to health and mobility. “Your core is literally the center of your body, and it helps with many types of functions, including breathing, digestion, bone/joint stabilization, and, of course, movement, ” Seki says. “Having a strong core can help many of these functions.”

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Maintaining strong lower abs, in particular, can also help your lower back. Seki notes that many people suffer from lower back pain caused by an anterior pelvic