So, you’re in the market for a six-pack? Well, I hate to break it to you but they don’t come cheap. They’re in demand and hard to find but you’ve come to the right place.
Before you start hunting, you need to know what to look for. Doing 100 crunches each day won’t get you there. In fact, it takes more than abdominal exercises to tighten and tone your stomach, so if you hate sit-ups, you’re in luck.
First things first, you need to assess your diet—you won’t get visible abs if there’s a layer keeping them hidden. Next, you need to focus on workouts that will get your heart rate up as well as strengthen your core. Exercises such as high knees and mountain climbers are all great for this. So are workouts like barre and Pilates. As barre focuses on posture, good core muscles are essential. It’s required for just about every move they do. But there’s more to a strong core than chiselled abs. In fact, there’s more to your ‘core’ than you might think. A long with the abdominals, it also includes the pelvic floor, the lower back stabilisers, the diaphragm and the gluteals and it’s vital for good alignment, movement and balance. Heck, it’s what enables us to stand. So if you’re after a six-pack—which won’t necessarily make you happy—a more noble goal would be a strong core.
Someone who knows this all too well is Emma Seibold. As the founder of Barre Body, who works out for a living, she has a seriously strong core. So we asked for some tips. Below, she shares some of her favourite ab exercises—or as she likes to call them, her “fun and fancy core moves”—that are anything but ordinary. While this workout doesn’t include sit-ups, it can be done on the floor and at home (lazy girl wins).
Want more from Emma Seibold? Try her calorie-burning glutes workout and lower body burn.
Hate Sit-ups? Try This 5-Minute Abs Workout For A Toned Tum
