Train Like an Athlete by ATHLEAN-X (Video Podcast)

It is not only possible to get a gut busting ab workout without crunches but it is necessary. In this video, I’m going to show you 6 ab exercises that will fire up your core in ways you never imagined by training your abs like an athlete. In order to effectively hit your abs you need to stop focusing on the ability of your abdominals to simply flex your spine and more on their ability to prevent motion as well.

Here, I’m taking WWE superstars Sheamus and Cesaro through an intense series of six ab exercises that will challenge the muscles ability to prevent rotation, produce power rotation and prevent over extension of the spine. No crunches, no planks and no basic ab exercises are performed in this workout.

The first ab exercise we cover is the leg lift performed in the captains’ chair. The key to this move is that we are able to support our upper body through our forearms rather than our shoulders while hanging from a bar. Particularly for those that have shoulder issues like a torn labrum, being able to take the hang out of the move without sacrificing the effectiveness of the movement on the abs is key.

Next we perform a rotational variation on this exercise called the gymnast abs. Here instead of curling your lower pelvis up towards your shoulders you lift your hips into a posterior tilt. This is incredibly challenging and takes advantage of relative motion to produce an insanely effective exercise for your abs workouts.

We move onto the battle ropes. People often think of battle rope workouts as something you do for conditioning or to burn fat. That doesn’t have to be their limits however. The battle ropes present a great way to train your core and obliques with alternating rotational slams. Even better, you should change the posture from which you perform the exercise to make this an even more difficult ab movement. Start by kneeling and slamming the ropes side to side and progress to a sitting position. When you gain the ability to, alternate between sitting and kneeling positions throughout the set.

Next we control rotation of the trunk with an oblique and rectus abdominis movement that is easy to perform but tough if you crank up the resistance of the band you use to perform it. The goal is to keep your arms out straight and directly in front of your chest. Step out to one side, increasing the resistance on the band and the amount of work the abs have to do to prevent your body from twisting. When you get strong enough abs, you can jump out to position which will provide a more dynamically challenging movement to have to control.

Finally, the plank punch out is a much more difficult variation of the common plank. Planks alone are often not enough to help you to develop a good looking, strong set of abs. Instead, you need to ramp up the difficulty level by decreasing your base of support and including things like a band and three points of contact to make the abs work much harder. You will see the instant difference the second you try these.

If you are looking to train your abs like an athlete for a full 90 days and get an impressively ripped six pack, head to the link below and choose the ATHLEAN-X program best suited to your goals.

For more ab workouts and ab exercises to help you get a chiseled midsection, be sure to subscribe to our channel here on youtube and turn on notifications so you never miss a new video as it is posted.

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