A new year means new goals and taking care of the things you have been meaning to change for the better. Taking care of yourself should become one of your priorities, specifically developing a healthier lifestyle and a loving body image. This year, make it one of your goals to work on getting the lower abs you’ve always dreamed of. Yes, it’s going to take time and persistence, but there are many exercises that flatten and tighten the muscles in your belly area. Here are the best moves to target your core!
The mountain climber exercise is one of the best low ab exercises you can do to target your core! Start off doing a high plank on a yoga mat or other clean surface. You’ll want to mimic the movements as if you are climbing a mountain, moving your knees as far up into your chest one at a time while the other foot stays down. You can start off slow and gradually move faster, making sure to focus on your lower ab muscles. A set of 20-30 repetitions during your normal work out is a good way to incorporate this exercise into your routine!
The bicycle crunch targets your core in a similar way that the mountain climbing exercise does. You should lay flat on your back and place your hands behind your head as though you are about to do a typical sit up. But instead of sitting straight up, you’ll want to bring one knee up and have the opposite elbow touch that knee while keeping your other leg outstretched. So your right knee should touch your left shoulder and vice versa as you curl upwards. Having opposite limbs meet ensures that your core is involved throughout this exercise and you will definitely begin to feel a burn in your midsection so make sure to start slow! You can also use a resistance band for this exercise too!
For this lower ab exercise, you’ll want to start by lying face up again. This move consists of you bringing one leg up slowly and grabbing a hold of it for a few seconds, then letting go and drawing in the other leg and so on. You’ll want to do this at a consistent pace but never letting your free leg rest on the ground and keeping your head lifted slightly. This exercise is fairly simple but targets your core nonetheless!
The leg lift is a much easier alternative to try if you hate doing curl-ups but still want to target your lower abs the same way. Lying faceup on your mat, you’ll want to keep both your legs straight and both arms at your side. Your head can actually rest on the mat for this exercise, the trick is to lift both legs into the air together while trying to keep the rest of your body flat on the mat. Slowly bring them back down and bring up again. Do as many repetitions as you feel comfortable with!
If you hate using the treadmill on the gym but are not much of a jogger, this lower ab exercise is a good one to try that will get your heart pumping and also target your core! This exercise looks much like your jogging in place, but with a little more added force. Start jogging but with your knees going as high up towards your chest as possible with each alternating turn. Your arms will also be involved as they will swing up as your knees rise. Get the best results for your lower abs by doing this at a quick pace!
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