The Best Abs Exercises

Top Exercises

Seated Leg Raise

Beginner / Bodyweight-only / Abs / isolation

An isolation exercise for the lower abs and hip flexors. It builds the strength needed for more advanced hanging leg raises.

Lever Seated Leg Raise Crunch

Intermediate / Leverage Machine / Abs / core

A compound core movement that targets both the upper and lower abdominals simultaneously by combining a leg raise with a torso crunch.

Captains Chair Straight Leg Raise

Intermediate / Captain's Chair / Abs / core

A high-intensity abdominal exercise targeting the lower rectus abdominis and hip flexors. It requires significant core stability to prevent swinging.

Ball Sit-Up

Beginner / Stability (Swiss) Ball / Abs / core

An effective core exercise performed on a Swiss ball to increase the range of motion. It targets the rectus abdominis while engaging deep stabilizers for balance.

Alternate Heel Touchers

Beginner / Bodyweight-only / Abs / isolation

A targeted core exercise for the obliques. The repetitive lateral flexion builds side-waist strength and improves spinal mobility.

Weighted Crunch

Intermediate / Dumbbells / Abs / core

A resistance-based abdominal exercise designed to build muscle thickness. Adding weight forces the rectus abdominis to work harder against gravity for maximum hypertrophy.

Tuck Crunch

Beginner / Bodyweight-only / Abs / core

Targets the upper and lower abdominals. The simultaneous movement of the torso and knees maximizes the contraction of the rectus abdominis.

Decline Crunch

Intermediate / Ab Bench / Abs / core

Increases the challenge to the abdominals by using a decline bench. The increased range of motion forces the core to work harder against gravity.

Cable Kneeling Crunch

Intermediate / Cable Machine with Rope Attachment / Abs / core

A high-tension abdominal exercise. Kneeling allows for a greater range of motion and the ability to add significant resistance to the rectus abdominis.

Cable Hanging Leg Raise

Intermediate / Cable Crossover Machine / Abs / core

An advanced core exercise. Attaching cables to the feet adds resistance to the hip flexors and lower abdominals during the hanging lift.

Band Overhead Side Bend

Intermediate / Handle Bands / Abs / isolation

Targets the obliques and improves lateral spinal mobility. Holding the band overhead increases the challenge to the core stabilizers.

Decline Leg Hip Raise

Intermediate / Ab Bench / Abs / core

An advanced abdominal exercise targeting the lower rectus abdominis. The decline angle increases gravity's resistance throughout the leg lift and hip pop.