This is a short abs set to illustrate the many benefits of working the core muscles, and showing a few variations.

You’ll notice that I’m doing all the exercises from a 45 degree incline – this is so that there is tension on the muscles the whole time.  You’ll also notice that my feet aren’t hooked under anything – this is so that I’m doing all the work from my core muscles, and not relying on my legs to help me out.  If you haven’t done much core work before, you can start with a friend sitting on your feet, or have them hooked under a sofa (your feet, not your friend….).





In this set, the first exercise you’ll see me do is a twist.  You’ll notice that my legs are pretty stretched out – this puts more tension on the core muscles and makes it harder 🙂 The twists will target the obliques – if you’re not used to doing these, make sure you don’t sit up too far – make sure you’re tilted as far back as you can while keeping control.

Next, I’m doing leg extensions – you can do these fast or slow:  fast will really get your heart-rate up; slow will really make your upper and lower core muscles work.  Keep your feet and legs fairly low throughout this, and you’ll really feel the benefit.

Lastly, arm raises above the head will target the deep core muscles – really important for pretty much all the exercises you’ll do!  These are difficult, and you might find yourself sitting up a little – try to keep at 45 degrees and really extend your arms to get the full benefit of the movement.

Now, it’s no good having fabulously ripped abs if no-one can see them, which means that it’s important to incorporate a cardio element into your workouts.

Don’t forget, it’s not necessary to be brilliant at these, or any exercises, from the first minute that you do them – it’s more important that you make a start doing what you CAN do and not giving up 🙂