34 Core Exercises Top Trainers Swear By
Although you may think of your “core” only when you’re doing specific abs moves, you actually use these muscles all day, every day—which is why core exercises are so important. Whether you’re walking, reaching, balancing, getting up from a chair, or simply just standing upright, the muscles of your midsection are firing to keep you stable and supported in nearly every movement.
“People usually think of abs when referring to the core, but our core is actually made up of a much more complex network of muscles found in the trunk of our body,” certified personal trainer Brian Abarca, CPT, owner of Abarca Fitness in New Jersey, tells SELF.
These include the rectus abdominis (along the front of your abdomen, likely what you think of when you think "abs"), transverse abdominis (around your sides and spine), erector spinae (in your lower back), pelvic floor muscles, and the internal and external obliques (along the sides of your abdomen). Abarca says even your rotator cuffs, lats, traps, and pectoral muscles can be involved in core work.
If you engage your abs when you’re lifting—bracing your core muscles to keep you more stable and allow you to resist rotating or arching—any exercise can become an abs exercise. Plus, some workout routines with moves you may not think of as “core exercises” really smoke those muscles too, especially ones in which you’re hefting weight over your head, like with overhead presses, holding weight in front of your, as with goblet squats, or challenging your balance, à la single-leg deadlifts.
But because of how much you use your abs in everyday life and during your workouts, it’s worth showing them some extra love with some specific core exercises, Abarca says. Not only can that help with injury prevention (including back pain!), but it can also improve your range of motion, boost strength, and maintain mobility.
Below, check out 34 great core moves that top trainers swear by. Sprinkle a few of these throughout your next full-body workout, or string together a few for a straightforward core sequence.
Katie Thompson1Forearm Plank
“You can do a forearm plank anywhere! It’s an isometric exercise—meaning, you get into a position and hold it—that engages your entire body, especially your spine, shoulder girdle, back, and legs. The plank is challenging for any fitness level because you always have gravity to push against in order to stay afloat and maintain stability throughout your core and body. —Meggan Berg, certified personal trainer and studio leader at Life Time
How to do it:
- Rest your forearms on the floor, with your elbows directly underneath your shoulders and hands facing forward so that your arms are parallel.
- Extend your legs out behind you and rest your toes on the floor. Your body should form one straight line from your shoulders to your heels.
- Squeeze your entire core, glutes, and quads, and tuck your butt under a little to keep your lower back straight. Make sure you are not dropping your hips or hiking your butt up high toward the ceiling.
- Position your head so that your neck is in a neutral position and your gaze is on your hands.
- Hold this position.
Katie Thompson2Russian Twist
“Russian twists are a great move to engage your obliques and warm up your spine.” —Aly Christofferson, NASM-certified personal trainer at CrossTown Fitness in Chicago
How to do it:
- Sit with your knees bent out in front of you, feet flexed, and heels on the floor.
- Hold your hands to your chest and lean your torso back until you feel your abdominal muscles engage. For an extra challenge, add a dumbbell (as pictured).
- Slowly twist your torso from right to left. Remember to keep your core tight (and breathe!) throughout. This is 1 rep.
3Butterfly Sit-Up
“Putting your legs in the butterfly position eliminates the option to use your hip flexors, basically forcing good form. It’s also easily modifiable in both directions—to make easier or harder—so it’s perfect for group training sessions. It’s my go-to abs exercise to add to any client’s routine.” —Charlee Atkins, CSCS, creator of Le Sweat
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with the soles of your feet together, knees bent out to sides. Reach your arms overhead. This is starting position.
- Using your core, roll your body up until you are sitting upright. Reach forward to touch your toes. That's 1 rep.
- Slowly lower back down to starting position and continue immediately into the next rep.
4Dead Bug
“There’s nothing quite like a dead bug when it comes to sparking that mind-muscle connection, which is key when building strength and stability in the various core muscles. I often program the dead bug into the beginning of my client’s workouts, since I want them to hone the practice of feeling their core at work, especially as we move into more full-body strength exercises. What’s great about this exercise—which targets the transverse abdominis and spinal erectors—is that it also trains core stability, which is vital for everyday life, not just general strength training.” —Ellen Thompson, CPT, area personal training manager with Blink Fitness
“The dead bug is an anti-extension move, which means your goal is to engage your core to resist extending your lumbar spine. It teaches great technique and posture for squats and deadlifts.” —Keith Hodges, CPT, corrective exercise specialist, performance coach, and founder of Mind in Muscle in Los Angeles
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms extended toward the ceiling and your legs in a tabletop position (knees bent 90 degrees and stacked over your hips). This is starting position.
- Slowly extend your right leg straight, while simultaneously dropping your left arm overhead. Keep both a few inches from the floor. Squeeze your butt and keep your core engaged the entire time, lower back pressed into the floor.
- Bring your arm and leg back to the starting position.
- Repeat on the other side, extending your left leg and your right arm.
5Half-Kneeling Wood Chop
“I love the wood chop because it requires you to work in the transverse, or rotational, plane, which many people don’t train in. It is incredibly functional as well, and works your obliques, transverse abdominals, lats, shoulders, and more.” —Alex Silver-Fagan, Nike master trainer, certified yoga instructor, and certified functional strength coach
How to do it:
- Start on your knees, and then step one leg a few feet in front of the other, foot flat on the floor and knee bent at 90 degrees. Hold a light-to-medium dumbbell by the knee that's on the floor. Grasp onto both ends of the weight. This is starting position.
- Bring the weight diagonally up toward the ceiling on the opposite side of your body, twisting your abs as you do. Keep your hips facing forward—only your core muscles should be rotating.
- Bring the weight back down to starting position.
- Do all your reps on one side, and then repeat on the other side.
6High Boat to Low Boat
“This exercise strengthens the hip flexors, erector spinae, and the rectus abdominis. It’s always a challenge, and that’s what keeps me interested and engaged.” —Bethany Lyons, RYT-500 yoga instructor and cofounder of Lyons Den Power Yoga
How to do it:
- Sit up straight with your legs bent, feet flat on the floor.
- Keeping your legs together, slowly lift them off the floor until they form a 45-degree angle to your torso. Engage your entire core, keep your back flat, and balance on your tailbone.
- You can keep your knees bent (as pictured) or straighten them out for more of a challenge.
- Reach your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to the floor. If you feel that you need some extra support, place your hands on the floor, underneath your hips.
- This is High Boat. Hold here for three deep breaths.
- Then lower your legs, straightening them out, while also lowering your upper body. Both your shoulder blades and legs should hover a few inches off the floor. If that is too challenging, keep them slightly higher off the floor and work toward bringing them lower and lower.
- This is Low Boat. Hold for one breath, and then lift your legs and torso back to High Boat.
Katie Thompson7Forearm Plank Rock
“With this movement, you increase awareness of your body and the specific muscles, improve your core stability, and increase your core strength. This plank variation is certainly tougher than a static plank, and is a great way to start your core conditioning. I appreciate how this exercise really emphasizes your core’s connection to your shoulders.” —Abarca
How to do it:
- Start in a forearm plank with your forearms on the floor, elbows directly underneath your shoulders, hands facing forward so that your arms are parallel, and legs extended behind you. Tuck your tailbone and engage your core, butt, and quads.
- Rock your entire body forward a couple inches so your shoulders go past your elbows toward your hands.
- Rock back a couple inches. That's 1 rep.
- Make sure to keep your core, butt, and quads engaged the entire time.
8Side Bend
“This exercise activates your deep core muscles and the obliques. The bonus with this one is you also work your arms and back. This is an exercise that can be done in a hotel room, in your bedroom, pretty much anywhere, and you'll feel an instant burn.” —Andrea Speir, Pilates expert and owner of Speir Pilates
How to do it:
- Start in a side plank with your right hand on the floor, directly underneath your right shoulder, and your feet staggered so the left is right in front of the right (as shown). You can also stack your left foot on top of your right.
- Engage your core and your butt. Let your left arm relax by your left side.
- Dip your hips down toward the floor and then lift them back up. This is 1 rep.
- Do all your reps on one side, and then repeat on the other side.
Katie Thompson9Staggered Stance Resistance Band Row
“Many core exercises are performed on the floor, but it’s also important to condition those muscles when standing, since that’s how we use them the most throughout the day. This move teaches you to maintain stability while engaging the core.” —Rocky Snyder, CSCS, Rocky’s Fitness Center in Santa Cruz, California
How to do it:
- Stand with your left foot ahead of your right so you are in a staggered stance. Widen your stance to make this position feel easier.
- Loop your resistance band under your left foot, and hold one end of the resistance band in each hand.
- Bend your left knee slightly and hinge forward at the hip so your core is engaged and your back is straight. With your arms fully extended down toward your left foot, the band should have light tension. That's your starting position.
- Do a row, pulling your hands toward your torso and keeping your elbows, forearms, and hands in line with your rib cage.
- Extend your arms to return to your starting position to complete the rep.
- Do all of your reps on one side, then switch so the other foot is staggered forward.
10Jackknife
“This is my go-to core exercise because it’s a complete core exercise, meaning you have to utilize all of your core muscle groups to do it and stay stabilized throughout.” —Juan Hidalgo, certified trainer and group fitness instructor in Los Angeles
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms extended overhead on the floor, keeping them close to your ears. Contract your abs to press your low back into floor. This is starting position.
- Point your toes, squeeze your thighs together, squeeze your glutes, and simultaneously lift your legs and upper back off the floor, reaching your hands forward to meet your feet so that your body forms a V.
- Keep your core engaged as you slowly lower to return to starting position.
11Hollow Hold to Jackknife
“I love to combine these two exercises into one killer core workout. This is an advanced move, and I recommend cutting the reps if you start feeling pain in your back or hip flexors. I love this because it works, is challenging, can be done anywhere, and can be modified—by keeping your knees bent to 90 degrees—if needed. For more advanced options, you can add a weight!” —Astrid Swan, celebrity trainer in Los Angeles
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms straight over your head, keeping them close to your ears.
- Contract your abs to press your low back into the floor.
- Point your toes, squeeze your thighs together, squeeze your glutes, and lift your legs off the floor.
- Lift your shoulders off the floor and keep your head in a neutral position so that you're not straining your neck. Your legs and midback should both be off the floor, and you should be in the shape of a banana with just your low back and hips on the floor. This is starting position, a hollow hold.
- Stay in the hollow hold position for as long as you can, up to 10 seconds.
- Then lift your arms and legs to meet so that your body forms a V hold for a breath, and slowly lower back down to hollow hold position.
12Hollow Body Rock
“This works basically the entire core, including the rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, and obliques. I love it because it's easy to progress, teaches you how to create tension through the whole body, and has a high carryover to other exercises like push-ups and pull-ups in terms of ab engagement.” —Albert Matheny, MS, RD, CSCS, cofounder of Soho Strength Lab in New York City
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms straight over your head, keeping them close to your ears.
- Contract your abs to press your low back into the floor.
- Point your toes, squeeze your thighs together, squeeze your glutes, and lift your legs off the floor.
- Lift your shoulders off the floor and keep your head in a neutral position so that you're not straining your neck. Your legs and midback should both be off the floor, and you should be in the shape of a banana with just your low back and hips on the floor. This is starting position.
- Slowly rock forward and back, keeping everything tight, to the point that your feet and hands nearly touch the floor.
- If this is too difficult, get into the starting position and simply hold.
Katie Thompson13C-Curve
“This is an isometric hold in the most intense part of a sit-up. What you’re doing is working your abs by keeping them under constant tension. It's also a safe position for your back to stay in because your tailbone is tucked and your spine is lengthened instead of compressed.” —Kira Stokes, celebrity trainer and creator of the Stoked Method
How to do it:
- Sit on your tailbone with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Hold on to each leg just above the knee.
- Round your spine, tuck your tailbone, and begin to lower your torso back, as if you were lowering back after a sit-up.
- About halfway (like in the photo above), stop and hold. Keep your entire core and your quads engaged.
- For an extra challenge, let go of your legs and just hold your arms out in front of you.
Katie Thompson14Single-Leg Resistance Band Deadlift
“To train for a stronger core, we should be in positions that require the core to really perform its role, and allow segments of the body to communicate and coordinate with another. That means we need to stand and move, bend, turn, and lean. We need to move in three-dimensional space.” —Snyder
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet together and the band looped under your left foot. Hold one end of the band in your right hand so that when you stand, with your arm down, there is tension in the band. (The other end of the band can just lie on the floor or you can hold it slack in your left hand.)
- Shift so all of your weight is in your left foot. Hinge at the hip, and tip forward, allowing your right foot to come straight up behind you as you hinge forward, eventually bringing your chest parallel to the floor. Keep your core engaged to help with balance.
- As you hinge, naturally allow your right arm to drop toward the floor, creating less tension in the band.
- Return your right foot to the floor to return to your starting position. Do all reps on a single side, then repeat on the other side.
15Wheelbarrow
“This is one of those moves that really helps me mentally connect to my core. You have to stay present, engaged, and mindful the whole time you do it or you can easily let your lower back take the brunt of the work. And you can use all kinds of things for equipment for this. You can do a TRX kneeling rollout, you can use gliding discs, you can use a sheet pan on turf, you can do it on a reformer or Megaformer if you have access to one, you can use the old-school ab roller, etc. It specifically works your abs and shoulder stabilizer muscles, and it's super challenging!” —Shauna Harrison, PhD, trainer and yoga instructor in California
How to do it:
- Start on all fours with a glider or towel under each hand. Squeeze your core and tuck your tailbone so that your back is flat, like you're doing a plank from your knees. This is starting position.
- Slowly push your hands in front of you, keeping your arms straight. Glide as far as you can while still maintaining your torso in a plank position.
- Press into the floor and pull your arms back to return to starting position.
16Rolling Like a Ball
“This move is so great at getting your core activated, and it's also a fun way to mix in cardio. As you rock backward and forward, think about controlling it all from your abs.” —Speir
How to do it:
- Sit up tall with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Wrap your arms around your legs and hold on to the outside of your ankles. Curl your head and chest forward in toward your knees.
- Scoop your core muscles in deeply, then roll your body back until your shoulders touch the floor. Don't roll so far that your neck or head touches the floor.
- Rock back up to a seated position.
17Leg Raise
“This exercise hits the lower abdominal area and is also a great exercise to strengthen and lengthen the hip flexors, which play a vital role in core stability and strength. It's going to help with your hip mobility, which will benefit all different areas of your fitness journey, not just strengthening your abs. It’s very common for people to have tight hip flexors, especially if you are sitting at a desk all day, so adding these in will help your flexibility in that area.” —Emily Jacques, trainer at Rumble Boxing
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your hands at your sides or tucked underneath your hips for extra support.
- Slowly raise your legs, keeping them together and as straight as possible, until the soles of your shoes are facing the ceiling.
- Then slowly lower your legs back down. Don’t let your feet touch the floor; instead, keep them hovering a few inches off. That's 1 rep.
- As you do this move, make sure to keep your lower back flat on the floor. If you're having a tough time doing that, don't lower your legs as far.
Katie Thompson18Breakdancer
“I love these because the focus is on the strength to resist other forces while trying to move your trunk. These improve overall motor control, and your ability to accelerate and decelerate when changing directions quickly.” —Christofferson
How to do it:
- Start on all fours with your hands stacked under your shoulders and your knees stacked under your hips.
- Lift your knees slightly off the floor.
- Keeping your butt low, extend your right leg underneath your torso, rotating your body to open up to the left side. Hold your left arm in front of you (as shown). When you start to get comfortable with the move and want an extra balance challenge, extend your arm out to tap your right foot.
- Return to the starting position and repeat on the other side.
Katie Thompson19Tabletop Leg Press
“This is a really good exercise if you have back issues, a separated abdominal wall, or just a difficult time really connecting with your core. I call this a 'core connector.' It's one of the first things I do when I wake up in the morning—I do it while literally lying in bed to get myself connected to my core and get my low back in a safe place..” —Stokes
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your legs raised in a tabletop position (knees bent 90 degrees and stacked over your hips).
- Contract your abs to press your low back into the floor. Crunch up just a few inches and place your hands on the front of your quads.
- Drive your quads into your hands while simultaneously pressing them away. There should be no visible movement in your body, but you should feel the battle and intense tension in your core.
20Row Your Boat
“I can specifically feel my oblique muscles working in this exercise and I love the tangible feeling of getting stronger.” —Lyons
How to do it:
- Sit up straight with your legs bent, feet flat on the floor.
- Keeping your legs together, slowly lift them off the floor until they form a 45-degree angle to your torso. Engage your entire core, keep your back flat, and balance on your tailbone.
- You can keep your knees bent (as pictured) or straighten them out for more of a challenge.
- Reach your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to the floor. If you feel that you need some extra support, place your hands on the floor, underneath your hips. This is High Boat.
- From here, clasp your hands in front of you and twist at the waist toward one side, swinging your arms to the same side as if you had an oar in your hands and you were rowing.
- Immediately twist to the opposite side and repeat the same arm movement.
- Continue alternating sides.
Katie Thompson21Core Roll-Up
“I love this move because to start from a fully extended position requires you to engage much more in the core and use less momentum to come up from the floor. The added challenge in this one is keeping your heels on the floor.” —Christofferson
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms extended above your head, resting on the floor.
- Float your arms up so your wrists are directly over your shoulders, and begin to slowly curl your spine up and off the floor, starting with your shoulders and ending with your lower back.
- Curl up to a seated position, and then continue to fold your torso over your legs, keeping your core tight the entire time.
- Reverse the movement to roll back down to the floor, lowering from your lower back to your shoulders. That's 1 rep.
Katie Thompson22Single-Leg Jackknife
“I love this move because it is a real abs burner, hitting the rectus abdominis but also working on the obliques as you’re reaching across your body. It can be modified, too. You can take it to a crunch single-leg reach, and work your way up to that full sit-up. Before you know it, you’ll have mastered the single-arm, single-leg combo, and you’ll be working on full V-ups, both arms and legs at the same time!” —Jacques
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms by your sides. Contract your abs to press your low back into the floor. This is starting position.
- Squeeze your thighs together, squeeze your glutes, and simultaneously lift your left leg and upper back off the floor, reaching your right hand forward to meet your left foot. Your torso and your left leg should form a V.
- Keep your core engaged as you slowly lower to return to starting position.
- Repeat with the opposite leg and arm. Continue alternating sides.
Katie Thompson23Plank Shoulder Tap
“The goal of this move is to resist rotation through the midsection. When you lift your hand off the floor, your core has to engage to keep alignment. You want your hips completely stable and your belly button facing the floor.”—Hodges
“This exercise incorporates so much more stability training compared to core exercises where you’re laying down, like sit-ups or crunches. So rather than just your abs getting a workout, you’re also engaging your back and shoulders, as well as your glutes and hamstrings. You can make it easier or more strenuous by simply increasing or decreasing the width of your feet.” —Katie Pierson, Denver-based certified personal trainer, certified spinning instructor, and certified group fitness instructor
How to do it:
- Start in a high plank position with your palms flat on the floor, hands shoulder-width apart, shoulders stacked directly above your wrists, legs extended behind you, and your core and glutes engaged.
- Tap your right hand to your left shoulder while engaging your core and glutes to keep your hips as still as possible. Try not to rock at your hips.
- Do the same thing with your left hand to right shoulder.
- Continue alternating sides.
24Hip Dip
“This movement helps to tighten and strengthen the transverse abdominis and obliques, which will help strengthen and support the entire core.” —Speir
How to do it:
- Start in a forearm plank with your forearms on the floor, elbows directly underneath your shoulders, hands facing forward so that your arms are parallel, and legs extended behind you. Tuck your tailbone and engage your core, butt, and quads.
- Rotate your hips to the left side and tap the floor. Repeat on the right side.
- Continue alternating sides.
Katie Thompson25Forearm Plank Leg Lift
“Any type of instability that you can create in a forearm plank will turn on your deep core muscles that hug your hips and spine and extend into your shoulders. When you lift your leg in a plank, you’re creating instability and also adding in glute engagement, which helps support your lower back.” —Demetria Wilson, NASM-CPT, LesMills national trainer in central Texas
How to do it:
- Start on your hands and knees, then lower down to your forearms so your elbows are directly underneath your shoulders, your palms are down, your fingertips are facing forward, and your forearms are parallel to each other.
- Lift your knees off the floor and step your feet back so that your legs are straight and fully extended.
- Keep your core, butt, and quads tight, and avoid arching your back. Think length—imagine that you’re extending out from the crown of your head and out through your heels simultaneously.
- Keep your neck in a neutral position by gazing at the floor.
- Brace your core and lift one foot off the floor.
- Return to the starting position, then repeat on the other side. This is 1 rep. Continue alternating.
Katie Thompson26Bird-Dog
“The bird-dog engages your core while one arm and the opposite leg are working at the same time. That mimics what we do in daily life as we walk, which makes this a really functional exercise.”—Wilson
How to do it:
- Get on your hands and knees in a tabletop position, with your wrists stacked under your shoulders and your knees stacked under your hips. This is the starting position.
- Extend your right arm forward and left leg back, maintaining a flat back and keeping your hips in line with the floor. Think about driving your foot toward the wall behind you. Hold briefly.
- Squeeze your abs and return your arm and leg to starting position. Then repeat on the other arm and leg. This is 1 rep.
- Continue performing reps, alternating sides.
Katie Thompson27Forearm Side Plank
“Side planks target often-overlooked muscles like your glute medius and spinal stabilizers, like the quadratus lumborum. These muscles help to keep your pelvis level when you’re in a single-leg stance position, which is pretty much where you are most of the time in a running gait. Many running injuries are correlated with weakness, especially in the side hip stabilizer muscles, so targeting these with lateral planks is a nice way to address that.”—Janet Hamilton, CSCS, an exercise physiologist and running coach with Running Strong in Atlanta
How to do it:
- Lie on your right side, propping your body up on your right forearm, with your elbow stacked underneath your shoulder and your hand in front of your body. Extend your legs and stack your left foot on top of your right, and then squeeze your abs and glutes to lift your hips off the floor. Extend your left hand straight up toward the ceiling.
- Hold this position. Switch sides and repeat.
Katie Thompson28Dumbbell Deadlift
“Not only do deadlifts engage the lower body, but they also engage the core muscles, including the internal and external obliques, transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, and erector spinae. The deadlift is functional and works much deeper than the surface-level muscles, which will help improve posture and overall core and body strength—as well as reduce risk of lower back pain.” —Berg
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent, and your arms relaxed by the front of your quads with a dumbbell in each hand. This is the starting position.
- Hinge forward at your hips and bend your knees slightly as you push your butt way back and keep your back flat. Slowly lower the weight along your shins. Your torso should be almost parallel to the floor.
- Keeping your core tight, push through your heels to stand up straight and return to the starting position. Keep the weight close to your shins as you pull.
- Pause at the top and squeeze your butt. That's 1 rep.
Katie Thompson29Boat Pose
“I like to tell my clients that this exercise is a cousin to the plank, since it’s also an isometric exercise that targets the rectus and transversus abdominis and internal and external obliques.”—Thompson
How to do it:
- Sit up straight with your legs bent, feet flat on the floor.
- Keeping your legs together, slowly lift them off the floor until they form a 45-degree angle to your torso. Engage your entire core, keep your back flat, and balance on your tailbone.
- You can keep your knees bent (as pictured) or straighten them out for more of a challenge.
- Reach your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to the floor. If you feel that you need some extra support, place your hands on the floor, underneath your hips.
- Hold this position.
Katie Thompson30Mountain Climber With Gliders
“Not only does this core exercise work on stability, but it can also benefit your cardiovascular health if you go at a fast pace. Also, compared to mountain climbers without gliders, this variation demands more core activation since you have to recruit your core muscles the whole time as you pull the glider back and forth.”—Pierson
How to do it:
- Start in a high plank—hands shoulder-width apart (or wider if that's how you usually do push-ups), shoulders above wrists—with your toes on a set of gliders.
- Engage your core and dig your right foot into the floor as you slide it forward, bringing your right knee to your chest.
- Slide your right foot back as you slide your left foot forward, bringing your left knee to your chest.
- Continue to alternate, moving quickly. Make sure to keep your core engaged and back flat throughout.
- Move faster for a bigger cardio challenge. If you have trouble maintaining form, slow down.
Kelsey McClellan31Suitcase Carry
“This exercise is an anti-lateral flexion move, which means you have to engage your core to avoid bending to the side. It’s great for teaching core stability. You have to really engage your core muscles to stay upright and resist the weight from pulling you to the side.” — Hodges
How to do it:
- Place a single dumbbell or kettlebell next to one of your feet.
- Squat to grab onto the weight with a neutral, palms-in grip.
- Keeping your chest up and core braced, stand up.
- Walk forward, keeping an upright torso and resisting the urge to lean your torso to one side to counterbalance the weight. Imagine there’s a string connected to the top of your head that’s pulling you toward the ceiling.
- When you're finished, squat to place the weight back on the floor. Repeat on the opposite side.
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Kelsey McClellan32Plank Pull-Through
“This is an incredible movement for core stability and a great exercise to work on anti-rotation and anti-extension. This is one of the best and most advanced plank progressions.” —Evan Williams, CSCS, CPT, founder of E2G Performance
How to do it:
- Start in a high plank position with your hands shoulder-width apart, shoulders stacked directly above your wrists, legs extended behind you wider than hip-width apart (it'll help with stability), and your core and glutes engaged. Place a dumbbell slightly behind one palm. This is the starting position.
- With your hand opposite the dumbbell, reach across your body to grab the dumbbell and pull it to the other side of your body. Place your hand back on the floor in front of it. Keep your core braced to prevent moving from side to side. That’s 1 rep.
- Repeat on the other side, and continue alternating.
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Kelsey McClellan33Hollow Body Hold
“This is a really good exercise for your deep core muscles and lower back. It also helps with stability and posture, and it’s great for those who need to strengthen their core to alleviate lower back pain. This is a beginner-friendly exercise that can be progressed and regressed to accommodate any fitness level.” —Williams
How to do it:
- Lie faceup on a mat with your arms over your head, close to your ears.
- Contract your abs to press your lower back into the floor.
- Point your toes, squeeze your thighs together, squeeze your glutes, and lift your legs off the floor.
- Lift your shoulders off the floor to raise your arms and keep your head in a neutral position so that you’re not straining your neck. Your legs and mid-back should both be off the floor, and you should be in the shape of a banana, with just your lower back and hips on the floor.
- Hold this position.
Katie Thompson34Leg Lift With Hip Tip
“Adding the hip lift to a traditional leg raise is a great way for the core to learn to stabilize the body during motion. A common error is to use momentum to get into the hip lift, but when done with control, true strengthening of the core occurs.” —Maricris Lapaix, certified personal trainer, corrective exercise specialist, trainer with Centr
How to do it:
- Lie faceup with your arms on the floor by your sides. If your lower back needs some extra support, you can place your hands right underneath your butt on each side. This is the starting position.
- Slowly lift your legs up and toward your face, keeping them together and stopping when they are about vertical.
- At the top, tip your hips up (toward your stomach) just an inch or two. Your butt will lift off the floor a bit. Bring your hips back down to the floor.
- Then, slowly lower your legs back down to the starting position. Be sure to keep your back flat on the floor. If you're having trouble with that or feel tension in your lower back, don't lower your legs all the way to the floor. That's 1 rep.
Demoing the moves above are Amanda Wheeler (GIFs 1-6, 8, 10-13, 15-24, and 34) host of the Covering Ground podcast; Cookie Janee, a background investigator and security forces specialist in the Air Force Reserve (GIF 7); Saneeta Harris (GIFs 9 and 14), SFG Level 1 certified kettlebell trainer; Jamie Song (GIFs 25-26 and 28), NASM-certified personal trainer based in New York City; Alex Orr (GIF 27), a non-diet NASM-certified personal trainer and CNC, and host of The Birdie and the Bees podcast; Crystal Williams (GIF 29-30), a group fitness instructor and trainer in New York City; Erica Gibbons (GIFs 31 and 33), a California-based personal trainer; and Shauna Harrison (GIF 32), a Bay-area based trainer, yogi, public health academic, advocate, and columnist for SELF.
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