8 Hard Core Abs Moves for Your 6 Pack!

Recently, Time Out New York Magazine asked me to create a New Year’s abs routine inspired from my Hard Core Abs DVD (Amazon and www​.nikkifitness​.com).

Here are the step by step moves and is a link to a FREE 5 minute demo of my video. The best part? Your whole body gets a workout while every move chisels your core. Get crunching!

THE HARD CORE ABS ROUTINE:

(Warm up and do the entire routine 3 times = 30 min session. Do a session 3–4 times a week for best results). These moves work other muscle groups as an added bonus to save time and challenge your abs even more by putting you off balance. All you need is a mat and 2 sets of weights)

V-​​Up (works abs and quads)

Lie on your back with legs long on the floor, and then prop yourself up on the elbows with your palms on the floor. Inhale and lift the legs slightly off the floor. Exhale as you crunch your knees into your chest and you sit up taller, using your abs strength to lift off the elbows and onto the hands. (Only your hands and tailbone area touch the floor and your body is shaped like a V.) Lower back to your elbows and lengthen your legs to hover a few inches above the mat. Do 20 reps. Make it harder: take the hands and elbows off the floor completely and place them on an imaginary table top. Crunch in and out just using the abs.
Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Weighted Shoelace Crunch for low abs (works abs and lats):

Lay on the floor with one heavy weight (I use 10–15 pounds). Hold the fat ends of the weight in each palm and lay on your back. Extend our arms overhead and legs long. To crunch, lift the weight with your arms straight, like a lat pull-​​over, while you bend your legs into your chest. Lift the shoulders off the mat as you reach your hands and the weight toward your shoelaces. Crunch in as tight as you can, with your gaze on the ceiling to keep the neck in line with the spine. Return to set position with legs hovering over the floor and back pressed into the mat. Perform 20 reps. To modify: Do not use a weight and extend arms overhead and straighten legs up to the ceiling instead of hovering over the floor, keeping the feet over the hips, then crunch in and repeat.
Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

The Plank Crunch (works obliques, inner thighs, shoulders)

Get into a side plank on your left hand and stagger your feet with the bottom (left) foot in front of your right. Bend your right elbow and put your right hand behind your head. By balancing on your right (top and behind) foot, bring your left knee across to your right elbow to “crunch” then return to start. Repeat 15 times and then switch sides.
Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Side V (Works Obliques)

Lay on your back with shoulders flat on the floor and hands behind the head. Bend your knees and drop them off to the right side. Move the knees up to hip level so the body forms the letter “L” from knees to hips to head. Crunch the chest to the ceiling for 40 each side. Repeat on the left. The more intense version of this is to turn onto the right side of the body,extend your right arm on the floor out at shoulder level and lift both knees off the floor as you lift up onto your elbow right elbow. Do 20 reps and repeat on the other side.

Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Wings Thighs and a Six Pack (Works abs, triceps, outer thighs)

Do a short side plank with hips off the floor by balancing on your right forearm, bending and balancing your lower leg right leg and knee, and holding a weight in your left hand. Lift your left straight leg off the floor and toward the sky as you straighten the left hand and weight to the sky. As you lower the leg, lower the hand and weight behind your neck, keeping the hips off the floor and the elbow pointing to the sky the whole time to work the triceps in a half french press! Lower leg and repeat 15 times. Repeat on other side.
Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Biceps Boat (Works abs, biceps, quads)

Sit on the floor with a heavy weight in each hand (I use 10–15 lbs each), feet flat on the floor and knees bent over the ankles. Lean back so that your abs engage and your back is forming a diagonal line (boat pose in yoga). Hold the abdominal contraction and lift and lower the weights out to the sides in biceps curls. Make it harder: lift your legs off the floor to tabletop position. Do 20 reps.

Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Trainers Tip: You always want to keep a healthy back by working the opposing muscle group. Do supermans, swimmers and back extensions, to balance your workout and keep your back feeling good. Email me nikki@​nikkifitness.​com for my back column if you need help.

Thighmaster Chest Crunch (works abs, chest and inner thighs)

Lay on your back with your legs straight above the hips, soles of the feet reaching for the sky. Holding 2 light weights (I use 5–8 lbs each) above your chest with straight arms. Crunch shoulders off the ground with the strength of the abs. Lower head and shoulders to the ground and open the arms slowly out to the sides and towards the floor, keeping elbows slightly bent in a chest fly while opening the legs out to the side, letting gravity be your imaginary thigh-​​master. Close the arms and legs above you and crunch your shoulders off the ground with the strength of your abs. Do 20 reps.
Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Plank Glute Rows (works abs, shoulders, chest, upper back and glutes)

Get into a full plank position with medium to heavy weights under your hands (I use 10 lbs). Lift the right elbow to the sky and return to the ground. Lift right straight leg off the ground and return it to the floor. Repeat on the other side. Do 20 reps switching arms and legs each time. Make it easier: just do a plank on your forearms and toes and hold for 30–90 seconds with knees off the floor.

Photo courtesy of Time Out New York

Fitness, fit it in your resolution!~ Nikki

Tags: abs arms chest weight loss