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Contrary to popular saying or belief, abs are not made in the kitchen. What you put in your mouth only results in whether your abs will be visible or hiding behind a wall of fat. So, you do need to exercise your mid-section, and that includes your abs and your lower back muscles, together known as the core. The name itself suggests how important of an area it is, and therefore anyone should know and do these five core exercises for men.
Best Core Exercises For Men
Basic Planks
For too long have sit ups been regarded as the ultimate core exercise, yet something that seems easier because it’s a passive exercise is far better. We’re talking about the plank. In a basic plank, you’re in a push-up position, only your weight rests on your forearms. The whole body needs to be straight for the exercise to work. It looks easy, but not only does it fire up your core, it doesn’t work only the front of it like the sit ups do. Hold as much as you can while still having a correct form, rest for a minute after failure then repeat.
Side Planks
Of course, no core workouts for men are complete without an exercise that focuses on your sides, the obliques. Again, you’ll be holding your weight on your elbow/forearm, but one hand at a time, with no rest time between side switches. Yet again, your body should be forming a straight line, which is why it’s good to do the exercise in front of a mirror. Hold the side plank position as much as you can without losing your form, after the point of failure for both sides rest for a minute, then repeat. Depending on your fitness levels do three or four sets. This applies for all these exercises.
Cable Crunch
Engaging the core is all about doing exercises that don’t look like they’re doing much but are actually highly effective core exercises for men. You’ll need a pulley machine for doing the cable crunch, and it might seem too weird, which is why not that many people do them. Find the detailed explanation on how to do the exercise here, with the most important tips being that you contract your abs throughout the motion and that you don’t put too much weight so that the lower back doesn’t need to do much of the work.
Iron Butterflies
There are several names for this exercise, and iron butterflies make the most sense to us due to the motion and the fact that your core will be iron hard after doing them. Just the start position engages your whole core, and the full motion will have your belly on fire. With only your buttocks and lower back on the floor, spread your arms to the side and bring them together as your legs and chest meet over your lower abdomens, as demonstrated here.
Russian Twist
Obliques are very important for that ripped look everybody wants, so we wanted to offer another exercise that focuses on your sides. Russian twist has the same starting position as the iron butterflies, with your hands being together in front of you, or even better, holding a plate. While holding your legs a couple of inches from the ground alternate from turning your torso and your arms towards each side. The beauty of this core exercise for men is that you can add weight to make it more challenging after you get used to them.
Combine these five exercises and you’ll have one of the best core workouts for men out there and your midsection will be burning up big time. If you think that the ripped look isn’t for you, see how to get big like Tom Hardy for his Bane role.
Which other core exercises for men would you recommend as being highly effective?
