Why do it: Pelvic control helps stimulate your lower abs and alleviates low back pain. A March 2023 systematic review in Neurological Sciences¹ revealed that pelvic floor muscle-strengthening exercises significantly reduce low back pain intensity.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
2. Using your abdominal muscles, press your lower back into the floor and tilt your pelvis upward.
3. Hold the position briefly, then release and return to the starting position.
4. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions, focusing on controlled movements and maintaining core muscle engagement throughout.

RELATED: How To Do the Pelvic Tilt Exercise

Why do it: Dead bugs are simple to learn yet very effective for activating your rectus and transverse abdominis. There are plenty of variations to explore within your core workouts: dumbbell dead bugs, dead bug pullovers, same-side (ipsilateral) dead bugs, and my favorite, the “3-month dead bug.”

How to do it:

1. Begin in a supine position on the floor, with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle and arms fully extended above your chest.
2. Engage your core muscles to press your lower back firmly against the mat.
3. Exhale as you simultaneously extend your right arm above your head and your left leg forward.
4. Inhale as you return to the starting position, then repeat the movement with your left arm and right leg.
5. Continue alternating sides until completing the set.

Why do it: I program plank variations (traditional and side) to teach proper bracing and engagement of your core (shoulders/upper back, abs, and glutes). Planks directly correlate to the necessary action for stabilizing your torso in compound exercises.

How to do it:

1. Enter the push-up position or place your elbows directly below your shoulders, shoulder-width apart.
2. Step your feet back, establishing a straight line from head to heel.
3. Squeeze your core muscles and glutes to stabilize yourself.
4. Hold this position, keeping your body straight and your back flat without sagging at the hips or arching your back.
5. Keep your neck in a neutral position by looking down at the floor, and focus on maintaining steady breathing.
6. Brace for the desired amount of time.

RELATED: 13 Plank Exercises and Variations

Why do it: Lying leg raises, or leg lifts, stimulate your lower abs by lifting the legs towards the upper body, offering superior activation compared to standard core exercises.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back with your legs extended and feet together.
2. Place your hands underneath your hips for support, lifting your lower back slightly off the floor.
3. Raise your legs until they are vertical, perpendicular to the floor.
4. Lower your legs slowly, avoiding contact with the floor, and smoothly transition into the next repetition.
5. Repeat for desired sets and reps.

Why do it: The half-crunch exercise singles out your upper abs without recruiting your hip flexors. This isolation effect allows you to develop the top half of the six-pack abs (aka your rectus abdominis).

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor.
2. Place your hands behind your head or cross them over your chest.
3. Engage your core muscles and lift your shoulders off the floor, bringing your shoulder blades a few inches off the ground.
4. Hold the crunch for a moment, focusing on contracting your abdominal muscles.
5. Slowly lower your upper body back down to the starting position.
6. Repeat for desired sets and reps.

RELATED: How To Do the Crunches Exercise

Why do it: Russian twists provide a full core effect, engaging your obliques, rectus and transverse abdominis, pyramidalis, and hip flexor muscles in a rotational pattern, an often overlooked movement for your core training.

How to do it:

1. Sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat, leaning back slightly until you feel your core engage.
2. Position your hands in front of your body, clasping them together.
3. Rotate your torso to one side, aiming to touch both hands or the weight to the floor.
4. Return to the center and repeat the twist on the opposite side.
5. Continue alternating sides 
6. Repeat for desired sets and reps.

Expert tip: You can perform this exercise with your bodyweight only or progress it with weights such as a pair of the best dumbbells, the best kettlebells, or a medicine ball.

Why do it: A dynamic spin on traditional crunches, bicycle crunches train your core rotationally, targeting the rectus and transverse abdominis, obliques, and hip flexors.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your hands behind your head, elbows pointing outward.
2. Lift your shoulders off the ground by squeezing your core muscles.
3. Straighten your right leg while simultaneously bringing your left knee toward your chest, twisting your torso to bring your right elbow toward your left knee.
4. Repeat the movement on the other side.
5. Continue alternating sides in a pedaling motion, keeping your core engaged and your movements controlled.
6. Repeat for desired sets and reps.

Why do it: Reverse crunches harness the potent effects of eccentric training and target lower abs, compared to traditional crunches, which notoriously target the upper abs.

How to do it:

1. Lie on your back with your arms by your sides.
2. Bend your knees to form a 90-degree angle.
3. Lift your hips and lower back off the ground, bringing your knees toward your chest.
4. Pause, then slowly reverse the movement by gently lowering your back and hips to the floor.
5. Repeat for desired sets and reps.

Expert tip: Utilize a long exhale as you lower your hips towards the floor and squeeze your abs.

Why do it: Wood chops, regardless of the variation—dumbbell, kettlebell, or cable—provide an effective functional exercise for your core, shoulders, and hips. They’ll target all of your abdominal muscles and improve rotational strength, power, and muscular endurance.

How to do it:

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a weight or cable attachment at your high, right side.
2. Squeeze your abs and rotate your torso diagonally down and across.
3. Lower the weight past your left shoulder.
4. Slowly reverse the movement and return the weight to the starting position.
5. Repeat for desired sets and reps, then switch sides.

Expert tip: Allow your eyes to track the movement of the weight or cable during each chop. This simple adjustment enhances rotational engagement in your core muscles and thoracic spine.

RELATED: Functional Core Exercises