Best Ab Workouts for Men: Chiseled Six-Pack Guide (Revealed)

V-ups are a great ab exercise that will target both upper and lower abs and your hip flexors during the whole range of motion.

How to Perform V-Ups:

1. Lie on the floor with legs straight and arms extended overhead.
2. Maintain your lumbar back on the floor or sustain physiological lordosis throughout.
3. Lift legs and arms simultaneously towards the highest point above your body, aiming for a full range of motion without necessarily touching your feet with your hands.
4. Engage your core throughout and lower down slowly in a controlled manner from the top position.
5. Complete 12 reps for 4 sets, resting for 60 seconds between sets.

2. Hollow Holds

Hollow holds is an advanced isometric ab workout exercise that will challenge your core strength and endurance by keeping the body in a fixed position for a prolonged period.

How to Perform Hollow Holds:

1. Lie on the floor, extending your legs straight and arms overhead.
2. Lift legs and upper body to create a 30-degree angle with the floor.
3. Hold for 30 seconds, ensuring constant core engagement to avoid strain on the lower back and prevent injury.
4. Rest for 60 seconds, then repeat for three additional sets.

Heel tap crunches are excellent for exercising your rectus abdominis and oblique muscles.

How to Perform Heel Tap Crunches:

1. Lie on the floor with your knees and hips bent at a 90-degree angle, keeping your feet on the floor.
2. Extend your arms straight on either side, pointing towards your feet.
3. Initiate a crunch by sliding your hands across the floor to tap your heels at the top position.
4. Contract your muscles harder, holding the position for a one-second isometric contraction.
5. Reverse the motion by lowering your body to return to the starting position.
6. Complete 15 reps for 4 sets, resting for 90 seconds between each set.

Related: How To Perform Heel Touches Correctly

4. Side Jackknife

Side jackknives are excellent for developing external and internal oblique muscles and will challenge your lateral flexion strength and endurance.

How to Perform Side Jackknives:

1. Lie on your right side with legs extended, using your right elbow on the floor for stability and support, and placing your left hand behind your head.
2. Lift your torso, performing left lateral flexion.
3. Simultaneously raise your left leg, aiming to connect your left elbow with the upper portion of your leg.
4. Hold the top position for one second and return to the starting position.
5. Repeat for 12 reps, then switch sides.
6. Complete 4 sets, resting for 90 seconds between each set.

The dragon flag is one of the most advanced ab exercises requiring substantial core strength.

How to Perform a Dragon Flag:

1. Lie on your back in front of a stable pole or squat rack.
2. Grip the pole with your hands over your head and lift your lower body towards it.
3. Slowly lower your body to a comfortable position for an extended hold.
4. Aim to hold the flag position for at least 10 seconds.
5. Rest for 60 seconds or more.
6. Repeat for several sets, considering your fitness and experience level, maintaining proper technique and form.

6. Cable Woodchopper

Cable woodchopper is a rotational strength ab exercise preferably used by athletes, but all the benefits of the exercise can be achieved for regular gym goers too.

How to Perform a Cable Woodchopper:

1. Load the cable machine for 6 rotations on each side.
2. Hold the attachment and step back, aligning your body with the cable trajectory.
3. Extend the cable straight from your chest.
4. Rotate the cable on the side of your body with a slight toe adjustment to protect your knee ligaments.
5. Slowly return to the starting position and repeat for 5 additional reps.
6. Switch to the opposite side.
7. Complete 4 sets, resting for 90 seconds between each set.

Sandbag sit-up is excellent for targeting your rectus abdominis muscle. It is an advanced variation of the regular bodyweight sit-up exercise.

How to Perform a Sandbag Sit-up:

1. Lie on your back with knees and hips bent at a 90-degree angle, feet firmly on the ground.
2. Hold the sandbag at chest level with fully extended elbows.
3. Initiate a regular sit-up motion.
4. As you move from start to the top position, extend your arms over your head.
5. Fully extend the sandbag over your head at the top.
6. Reverse the motion with the same movement pattern.
7. Complete 12 reps for 4 sets, resting for 90 seconds between sets.

Also Read: Do Sit-Ups Burn Belly Fat

8. Hanging Leg Raise

Hanging leg raises effectively target your lower abdominal muscles. This guide ensures proper execution for maximum benefits and injury prevention.

How to Perform Hanging Leg Raises:

1. Hang from a pull-up bar with your body fully extended.
2. Keep your legs fully extended or bend your knees and hips to 90 degrees based on your fitness level. If needed, lift only your knees.
3. Lift your legs towards your upper body, pulling up on the bar.
4. Reverse the motion when your hips reach maximum flexion to return to the starting position.
5. Complete 10 reps for 3 sets, resting for 60 seconds between sets.

Rollout can be done with the wheel, barbells, and some other equipment such as TRX, and they are extremely difficult core exercises. Barbell rollouts will challenge your entire core strength.

How to Perform Barbell Rollouts:

1. Start from the kneeling position with a loaded barbell in front of you.
2. Take a pronated grip on the barbell, shoulder-width apart.
3. Roll out by extending your body, ensuring engaged core muscles to prevent lower back strain.
4. Extend as far as your lower back remains fixed.
5. Reverse the motion to return to the starting position.
6. Complete 12 reps for 3 sets, resting as needed between sets.

"The ab rollout is a slightly tougher core exercise, and without proper progressions can actually increase injury to areas like the lower back. Once an athlete conquers the base level of strength and form needed for this movement, then I see multiple reasons into why it could be beneficial."

- Jake Boly, Certified Personal Trainer