Get the top 7 standing ab exercises that you can do to effectively strengthen your entire core without pain.
If you are new to the idea of standing ab exercises, then you are in the right place. Maybe you are experiencing back pain and you want to avoid the traditional crunches. Or maybe you are just looking for a fun and creative way to tone your abs.
Regardless of the reason, you’ll learn a lot here in this article about how to do 7 of the best standing ab exercises to effectively tone your core.
Plus, we will dive deep into whether standing or lying down ab exercises are better. Let’s find out and start working out!
Standing Ab Exercises For Everyone
I’m a physical therapist, and I love teaching about core strengthening; that’s why the name of my blog is Live Core Strong. I primarily love to teach pregnant and postpartum moms how to strengthen their core muscles throughout motherhood, but this article is beneficial for practically everyone.
What Is The Benefit Of Doing Standing Ab Exercises?
Let’s understand why ab exercises in a standing position are of benefit to you and why you should include them in your workout this week.
1. Improved Posture:
Many standing ab exercises require you to engage your core to maintain proper form. By strengthening your core, you can improve your posture and reduce the risk of lower back pain. Whenever I have a patient that asks me how they can improve their posture, I always start with the core.
2. Increased Calorie Burn:
Ab exercises in a standing position often engage multiple muscle groups, which can increase your overall calorie burn during your workout. You get more bang for your buck.
That’s why I love standing core workouts so much. When I am short on time, I know I can get a more intense workout by targeting more major muscle groups in a shorter period of time.
3. Convenience:
Standing ab exercises can be done anywhere, without the need for a mat or other equipment. This makes them a convenient option for those who want to work on their core but may not have access to a gym.
And if you love to travel and don’t have your yoga mat with you, simply pull these exercises from the list below and get right to it.
4. Functional Strength:
Standing ab exercises can improve your functional strength, which is the ability to perform everyday activities with ease. By strengthening your core muscles in a standing position, you can improve your balance and stability in everyday life.
You’ll find your daily activities such as doing laundry, vacuuming and yard work are so much easier when you get stronger with these particular exercises.
Top 7 Standing Ab Exercises For Core Strengthening
If you don’t tolerate ab exercises lying down because of back pain, or you just prefer to stand to work out, or you are looking for some new exercises to add into your routine, I’m excited to share with you the top 7 standing ab exercises that are extremely effective at toning your ab muscles.
Here are some of the best ab exercises you can do standing:
1. Standing Oblique Crunches:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and place your hands behind your head. Bend to one side, bringing your elbow towards your hip, and squeeze your oblique muscles. Return to the starting position and repeat on the other side. To make this exercise more difficult, hold dumbbells in each hand with your hands down by your side while you move through the motions.
2. Standing Reverse Oblique Crunch:
Instead of taking your upper body down to your lower body in a sideways bending fashion (like the standing oblique crunch), this exercise is the reverse motion. You will lift your knee up towards your chest and elbows. First, start with your hands behind your head. Next, lift your knee up as if you are marching and tighten your core as you reach your elbow towards your knee.
3. Standing Bicycle Crunches:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and place your hands behind your head. Lift one knee towards your chest while simultaneously bringing the opposite elbow towards your knee. Alternate sides, bringing the opposite knee and elbow together each time.
4. Standing Cross Body Mountain Climbers:
Begin in a high plank position with your hands on the wall and your feet shoulder-width apart positioned away from the wall. Bring your right knee towards your left elbow, then return to the starting position. Alternate sides, bringing your left knee towards your right elbow.
5. Overhead Circle Halo:
Stand with feet shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent. While holding a kettlebell or one dumbbell in front of your chest, begin to make a circle around your head like a halo. Start by going to the right. After completing that repetition, perform the exercise by circling around to the left. Continue to alternate which direction you make the halo around your head. Stabilize your core during the entire movement.
6. Wood Chop:
While holding one dumbbell with two hands and feet wider than shoulder width apart, engage your core and twist to left side as you pivot both knees toward the left. Your hands will be resting in the air near the left knee. Next, bring your arms up and over your head as you stretch up and twist diagonally to the right side. Continue to repeat both motions chopping in a diagonal pattern.
7. Standing Side Bend in Wide Squat:
While holding one dumbbell in your right hand dangling down and your left hand remaining behind your head, stand in a wide squat stance. Lean to the right side as you lower the dumbbell past your knee towards the floor, hinge at the waist while maintaining the squat position. Perform the entire set on the Right before switching to the left side.
Do Standing Ab Exercises Really Work?
If you are wondering if standing ab exercises are even going to work, the answer is, “Yes!”
Standing ab exercises can be very effective in strengthening your core muscles. The muscles in your core, including your abdominals, obliques, and lower back are essential for maintaining proper posture, stability, and balance.
When performing standing ab exercises, you essentially are recruiting all these major muscle groups all at once. Efficiency all the way.
But remember, the effectiveness of standing ab exercises will depend on several factors, including the intensity, duration, and frequency of your workouts, as well as your overall diet and lifestyle.
Keep in mind the importance of incorporating a variety of exercises and techniques into your routine to target all areas of your core and maintain a balanced workout program.
Are Standing Ab Exercises Better Than Lying Down or Sitting?
This is such an interesting question. We know that both standing and lying down ab exercises are effective, but which is better? If you take into account that standing ab exercises target more major muscle groups due to the nature of the workout and the positioning, you can argue that standing is better.
However, if you are focused primarily on the rectus abdominis portion of the abs, lying down is better.
But the choice between standing, sitting or lying down ab exercises depends on personal preference and individual needs.
Standing ab exercises engage more muscles than sitting and lying down exercises because they often require you to maintain balance and stability, which activates your core muscles to maintain proper form.
Additionally, standing ab exercises can improve your posture and help you burn more calories since they often involve more movement and use more muscles overall. And another fun tip to make standing ab exercises even more challenging is to stand on a bosu ball or a dyna disc. These two pieces of equipment will help you burn more calories during your ab routine.
Lying down ab exercises are also effective in strengthening your core muscles, particularly your rectus abdominis muscles (the six pack). Lying down ab workouts can be a good option for individuals who have difficulty standing for long periods of time or have mobility limitations (such as in the knees) that make standing exercises challenging.
Conclusion
Standing ab exercises can engage multiple muscle groups simultaneously and challenge your core in a different way than traditional floor exercises. Both standing and lying down exercises are beneficial, but the choice is really up to you and which style of workout is more fun for you. Pick ab exercises that you will enjoy, are less painful while performing and, ultimately, produce the best results for the time spent.
If you are looking for the best ab workouts on YouTube, continue here to get the full list of the 10 Best 10-Minute Ab Workout Videos on YouTube.
This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.
**It is important to always consult your doctor before beginning any exercise program and get medical clearance. Always warm up thoroughly and stretch after all workouts. LiveCoreStrong.com and Jena Bradley will be not be responsible or liable for any injury sustained while exercising at home, gym or elsewhere. Perform exercises at your own risk.
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