The Road to FAB ABS

The key to a flat belly is more than traditional forward-and-back crunches. It’s essential you add rotation to get the sleek waistline of your dreams. Building up the muscles on the side, known as the obliques, will also help protect your lower back from injury. The five exercises here involve trunk rotation; do them all together for a great flat-belly workout or incorporate them into your existing core routine. It’s not magic: Exercise combined with the right diet is the way to lose inches and drop pounds.

Around the clock
Using a medicine ball, dumbbell, basketball, or whatever you have around the house, stand with your feet a little wider than hip-distance apart. Hold the ball at six o’clock, arms extended. Keeping your arms straight and extended stabilize your hips as you move the ball to three o’clock, then noon, nine o’clock, and ultimately back to six. As you move and reach with your arms, you’ll feel your abs lengthen and stretch. Do 10 to 12 reps and then repeat, starting at nine o’clock.

Twist, twist, hold
Sit on the floor or a mat, hold a medicine ball or medium dumbbell at your chest, elbows up. Lift your feet off the floor by pulling your knees toward your chest. Twist right, then left, and then hold to the right (count 1-2 on twists, and hold on 3-4); Repeat starting left; that’s one rep. Do 10 to 12 total. If holding your feet up is too difficult, keep them on the floor and work your way up to lifting them.

Plank to star
Get into a full-body push-up position. Rotate to one side so you’re balancing on one arm, making sure your feet lie flat on their sides; if you want to challenge yourself, stack feet on top of one each other. Once you’ve got your balance, try lifting the top leg off the bottom leg. If lifting the leg is too difficult, just do the rotation. Return to the push-up position and repeat to the other side. Do 8 to 10 reps.

Lift & Punch
Lie on your back with legs bent, arms at your chest, hands in fists. Sit all the way up as you punch your right hand toward your left knee; roll back down and repeat on other side. Be sure to punch with intensity. Do 20 to 25 reps.