The Advanced Ab Exercises That Actually Work (Seriously)

The most effective Ab Workouts will include progressive strength training taking the all the ab muscles (rectus abdominis, obliques, transverse abdominis, quadratus lumborum) through a full range of motion.
Train with us on Ganbaru - www.ganbarumethod.com
Check out Alec - / alecblenis
While Planks are a very popular exercise, they’re probably the most ineffective exercise for strengthening and building your ab muscles. In this video Alec Blenis shows me his favourite exercises and the techniques he uses to strengthen his core.

[@coacheugeneteo]

How to do this without a GHD? You need the following 1. Anchor point for your hips/waist. A Bosu Ball, Exercise Ball or even an adjustable bench (lay crossways to it) work well. 2. Anchor point for your feet. Get a little creative around your gym, but even a pair of heavy dumbbells can work well. As for the Reverse Crunch, you can do this simply on a flat bench, grabbing onto the end with your arms. OR, depending how crowded your gym is, pull it up to a rack/smith machine to grab onto the bar. I'll record some videos for you and post to my Shorts soon! Hope you guys enjoyed the video, and if you want to train with Alec, you can check out his hybrid programs over at bit.ly/alecblenis

[@nnnnnnnnnnnnmmm]

please record if you can! highly appreciate it

[@user-mz1ym8pq8m]

-Sissy squat for anchor -if power rack or smith machine pins low enough set up barbell at lowest point w a pad over it

[@nickm2677]

@@nnnnnnnnnnnnmmm I second this!

[@DavidTran-hf3hn]

We need a video without GHD

[@ozzy6162]

So sorry to bring a downer on this really interesting video with good exercises Eugene but the bit about adding weight does worry me because of my back problems due to heavy ab training when I was younger & dumber. I particularly don't like the look of exercise 4 with the recommended heavy weight - it sets up large shearing forces on the discs. I actually regard heavy ab work (including exercises 4 & 5 - they're not new) as being more responsible (than heavy squats/deadlifts) for my many years of back problems with several back operations. I ended up with total disc collapses at L5 - S1 & L4 - L5 levels and a further 20 years of neuropathic pain (a particular type of nerve pain) throughout the lower back and upper glute areas - this still hasn't totally gone away but I am back at the gym doing what I can and being very careful. My advice would be to see what benefit changing exercises brings before adding any weight But if adding weight is really necessary, i.e. your ab muscles lack size, then please just use small amounts of weight with small increments. I'd rather I had the fattest gut in the gym & still worked out than had many years of severe pain & no workouts.

[@InnerStrengthVarun]

0:15 - GHD Sit-Up 3:58 - Reverse GHD Sit-Up 5:55 - GHD Dragon Flag 6:39 - Cable Twist 8:45 - Dynamic Cable Twist 10:33 - 45° Side Bend Thanks for the legendary content as always Eugene

[@whoknows8223]

Youre doing gods work👌

[@InnerStrengthVarun]

@@whoknows8223 haha appreciate it

[@D_Crichton95]

Not all heroes wear capes. Thank you good sir 🫡

[@MagicalQliqui]

alec: "up! up! up!" eugene, not moving: "yeah I am" that says it all

[@Studanski]

The GHD is a rare bird, I've never seen one in the wild. You guys should have included alternatives for those who don't have access to a GHD.

[@coacheugeneteo]

Just posted alternative set ups to the pinned comment!

[@amielterence]

MVP behaviour

[@ryandalessandro4139]

I love to use a medicine ball!

[@NofirstnameNolastname]

​@@coacheugeneteo Was really hoping for a video for the alternate setup too :) the text is tricky for non native speakers.

[@BigHalfSteps]

It just means people need to raise awareness to gym leaders.. err I mean gym owners. Won't work on your everyday commercial gym, but they should be used by everday people who are not invested in using more advanced gear for their advanced needs.

[@aaronzachary8851]

There's so much over saturation when it comes to ab exercise content and yet all this stuff is amazing and really cool. Alec is definitely a monster

[@panbuffman]

probably the best ab video online ever

[@coacheugeneteo]

Thank you! 🙏 Alec is an excellent coach and teacher

[@anikmehdi7848]

EXACTLY

[@ozzy6162]

Didn't Heineken make that video? 😋

[@PaRaZzEe]

If your Gym has a GHD that is :(

[@RoninHLee]

Totally agree! These are great, I'm pumped to put these into my workout. Thanks for Alec and Eugene for the great content!

[@sovereign775]

These are high yield gold. Seriously, anyone can just focus on this consistently for a lifetime and build a solid asset core both aesthetically and functionally

[@user-ls7rw5gv8n]

Alec's understanding of the human body is awesome. Explaining the physics of what creates intensity is crucial to helping people really get stronger and that knowledge just isn't coming through in everyone's content. Great video

[@Oyashio202]

As someone who does leg raises with weights x20 and maxed out every ab machine, THANK YOU! It gets very tiring to do weird set ups. It's not some BS cardio workout. These are just some cool obvious hypertrophic ab movements.

[@coacheugeneteo]

Good luck!

[@alecblenis]

Loved putting this together! Hope your abs have recovered by now Eugene :)

[@ommba07]

This was awesome, been doing the GHD reverse sit up and kneeling cable twists. They're incredible!

[@coacheugeneteo]

Ready for round 2!

[@Albs55]

Did GHD sit ups today, and they were brutal in the best way possible

[@andrewwhite4111]

This is GOLD. The fact that most of us (myself 100% included) cannot touch these movements with a ten-foot pole just shows you how much we need to level up to truly maximize our fitness.

[@mattsoap]

Alec: Up, up, up! Eugene: Yeah I am *not moving* lol great video! Cant wait to try these exercises!

[@splinterspell]

Alec: "Up, up, up" Eugene: "Yeah, I am" 😂😂😂 What a great video, thank you. Will check out Alec's content. Seriously impressive.

[@Wildeity]

Wow, Alec is so knowledgeable and I really felt like I filled a knowledge gap by watching this video.

[@coacheugeneteo]

He's an excellent coach!

[@yosoys]

Range of motion is the key! 👏👏👏

[@kedarkashyap1522]

3AM life-changing fitness enthusiasts unite!

[@joloshawn]

i was just thinking through what the best ab workiuts would be and this knocks it out of the park. the main principles evrryone should be prioritizing. and i love the 4th exercise, rotational power and that transverse plane is so underrated, especially dor athletes. this and the grip video are gold, keep it up man!!! quickly one of my fav channels

[@coacheugeneteo]

Thank you my friend!

[@johnrockyoga9557]

Alec is an absolute animal!! And he transmites a pretty calm vibe which is cool

[@rhyeseehioghae1203]

Definitely the best core/ ab workout explanations I’ve ever watched

[@keishchandel]

So many fucking bots commenting. Anyways, Alec's core is absolutely insane. Like the only way to describe his core is "beautiful"

[@ommba07]

This was great! Alec is the goat!

[@AbhinavSingh-wp3fu]

I really like the exercises and the way you explained all of them. Please keep on making videos like these. Its probably one of the best abs videos on youtube❤

[@IAmTheWalrus6700]

Alec is wonderful -- hope to see more of him!

[@alenbukvic]

Amazing video, Alec sounds like a great trainer / teacher.

[@banglevision8207]

Great. Another one again please.

[@Honeybadger-26]

A follow up video showing adaptability/variations to work on “standard” gym kit would be helpful 👍🏻

[@evian8768]

What a cool portion of knowledge. Thank You😎

[@eithankleiman]

THIS CONTENT IS LEGENDARY. It is exactly what I was looking for. Keep up the high quality content Eugene! Thank you!

[@coacheugeneteo]

More to come!

[@eithankleiman]

@@coacheugeneteo Hell YEAHH

[@Trazynn]

I can't find these devices anywhere.

[@Raphsophomes]

Ik its kind of obnoxious

[@bogdangaliceanu6326]

this is superb. So many ideas for exercises. Thank you!

[@coacheugeneteo]

Enjoy!

[@Lock8484]

Alec is a beast. Great video. Vegainz

[@stevep4236]

Definitely going to try these

[@kevinburke9940]

2 true professionals showing us how it’s done. Thanks guys!

[@_koschwarz]

Alec's core is an alien life form on his body.

[@southernmuscllman]

Great video!

[@adamlubinski1347]

Very cool! I have been doing sit ups hanging back completely on the hyper extension machine, very effective and good deep stretch

[@leibomsvairis]

Great tips for ABS, will improve my ABS even more! Thx

[@andrewjamespete]

This is great thanks fellas

[@dominican200]

Wow... good one

[@intrepidapollo]

Wow. First I’m going to need a few months of solid pre-core base fitness, but then I’m going to jump in the deep end with these. Thank you for the demonstrations - eye-opening!👏

[@mattc4266]

Amazing video

[@ajlamrakovic25]

AMAZING CONTENT!

[@JB-xn5xb]

Great video

[@SpaceMonkeyGVTV]

Amazing !!!

[@NofirstnameNolastname]

Good stuff. Never saw anything from you before. But I'm a serious core enthusiast never skip my core and train it 4 days a week. Been looking for a new challenge.

[@neco5740]

This is great. I always struggled with finding a good Abb stimulus. Am sure to try these. Edit: welp seems I am too weak to properly do most of them

[@PMC_-wj8gr]

Thanks for this! I tried this on Thursday, now it's Sunday and I can't sit up, cough, laugh or take a deep breath! Jeez, best ab workout ever. 😂

[@rosaleesantamaria7673]

Just exactly what we needed. Thank you Eugene for always delivering.❤

[@coacheugeneteo]

Thank you! 🙏

[@pageoscar8773]

More Alec content thanks

[@dominicpaul1]

Excellent

[@mitchellbenoit6243]

Awesome now I’m trying to recreate that set up on a budget

[@facilityvalley]

Lots of respect for these guys .. I still believe Max True is the GOAT

[@hemoer8780]

I guarantee this is the best ab workout video ever

[@DavideGalic]

These exercises are insanely good

[@stephenY96]

As a boxer with toned abs all we do at the gym is lots of sit ups, leg raises and planks at the end of every session. Proper simple and always works for us. No need for some super in depth long duration ab workouts.

[@memorabiliatemporarium2747]

YES! This is PRECISELY what I was looking for! I'll add these to my routine (with some modifications because my gym doesn't have a reverse hyperextension machine) with my favourite: the cable crunch (the GOAT). Firmly believe that bodyweight ab exercises are a waste of time.

[@ignaciohinojosa4287]

John would love this ❤

[@TorBoy9]

My gym doesn't have GHD, still doing garhammer raises, which I saw on a different Eugene video. They are also quite good. Thank you

[@spontaneousbootay]

The ghd stuff is inspirational. Didn't think about using them that way. The side bends though I've been doing it for a while and they make my obliques sore as hell.

[@amielterence]

That was so dope.

[@ShawnFumo]

This was good timing since I got the Nordic GHD from Freak Athlete recently for my home gym. I was already trying the reverse GHD/flag on its flat bench after seeing Dr. Mike showing it (as “modified candlestick”) with a 10° reverse tilt to make it easier. But I hadn’t thought to try it with the GHD attachment. Kind of crazy I’m at a similar ability on the QL raise, but I’m sure it helps that my upper body is much lighter lol. For those without GHD access, it should work with any back extension machine.

[@theonetrueshibe9567]

These are great exercises. Everyone emphasis lengthened porsion of exercises but abs dodnt get much love as far as I saw. These exercises are great for that. I did know about twist and sidebend but ghd stuff is new for me. Is there a variation without ghd?

[@wizart2100]

I know you dont do sprinting but i would love to see some content like that too hahaha ❤❤ much love and great videos specially these last months even better !!

[@fredh8556]

Hi amazing video. Whats the brand of hyperextension machine you use please looks sharp ? Thanks

[@davidg5629]

Great video. Where does one find a double Roman chair like this? It might help my back issues. Thanks.

[@MrTheonenotesong]

This is great! I am on week 3 of thick and quick beginner half marathon and loving it.

[@RR-hl6zi]

Awesome name for a program! Do you have a link?

[@coacheugeneteo]

program is here! join.ganbarumethod.com/alec-blenis/

[@coacheugeneteo]

Glad to hear it!

[@KneeGrowDoingKneeGrowThings]

With the QL side bends, I've found that putting the hip rest right below hip line recruits more glute med/minimus. Also I know he says hip rest leg in front, but I do it with that leg behind and twisting the torso towards the hip pad. This position I feel, allows the greatest stretchy in the QL muscle.

[@KneeGrowDoingKneeGrowThings]

Twisting as you descend and untwist as you ascend incorporates Obliques training. But holding the twist through the eccentric and concentric is all QL+some glute. I do these fresh then Glute Med,Max,Mini kickbacks after.

[@502gaming4]

Usually, these types of abs exercises in general tend to hurt my back even if I focus on my technique, it still hurts. I'm not a newbie I work out for more than ten years. but still.

[@NofirstnameNolastname]

This guy has watched dr Mike

[@micahferguson6331]

"Biiigggg stretch"

[@aro2103]

Im a big Dr. Mike fan. But Dr.Mike has nothing on this guy

[@voran1324]

He also trained with him.

[@luane.j.frantzen7175]

Mike has trained him from time to time

[@HonorViego]

My dad who is 53 has trained body building naturally since he was 15, he reached his genetic peak around 23, but the ONLY muscle group that ever grew was his AB’s whenever he was in his 40’s he started doing dragonflags and he has the best ABs I’ve ever seen naturally. Better than this guys as-well

[@MartinMoylanPT]

Awesome video, what brand is that GHD?

[@Twin2kaay7]

Nice

[@jamiemorrison7927]

Hey Eugene, great vid as usual. For the QL side bends, does an incline bench work if you don’t have a 45 degree back extension machine? Or is there any other alternative set ups?

[@kemshasan8866]

I'm at the point where I'm close enough to unlock the 7th and 8th ab I'm going for it! Hope to get some gold here!

[@A.G.h.o.s.t]

Holly shit 😅 what a great workout 👌🏻

[@SkepticalDragoon]

Been doing full dragonflag for almost 15 years and very few things beat that. The tips on the crunch are little gems that can be applied to every kind of situps and crunches (it's best if you can fully extend the rib cage like in this video or with a fitball ). Doing all this plus the side bends always resulted in the best abs (at a specific amount of BF) for me. Training ABS very well makes all the difference in performance ad aestethics specific to a certain BF percentage.

[@vidalbalkaran3691]

i agree, the dragonflag honestly is one of the best ab exercises that targets your entire abs along with obliques if done correctly along with other parts of the body

[@kylewattssurfing3266]

Awesomeness yeeeeeees yeeeeeeaaaahhhh yeeeeeees!! 👏😎👏

[@RDS_Armwrestling]

I had been using cable twists for a long time but lately had to take a break because I was getting pain in my left hip/glute/lower back, and it was definitely them causing it. Maybe I'll try to ease into them again cos I do really like them

[@alharry13a]

I eat my dinner when I watch these videos so I can pretend I'm having dinner with Eugene.

[@coacheugeneteo]

Don't forget to keep your elbows off the table, son

[@prometheusboat]

You could find out where he lives and eat outside his front door. Or not.

[@ryanpatterson9526]

He looks good... damn good!

[@williamseipp9691]

man, I thought I was getting good range of motion with exercise balls but this is probably the best

[@Bjorn_R]

Very pleasant to see that these are the exact execises I am already doing with some equipment variation. Just wondering... the sidebend, would it not be possible to do in a cable tower?

[@betchieharrison5526]

New subscriber

[@angellohector]

This is great! I'm afraid of abs as I usually get cramps! Any advice? Thanks!

[@anikmehdi7848]

super content

[@davidcbeaudoin]

Some good stuff here. I never do side bends and don't advise anyone to either though. They're bad for your lumbar spine and can lead to sciatica issues.

[@maxsk9074]

dont be an ass-->dont max out on them and you will be just fine (at least if you are healthy😅) you have to position your leg correctly and maybe have it bent otherwise you might very well annoy your sciatic nerve

[@joeberger3441]

Just don't overload them too quickly and you'll be fine

[@Yxcvbnmxy]

I got sore just watching… but I can’t wait to try

[@jaeldi]

Can someone provide a link or a searchable product name for the devices they were using to do these ab exercises? I have not seen them in my gym.

[@meowmeowclubart1879]

LEGIT, THE STRETCH, YOU CAN ALSO DO RANDOM CORE EXCERCISE THEN STRETCH IT USING YOGA BALL :)

[@jachri]

During the GHD exercise are you just hooking your feet or are you driving down down with your heels( hamstring contraction) to take the hip flexors out of the movement?

[@mohsenlawaty]

we need a video on the back side of the core as well

[@petrificationable]

Are side bends good for your back and spine? Especially these with such a big range of motion and weight?

[@RfdMusicOfficial]

This is mental! Can someone call DR MIKE plz, he needs to see this!

[@kwerby3285]

I do wish he would release a video for abs. Could really use some options for deep stretch.

[@MikeFico998]

I wish I had these special props

[@Physiobynumbers]

Oh yea I tell my patient this as well. A topic I wan to cover in near future

[@alegro4046]

Ab roller is my fav...

[@michaelelliott1212]

I have superhero looking abs. They're just very well insulated.

[@MrJreynolds214]

What is the make and model of the GHD used in this video?

[@bryanzancanella650]

What is the name of the equipment used in the GHD and the side bend?