6 Ab Exercises You Can Do in 5 Minutes That Work Your Whole Core

Ab exercises should be included in your workout routine, as the core is responsible for almost every movement of the body.

Besides better physical aesthetics, a strong core can enhance your everyday movements along with strengthening the body.

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Best Ab Exercises to Work Core

Here, we have created a list of the six best and most efficient ab exercises to work the core in just five minutes:

1) Half Kneeling Wood Chop

It's a functional ab exercises that can help strengthen the core and tone the body.

How to do the exercise?

• Begin in a high kneeling position before stepping to the front, with your foot flat and knee bent at 90 degrees.
• Grasp a dumbbell in both palms, and position it on the side of the grounded knee.
• Drive the weight upwards to the ceiling diagonally and to the opposite side of the body.
• Rotate your core muscles with the action as your hips are angled to the front. Bring the weight back to the starting position and repeat.
• Swap sides, and repeat.

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2) Single Leg Jack Knife

This is a unilateral leg exercise that can build significant strength and burn up the abdominals.

How to do the exercise?

• Lie down with your face up, with your legs straightened to the front and hands by your sides.
• Raise your upper back and right leg simultaneously off the ground, with your left hand moving forward to touch the leg.
• Your leg and torso should create a 'V'.
• Reverse the movement, and repeat on the other side.

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3) Dead Bug

It's one of the best ab exercises that works on the entire core and can help in building deep strength in the body.

How to do the exercise?

• Lie down with your face up, with your arms straightened to the ceiling and legs raised while bent at the knees.
• Slowly straighten your left leg to the front while dropping your right arm over your head.
• Do not let your legs and hands touch the ground, and let them hover a few inches off the ground.
• Throughout the movement, the core muscles should engage and squeeze your butt, with your lower back flat on the ground.
• Reverse the movement to bring your body back to the starting position, and swap sides.

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4) Body Saw

It's one of the best ab exercises to get a sculpted core along with improving overall strength.

How to do the exercise?

• Start in a standard forearm plank position, with your toes positioned on a set of gliders.
• Keep your tailbone tucked in, with the quads, core, and butt engaged.
• Drive through your forearms to slide the gliders behind your back while maintaining core engagement. Keep your hips upright.
• Bring your body back to the starting position by pulling with your elbows and forearms.

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5) Core Roll Up

It's an efficient ab exercise that can help get rid of belly fat along with increasing core strength.

How to do the exercise?

• Lie down on the ground face up, with your hands extended over your head,
• Bring your palms directly above your shoulders before gently curling your spine upwards and bringing it off the ground.
• Once in a seated position, bring your upper torso above your legs, keeping your core tightened.
• Reverse the movement by lying down on the back of the floor, and repeat.

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6) High Boat to Low Boat

It's one of the best ab exercises to strengthen the spine, abs, and glutes.

How to do the exercise?

• Begin in a straight seated position, with your feet pressed onto the ground and legs bent.
• Keep both legs close together as you raise them off the ground at 45 degrees.
• Balance your bodyweight on your tailbone, with your back flat and core engaged.
• Straighten your arms to the front and parallel to the ground. This is the high boat position.
• Lower your upper body along with your legs while straightening them to the front.
• Let your legs and shoulder blades hover a few inches off the ground in the low boat pose.
• Repeat.

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Bottom Line

The aforementioned ab exercises require minimal equipment but can provide you with a plethora of benefits. They include getting rid of belly fat, sculpting the core, improving range of motion, increasing mobility, boosting strength, and more.

Considering the benefits of these ab exercises, you should incorporate in into your workout routine.