Which ab movements build the most impressive core?

PeptideConsumer

PeptideConsumer

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Cranking out crunches until failure was the old-school approach. That wastes a huge amount of effort for little return.

Going heavy with fewer reps feels far more rewarding.

I've started exploring a range of alternatives.

Planche lean.

In practice it's a hollow-body hold done from the push-up position.

Seems worth a try.
 
For me, 6-9 sets weekly of ab work with added weight made a huge difference.

Reps usually fell somewhere between 8-15.

Slow and controlled. Don't let momentum take over — hold briefly at the top of the squeeze and again at the bottom of the stretch.
 
After spending time with weighted resistance work, calisthenics, and yoga, my experience is that a cut midsection comes from combining several approaches rather than relying on 1 method. The leanest, tightest waist I get happens when stomach vacuums are part of my routine — uddiyana bandha, as yogis call it. For roughly the last 10 years bodybuilding has been my main focus, yet my waist was never tighter than during the period when I was a dedicated yogi centered on calisthenics and performed vacuums every day.
 
Your abs are no different from any other muscle group, so treat them with the same training principles.

Kneeling cable crunches, weighted sit-ups, cable torso twists... all of these work fine, provided you add heavy resistance and keep pushing progressive overload

A planche is isometric in nature; that means the muscle stays at a fixed length while under tension (and changing length under load is among the key triggers of hypertrophy). Isometrics shine for endurance, not for building size.

As for visibility, that comes 100% from diet... even with zero ab training, dropping bf% low enough will reveal a solid sixpack.
 
Paddling a boat like a nelo sprint kayak for 5 miles, several times weekly. Your core is engaged nonstop to stay balanced, and it's also a solid workout for the arms and upper body.
 
Sid the SeaGull said:

Paddling a boat like a nelo sprint kayak for 5 miles, several times weekly. Your core is engaged nonstop to stay balanced, and it's also a solid workout for the arms and upper body.
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That's great—I've got 2 old trainers, and a Huki surf ski came my way not long ago. It doesn't move as fast, but it's a lot steadier in the chop or at the nearby lake, which usually ends up overrun with power boats. I can't claim my core is anywhere close to what it was back when I was racing, but just being back on the water makes me pretty content.
 
DeeSol said:

For me, 6-9 sets weekly of ab work with added weight made a huge difference.

Reps usually fell somewhere between 8-15.

Slow and controlled. Don't let momentum take over — hold briefly at the top of the squeeze and again at the bottom of the stretch.
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Ab work with added weight?

On the GHD machine, doing negative reps while gripping a kettlebell?
 
For my money: cable crunches, decline sit-ups with weight, machine crunches, and leg raises. Compound lifts too.

Granted, my abs have never actually been visible. Still, they’re crazy strong.
 
It’s a lot more advanced, but this is what really lights up my abs. Get into a front lever, then alternate knee tucks while holding that front lever.

Just holding the front lever already makes your core contract hard. Think of it as hanging leg raises — pun intended — but on steroids.
 
Mochizuki0124 said:

It’s a lot more advanced, but this is what really lights up my abs. Get into a front lever, then alternate knee tucks while holding that front lever.

Just holding the front lever already makes your core contract hard. Think of it as hanging leg raises — pun intended — but on steroids.
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I used to perform hanging L-sits and front levers for my core, but they always seemed to target the upper abs effectively while leaving the lower abs lacking.

A newer perspective, I think, is that a lot of those movements recruit the hip flexors before the lower abs.

Still, I have not attempted the individual knee tucks.

Inverted sit ups, or sit ups on a GHD machine, do appear to hit the lower abs effectively. The same goes for the ab roller and isometric core holds in a hollow body position.
 
DrPEPr said:

Your abs are no different from any other muscle group, so treat them with the same training principles.

Kneeling cable crunches, weighted sit-ups, cable torso twists... all of these work fine, provided you add heavy resistance and keep pushing progressive overload

A planche is isometric in nature; that means the muscle stays at a fixed length while under tension (and changing length under load is among the key triggers of hypertrophy). Isometrics shine for endurance, not for building size.

As for visibility, that comes 100% from diet... even with zero ab training, dropping bf% low enough will reveal a solid sixpack.
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If that were true, farmers walk would do nothing for trap development.

Right?
 
PeptideConsumer said:


Farmers walk would be ineffective for trap development, if that were true.

No?

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Basically, yes.

That is, unless you actively shrug while doing your farmer’s walk.
 
DrPEPr said:


Pretty much.

Unless you really shrug during your farmers walk.

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Farmer’s walks are excellent for developing the traps (especially the upper traps), not just endurance.

Holding heavy implements at your sides while walking delivers a potent isometric challenge to the trapezius. The load keeps dragging your shoulders down, so the upper traps—along with the upper-back muscles that assist them—have to fire isometrically to hold the scapulae up and stable and to stop the shoulders from rolling forward or sinking.

That loaded isometric hold, paired with the walking motion and core bracing, generates substantial mechanical tension and time under tension—two of the main drivers of strength and hypertrophy.
 
PeptideConsumer said:


Farmer’s walks are excellent for developing the traps (especially the upper traps), not just endurance.

They provide a strong isometric stimulus to the trapezius under heavy load. When you hold heavy implements at your sides and walk, the weights constantly pull your shoulders downward. Your upper traps (and supporting upper-back musculature) must work hard isometrically to keep the scapulae elevated/stabilized and prevent your shoulders from collapsing forward or downward.

This loaded isometric hold, combined with the dynamic walking component and core bracing, creates significant mechanical tension and time under tension—key drivers of strength and hypertrophy.

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haha, is that Chat-GPT talking?

Sure, it does have some value for the traps, but it's far from the top choice.

For isolating the traps, shrugs beat the FW.

FW's work well as a compound movement.
 
The Ab Wheel looks easy but delivers real results. Once you have that movement down, most other add-ons become optional—though weighted side bends, suitcase carries, cable curls, bodyweight leg lifts, scissor kicks and similar moves can still contribute.

The real key, however, is having low enough body fat. If you are already lean and untrained, doing 3 x 12 sit-ups daily for a week can produce noticeable changes.
 
Loaded carries. However, if you care a lot about aesthetics, they might add width. Throw a 200lb sandbag over your shoulder and your obliques will be the first to give out. Bear hug carries, and so on.
 
Knee raises and leg raises done while hanging, and you can also throw in alternating them from side to side.
 
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