A collection of 6 of the best core exercises you can do in the gym in one awesome circuit workout. This gym core workout hits every major muscle group in your abs, obliques, and back to strengthen your core and sculpt your midsection. The perfect workout for beginners up through advanced.
Gym Core Workout
- Squats – one of the most effective compound exercises for your glutes and lower back.
- Bosu Push Ups – decreasing stability of a classic push up makes your core muscles work harder.
- Cable Chop – high-to-low cable exercise works the abs, chest, and shoulders.
- Cable Lift – low-to-high cable exercise for the lower and upper back.
- Ab Crunch Machine – isolates the rectus abdominis (the 6-pack muscle in the front of your abs).
- Ab Twist Machine – the perfect move for the perfect obliques.
Keep reading down below for details on how each of these exercises is properly performed.
“What are the best core exercises I can do the next time I go to the gym?”
“What is the best equipment to use at the gym for my abs?”
“How can I tone my abs quickly when I’m at the gym?”
I’ve said it before and I’ll continue saying it – your emails always make my favorite blog posts!!
I’ve recently received all of these emails from T&T readers and love the idea!
I’ve put together this collection of 6 of my favorite exercises that you can do in the gym for one amazing core workout.
These exercises are designed to not only tighten and trim your abs and six pack, but to also maximize strength in your back, hips, and core.
I put these together specifically to ensure you hit every major muscle group in your abs and core for maximum toning and strengthening. Hope you enjoy it!
What is my core?
Your “core” is composed primarily of your torso and hips. It includes your abs (both in the front and the obliques on the sides), your lower back, and your hip musculature. I like to include hips when talking about the core because they’re such an integral part of the system. A lot of core weakness I see in my physical therapy clinic can be directly attributed to a lack of hip strength.
How can I strengthen my core?
In order to strengthen your core, it’s vital that you include resisted exercises to every major muscle group in your core. These include the four abdominal muscles (transverse abdominis, internal and external obliques, and rectus abdominis), your lower-back muscles (erector spinae group and quadratus lumborum), and all four of your major hip muscles (flexors, extensors, abductors, and adductors).
What are the best gym exercises to increase core strength?
Your core muscles help your body to move in three planes of motion – forward/back, side/side, and rotation. In order to increase strength and maximize gains in your core you need to perform exercises that are going to challenge your core in all these planes of movement. All-too-often we get locked into working sit ups, crunches, etc, but truthfully your time can be better spent elsewhere. The exercises listed below in this workout are perfect examples!
Are my hips a part of my core?
As a doctor of physical therapy, I absolutely consider the hip musculature par of your core. They perform such an integral role and work together so often with the abs and back in compound movement patterns that it’s nearly impossible to work one without the other. For the purposes of this workout (and really every core workout on my site) we’ll refer to the hips as a part of the core.
As a doctor of physical therapy, I absolutely consider the hip musculature par of your core. They perform such an integral role and work together so often with the abs and back in compound movement patterns that it’s nearly impossible to work one without the other. For the purposes of this workout (and really every core workout on my site) we’ll refer to the hips as a part of the core.
Alright – let’s do this…
This is a great stand-alone workout if you’re crunched for time; I broke up each circuit with a 1000 meter row in between just to keep my heart rate up. Do it by itself or supplement in some of your favorite exercises as well!
The Best Gym Core Workout
Warm Up – Anything from the row machine and elliptical to treadmill and stationary bike. Spend 5-10 minutes getting your blood flowing.
Circuit 1
Perform A, B, A, B until 3 sets of each exercise are completed (superset exercises for 3 sets).
Then move on to circuit 2.
A) Squats
- Place a weighted barbell across your shoulders.
- Keep your weight on your heels and your knees over your toes as you drop down into a squat position.
- Drive through your heels to activate your glutes and quads and return to the starting position.
- Great way to activate the glutes, lower back, and hips.
- 10 reps
B) Bosu Push Ups
- Get down in a push up position on a BOSU ball.
- Keep your core tight as you drop your chest down towards the BOSU ball.
- Push through your chest, shoulders, and arms to return back to the tall plank starting position.
- Holding the plank position during upper-body work is a great way to get the core working; doing it on a Bosu ball throws them into overdrive.
- 10 reps
Perform three sets of each exercise and move on to circuit 2
Circuit 2
Perform A, B, A, B until 3 sets of each exercise are completed (superset exercises for 3 sets).
Then move on to circuit 3.
A) Cable Chop
- Adjust a pulley handle to the highest position.
- Stand perpendicular to the pulley’s line of pull with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Grab the handle with both hands, engage your abs, and pull the handle from a position of “high and right” to “low and left”.
- Slowly return to the starting position.
- Phenomenal total-core exercise; especially when combined with lifts (see B).
- 10 to the left; 10 to the right
B) Cable Lift
- Adjust a cable pulley to the lowest position.
- Stand perpendicular to the pulley’s line of pull with your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Grab the handle with both hands, engage your abs, and pull the handle from a position of “low and right” to “high and left”.
- Slowly return to the starting position.
- Just the opposite of the chop – works the lower back, shoulders, chest, and arms.
- 10 to the left; 10 to the right
Perform three sets of each exercise and move on to circuit 3
Circuit 3
Perform A, B, A, B until 3 sets of each exercise are completed (superset exercises for 3 sets).
A) Ab Crunch Machine
- Sit in the machine and grab the handles behind your head (sometimes straps hanging down over your chest).
- Engage your abs to “crunch” your chest down towards your knees.
- Slowly return to the starting position.
- A great resisted flexion exercise to engage the rectus abdominis muscle and tone the six pack.
- 15 reps
B) Ab Twist Machine
- Resisted rotation motion is a great way to work the obliques.
- Can also be performed with cables to resist rotation.
- 15 reps each side
C) Roman Chair Lumbar Extension
- Stand on the foot plate with one pad behind your heels and the other supporting your thighs.
- Engage your lower back and hinge forward.
- Pull with your glutes and lower back to return to the starting position (it’s important to keep your back straight and not round forward on this one).
- A great exercise to isolate and target your posterior chain (lower back and glutes).
- 15 reps
Perform three sets of each exercise and go pass out somewhere.
CONGRATULATIONS!! YOU TOTALLY NAILED IT!!
Brag about your workout on your favorite health/fitness Pinterest board! Pin It!!
Are you following Tone and Tighten on YouTube? CLICK HERE for our “Gym Workouts” playlist or try one of these listed below…
Looking for even more great gym workouts?
I’ve totally got you covered!
I’ve totally got you covered!
Click on a link below to be taken to a few of my favorites:
Make it happen,
Jared
