top of page

Rectus Abdominus (ABS)

The rectus abdominis (ABS) muscles are a pair of long muscles that run vertically up the front of the abdomen, stretching from the pubis to the xiphoid process. They compress the viscera and tense the abdominal wall.

​

Sit-Ups

Body Weight

Strength Standards

  • Beginner - 3

  • Novice - 26

  • Intermediate - 58

  • Advanced - 97

  • Elite - 141

Based on an 80kg Male Lifter, for more strength standards we recommend you visit strengthlevel.com

  1. Lie down on your back, with your feet on the floor, knees bent.

  2. Place your hands on either side of your head in a comfortable position.

  3. Bend your hips and waist to raise your body off the ground. Make sure you keep looking straight ahead, keeping your chin off your chest in a relaxed position.

  4. Lower your body back to the ground into the starting position. Repeat

​

If you find it challenging to do a sit-up with your hands behind your neck, cross your arms in front of your chest and place your hands on your shoulders.

Plank

Body Weight

  1. Start in a press-up position.

  2. Bend your elbows until your forearms are on the floor beneath your shoulders so your body is in a straight line from your feet to your head.

  3. Keep your abs tight and look at the space between your hands to ensure a neutral spine position.

  4. Hold the position for as long as you can.

​

If you need to make the exercise easier you can do Planks 'from the knee' .

​

If you can do this for 2 mins then many trainers would suggest moving on to doing side planks!

Bicycle Crunch

Body Weight

Strength Standards

  • Beginner - <1

  • Novice - 12

  • Intermediate - 34

  • Advanced - 61

  • Elite - 91

Based on an 80kg Male Lifter, for more strength standards we recommend you visit strengthlevel.com

  1. Lie on your back on the floor (or, preferably, on a mat for some support). Press your lower back into the floor and bend knees while keeping feet flat on the floor.

  2. Place hands behind head, interlacing fingers if preferred. Keep elbows wide and gently cradle your head in your hands.

  3. Bring your knees up, with shins parallel to the floor, as you lift shoulder blades off the floor. (Be careful not to strain or pull on your neck.)

  4. As you straighten left leg out at about a 45-degree angle, turn your upper body to the right, bringing left elbow toward right knee. (Make sure the movement comes from your rib cage, not just your elbows.)

  5. Return to center, with both knees bent and elbows wide.

  6. Repeat on the other side: Straighten right leg to a 45-degree angle and turn your upper body to the left, bringing right elbow toward left knee.

  7. Return to the starting position to complete 1 rep.

​

One of the best ways to make ab workouts harder is to slow down the speed of the movement.

Hanging Leg Raise

Body Weight

Strength Standards

  • Beginner - <1

  • Novice - 6

  • Intermediate - 18

  • Advanced - 34

  • Elite - 51

Based on an 80kg Male Lifter, for more strength standards we recommend you visit strengthlevel.com

  1. Grab the bar with an overhand grip, your thumbs wrapped around the bar to improve stability. You don't have to necessarily be hanging at this stage but, ideally, your hands should be grasping the bar well above your head.

  2. Exhale as you lift your feet off the ground, raising your straight legs outward in front of you. Tilt your pelvis slightly back and engage your abdominals and hip flexors to assist with the movement.

  3. Raise your legs to a level that feels challenging but still enables you to keep good form. Strive to get them parallel to the ground (so that your hips are bent at 90 degrees), or a little higher if you can.

  4. Lower your legs back down slowly until they return to the starting position, inhaling during this portion of the exercise. Maintain your posterior pelvic tilt, even at the bottom of the movement.

​

If you can't do a hanging leg raise then try a 'hanging knee Raise', and if that's still too difficult then you might have to start with 'lying leg raises'.

Seated Abdominal Curl

Machine

Strength Standards (1RM)

  • Beginner - 24 kg

  • Novice - 49 kg

  • Intermediate - 85 kg

  • Advanced - 130 kg

  • Elite - 182 kg

Based on an 80kg Male Lifter, for more strength standards we recommend you visit strengthlevel.com

  1. Sit down, adjust the height of the seat, so your knees are at a 90-degree angle.

  2. Place your hand crossed on your shoulders and place your chin on the arms.

  3. Arch your back to extend abdominals.

  4. Touch your elbows to your knees 5. Repeat

Hire Us

To help you Lose Weight & Build Muscle

We now offer Online Personal Training Services

Gym Equipments

Exercise Database

If your looking for specific exercises to work specific muscle groups then why not check out our FREE Exercise Database.

​

Everything is broken down into specific muscle groups with videos too.

bottom of page