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Press the floor away from you as you lift your butt toward the ceiling, and then lift one leg off the floor, keeping tension in your abs the whole time. Put your hands down on the mat and tuck your toes, lifting your knees off the floor. Starting on your hands and knees, stretch your elbows and relax your upper back. Most people think downward dog is just a stretch for your calves and shoulders, but by adding a variation of standing on one leg, you need to work to stabilize your body by engaging your abs. Keep your weight in your heels, even lifting your toes to remind yourself if need be. If you feel it more in your back than your abs, it’s ok-no one will know that you had temporary amnesisa and forgot that the core means more than just your abs. Take deep breaths and hold the pose for a minute if you can. Bring your hips as low as you can and engage your core muscles so that you don’t lean too far forward.
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Standing hip-distance apart with your arms straight over your head, sit down into a mini squat without moving your arms at all. Chair PoseĬhair pose tends to feel like a leg workout (and it def is), but if you’re doing it right and taking your time, you can majorly feel this in your core too and it’s great for your abs. Stacking your feet is standard, but staggering them like this is a less-difficult modifier. The other option is to support yourself with a fully-extended arm, which takes a little heat off your abs but adds an additional balance component-so, still good for your core. Hold the pose on each side of your body for 30 seconds and remember to keep your hips square and lifted the whole time. You want to engage your oblique muscles, which are the sides of your abs that give your tummy that toned shape when you wear a crop top. The idea of the side plank is to stack your feet on one side of you while your forearm is on the ground and your hips are lifted. Side planks are super basic, but there’s a reason you do them in every yoga, pilates, and bootcamp class: they do the trick. Keeping your arms in tight is a (slightly) easier modification. If you’re feeling really saucy, throw in some one-legged squats with the supporting leg. Engage your abs and squeeze tight to stabilize yourself for as long as you can-at least 30 seconds before switching legs. If it feels wobbly or awkward to be on one foot, that’s the point. Then, press your weight into your right foot and lift your left leg out behind you while your arms extend out in front of you. Then, turn to your left and step your feet wide, bending your right knee over your right ankle. Start standing up with your feet hip-distance apart and your arms at your sides. It might sound weird to do an ab exercise while standing up, but the whole point of the warrior three is to mess with your balance by standing on one foot, and then stabilize yourself using your core.
#STANDING CORE YOGA POSES FREE#
You can either hold it there for maximum time, or hold it for a few beats, release, and then repeat for reps (10-12 should do it).įeel free to bend your knees at first if you’re not able to extend them fully. Your tailbone should now be on the ground with your legs and arms forward in the same direction. Then, press your hands on the floor behind your hips and lift your legs off the floor, leaning back slightly and lifting your hands in front of you. Start by sitting on the floor with your legs straight in front of you. Boat Poseīoat pose is amazing for your entire core because it works the muscles in your upper and lower abs at the same time. Start with these six moves if you want to strengthen your core and tone your abs without doing any bullshit crunches. I mean, there’s a reason you can’t hold them for long before collapsing onto your mat. These poses are legit and offer a ton of core strength. While many types of traditional yoga practices are based on mindfulness and spiritual mantras, yoga is also a killer ab workout if you’re doing it right. Yoga tends to get a bad reputation because people think it’s all about shit like finding your breath and inhaling good vibes.
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