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Exercises

Bodyweight ab exercises: crunches, obliques, planks and bar work

Published October 19, 2026

The best bodyweight ab exercises are the crunch and reverse crunch for the front of your abs, the side plank and windshield wipers for your obliques, and the spider plank and plank shoulder tap for bracing. With a pull-up bar, the hanging knee raise and hanging oblique crunch add the most range, and the dragon flag and L-sit are the hardest no-weight options there are. You do not need equipment to train abs hard: pick one crunching move, one oblique move and one plank, do 2 to 4 sets of each close to failure, and make the exercise harder whenever you pass 20 reps.

  1. Crunch Abs
  2. Reverse Crunch Abs
  3. Side Plank Abs
  4. Windshield Wipers Abs
  5. Spider Plank Abs
  6. Plank Shoulder Tap Abs
  7. Hanging Knee Raise Abs
  8. Dragon Flag Abs

Crunching exercises for the front of your abs

Your six-pack muscle shortens when your ribs and pelvis move toward each other, so the crunch brings the ribs down, the reverse crunch brings the pelvis up, and the jackknife does both. These are the only exercises on this page that take the abs through their full range, so every session should have one.

Six-pack, ribs toward pelvis

Crunch

Abs

The crunch is the simplest way to train your abs through their whole range with no equipment, and the easiest exercise on this page to learn. Done slowly with a pause at the top, it gets hard well before 100 reps.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up with your knees bent, feet flat, and your arms reaching toward your knees or crossed on your chest.
  2. Breathe out and curl your head, shoulders and upper back up off the mat, bringing your ribs toward your hips.
  3. Pause for a second when your shoulder blades are just off the floor.
  4. Uncurl slowly until your shoulders touch down, then start the next rep without resting.

Cues

  • Ribs to hips, not chin to chest
  • Exhale all the air at the top
  • Lower back stays down

Common mistakes

  • Sitting all the way up: past the point your shoulder blades leave the floor, your hip flexors take over.
  • Yanking your neck: keep a fist of space between your chin and chest.

Swap for: Reverse Crunch, Jackknife, Dragon Flag

Build a session with Crunch

Six-pack, pelvis toward ribs

Reverse Crunch

Abs

Flipping the crunch so your hips move instead of your shoulders hits the lower part of the six-pack harder and spares your neck. It pairs with the crunch to cover the front of your abs from both ends.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up with your hands flat beside your hips and lift your knees so your thighs are vertical.
  2. Press your lower back into the floor.
  3. Roll your hips up off the floor so your knees move toward your shoulders, keeping the bend in your knees fixed.
  4. Lower your hips slowly until your tailbone touches down, then repeat.

Cues

  • Lift the tailbone, not the feet
  • Small, slow, strict
  • Hands barely push

Common mistakes

  • Rocking with momentum: stop for a beat at the bottom of every rep.
  • Letting your knees drop toward the floor between reps: keep the thighs vertical.

Swap for: Crunch, Hanging Knee Raise, Jackknife

Build a session with Reverse Crunch

Six-pack, both ends at once

Jackknife

Abs

Closing your torso and legs together into a V trains the whole rectus at once and is much harder than either crunch alone. Move to it when crunches stop getting close to failure.

How to do it

  1. Lie flat with your legs long and your arms stretched past your head.
  2. Brace and lift your straight arms, shoulders and straight legs off the floor together.
  3. Reach your fingertips toward your toes so you fold into a V.
  4. Lower both ends back to a light touch on the floor over two seconds, then repeat.

Cues

  • Fold, then unfold slowly
  • Arms and legs meet over the hips
  • No bounce at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the arms to get up: keep them in line with your ears as you start.
  • Crashing back to the floor: lowering is half the rep.

Swap for: Crunch, Reverse Crunch, Dragon Flag

Build a session with Jackknife

Bodyweight oblique exercises

Your obliques bend and twist your trunk, and they also stop it from bending and twisting. The side plank trains the holding job, the Russian twist and windshield wipers train the turning job, and the windshield wiper is the hardest because your legs are the weight.

Obliques, hold against sideways bending

Side Plank

Abs

Holding your hips up on your side makes the obliques on the bottom side work hard without any twisting. It is easy to make harder by lifting the top leg or holding longer.

How to do it

  1. Lie on one side with your legs straight and stacked and your elbow right below your shoulder.
  2. Lift your hips so your body forms one line from head to feet.
  3. Hold, keeping your hips high and your top hip stacked over the bottom one.
  4. Lower with control, rest, and switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips up and slightly forward
  • Elbow below shoulder
  • Squeeze the glutes

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips sag: end the set when they drop.
  • Rolling the chest toward the floor: keep your shoulders stacked.

Swap for: Windshield Wipers, Russian Twist, Hanging Oblique Crunch

Build a session with Side Plank

Obliques, seated rotation

Russian Twist

Abs

Leaning back and turning side to side trains your obliques through rotation, which the planks never do. Keep it slow and from your ribs, not your arms, and it is a solid oblique exercise with no equipment.

How to do it

  1. Sit with bent knees and heels on the floor, then lean back until your torso and thighs make a V.
  2. Clasp your hands at your sternum.
  3. Turn your ribs and hands to one side until your hands are beside your hip.
  4. Turn through the middle to the other side. One turn each way counts as one rep.

Cues

  • Turn the ribs, not just the arms
  • Chest up, back long
  • Lift the heels to make it harder

Common mistakes

  • Swinging only your hands across: your shoulders should turn with them.
  • Rounding into a slump: keep a long spine as you lean back.

Swap for: Windshield Wipers, Side Plank, Hanging Oblique Crunch

Build a session with Russian Twist

Obliques, legs as the weight

Windshield Wipers

Abs

Swinging your legs from side to side while your shoulders stay pinned makes the obliques control a heavy lever. It is the hardest floor oblique exercise here and scales by how far and how straight your legs go.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up with your arms out to the sides, palms down, and lift your legs so your knees are bent at 90 degrees above your hips.
  2. Keep both shoulders on the floor.
  3. Lower your knees to one side as far as you can without lifting the opposite shoulder.
  4. Pull them back to the middle with your obliques and go to the other side.

Cues

  • Shoulders stay flat
  • Lower slowly, lift with the waist
  • Straighter legs, harder rep

Common mistakes

  • Dropping the legs all the way and bouncing: stop a few inches above the floor.
  • Letting the shoulder lift: shorten the range until it stays down.

Swap for: Russian Twist, Side Plank, Hanging Oblique Crunch

Build a session with Windshield Wipers

Plank variations that move

A plank held for minutes gets easy without getting more useful. These three add movement instead, so your abs have to fight a shifting load: lifting one hand, pulling a knee to the side, or crawling. Pick one and keep the sets under a minute.

Plank, knee to elbow

Spider Plank

Abs

Pulling one knee out to the side toward your elbow takes away a point of support and adds an oblique crunch to the plank. It gives a plank a reason to stay short and hard.

How to do it

  1. Set up on your forearms and toes with your elbows below your shoulders, body in a straight line.
  2. Lift one foot and bring that knee out to the side toward the same elbow.
  3. Pause, then return the foot to the floor without letting your hips rise.
  4. Switch sides each rep.

Cues

  • Knee travels wide, not under
  • Hips stay level
  • Breathe out as the knee comes in

Common mistakes

  • Hips piking up as the knee comes forward: keep your body flat like a table.
  • Rushing the reps: take a full second each way.

Swap for: Plank Shoulder Tap, Side Plank, Bear Crawl

Build a session with Spider Plank

Plank, one hand off

Plank Shoulder Tap

Abs

Each time a hand lifts, your body wants to twist toward it, and your abs and obliques have to stop it. It turns a static plank into an anti-rotation exercise you count in reps.

How to do it

  1. Start at the top of a push-up with your hands below your shoulders, feet a little wider than your hips.
  2. Brace your abs and squeeze your glutes.
  3. Lift one hand and touch the opposite shoulder while your hips stay still.
  4. Put the hand down and switch. Each tap counts as one rep.

Cues

  • Hips do not rock
  • Wider feet to start, narrower to progress
  • Slow taps beat fast ones

Common mistakes

  • Shifting your hips side to side with each tap: slow down or widen your feet.
  • Letting the lower back sag: keep the glutes tight.

Swap for: Spider Plank, Bear Crawl, Side Plank

Build a session with Plank Shoulder Tap

Crawl, knees just off the floor

Bear Crawl

Abs, Shoulders

Crawling on your hands and feet with your knees hovering keeps your abs braced while your arms and legs move. It doubles as conditioning, which makes it a good last exercise when you want to finish with something that raises your heart rate.

How to do it

  1. Start on all fours with your hands below your shoulders, knees under your hips.
  2. Lift your knees an inch off the floor and keep your back flat.
  3. Crawl forward by moving one hand and the opposite foot a short step at the same time.
  4. Keep your hips low and level, take a set number of steps forward and back, then rest.

Cues

  • Knees an inch off the ground
  • Opposite hand and foot together
  • Back flat enough to hold a glass

Common mistakes

  • Hips rising high into a pike: keep them at shoulder height.
  • Taking long steps: short steps keep the brace.

Swap for: Plank Shoulder Tap, Spider Plank, Side Plank

Build a session with Bear Crawl

Advanced: with a pull-up bar or a bench

A bar or a sturdy bench is not strictly equipment, but it unlocks the hardest bodyweight ab work. Hanging lets your legs travel far below your hips, and the dragon flag and L-sit make your whole body the lever. Add them when the floor exercises pass 20 clean reps.

Pull-up bar, knees to chest

Hanging Knee Raise

Abs

Hanging lets your legs start below your hips, so the abs work through more range than on the floor. It is the first exercise to add once you own a doorway bar or find one at a park.

How to do it

  1. Grip the bar shoulder width and hang with straight arms and your feet clear of the ground.
  2. Set your shoulders down slightly.
  3. Bring your knees up toward your chest and roll your pelvis up at the top.
  4. Lower your legs until they hang still, then repeat.

Cues

  • Stop the swing first
  • Pelvis rolls up at the top
  • Control the way down

Common mistakes

  • Kipping your body to swing the knees up: start every rep from a still hang.
  • Stopping at hip height: the last few inches are the abs' part.

Swap for: Reverse Crunch, Hanging Oblique Crunch, L-Sit Hold

Build a session with Hanging Knee Raise

Pull-up bar, knees to one side

Hanging Oblique Crunch

Abs

Raising your knees toward one shoulder while hanging adds a side bend to the knee raise, so your obliques take a big share of a very long-range movement. It is the hardest oblique exercise you can do with only a bar.

How to do it

  1. Hang from the bar with straight arms, your shoulders set down and your legs still.
  2. Bend your knees and bring them up and across toward one shoulder.
  3. Squeeze the side of your waist at the top for a second.
  4. Lower with control to a still hang and alternate sides.

Cues

  • Knees to the armpit
  • Shorten one side of the waist
  • Pause before switching

Common mistakes

  • Swinging from side to side: stop the hang before every rep.
  • Raising the knees straight up: aim them clearly to one side.

Swap for: Hanging Knee Raise, Windshield Wipers, Russian Twist

Build a session with Hanging Oblique Crunch

Hold, legs straight in front

L-Sit Hold

Abs

Supporting your body on your hands with your legs held straight out in front makes your abs and hip flexors hold your legs up against their full weight. You can do it on the floor, between two chairs or on parallel bars.

How to do it

  1. Sit with your legs straight and your hands flat beside your hips, or set up between two sturdy chairs.
  2. Push down hard through your hands so your shoulders drop and your hips lift.
  3. Raise your straight legs so your body makes an L, and hold.
  4. Lower your hips and rest when your legs start to drop.

Cues

  • Push the floor away
  • Knees locked, toes pointed
  • Tuck one knee to start

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging your shoulders: press down until your neck looks long.
  • Holding past the point your legs fall: short, clean holds build it faster.

Swap for: Hanging Knee Raise, Dragon Flag, Jackknife

Build a session with L-Sit Hold

Bench, whole body as a lever

Dragon Flag

Abs

Lowering your straight body while only your upper back stays on the bench is the hardest ab exercise on this page. Your abs control your full body weight on a very long lever, so a handful of reps is enough.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up on a bench and grip it behind your head with both hands.
  2. Roll your hips and legs up until your body points toward the ceiling, resting on your upper back.
  3. Lower your straight body slowly toward the bench, keeping your hips in line with your shoulders.
  4. Stop just above the bench and raise back to vertical, or lower only and roll back up with bent knees.

Cues

  • Straight line from shoulders to toes
  • Lower as slowly as you can
  • Hips never bend

Common mistakes

  • Bending at the hips as you lower: tuck your knees until you can stay straight.
  • Letting your lower back arch: stop the set there.

Swap for: Jackknife, L-Sit Hold, Hanging Knee Raise

Build a session with Dragon Flag

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

No equipment, 15 minutes

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets30 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You train abs at home, in a hotel room or after a run with only floor space, and want two short sessions that cover every part of your abs.

Each session pairs a crunching move with an oblique move and a moving plank, so the front of your abs, the sides and the bracing all get trained without a single piece of gear. Without weight, sets run to 15 or 20 reps and stop 1 short of failure; the planks stop 2 early because the back sags before the abs give out. Each session is 9 to 10 working sets.

Abs A
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
CrunchPause 1 s at the top. 3 × 12–25 1 45 s
Russian TwistReps per side. Heels down to start. 3 × 10–20 1 45 s
Side PlankSeconds per side. 2 × 20–45 2 30 s
Plank Shoulder TapTaps per side. Hips still. 2 × 10–20 2 45 s

Open Abs A in the session builder

Abs B
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Reverse CrunchDead stop at the bottom. 3 × 10–20 1 45 s
Windshield WipersReps per side. Knees bent to start. 3 × 6–12 1 1 min
Spider PlankReps per side. 2 × 6–12 2 45 s
Bear CrawlSteps forward, then back. 2 × 10–20 2 1 min

Open Abs B in the session builder

How to run it
Do Abs A and Abs B on separate days, two to four times a week in total. Plank holds are counted in seconds.
How to progress
Add reps until you reach the top of every range at the target reps in reserve, then move up a step: crunch to jackknife, Russian twist to windshield wipers, plank shoulder tap to spider plank.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

New to ab training

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets24 a week
  • Per workout~15 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You have not trained abs before, a plank still feels shaky, and you want one short routine to repeat while you learn the basics.

This uses the three easiest exercises to learn, the crunch, reverse crunch and side plank, so you can focus on feeling your abs work instead of on balance or grip. Every set stops 2 reps or seconds before failure because form fades before strength does when you are new. It is 8 sets in under 10 minutes.

Abs Basics
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
CrunchSlow up, slower down. 3 × 10–15 2 1 min
Reverse CrunchSmall lift of the tailbone. 3 × 8–12 2 1 min
Side PlankSeconds per side. Knees down if needed. 2 × 15–30 2 45 s
How to run it
Do the routine two or three times a week on non-consecutive days. Do the side plank from your knees at first if a full one lasts under 15 seconds.
How to progress
When every set reaches the top of its range with 2 reps in reserve, lower the target to 1 and add a third set to the crunch. After four to six weeks, move to the no-equipment plan.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Pull-up bar and a bench, floor work too easy

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets18 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentPull-Up Bar

You can do 25 crunches and long planks without much trouble, and you have a pull-up bar and a bench at home or at a park.

Once floor moves pass 20 reps, the only way to keep bodyweight abs hard is a longer lever, so this plan is built on hanging raises, the dragon flag and the L-sit. Reps drop to 5 to 12 and rest goes up to 90 seconds, because these are closer to strength work. The dragon flag and L-sit stop 2 reps or seconds early since form breaks suddenly on them; the hanging moves go to 1. Each session is 9 working sets.

Hard Abs A
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Hanging Knee RaiseStill hang before each rep. 3 × 8–15 1 90 s
Dragon FlagLower over 4 s. 3 × 3–8 2 2 min
Side PlankSeconds per side. Top leg lifted. 3 × 30–50 1 45 s

Open Hard Abs A in the session builder

Hard Abs B
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Hanging Oblique CrunchReps per side. 3 × 6–12 1 90 s
L-Sit HoldSeconds. One knee tucked to start. 3 × 10–25 2 90 s
JackknifeLower over 2 s. 3 × 10–20 1 1 min

Open Hard Abs B in the session builder

How to run it
Do Hard Abs A and B once each per week with two days between them. The L-sit numbers are seconds.
How to progress
On the hanging moves, straighten your legs a little more each week. On the dragon flag, lower more slowly before trying full reps. Add 5 seconds to the L-sit when every hold reaches the top of its range.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

Can you build abs with bodyweight exercises only?

Yes. Your abs are a small muscle group, and your own body weight on a long lever, like a hanging knee raise or a dragon flag, is plenty of load for them. The key is to keep the sets close to failure and move to a harder exercise once you pass about 20 reps.

What are the easiest ab exercises to do?

The crunch, the reverse crunch and the side plank from your knees. They need no balance or grip, and you can feel your abs working from the first set. The beginner plan on this page uses exactly those three.

Will 100 sit-ups a day give me abs?

Not on their own. Once you can do 100 of anything, the set is too easy to keep building the muscle, and visible abs depend mostly on body fat. Fewer, harder sets of crunches or hanging raises a few times a week work better.

How often should I do ab workouts?

Two to four sessions a week of 8 to 10 hard sets each is plenty. Your abs recover quickly, but more days only help if each session is still hard.

Can I get a six-pack in 2 weeks?

Only if you are already lean enough that the muscle is close to showing. For most people, getting lean enough takes months of steady training and eating, while ab training in that time builds the muscle that will show.

What is the best ab exercise without equipment?

The reverse crunch for the front of your abs and the side plank for your obliques. If you can do 20 strict reverse crunches, move to the jackknife; if you have a bar, the hanging knee raise beats both.