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Exercises

Oblique exercises for women: a strong, defined waist without guesswork

Published October 19, 2026

The best oblique exercises for women are the side plank, the cable woodchop, the Pallof press, the side plank hip dip and the kettlebell windmill. Together they train the obliques the three ways they work: holding you upright against a sideways pull, resisting a twist, and turning your torso. Two or three of them, 2 to 3 sets each, twice a week, is enough. Whether your waist looks defined depends mostly on body fat, so oblique work builds the shape that shows when it is low enough.

  1. Side Plank Abs
  2. Cable Woodchop Abs
  3. Pallof Press Abs
  4. Dumbbell Side Plank Hip Dip Abs
  5. Kettlebell Windmill Abs, Shoulders
  6. Russian Twist Abs
  7. Dumbbell Suitcase Carry Abs, Quads

Side planks: the base of oblique training

A side plank asks the obliques on the bottom side to hold your hips up against gravity. Start with the plain hold, then add the hip dip to make the obliques shorten and lengthen through a range.

Obliques, side hold

Side Plank

Abs

Holding your body in a straight line on one forearm makes the obliques and the deep stabilizers on the lower side work for the whole set. It needs no equipment, suits every level, and you progress it simply by holding longer or lifting the top leg.

How to do it

  1. Lie on your side with your elbow under your shoulder and your legs stacked.
  2. Press your forearm into the floor and lift your hips until your body is straight from head to ankles.
  3. Hold, breathing normally, without letting the hips sag or drift back.
  4. Lower your hips and switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips high and forward
  • Elbow under shoulder
  • Breathe while holding

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips sink toward the floor: end the set when you cannot keep the line.
  • Rolling the top shoulder forward: keep your chest facing straight ahead.

Swap for: Dumbbell Side Plank, Copenhagen Plank

Build a session with Side Plank

Obliques, side plank with movement

Dumbbell Side Plank Hip Dip

Abs

Lowering your hip toward the floor and lifting it back up turns the side plank into a set of reps you can count, so you can program it and take it close to failure. A dumbbell resting on the top hip makes it harder when bodyweight reps get easy.

How to do it

  1. Set up in a forearm side plank, hips lifted, with a light dumbbell held on your top hip if you use one.
  2. Let your bottom hip drop slowly until it nearly touches the floor.
  3. Drive it back up past the starting line, squeezing your bottom-side waist.
  4. Do all reps on one side, then switch.

Cues

  • Down slow, up strong
  • Hips stay stacked
  • Squeeze at the top

Common mistakes

  • Bouncing off the floor: tap lightly or stop just short.
  • Twisting the top hip forward as you lift: keep your hips stacked.

Swap for: Side Plank, Dumbbell Side Bend

Build a session with Dumbbell Side Plank Hip Dip

Twisting and chopping

These turn your torso against resistance, which is what most people picture when they think of oblique work. The cable woodchop is the easiest to load and progress; the Russian twist needs only the floor; the rotational press and the med ball throw add the legs and hips, the way a turn happens in sport.

Obliques, loaded rotation

Cable Woodchop

Abs

Pulling a cable diagonally across your body loads the obliques through a twist, and the stack lets you add weight in small steps. It is the most progressable rotation exercise in a gym.

How to do it

  1. Set a cable pulley high on one side and stand side-on to it, feet wider than your hips.
  2. Grip the handle in both hands, arms long, reaching up toward the pulley.
  3. Draw the handle diagonally past your body to the opposite hip, turning your chest and pivoting the back foot.
  4. Let it return slowly along the same diagonal. Finish the set, then face the other way.

Cues

  • Turn from the ribs
  • Arms stay long
  • Pivot the back foot

Common mistakes

  • Pulling with the arms only: keep your elbows nearly straight and let your torso do the turning.
  • Jerking the weight down fast: take two seconds on the way back up.

Swap for: Dumbbell Woodchop, Med Ball Woodchop, Pallof Press

Build a session with Cable Woodchop

Obliques, floor rotation

Russian Twist

Abs

Seated twists keep the obliques working from side to side and need nothing but floor space, which makes them a staple of at-home waist circuits. Hold a weight once 20 reps per side feel easy.

How to do it

  1. Sit with knees bent and heels on the floor, and lean back until your torso is about 45 degrees.
  2. Clasp your hands at chest height.
  3. Turn your shoulders to one side until your hands are beside your hip, then turn to the other.
  4. Keep the lean steady and count each side as one rep.

Cues

  • Turn the shoulders, not just the hands
  • Long spine
  • Steady lean

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the arms while the chest stays still: your shoulders should rotate.
  • Rounding your lower back to stay leaned back: sit a little taller.

Swap for: Dumbbell Woodchop, Cable Woodchop

Build a session with Russian Twist

Obliques and shoulders, standing rotation

Landmine Rotational Press

Shoulders, Abs

Turning your hips and torso as you press a landmine bar up and across works the obliques together with the legs and shoulders. It builds the kind of rotational strength used in sports like tennis and golf.

How to do it

  1. Stand side-on to the end of a landmine bar and hold the sleeve with both hands at the hip farther from the pivot.
  2. Bend your knees slightly and turn your hips toward the bar.
  3. Drive through your back foot, rotate toward the front, and press the bar up and across until your arms are long.
  4. Lower it back to the hip with control. Complete the set, then switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips start the turn
  • Press as you rotate
  • Pivot the back foot

Common mistakes

  • Pressing with the arms before the hips move: the turn comes first.
  • Arching the lower back at the top: brace and finish with your ribs down.

Swap for: Cable Woodchop, Landmine Twist

Build a session with Landmine Rotational Press

Obliques, explosive rotation

Med Ball Rotational Throw

Abs

Throwing a medicine ball sideways into a wall trains the obliques to turn fast, which no slow exercise does. Keep the reps low and every throw sharp.

How to do it

  1. Stand side-on to a solid wall, about an arm's length away, holding a medicine ball at your hip.
  2. Load by rotating away from the wall and shifting onto your back leg.
  3. Turn your hips and chest toward the wall and release the ball hard.
  4. Catch it off the wall and reset before the next throw. Switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips lead the throw
  • Release hard
  • Reset each rep

Common mistakes

  • Throwing with the arms only: the power comes from the hips turning.
  • Rushing reps until they turn sloppy: stop when the throws slow down.

Swap for: Cable Woodchop, Landmine Rotational Press

Build a session with Med Ball Rotational Throw

Resisting a twist or a sideways pull

Here the obliques work by keeping your torso still while a cable or a single weight tries to turn or tip you. These are the lowest-risk way to load the waist heavily, and they carry straight over to lifting a bag or a child on one side.

Obliques, anti-rotation

Pallof Press

Abs

Holding a cable at your breastbone while it pulls you sideways makes the obliques work to stop the twist. It is a gentle way to load the waist and a good choice if your back dislikes crunching or twisting.

How to do it

  1. Set a cable at chest height and stand side-on to it, a step away, holding the handle at your breastbone with both hands.
  2. Brace and press the handle straight out until your arms are fully extended.
  3. Hold for two seconds without letting the cable turn your torso.
  4. Bring the handle back to your chest. Complete the set, then face the other way.

Cues

  • Chest stays square
  • Press straight out
  • Hold before returning

Common mistakes

  • Standing too close to the stack, so there is no pull to resist: step out until you feel it.
  • Leaning away from the cable: stay vertical.

Swap for: Side Plank, Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Build a session with Pallof Press

Obliques, loaded carry

Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Abs, Quads

Walking with a heavy dumbbell in one hand makes the obliques on the other side work to keep you upright. It is simple, scales to very heavy loads, and trains the same balance you use carrying shopping on one side.

How to do it

  1. Pick up a heavy dumbbell in one hand and stand tall with it at your side.
  2. Walk forward at a normal pace, keeping your shoulders level.
  3. Go for the set distance or time without leaning toward or away from the weight.
  4. Set it down, switch hands, and walk back.

Cues

  • Shoulders level
  • Tall posture
  • Short, steady steps

Common mistakes

  • Leaning away from the dumbbell to balance it: pick a weight you can carry upright.
  • Letting the weight hand drift away from your thigh: keep it close.

Swap for: Kettlebell Suitcase Squat, Dumbbell Side Bend

Build a session with Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Harder moves for strength and control

Once side planks feel easy, these load the obliques through a bigger range. The windmill also challenges hip and shoulder mobility; the hanging oblique crunch needs enough grip to hang for the set.

Obliques and hips, hinge with a side bend

Kettlebell Windmill

Abs, Shoulders

Holding a kettlebell overhead while you reach down to the floor works the obliques through a long range together with the hips and the shoulder holding the weight. Start with a light bell, or no bell at all, while you learn it.

How to do it

  1. Press a kettlebell overhead with one hand and turn your feet about 45 degrees away from that side.
  2. Push your hip out toward the bell side and slide your free hand down the inside of your front leg.
  3. Keep your eyes on the bell and your arm vertical as you reach as low as you can control.
  4. Stand back up by driving the hip forward. Finish the set, then switch.

Cues

  • Eyes on the bell
  • Hip out to the side
  • Arm stays vertical

Common mistakes

  • Bending the knees to reach lower: keep the back leg straight and stop where you can control it.
  • Letting the bell drift forward: the arm stays stacked over the shoulder.

Swap for: Dumbbell Side Bend, Side Plank

Build a session with Kettlebell Windmill

Obliques, hanging

Hanging Oblique Crunch

Abs

Hanging from a bar and raising your knees toward one side works the obliques and the lower abs together. It is the hardest exercise here and also trains grip.

How to do it

  1. Grab the bar overhead and hang with straight arms, legs together.
  2. Draw your knees up and toward one side, curling your pelvis up as they rise.
  3. Lower them under control to straight legs without swinging.
  4. Alternate sides, or do all reps to one side and then the other.

Cues

  • Curl the pelvis up
  • No swinging
  • Control the lowering

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the legs to get them up: pause at the bottom of every rep.
  • Only lifting the knees to hip height: the curl of the pelvis is what makes it an ab exercise.

Swap for: Hanging Knee Raise, Russian Twist

Build a session with Hanging Oblique Crunch

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

Home, a mat and 15 minutes

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets14 a week
  • Per workout~15 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

You train at home with no equipment, or a single light dumbbell, and want a short waist workout.

Side planks build the base, hip dips turn the hold into countable reps you can take near failure, and Russian twists add rotation, so all three ways the obliques work are covered with only floor space. Because there is no weight to add, every set ends close to failure, at 0 to 1 RIR, and you progress by reps and holding a dumbbell. Six to seven sets per session fits in 15 minutes.

Waist
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Side PlankSeconds per side. 2 × 20–45 1 45 s
Dumbbell Side Plank Hip DipPer side. Dumbbell on the hip optional. 2 × 10–20 0 45 s
Russian TwistPer side. Turn the shoulders. 3 × 10–20 1 45 s
How to run it
Do it twice a week after another workout, or on its own on a non-training day.
How to progress
Add 5 seconds to each side plank per week up to 60 seconds. Once you reach 20 hip dips per side, rest a light dumbbell on your top hip.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Gym, after a lower-body day

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets16 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentAdjustable Cable, Landmine

You lift at a gym, train legs and glutes once or twice a week, and want to add oblique work without a separate day.

Cables make the obliques easy to load and progress in small steps: the woodchop trains the twist, the Pallof press the resistance to it, and the landmine press ties rotation to the hips, which suits finishing a lower-body day. Rotation sets stop at 1 RIR to keep the reps clean; the Pallof press can go to 0. Eight sets, about 15 minutes.

Waist after Legs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Cable WoodchopPer side. High to low. 3 × 10–15 1 1 min
Pallof PressPer side. 2 s hold. 3 × 10–15 0 45 s
Landmine Rotational PressPer side. Hips turn first. 2 × 8–12 1 1 min
How to run it
Add it to the end of your lower-body sessions, once or twice a week.
How to progress
Add a plate on the cable stack when all sets reach the top of the range. Move the landmine press up by 5 lb when you can rotate fully on every rep.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

One kettlebell and one dumbbell, strength first

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets14 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentKettlebells, Dumbbells

You train at home or in a small gym with a kettlebell and a heavier dumbbell, and want a strong core that holds up when you lift heavy.

Heavier, slower moves suit this setup: the windmill works the obliques through a long range under a load overhead, the suitcase carry makes them fight a heavy weight on one side, and the weighted side plank holds it all in place. Windmills stay at 2 RIR because form breaks before the muscles give out; carries and side planks end at 1. Seven sets, twice a week.

Strong Waist
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Kettlebell WindmillPer side. Eyes on the bell. 3 × 5–8 2 75 s
Dumbbell Suitcase CarrySeconds per side. Stay upright. 2 × 30–45 1 1 min
Side PlankSeconds per side. 2 × 20–40 1 45 s
How to run it
Do it on two non-consecutive days, after your main lifts or as a short standalone session.
How to progress
Move up to a heavier kettlebell when 8 windmills per side feel controlled. Add distance to the carry first, then a heavier dumbbell.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What are good oblique exercises for women?

Side planks, side plank hip dips, cable woodchops, Pallof presses and kettlebell windmills. Pick one hold, one twisting move and one anti-rotation move per session for full coverage.

Does oblique training give you a blocky waist?

Not at the volume most people do. The obliques are thin, slow-growing muscles. Your waist width depends far more on your frame and body fat than on a few sets of side planks or woodchops.

Can I get a six pack in 2 weeks?

Only if you are already close to one. Visible abs and obliques need a low body fat, and losing fat takes months for most people. Two weeks of training will make the muscles stronger, not visible.

What is the number one exercise for abs?

There is no single best one, but the side plank is the best starting point for the obliques, and the hanging knee raise or cable crunch for the front of the stomach. Combine one of each.

How often should women train obliques?

Two sessions a week of 6 to 8 hard sets is enough. The obliques also work during squats, deadlifts and carries, so you do not need to train them every day.

Will oblique exercises reduce my waist size?

Not directly. Exercise does not remove fat from the area you train. Stronger obliques do make your waist feel tighter and help your posture, and they show more as your body fat comes down.

Can I do oblique exercises at home?

Yes. Side planks, hip dips and Russian twists need only a mat, and a single dumbbell or kettlebell adds carries and windmills. The home mat plan on this page uses no equipment.