While they’re consistently forgotten and often completely overlooked, the obliques are one of the most fascinating muscles in the human body.

Your obliques initiate and control torso rotation, they can produce tremendous power, and enough strength to stabilise your body through a range of other exercises. But, even while they support your weights and cardio training daily, most people don’t know how to train the oblique muscles effectively.

In this blog, we’re going to help you to understand a little more about what the obliques are, where you’ll find them, and provide you with a collection of exercises that’ll take your ab and core training to the next level.

The obliques

Before you jump into your first core-focussed workout, you must understand the basic anatomy of the obliques.

The obliques run down the majority of your abdomen, with internal and external oblique muscles that work in synergy to produce rotation, and, more importantly, control rotation. They also produce the power for side-bending and spinal flexion of the torso, contracting or stretching depending on the direction and angle of the movement. 

Since the internal and external obliques have a similar function, you should consider them as a single muscle for the majority of your training.

Five exercises to strengthen your obliques

Now that you’re up to speed on where your obliques are and what it is they do, it’s time to get stuck into five of the best exercises for targeting the muscles that frame your torso.  

Typically, most core muscles respond better to higher rep ranges, between 10-15, so try to aim for three sets of 10+ on each exercise. You should adapt the numbers depending on your ability, and consider adding weight or lowering reps where needed. And remember, when it comes to oblique-focussed exercises, you’ll want to ensure that you execute each rep with a near-perfect form to make the most of your workout. 

1 — Side Crunches

• Lie on a padded surface on your right side. Place one leg on top of the other, with your knees and feet together. Bring your left hand behind your head, and rest your right arm in front of you or across your body. Then, brace your core. 

• Contracting the obliques, bring your left elbow up and towards your feet. Remember not to pull with your hand here.

• Once contracted as much as you can, squeeze your core for one second, then slowly return to the starting position. Repeat for your desired reps, and then switch sides. 

Tip: Add some rotation to add even more of a focus on the obliques. This may cause you to drop some reps, but the quality of the dynamic exercise will make up for them.

2 — Anti-rotation press

• Using a cable machine with a single handle attachment, secure it at stomach height, just above your belly button. 

• Grip the handle with both hands. You can interlock your fingers here if it feels more comfortable. Then, take a few steps away from the machine, and turn your body, so your side is facing in the direction the cable is coming from. 

• Keeping your core tight and your pelvis tucked, push your hands straight out in front of you, extending your arms forward.

• Hold for a two-second count, and then gently return the handle to your stomach. Repeat for your desired reps, and then switch sides. 

3 — Hanging corkscrew leg raises

• Grip a pull-up bar with your hands roughly shoulder-width apart, using an overhand (pronated) grip. 

• Engage your core, and while keeping your torso stable, slowly raise your legs to one side at a roughly 45° angle, driving through your glutes. Continue to lift them until your legs are parallel with the floor.

• Slowly lower your legs to the starting position, and repeat for the desired amount of reps on one side. Once finished, immediately swap sides and start the exercise again. 

Tip: Finding these a little too tough? Try tucking your legs in by bending your knees. Just remember to keep your knees raised throughout the exercise. 

4 — Landmine wipers

• Stand straight with your feet about shoulder-width apart and your core tightened. Grasp the Landmine Bar with both hands (fingers interlaced if comfortable) and fully extend your arms in front of you. 

• In a large, arcing motion, lower the bar to the left side of your body, keeping your right arm straight and allowing a slight bend in your left elbow as the bar reaches waist level. 

• In a single controlled motion, rotate the bar to the other side, passing your head, replicating the same position on the right. This counts as one rep. 

Form check: Be sure to follow the with your head and chest, while keeping your lower torso as tight and secure as possible.

5 — Bicycle crunch

• Lie on your back with your heels out in front of you, and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Make sure your heels aren’t touching your glutes, they should be in line with your knees and parallel to the ground. 

• Place your fingers gently on the back of your head with your elbows open wide. Stop your elbows from moving as much as possible during the movement, as it decreases the range of motion, in turn lowering oblique activation.

• Raise your chest, ensuring your shoulder blades are just barely touching the floor. Keep your chin away from your check, but don’t drop your head back either. Try to find a comfortable position where you’re gazing slightly forwards. 

• Now, just like riding a bike, extend one leg out straight, while bringing the other slightly closer to your torso. At the same time, bring the elbow on the side of the extended leg across your body, and attempt to touch the knee of the contracted leg on the opposite side. 

• Slowly straighten your body back to the starting position, and immediately continue onto the other side, extending the previously contracted leg, and crossing your body with the opposite elbow. An extension on both sides counts as a single rep. Try aiming for 15+ on this exercise.

Form check: Always keep your feet, legs, and shoulder blades off the ground. Also, think of the motion as bringing your shoulder to your knee, and simply use your elbow as a signal to return to the start. 

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Tags: Exercise Type > Conditioning ; Misc > Workout ; Target Area > Core