I wasn’t always into fitness and eating well but that all changed when I was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis a few years ago. Getting strong and treating my body well became a non-negotiable if I wanted to feel my best and ward off inflammation.
My go-to workout routine tends to focus on low-impact workouts like swimming and Pilates (and hot girl walks, obviously) but since I’ve started strength training, I’ve been toying with the idea of trying to get visible abs. This would require incredibly low levels of body fat and committing to an intense training regime—but this viral YouTube video from Rowan Row’s claims to offer a path to getting abs in less than three weeks. Can it be true?
I committed to doing the routine for 21 days, confident my body could handle the challenge—but that's not an approach that will suit most people. It's always best to build up strength incrementally to avoid injury and fatigue. If you're new to fitness, try doing this core workout for beginners instead and remember to leave at least a day between repeats of the routine.
How to do Rowan Row’s ab routine
Aside from a yoga mat, the 13-minute video requires no equipment and I found it simple enough to follow. It was similar to mat Pilates videos I’ve done but the pace was much faster.
There’s no warm-up or stretching at the end; the video really is 13 minutes of non-stop abs work and certainly challenged my core. I found myself repeating the mantra "I can do hard things" while doing hollow holds and speeding through bicycles.
The workout comprises twelve moves designed to tackle the entire abdominal region with minimal crunches, instead focusing on dynamic movement. These didn’t strain my neck the way some abs-focused Pilates moves or crunches do.
My results
I didn’t have huge expectations when I committed to doing this workout for three weeks, but I hoped to see some physical changes in the 21 days. Here's everything that happened.
1. My posture was better than ever
The most significant change I saw—and what surprised me the most—was that this workout helped improve my posture. I’m always sitting in the hunched-over "shrimp position" when working and constantly trying to remember to engage my core and correct my posture.
After three weeks of Row’s abs workout, I noticed it was easier and felt more intuitive sit up straight. I’ve done mat and reformer Pilates for more than two years but consistently doing this video made a much bigger impact on how I hold my body.
2. I started to see "11 lines" after two weeks
Doing abs workouts won’t give you visible abs if you have any fat around the tummy area, which most people do even if they have a healthy body fat percentage.
I am already relatively lean and started to see the beginning of the "11 line abs" oblique definition after 18 days, but only if I held my body in certain ways.
3. It was easy to stay consistent
I tend to do some form of a movement every day of the week—even if it’s just an evening walk after dinner—but sometimes it feels like a chore. This video is dynamic and quick; it was easy to fit into my schedule, which meant I never resented doing it.
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