Forget sit-ups! Use these three moves to strengthen your abs

This bodyweight workout will boost your balance and develop your core muscles in less than 10 minutes

A woman performing bicycle crunches on a yoga mat outside
(Image credit: Getty)

This three-move abs challenge will help you get moving on even your busiest days. It takes less than 10 minutes and doesn't require any equipment either, meaning you can easily squeeze it into your lunchbreak or use it as a way to wake up. 

The only gear you might want is a yoga mat to protect your spine against unforgiving floors, but this is optional. It's a great routine, as developing your core muscle helps improve your posture, balance, and circulation. 

The workout comes from Krissy Cela, co-founder of the EvolveYou training app, as a way to test your midsection strength. She suggests you do the three exercises as a circuit for two rounds (or three, if you want to push yourself and have the time).  

To get the benefits of this ab-focused workout, it's essential to do each move with the right technique. So, before you start, perfect your form by following Cela's demonstrations to get the most from your training and avoid injury. 

Watch Krissy Cela's three-move abs workout

Cela's short workout is a great fit for anyone interested in the phenomenon of "exercise snacking". This is an approach to fitness that encourages you to take part in short bouts of exercise throughout the day rather than setting aside 60 minutes for an extended session. 

This offers a time-efficient way to undo the damage of sitting while still improving your cardiorespiratory fitness. It may also be easier to stick to than committing to lengthy workouts, increasing your motivation and making training of your schedule. 

As an abs workout, it holds plenty of other benefits too. Strengthening the muscles around your stomach can boost your balance, plus it helps improve stability during other exercises, like it you're looking to learn how to do squats

If you're interested in the idea of exercise snacking and want to find other short workouts that could fit the format, we've got you covered. These five-minute workouts will help you build muscle all over without weights, while these beginner yoga exercises help improve your mobility. 

Harry Bullmore
Fitness Writer

Harry Bullmore is a Fitness Writer for Fit&Well and its sister site Coach, covering accessible home workouts, strength training session, and yoga routines. He joined the team from Hearst, where he reviewed products for Men's Health, Women's Health, and Runner's World. He is passionate about the physical and mental benefits of exercise, and splits his time between weightlifting, CrossFit, and gymnastics, which he does to build strength, boost his wellbeing, and have fun.


Harry is a NCTJ-qualified journalist, and has written for Vice, Learning Disability Today, and The Argus, where he was a crime, politics, and sports reporter for several UK regional and national newspapers.