The core is the seat of strength in your body and the stronger your core, the better you can perform any physical activity. The best way to make your core stronger is to work on your abs. As your abs become more ripped, your core also begins to strengthen. Many yoga poses work on the core but some are more focused on the core than the others.
By shifting your practice to core-oriented asanas, you can ensure that your abs become more toned. The 8 asanas mentioned below can give your abs an intense workout. The 8 asanas mentioned below can give your abs an intense workout. For a good warm-up, practice 3-5 rounds of sun salutations.
1. Plank Pose
- Stack your shoulders over your wrists and extend your heels to the back of your mat.
- Press your outer shins in and firm your leg muscles to the bones. Extend your crown forward and reach your heels back.
- Lengthen your tailbone toward your heels and lift your low belly up and in, stoking your inner fire at your core as you hold for 10 breaths.
2. Side Plank
- Ground down through your lower hand and lift your opposite arm to the sky. Press the outer edge of your lower foot into the floor, stack and flex your feet, and hug your leg muscles to the bones.
- Press your tailbone toward your heels, and lift the pit of your belly up and in to build your inner fire in your core.
- Look to your top hand and spread your fingers wide. Lift your hips as high as you can and open your chest as you expand from the inside out. Hold for 5–10 breaths.
- Return to Plank, pause and hug into your centerline. Repeat on the other side.
3. Cat Crunches
- Come to tabletop on your hands and knees, with your hands rooted under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Tuck your toes to help you stabilize.
- Lift your low belly up and in so your core is engaged and your back is long. Reach your right arm forward at shoulder height, turn your palm to the left wall and spark open your fingers.
- Extend your left heel to the back wall at hip level and flex your foot. On your exhale, hug your right elbow and left knee into touch.
- Round your back in a Cat Pose, lifting your low belly up. With your inhale, extend your right arm forward and left leg back.
- Exhale, hug into the crunch. Keep going one breath per movement for 5 rounds. Return to all fours. Repeat on the other side.
4. Triangle Pose
- Take a wide stance on your mat and align your heels and your front foot at 12 o’clock. Seal the outer edges of both feet and lift your inner arches. From your hips to your heels, root down to create a solid foundation.
- Lift the energy up your legs, hug your muscles to the bones, and draw your energy into your core. Straighten both legs while keeping a micro-bend at your front knee.
- Place your bottom hand to the outside of your leg and press into your fingertips. Catch your top hip with your top hand, engage your core, and twist your chest high.
- Knit your front ribs together. To strengthen your abs even more, keep your torso as it is, lift your bottom hand, and reach toward the front wall, with your bicep by your ear.
- Reach both arms overhead to fire up and tone your core even more. Hold for 5 balanced breaths. Bring both hands to your hips. Lifting from your core strength, stand up and switch sides.
5. Revolved Chair Pose
- Bring your feet together at the center of your mat and sit deeply into Chair Pose. Keep your big toes together, ground down through all four corners of your feet, and shift your weight back into your heels.
- Lengthen your tailbone and lift your low belly. Draw your hands to heart center. On an inhale, lengthen your spine, and on your exhale, twist and hook your opposite tricep over opposite thigh.
- Continue to ride your breath, extending on the inhale and twisting deeper with each exhale. Hold for 5–10 breaths, move through Chair Pose to re-center and then repeat on the other side.
6. Boat Pose
- Sit up straight, lift your legs off the floor, and balance on your seat. Catch behind your knees and extend your heels high.
- Activate your feet, press the inner arches together, and fan your toes open. Extend your hands forward and spread your fingers.
- To modify, bend your knees to bring your shins parallel to the ground and keep your hands behind your knees for more support.
- Draw your upper arm bones back and broaden across your chest. Engage your low belly and lift your chest up and open. Balance as you breathe deeply and hold for 5–10 breaths.
7. Crescent Lunge
- With a long stance, ground down into all four corners of your front foot. Stack your back heel over the ball of your back foot and hug skin to muscle and muscle to bone.
- Hug your inner thighs in toward one another, square both hips to the front of the mat, and draw in toward your centerline.
- From the floor to your core, lift up, and from your core to the floor, root down. Extend your arms and chest high. Hold for 5–10 deep breaths.
8. Half Moon Pose
- Ground down into the four corners of your right foot, and from your core strength, lift your left leg up and in line with your hip, parallel to the floor, and flex your foot.
- Plant your right hand about 12 inches or more in front of your standing foot, in line with your pinkie toe, and lift onto your fingertips. Place your left hand on your left hip.
- Lift the front of your pelvis toward your belly button. With your core engaged, stack your hips and open them toward the left side wall. Activate your center by pulling your belly button toward your spine.
- You can build up from here by extending your left arm to the sky or lifting your bottom hand or both hands to heart center to cultivate even more abdominal strength. Hold for 5 breaths and transition to the other side.
