Dumbbells and weight plates aren’t just for working big muscle groups like the legs, shoulders and back. The core also can benefit greatly from added resistance, even just light weights.
That’s the premise of this particular Six-Pack Boot Camp workout, which consists of five weighted exercises using whatever equipment you have available — a light dumbbell, a weight plate, a medicine ball or other small implement. And we’re not just talking about typical ab exercises here. This routine incorporates a handful of moves you wouldn’t necessarily think of for the abs and core, including specific variations of squats, lunges and deadlifts that bring more midsection focus.
This hard-hitting workout was designed by ISSA-certified trainer and former U.S. Marine Aneshea Shali, owner of Core Camp Challenge and creator of such other fitness programs as the Dirty 30 Challenge, 7 Day Fit Commit and Full Body Flex.
“These exercises hit large muscle groups,” Shali says, “but I’d argue they’re just as good for improving core strength and stability as any isolation exercise like planks.”
The workout also prescribes a good dose of rotational torso work through Russian twists and woodchoppers (again, with added resistance). What you end up with is a full-body, multi-planar, highly functional routine that can fit into any program at any time.
Full-Body Weighted Core Workout
Use whatever light-weight resistance you have available for this routine. A small weight plate (i.e., 5 or 10 pounds), a dumbbell or even a medicine ball are good options.
Perform the below exercises as “straight sets” (doing all sets of one exercise before moving on to the next), resting one minute between sets. If you’d prefer to perform the exercises as a circuit (one set of each exercise consecutively), rest two minutes between rounds, doing three rounds total.
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