The key to working out your abs effectively doesn’t start and end with a gruelling workout that’ll leave you feeling more depleted than on a dopamine high. Instead, the solution to a successful ab training routine is to find a type of workout you love so much that you’ll look forward to doing it and stay consistent in your practice.
If you’re done with crunches, tired of sit-ups, or bored with planks, that’s where quick and effective no-repeat workouts, like this eight-minute bodyweight Pilates session from physiotherapist and instructor Lilly Sabri, can come in handy.
“If you’re just getting started with Pilates, this is the perfect place for you,” Sabri says. “I’m going to be teaching you the fundamental basics of Pilates core. We’re not going fast, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy.” Once you’ve rolled out your yoga mat, you’re ready to begin.
What are the exercises?
Sabri’s workout consists of just seven exercises, each performed for around 45 seconds each. There are no set rest periods in this class. Instead, the instructor flows from one exercise to the next. However, if you feel like you need to take a breath, hit pause on the workout and do so, as you’ll be engaging your core for pretty much most of this class.
- Half roll back
- Toe taps
- Pulses
- Alternating leg lifts
- Pilates roll-ups
- Pilates tabletop
- Pilates single leg stretch
Sabri includes exercise modifications throughout, so even if you’ve never done Pilates before, these bodyweight moves should be suitable for you.
But that said, if you’re new to this type of mind-body workout, it’s well worth getting clued up on the things one writer wishes she knew as a Pilates beginner. Reading about the three 'essential' bodyweight moves for beginners to build strength and improve flexibility is also a good place to start.
Does a 10-minute Pilates session work?
It’s common knowledge that Pilates comes with a wealth of benefits. As this 2016 study shows, the low-impact practice has been proven to improve postural alignment, while a review found that Pilates can improve a person’s quality of life while lowering pain and disability, along with increasing flexibility, strength, mobility, respiratory rate, vital capacity, body mass index, and balance.
Plus, when it comes to boosting ab strength, an article published in the Journal of Exercise Rehabilitation found that Pilates can be effective for increasing abdominal deep muscle thickness.
It’s easy to think that short workouts equal even shorter gains. But according to this study, published in the British Medical Journal's Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, that’s not necessarily the case. In the study, researchers found that the benefits of shorter sessions of 10 minutes or less are comparable to 30 to 60-minute workouts.
Of course, 10 minutes of Pilates a day won’t be enough to hit the American Council of Exercise’s guidelines, which state that you should get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week. But when your mind and/or body has only got a short amount of time to spare, it turns out that a 10-minute Pilates session is better than no movement at all.
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More from Tom's Guide
- No, Not Planks — Personal Trainer Reveals 5 Essential Standing Ab Moves
- 3 10-minute ab workouts to sculpt a strong core and strengthen your hips
- Forget crunches — a Pilates instructor shares 9 exercises to target your deep core
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