You just need 2 dumbbells and 15 minutes to strengthen your core with this standing abs workout

woman with defined abs holding a dumbbell
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

If you’re looking to increase your core strength you don’t have to spend your time doing endless sit-ups, planks and crunches, you can get a great abs workout done while staying standing.

This 15-minute abs workout from YouTube fitness trainer Mizi is a great example of how to train your core without hitting the floor. Not only do you stay standing during the session, it also doesn’t have any jumping moves to reduce the impact on your joints, and all you need to do it is a set of dumbbells.

Mizi is using a set of light dumbbells for the workout, but choose whatever weight will suit you best in providing a challenge for each move. If you have a set of the best adjustable dumbbells, they are ideal because you can change the weight quickly to suit each exercise.

Watch Mizi’s 15-minute standing abs workout

LOSE BELLY FAT in 1 Week🔥 15 MIN Standing Dumbbell Abs Workout - No Squat, No Lunge, No Jumping - YouTube LOSE BELLY FAT in 1 Week🔥 15 MIN Standing Dumbbell Abs Workout - No Squat, No Lunge, No Jumping - YouTube
Watch On

There are 18 exercises in the workout in total, and you go pretty much straight into them when the video starts, so be in position and ready to go when you hit play. For each move you work for 40 seconds, then you take a 10-second break before the next exercise, before finishing the session with a quick 30-second cooldown.

To target the abs while staying standing, you’ll be doing a lot of exercises where you raise your knees or kick out your legs, as well as moves where you rotate your torso and lift the weights above your head.

The mix of exercises involved means that you will work your whole core, including the obliques and deeper stabilizing muscles as well as the abs. If you keep the pace high throughout the workout you’ll also get your heart pumping to fire up your metabolism, and your arms and shoulders are also targeted through dumbbell raises.

Mizi does the workout with you so you can follow along with her to keep your form on point, and in each 10-second break you get a preview of the next move coming up, so you can get straight into it when the timer starts for your work period.

The workout is suitable for all fitness levels, but if you’re finding it hard to keep up with Mizi or complete the work periods, you can also reduce them and add more rest, or put your dumbbells down and just do the exercises with your bodyweight.

If you’d rather do a session without any weights at all, this 25-minute standing abs workout is a good option, and if you’re looking for something to target the whole body, not just the core, give this 15-minute full-body workout a go.

More from Tom's Guide

Nick Harris-Fry
Senior Writer

Nick Harris-Fry is an experienced health and fitness journalist, writing professionally since 2012. He spent nine years working on the Coach magazine and website before moving to the fitness team at Tom’s Guide in 2024. Nick is a keen runner and also the founder of YouTube channel The Run Testers, which specialises in reviewing running shoes, watches, headphones and other gear.

Nick ran his first marathon in 2016 after six weeks of training for a magazine feature and subsequently became obsessed with the sport. He now has PBs of 2hr 27min for the marathon and 15min 30sec for 5K, and has run 13 marathons in total, as well as a 50-mile ultramarathon. Nick is also a qualified Run Leader in the UK.

Nick is an established expert in the health and fitness area and along with writing for many publications, including Live Science, Expert Reviews, Wareable, Coach and Get Sweat Go, he has been quoted on The Guardian and The Independent.

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