CROSS-TRAIN YOUR CORE

CROSS-TRAIN YOUR CORE

Incorporate the right cross-training activities into your routine, and you can boost the strength and stamina of your abdominal muscles even on days when you don't do a single crunch. Here are five of the best ways to work your abs while cross-training. Just remember that whenever you're performing an activity in which your arms and/or legs are moving away from the center of your body, you should engage your abdominals by consciously pulling in your stomach to get maximum ab-building benefit.

Swimming Since you are practically weightless, all the force in swimming is generated from the core. To increase this power, exhale on the part of your stroke that requires the most effort.

Rock Climbing It isn't just upper-body strength that gets you up a route. Reaching for a hold requires dynamic movement and isometric contractions of the abs.

Kickboxing The punching and kicking combo requires moving forward, backward, and laterally, and all the while the core works hard to stabilize the body.

Racquet Sports: When you hit a ball, the abdominal muscles are the bridge between the lower body and the upper body to help transmit force to the ball. As your abs get stronger, there is less stress on your shoulder as you hit the ball.

Pilates The entire focus of Pilates is on the core-both strengthening it and using it to control movements of other parts of the body. With every exhale, focus on tightening the whole chain of muscles running from the pubic bone to the lower rib cage.