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Tone Your Abs With These 5 Challenging Moves

They will set your core on fire, according to fitness instructor Kayla Itsines.

Martha Zaytoun

Ab workout
Ab workout / Oleg Breslavtsev/Getty Images

If you’re on the market for some fitness moves that are guaranteed to tone your core, you’ve come to the right place. We’re always on the lookout for the best fitness instructor-approved moves to add to our gym routines, and luckily, we’ve just found a perfect set for strengthening our abs.

Australian fitness instructor Kayla Itsines—the co-founder of Sweat—is known for her well-curated sets, and her latest five-move core routine is the perfect example. Composed of just a few simple exercises and requiring nothing but a mat, it’s the perfect standalone set or an incredible addition to your established gym routine.

In an Instagram demonstration of the set, Itsines promised that the following five moves “will have your abs on fire.”

1. Jackknife

Lay on your back with your arms and legs extended long and floating a couple inches off of your mat. Raise your legs toward the ceiling, while simultaneously bringing your arms up to touch your feet. Lower back down and repeat.

2. Half burpee

Start in a high plank position. Jump your feet in toward your hands, bringing your hips up toward the ceiling. Jump your feet back to return to a high plank. Repeat.

3. Plank

Place your forearms on the mat, keeping your elbows in line with your shoulders. Extend your feet out to the back of the mat to come into a forearm plank position. Hold.

4. Leg raises

Start with your hands underneath your glutes and your legs extended out and floating a couple inches above the mat. Lift your upper body off of the mat to engage your core. Swing your legs up toward the ceiling, then lower them back toward the mat. Repeat.

5. Toe taps

Laying on your back, extend your legs up toward the ceiling, keeping a slight bend in your knees. Lift your upper body off of the mat as you reach your hands toward your toes. Lay back down and then repeat.

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Martha Zaytoun
MARTHA ZAYTOUN

Martha Zaytoun is a Lifestyle & Trending News writer for SI Swimsuit. Before joining the team, Martha worked on the editorial board of the University of Notre Dame’s student magazine and on the editorial team at Chapel Hill, Durham and Chatham Magazines in North Carolina. When not working, Martha loves to watercolor and oil paint, run or water ski. She is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and a huge Fighting Irish fan.

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