Ab Wheel – Exercise of the Week

The ab wheel is a great piece of equipment and exercise to target and tone your abdominal muscles and midsection. As a single piece of gym equipment, you simply require it and your body to complete the movement (the use of a mat beneath you is optional). Pictured here is our trainer Matt who demonstrates how to properly complete the ab wheel movement and exercise.

Ab Wheel

To begin, get onto your knees and hold each handle of the ab wheel on the floor straight in front of you. Brace your core (imagine you were about to be punched in the stomach and you would tense your stomach in anticipation for the impact) and drive the wheel forward. This driving motion should be derived from the abdominal muscles – meaning that they support the movement as opposed to your arms driving it forward. Your arms will fully extend outwards however to facilitate the movement of the ab wheel.

One repetition (rep) of the exercise is not complete until you return to the starting position. To do this, keep your core braced and drive the wheel backwards. During this entire movement, you will feel your abdominal muscles at work and extending and retracting with the movement of the wheel. When new to this exercise, do not be disheartened if you cannot complete many reps. As this is a new movement to master, it will take time and practice to perfect. However once you do, it is sure to become a staple move as part of your exercise routine as you work towards your health and fitness goals at Westpark Fitness. Please ask any of our fitness team if you would like them to demonstrate and then guide you through this exercise – they are always happy to help.

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