Ab Wheel Workouts

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Mastering the Roll Out

Ab wheel workouts for training the abs. I’m going to show you the progressions for mastering the Ab Roll Out. The Ab Roll Out is an advanced version of a plank. The Plank requires core stability. Abs do flex the spine, but they don’t do it much in function.

The main role of the abs is to stabilize the spine and to prevent back extension. The abs also have the job to prevent rotation or cause rotation in combination with the obliques. The Ab Roll Out is a great anti-extension exercise along with being a great core strengthener.  

However, if you attempt to do an Ab Roll Out and you aren’t ready for this, you could end up hurting yourself. It’s wise to master the progressions first before you rip your abs with roll outs. The following is a step by step progression for mastering the Ab Roll Out. 

Ab Roll Out Progression

  1. Master the Plank!
  2. PB Stirs
  3. PB Alphabet
  4. PB Roll Out
  5. Wheel Roll Out
  6. Wheel Three Way
  7. Weighted Barbell
  8. 2, 3, 4 on Toes
  9. Standing Roll Outs

Master the progressions so you don’t go hard and fast too soon causing injury.  

Mastering the Plank

You start out by Mastering the Plank. When talking about the ab Roll Out, this is a much harder exercise than the plank. With the plank, you have the entire surface of the forearms in contact with the ground. On the wheel, you have a lot less surface area to balance. You have less force supported by the wheel than there is with the forearms. So, it’s good to first start with Planks.

Physioball Stirs

With the Physioball Stirs, you are in a plank position on the ball and you have some movement that causes a challenge to the core and stability. Start with small circles in the beginning. As you get stronger, you can make larger circles. Work both directions – clockwise and counterclockwise. 

Physioball Alphabets

With the Physioball Alphabets, instead of making circles you now have to start making some letters. We are now making some small sharp movements and we aren’t quite rolling out just yet. 

Physioball Ab Roll Out

The Physioball Ab Roll Out allows you to do a Roll Out from higher off the ground. Once you get closer to the ground, the more the body is against the force of gravity, the more work you are going to have to do. If you can stay up on the Physioball, it’s going to be a little easier.  

Ab Roll Out – Ab Wheel Workouts

Next, we do the Ab Wheel exercise. Again, the point of all these is to keep the core stable while training the abs. This is an anti-extension movement. You aren’t allowing your body to break into extension. To make the Ab Roll Out harder, we start adding in directions. We start with a 3-way Ab Wheel Roll Out. Go to the center, then out to the right, then out to the left. By changing directions, this makes it a lot harder for you to stabilize, so this works the core even harder. If we want to make progress with our training, this is exactly the kind of challenge we are looking for. 

Weighted Barbell Roll Out

Next, we have a Weight Barbell Roll Out. With this exercise, we are now introducing friction. As you roll out, it’s about the same as when you use the Ab Wheel. However, when you bring the bar back, you have to overcome the momentum and pull the bar back again. The friction on the ground and the weight of the bar can make this exercise very difficult. 

Physioball Exercises on the Toes

To make this even more challenging, you now go back to the Physioball Plank exercises we did and now do them on your toes instead of your knees. 

Standing Ab Roll Out – Ab Wheel Workouts

If you have made it through all the progressions, you could challenge yourself with the Standing Ab Roll Out. 

Regardless of where you are in your ab training, my goal is to get you to the next level, whatever that may be. 

Ab Wheel – More Than Just Training the Abs 

Ab wheel workouts aren’t just about training the abs. There’s a lot more you can do with an ab roller than ab exercises. One of the biggest reasons guys don’t workout is they don’t have the proper equipment they need. Many think the ab wheel is only used for ab exercises when in reality, this tool can be used for a lot more than just abs. 

The following are total body ab wheel workouts requiring just a band and ab wheel.  

Setting Up Your Home Gym

This is all you need to do this entire workout. 

  • Ab Roller
  • Resistance Band

You put the band around the axel of the roller. Attach the other end to a rack or pull up bar. Anchor it up high or down low. It doesn’t matter. It all works the same. 

Ab Exercises and More

  • Triceps Pushdowns
  • Cable Curls
  • Cable Reverse Curls
  • Overhead Triceps Extensions
  • Reverse Pendulums
  • Resisted Roll Out Push Ups
  • Resisted Diagonal Roll Outs
  • Single Leg Squat Roll Outs
  • Resisted Roll Ins

There you have it. Lots of exercises you can do with just an ab roller and resistance band.

If you enjoyed these tips and would like to keep it close to you at any time, just save this pin to your Pinterest Ab Training Board.

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