Set yourself on the road to impressive six-pack abs with these unusual exercises that really get results. Shock your abs into growing by trying out these special workout options.

Abs Are the Thing

How long does it take to get six-pack abs? Shakespeare said the play’s the thing, but in the bodybuilding world, abs are the thing. Bodybuilders work very hard to get visible abdominal muscles. They will do millions of crunches to get a six-pack, but are crunches the only way? In this article, you will read about great ab exercises that you probably haven’t tried.

Cross Crunch

This ab exercise is great for targeting your lower abdominal muscles. It also targets your obliques (sides) and the rectus abdominus. This exercise will give you a great deal of stability (avoiding neck and lower back irritation) because your body is flat on the ground. To perform this exercise, you must lie on the ground on your back with your arms and legs forming the letter X.

From this starting point, your left hand will touch your right foot. As they touch, your head, neck and shoulder should lift from the ground. That is one-half of the exercise. Perform the same movement on the other side of your body and then repeat that sequence for 10 or more repetitions.

Spiderman Plank Crunch

Spiderman might be truly amazing, but not as amazing as the Spiderman plank crunch. This challenging abdominal exercise combines the plank with crunches – so you’ll get an ab workout you won’t forget in a hurry.

The Spiderman plank crunch begins in the position of a traditional crunch. Your forearms are on the ground and you position yourself on the tips of your toes.

Instead of maintaining a static position and holding it for as long as you can, you will alternate by bringing your right knee to your right elbow and your left knee to your left elbow.

Once you have done both sides you will have completed one repetition. You can perform this exercise in a less intense variation by bringing your knees forward toward your chest.

​You can also perform it by starting the exercise as if you were going to do a pushup and bringing your knees to your elbow or to your chest, depending on which variation best suits you. This exercise works your obliques, rectus abdominus, glutes and back muscles.

Stability Ball Exercises

There are several ab exercises you can do using the stability ball that will really help you strengthen your abdominals. One such exercise is called the stability ball tuck.

​In this exercise you rest your hands on the ground and place your ankles on top of the ball. Using only your abdominal muscles, you will bring the ball toward your chest. As you roll the ball towards your chest your hips should lift up.

Finish one repetition of the exercise by pushing the ball back until you are in the starting position. Continue this exercise until you have completed the desired number of repetitions. This exercise works your abs, leg muscles and arms as well.

Another good abdominal exercise that you can do with a stability ball is crunches. You may think crunches are useless, but it takes on a whole new dimension when performing them on a stability ball. You have to balance your body on the ball and that increases the difficulty and the amount of work your abs have to do.

To perform this exercise, you must carefully sit on the stability ball until your lower back is resting on it. Your feet should be firmly planted on the floor and your hands should be behind your head.

At this point, you will do a crunch like you normally would. The only difference is you will immediately feel the difference between performing a crunch on the ground and doing one on the stability ball. Studies have shown that doing crunches on a stability ball are 40% more effective than doing them without the ball.

Try These Exercises

If you haven’t tried these exercises, try them as soon as you can. These exercises will help you break away from boring crunches and give you ways that will really work your abs hard.

Not only will you work your abdominal muscles, but you’ll be working your back, arms and legs as well. The cross crunch, Spiderman plank crunch, and stability ball ab exercises will help you get the six-pack you’ve been searching for.