Oblique Exercises
Since your oblique muscles are used in pretty much every form of exercise and sport this article is going to shed some light on how we use them and how to strengthen them. After all, they give your mid-section a very nice shape and help your reduce the strain on your lower back.
In case, you’re not familiar with where your obliques are, they are the large muscles on the side of your waist and are broad and thin and extend right to your ribs. They are considered part of your “core muscles” along with your abs and lower back muscles.
For most people and especially women, the oblique muscles are hidden by subcutaneous fat deposits so you may already be guessing what I’m going to talk about next….
To really get your oblique muscles to show you need to first and most importantly lower your overall body fat percentage. I give some great advice on lowering your body fat in my Body Transformation in 5 Days Course as well as my articles Lose Fat Gain Muscle & many more you can find in the Weight Loss Tips category of this site. You may also want to read my article on supplements such as Fubar and PrimaForce Lean Green Tea Extract
While you’re working on lowering your body fat you can also start implementing some oblique exercises to strengthen your core. Let’s take a look at some of the best ones…
Exercises to Strengthen Your Oblique Muscles
Side Plank – get on the floor and lean on your elbow which is at 90 degrees ( refer to photo here ). Hold this for 30 seconds and then repeat on the other side. That is one set. Aim for 3 sets of this exercise.
Seated Twist – Grab a barbell and lie it on the upper part of your back while holding the bar and twist from one side to the next. ( refer to photo here ). Try 2 sets of 12 twists.
Side Jacknife – Lie on your side with your head and shoulder elevated, and lean on one elbow. Raise your upper leg and concentrate on flexing your obliques. ( refer to photo here ) Switch to other side. This is one set. Try 2 sets of 12.
Woodchopper with medicine ball – grab a weighted medicine ball and swing and twist from lower part of one side of body to the upper side of the other side of your body ( refer to photo here ). Alternate side to complete one set. Try 2 sets of 15 reps.
Other Benefits of Strengthening Your Oblique Muscles
Having strong oblique muscles means that you will also help reduce the chances of having back pain. Your obliques will kick-in any time you bend over or do any kind of lifting and therefore reduce the pressure on your lower back.
Next time you are about to lift a heavy box think about tightening your all your core muscles and you will reduce the pressure on your lower back.
Top 5 Supplements to Give you Killer Obliques
Conclusion:
This is a great starter article on oblique exercises and strengthening your entire core. Once again to really show off the efforts you’ve made you need to also focus on a healthy diet so you can get your body fat down enough to show the definition.
Have any comments or other oblique exercises you’d like to add? Please leave a comment below:
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Thank you for visiting! Weight Loss and Training is a health blog which features all the best weight loss tips that I have learned over my 20 years of training. My background includes a degree in Kinesiology from the world renown Simon Fraser University, certification in nutritional sciences from UBC, and Personal Trainer Specialist certification from Can Fit Pro.
