Why Weighted Core Exercises Are Great for Six-Pack Abs

This 'currently trending' routine of exercises engages a wide range of abdominal muscles that help strengthen the core

- Shrenik Avlani

It wasn't so long ago that the most popular exercises in gyms around the world were (ab) crunches and sit-ups. That was simply because almost every man and woman joining the gym was chasing washboard abs and a slimmer waistline. Oh, how things have changed.

At the gyms I visited in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Kolkata this year, I saw trainers not prescribing crunches or sit-ups to their clients, and diligent members were completing their workouts without the once-mandatory ab crunches. It's not that people have stopped bothering about de-bulging their waistline or have become less obsessed with six-pack abs. To be sure, the demand for flat abs is at an all-time high; it's just that trainers and active people are taking a different, more effective route to achieve a stronger core.

"When it comes to building a strong core, things are changing in the fitness world. More folks are stepping away from sit-ups and crunches. They are instead trying resistance-based or weighted core exercises. These moves really challenge your core to stabilize under load and that's way more helpful for real-life activities," says Chandrashekar Gajawelli, a fitness expert at Cult.