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Best Yoga Sequences For Abs

6 Yoga Videos That Target Your Core Like You Never Thought They Could

Yoga is good for getting your splits down like Katelyn Ohashi, loosening up tight muscles, and aiding in relaxation. To top it all off, it does wonders for your balance and, most importantly, your core strength, which might not be the first thing you think of when you think about yoga, but it's true. First, there's the plank work that yoga flows often incorporate, and moves that force you to overtly engage your core such as Cat Cow. Then, there are all the poses that require balance — so many of them, like Warrior 2, for example — where tightening your core muscles keeps you stable.

My favourite yoga YouTube channel, Yoga With Adriene, includes videos for pretty much anything (even text neck and self-care). She often starts her follow-along sequences with some breathing exercises in a "nice and tall" seated position. She directs you to ground through your bottom while engageing your core, because something as simple as sitting up straight and breathing in through the nose, into the belly, and out through the mouth requires core activation.

There are also flows completely focussed on ab and core strength. Ahead, you'll find a number of these flows; a lot of them are slow and controlled with an emphasis on form, but that's the best kind of burn. Get ready to feel bicycle crunches and planks like you've never felt them before! Plus, when you're done, check out these ab-targeting yoga poses.

Image Source: Getty / DaniloAndjus

This ab-focussed flow for Class FitSugar is led by Jess Taras and inspired by Y7 Studio, a chain of Vinyasa-style yoga facilities based in New York City and Los Angeles. It incorporates side planks and front plank work with an ab-crunching knee to nose as well as moves that will target your booty and legs like Chair Pose.

Adriene from Yoga With Adriene takes us through a yoga flow that's all about your deep core. You'll start on your back with some breathing and continue with bicycle crunches, sit-ups, and variations of hollow holds. You'll also work on Down Dog abs and what Adriene calls "mindful mountain climbers." It's always about love and respect, she emphasises here, because your abdominal wall does so much for you.

This power yoga Class FitSugar session from Koya Webb, founder of Get Loved Up, is a half hour of Warrior 3, up-down planks, and Boat Pose (similar to hollow holds). It'll remind you just how much your core works in ab and full-body moves.

This quick yoga flow from Boho Beautiful makes following along even easier with cues for what each pose and exercise is called. You'll do a variation of posterior-chain-focussed bird dogs, one-knee push-ups, Balancing Star Kicks, and Down Dog abs with baby pulses.

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In this Class FitSugar video, Mandy Ingber takes us through just five minutes of yoga for your core featuring Down Dog abs with an added challenge of twists and oblique work as well as plank hip dips. "Yoga is all about core strength," Mandy says, "using the core to stabilize yourself."

Toning your core and glutes is the focus in this Yoga With Adriene video — and it's one of my favourites to do on my lighter workout days when I want to challenge myself but don't want to pick up any weights (there's even a segment solely devoted to squats!). As for the ab portions of the video, Adriene has us work side crunches and variations of planks.

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