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If you stick to the same old crunches [3] and sit-ups [4], then you may be ignoring an important muscle group in your core: your obliques [5]. Your obliques are the muscles on the side of your abs that are often ignored and are tough to show. But with the right oblique exercises, you can strengthen this muscle group in no time.
Trainer and fitness influencer Kayla Itsines shared some of her favourite oblique exercises [6] to target these muscles. All you need is a dumbbell, and most of them are bodyweight moves. The circuit consists of:
- Standing oblique crunch (15)
- Single leg ab bike (15)
- X plank (12)
- Heel taps (30)
- Side plank and oblique crunch (15)
- Russian twists (30)
- Side plank and hip lift (15)
- Spider push ups on knees (12)
Kayla says to set a timer and see how long it takes you to get through three rounds. Add this to your core routine [7] or when you want to mix up your ab day.