Why should you be doing standing abdominal exercises? By changing the position in which you perform an exercise, you change the way your body moves and how the muscles are activated. You can also avoid the neck pain many people experience during floor-based abdominal exercises. Plus, by moving your abdominal workout from the floor to standing, you may be able to avoid unnecessary stresses on the joints and create a more dynamic workout.

Trunk or core exercises should be treated like other muscle groups; which means using proper form and resting 48 hours in between muscle-specific workouts. By training your core every other day, you will be giving your muscle fibers enough time to rebuild and clear out any lactic acid that may have accumulated. Oblique exercises consist of twisting and rotational movements, transverse abdominal exercises support the spine such as planks or core bridges, and rectus abdominis exercises such as crunches or hip flexion movements.

You shouldn’t have to feel neck pain to get a great abdominal workout. Gradually strengthen your neck by performing the following standing abdominal exercises and, over time, add one floor-based exercise such as crunches or leg raises.

Begin by completing each movement for 10 seconds; gradually increase by 10 seconds each round. The only equipment you’ll need is a medicine ball with handles or a weight plate for appropriate exercises.

Ribbons

Start at the right hip and move diagonally over your head to the opposite hip.

Twists

Hold the weight in front of you and squeeze the glutes to avoid hip movement.

Overhead lean

Extend the arms overhead while slowly leaning the upper body to the right and then to then left.

One-Handed Toss

Begin in a standing athletic position. Toss the medicine ball from the right hand to the left hand while contracting the abdominals.

Rugby Pass

Hold the ball in two hands as if you are going to “pass” the ball laterally to someone. Brace your core and pass the ball from the right hip across the body; return to the starting position

Side Dips

Hold the ball in one hand and stand up tall. Place the other hand on your head to help keep your shoulders back. Slowly lean to the side while keeping your torso squared and neck aligned with your spine.