7 Ab Wheel Exercises For A Stronger Core

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You may realize that ab wheel workouts can offer you impressive benefits but what are some ab wheel exercises you can do?

An ab wheel is a piece of gym equipment that, as the name implies, is used to work out your ab muscles. It looks either like 1 wheel with handles on each side or 2 wheels with a handle in between.

The data from one study even suggests that some ab wheel exercises are more effective than more traditional exercises like sit-ups and crunches for engaging ab muscles (1).

Keep in mind that even though there are upsides, like any exercise there is some risk of injury. Especially if you have a sensitive back you want to be careful when doing ab wheel exercises and implement a good technique. When in doubt talk to an expert.

General ab wheel guidelines

Before trying out the ab wheel exercises below, there are some general guidelines that may help you get more muscle-building out of the exercises and do them safer.

When doing ab wheel exercises you want to keep your back straight with your head in a neutral position. To do this you will have to lock in your abs and squeeze your butt. For the exercises where your knees are the second touchpoint with the ground, you want to keep your body straight from your knees to your head. By doing this you engage your abs more instead of other muscles.

At some of the furthest distances, you can slightly bend your elbows for comfort. However in general you want your arms to be stretched throughout the ab wheel exercises.

Once you have the right technique you can think about the next guideline. If you are a resistance training beginner or you have weak core muscles for any other reason, you may not want to roll out all the way right from the start.

Even short rolls can help you engage some of the same muscles. If you are not yet able to do full roll-outs you can start small and build up from there.

To build the most muscle mass with these ab wheel exercises you want to do about 4 sets of 10-40 repetitions depending on how advanced you are.

That being said here are 7 ab wheel exercises for everyone from beginners to people with a lot of resistance training experience.

1. Ab wheel plank

The first exercise is the typical plank exercise done with an ab wheel. To do an ab wheel plank take the following steps:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your knees and with your hands on the ab wheel.
  2. Lift your knees off the ground so your feet and the ab wheel are the only contact points with the ground.
  3. Slowly roll the ab wheel forward until your body is in a straight line.
  4. Hold this position for an extended period of time.

Ab wheel planks are a type of isometric exercise. In simpler words, this means that you engage your muscles in a more static way, without moving a lot. On the other hand, you have isotonic exercises where you engage your muscles in a dynamic way, by moving.

Isotonic exercises are generally more useful for building muscle. That means that the other isotonic exercises on this list are likely better than ab wheel planks for building bigger ab muscles. That being said this exercise can be a great start for beginners to start working on their ab muscles and getting used to using the ab wheel.

2. Knee tucks

For the knee tucks, you will need an ab wheel with an accessory that allows you to attach the ab wheel to your feet. If you have that, take the following steps for knee tucks:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your hands with the ab wheel attached to your feet and your knees on the ground. Keep your back straight throughout the exercise.
  2. Lift your knees off the ground so your hands and the ab wheel are the only contact points with the ground.
  3. Slowly move the ab wheel backward until you are in a plank position.
  4. Move the ab wheel forward in a controlled motion, preferably until your knees reach your chest but less far if that’s not an option.

3. Knee roll-out

The knee roll-out is one of the most popular ab wheel exercises. To avoid knee pain you preferably want a soft surface below your knees like for example a blanket or towel. To do a knee roll-out take the following steps:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your knees and with your hands on the ab wheel.
  2. Stretch your hips so that your body is in a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
  3. Roll forward in a controlled motion, preferably until your stomach is right above the ground.
  4. Slowly roll back into the position of step 2.

As mentioned in the guidelines, you don’t have to go all the way with your face close to the ground right from the start. If you are more of a beginner you can start with small distances and build up from there.

4. V-roll

The V-roll makes a small modification to the regular knee roll-out. This makes it so you target slightly different muscles. To do a V-roll take the following steps:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your knees and with your hands on the ab wheel.
  2. Stretch your hips so that your body is in a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
  3. Roll forward and to one side in a controlled motion, preferably until your stomach is right above the ground.
  4. Slowly roll back into the position of step 2.
  5. Roll forward and to the opposite side as step 3.

If you do this exercise right the ab wheel should draw an imaginary V-shape on the ground. By using the ab wheel this way you target your oblique muscles more than in regular knee roll-outs.

5. Plank to pike

This next exercise is another one that requires an accessory to attach the ab wheel to your feet. If you have that, take the following steps for a plank to pike:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your hands with the ab wheel attached to your feet and your knees on the ground. Keep your back straight throughout the exercise.
  2. Lift your knees off the ground so your hands and the ab wheel are the only contact points with the ground.
  3. Slowly move the ab wheel backward until you are in a plank position.
  4. Move the ab wheel forward in a controlled motion while keeping your legs stretched as far as you can while staying stable.
  5. Move the ab wheel back into the position of step 3.

6. Single-arm knee roll-out

For the single-arm knee roll-out, you will need a type of ab wheel with two wheels and a handle in between. Once you have that to do a single-arm knee roll-out take the following steps:

  1. Start with your face facing the floor on your knees and with one hand on the ab wheel.
  2. Stretch your hips so that your body is in a straight line from your knees to your shoulders.
  3. Roll forward in a controlled motion, preferably until your stomach is right above the ground.
  4. Slowly roll back into the position of step 2.

For most people regular ab wheel roll-outs are hard enough but if you want to add an extra challenge this single-arm version may be something to try out.

7. Standing roll-out

If regular knee roll-outs become too boring for you, or you want to work other muscles than your abs with the ab wheel, the standing roll-out may be for you. To do one take the following steps:

  1. Stand on your two feet and your hands on an ab wheel right in front of you. You want your legs to be as stretched as possible throughout the exercise.
  2. Roll forward in a controlled motion, preferably until your stomach is right above the ground. The heels of your foot will come off the ground, keep the front of your feet on the ground.
  3. Slowly roll back into starting position.

The standing roll-out will also engage muscles like your hip flexors and glutes.

Keep in mind that this is a rather advanced ab wheel exercise. Beginners who are giving the ab wheel a try for the first time likely want to get used to some of the other exercises on this list first.

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Matt Claes founded Weight Loss Made Practical to help people get in shape and stay there after losing 37 pounds and learning the best of the best about weight loss, health, and longevity for over 4 years. Over these years he has become an expert in nutrition, exercise, and other physical health aspects.