You don’t have to crunch more than an accountant during tax season to score a six-pack. Instead, try the elevated bird dog--a new (and much harder) spin on the standard bird dog.
“The bird dog forces you to keep your core stiff,” says David Jack, owner of ActivPrayer in Phoenix, Arizona and creator of Men's Health 60-Day Transformation. “Lifting your knees off the ground just a couple of inches--as you do in this exercise--makes it even more challenging to keep your torso still as you switch arms and legs.” That means your entire core--hips and lower-back muscles, obliques, rectus abdominis (also known as the six-pack muscle)--is working overtime to keep your spine stable.
Watch this video to learn how to do the elevated bird dog with perfect form. Then try performing this movement in a total-body circuit or as part of your core workout. Do 16 reps on each side.
Build a better performing body and a sculpted core with The Toughest Exercise You Aren't Doing (but Should).
