In this solo instructional video, JJ Virgin argues that traditional abdominal crunches are a poor use of training time because they work only a limited range of motion and plane, and they do not mimic how the core is used in daily life. She explains the anatomy of the core—rectus abdominis, obliques, transverse abdominis, erector spinae—and stresses the need to train the core in multiple planes (flexion, rotation, lateral flexion) and functional positions. Virgin then demonstrates a series of compound, functional movements that simultaneously develop core stability while training other major muscle groups: planks, push‑ups, shoulder taps, mountain climbers, bent‑over rows, goblet squats, Romanian single‑leg deadlifts, wood chops, and farmer’s carries. She links each exercise to specific core engagement (deep transverse abdominis, spinal erectors) and to broader benefits such as injury prevention, fall protection, back health, and overall functional strength, especially for aging powerfully. The video ends with a call‑to‑action to replace crunches with these functional core exercises, watch the next video, and subscribe.
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Stop wasting your time on crunches. If you've been doing them diligently because you are trying to build a strong core, I've got news for you. There's a way better way to do it, and that's what I'm going to show you next. I like to say that we are not bolted to the floor. So the reality is crunches are not the best use of your time because how often do you lie on the floor and then have to get back up again, right? So think about all the different things that we do in life to use our core. They're very functional, like picking something up, putting something here holding yourself stable. So I want to train my abs like I'm going to use my abs in real life. When you're down on the floor doing crunches, you actually never get to extend your spine, which is going to give you more area to contract your abs. You only start from neutral and then flex forward. So it's a very limited range of motion, but also it only works in one plane, forward flexion. When you think about all the things that your abdominals do, from your rectus abdominis to your obliques to your deep transverse abdominis. You've got a lot of other things. You've got rotation, you've got lateral flexion, you've got flexion. So you wanna work in a variety of different ranges that work all the different areas of your abdominals. I like planks and functional movements that are gonna work both this rectus abdominis, but also the deep transverse abdominis that holds everything in tight. It helps you go from being more of this way to pulling in tight and contracting. Now, we all want a strong core for a little vanity reason, I know, because it looks better. However, a strong core isn't just about vanity. It's not just about having that six-pack. It is because this is going to help protect you from injury. It's going to help you from falls. It's going to protect your back. So a strong core is critical for a strong life. If you want a strong core, then forget the crunches. I'm going to show you a couple exercises that are going to build a strong core and help build the rest of your body too. When we think of push-ups, we think of triceps working, chest working, front of the shoulders working. And yes, that is all true. But when you really think of a push-up, the first part of a push-up is a plank, right? So in a plank position, if you are not engaging your core, what's going to happen? So whether you're— when you're doing a push-up, you're always using your core. And I love it because I'm getting my core and I'm getting my chest, front of the shoulders, and triceps when I'm doing this. So this is the first thing is doing push-ups. Now, from this core position, from this plank position, not only can I do push-ups, I can do shoulder taps. I can do mountain climbers. I can do legs in and out. I can come down to my elbows and come back up. So there's a variety of different things I can do and all of them use my core. Another exercise that I'm a big fan of for core is a bent-over row. Now, bent-over row is an upper body pulling exercise because I'm going to come down and always say, start with your hands here and then drop them to the sides. That's where I'm going to end up. And I'm going to pull my hands up towards my chest and bring them back down. So it's like I'm hugging my rib cage. This is working my biceps because I'm pulling and it's working my lat. And it's working my rear delts, but it's also working my core because otherwise, if I wasn't using my back extensors and pulling in my deep core, I would be sagging here. So everything's gotta work. So there's a bent-over row, and as you can see, I have to use my core to keep me tight. And my core here is not just using my deep abdominals, but it also using something called your erector spinae, your back muscles. Another thing you might not think of for core are squats, but of course, you're— when you're squatting, you have to pull your core in, otherwise you would fall forward. So it's just something as simple as a goblet squat, squatting down, coming back up. I'm having to make sure that I'm using my back extensors to hold me upright and not fall forward, and my deep abs as well. I love deadlifts as a functional exercise. The way I like to do them is called a Romanian deadlift, and instead of my legs bending and extending, they stay slightly bent. I added another level of complexity and turned it into a single leg Romanian deadlift holding a kettlebell. This really requires core, otherwise I'm gonna fall over. So I take my opposite arm to my leg going back out and come down and up. So I'm counterbalancing with the arm. So it is using hamstring and glute and core. Now I've done all of these things and they've been in a frontal plane, but remember we work all these different ways. We work front to back, side to side, side to side. So one of the other things that I love to do is to really get into some rotation here. And with this one, it's really happening at my trunk. My arms are just coming along for the ride, so I'm really using my trunk to rotate. This is called a wood chop, and I'm using a heavy weighted ball to do this. I feel like farmer's carries might be the next ice bucket challenge because people have been throwing down a challenge across the internet on how much you can lift. So what should you be able to do in a farmer's carry? A farmer's carry you should be able to do 25% of your weight in each hand, at least. And what's great about this is everything has got to be working here. Your core has got to be working, your shoulders, your spine, everything gets loaded with a farmer's carry. So 30 to 60 seconds. If you're serious about building a strong, powerful core, and since you're watching, I'm betting you are, ditch those crunches, incorporate these activities, these exercises into your weekly routine, and be sure to check out the next video coming up that's going to help you go even farther. And If you're up for aging powerfully, and of course you are, then be sure to like this video, subscribe to this channel so you never miss a beat.
