The Warrior Abs workout is an intense and advanced ab routine that results in flat six-pack abs. The Warrior Abs workout aims at targeting your deepest ab fat and aids in burning fat, building full body endurance and core strength. This workout is meant for people who have a strong core and are very regular with their exercise routine. If done properly, by a person with a flexible back and good core engagement, it should be quite effective in strengthening the entire range of abdominal muscles. Today, with expert inputs from Jordyn Steig, Personal Trainer and Healthy Lifestyle Adviser at Wellistic Wholeness in Mumbai, we take a closer look at what the Warrior Abs workout is all about. Over to Jordyn.

Tips on preparing for the Warrior Abs workout routine. Irrespective of the fact that you are going for a simple exercise routine, or you are training for a body-building show, it is a must to warm up by performing a simple stretching routine. Do a gentle jog, spend another 10 minutes stretching your calves, hamstrings, quads and glutes. Also, stretch your back and shoulders, for 10 minutes each, to complete your stretching routine. Before beginning any rigorous ab workout, make sure your blood is flowing and you feel properly warmed up. Abdominal muscle strains are pretty horrible, disabling, deeply uncomfortable, and do not heal very quickly.

Importance of working on your core muscles. Each and every muscle in your body needs attention for your body to function to its maximum potential, but core exercises, in particular, aid in improving your balance and stability. Core workouts are most important and least addressed by most. The core is known as the power house of the system as this is where movements generate from. Core muscles are the muscles, which bind the upper body to the lower body and hence are quite literally at the centre of most sensible fitness regimens. A strong core also protects the lower back from taking impact and allows a person to work efficiently by keeping them injury free. It also improves balance and stability as most core exercises are based on balance engaging the core. With due course of time, stability is improved too.  

Core exercises can help tone your abs too. It tones the mid section as it’s basically an isolation workout of the muscles. It tightly packs the muscles in the abs area and visually gives a feeling of weight loss. And these exercises can be done everyday unlike other weight training exercises. You can chose from 2- 3 different exercises and you will require about 5 minutes of your time to get fit and strong in the mid section. Strong core muscles make it easier to do most physical activities. The limbs are connected to the core and movements depend on the core, thus filling you up with energy all day long. A strong core can make you work faster, harder and longer. 

How is the Warrior abs workout different from others? The Warrior Abs workout is not really different than any well-thought out abdominal routine. It is simply a series of super-intense exercises, all of which could be exchanged for any other equally effective exercise. 

Energy requirements for the Warrior Abs workout. All exercise requires enough energy from food before beginning the session and adequate intake after so the body can lock in the benefits of the work you have just completed. It is essential to eat food rich in protein and carbs within an hour of finishing exercise or else the body will not heal itself, muscles will not build and repair, and you may actually do damage to your overall fitness by ignoring this basic physiological requirement.

A few exercises you would perform in the Warrior Abs workout. Firstly, if you are new to this workout try and pick any three exercises, such as - the pullup, squat thrust, and goblet squat. Now observe how many exercises you can perform in a good form for a minute or so. Now, when you finish doing pull ups, start doing squat thrusts and the then start doing squatting. Rest for exactly a minute and repeat the cycle. The aim is to increase your resistance slowly but steadily. A few exercises you must perform in a Warrior Abs workout are: 

• Heavy strength training (especially squatting & especially front squatting)
• Unilateral exercises (single arm pressing & pulling variations, suitcase deadlifts)
• Standing or kneeling pulling & pressing exercise variations
• Olympic lift variations & combo exercises/complexes
• Weighted sled work (pushing & pulling variations)
• Planks (variations on front and side, added movement, etc.)
• Turkish getups or sandbag getups & most kb & sandbag exercises actually
• Ab wheel rollouts
• Low back extension variations
• Chops & other rotational movements
• Paloff presses
• Leg lifts progressing into “dragon flags”
• Knee tucks
• Hollow rocks
• Reverse crunches

Limitations of Warrior Abs workout. It does appear to have several movements, which are risky for people with fragile backs, bad posture, or tight hamstrings. Most movements in which you lift your legs up with your arms extended above your shoulders might put some people's back at risk of being strained. Please start slowly and stop immediately if your back arches uncomfortably as your legs move further off the ground. This workout is only for people who are already fit. If a person who is unaccustomed to using their abs tries these exercises, they will not be able to do them properly. What will happen instead, is they will use their leg muscles to generate momentum by swinging their body, which in turn means the person's abs will barely get a workout at all. Plus people with large bellies will find their tummies get in the way of them moving their legs as close to their torso as they need to for achieving maximum benefits.

Special considerations while performing the Warrior Abs workout. As stated above, this kind-of workout is not for beginners or older people. Anyone who has a bad back or tightness anywhere in their hips or thighs may also find these exercises impossible to do correctly. If a movement cannot be completed properly, it is better to take a step back and start with something simpler and build up to the more difficult exercises.

*Image courtesy: © Thinkstock photos/ Getty Images