Try this blistering ab workout

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Welcome to The BarBend Newsletter! Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

• An ab workout that’ll test your mettle

• Hip thrust variations to boost your butt

• Our review of the Oura Ring 4

Workout

AbFab

A strong core is about more than just looking good come tiki bar season. It’ll also enhance your overall fitness, helping you improve your deadlifts, squats, and other compound favorites along the way.

To strengthen your abs, a good place to start is with isometric (or non-moving) exercises such as the plank. You can also supplement your workouts with dynamic exercises, which will challenge your body’s ability to remain stable and neutral while in motion (as many exercises and everyday activities such as running and jumping demand). 

Here’s a straightforward workout that doesn’t require much equipment or complicated form. It’s just a meat-and-potatoes ab-blaster.

Equipment Needed: Cable machine, pull-up bar

• Cable Crunch: 3 x 12

• Hanging Leg Raise: 3 x 12-15

• Weighted Plank: 3 x 20 seconds

• Side Plank: 2 x failure

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Exercises

Hippy Dippy

If you want a strong pair of glutes that not only look good but also make you stronger, barbell hip thrusts should be your go-to exercise.

Strong glutes can help with lower back pain, improved hip mobility, and deadlifting (especially the lockout), and can even help you run faster. The barbell hip thrust is a fantastic all-around exercise and needs to be in your training program.

However, not everyone feels great with a heavy bar across their pelvis, and sometimes, you need a break from the barbell. Below, we go over some must-do variations that might fit you better, including the chaos hip thrust and the incredibly named frog pump hip thrust.

Reviews

Are We In or Out on Oura?

Are you one of those people who still hasn’t warmed up to the idea of utilizing fitness trackers or wearables to help with your exercise routine? What if we told you that research has shown that, on average, using a tracker was positively associated with participants taking an extra 1,235 steps per day and doing 49 additional minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week?

There are a lot of reasons to get on the wearable bandwagon, and one of the best ones out there is the Oura Ring 4. Our senior editor, Kristen Geil, recently put the Oura to the test and found it to be a sleek, feature-rich piece of tech with a lengthy battery life and plenty of customization features.

Quick Hits

😬 Big Yikes: Livestream numbers for the final CrossFit Open workout of 2025 plummeted when compared to last year.

💪 Pump Up: Learn how to do the barbell wrist curl to build your forearms

🥗 Diet Tips: If you’ve hit a weight loss plateau or are experiencing adverse effects of a strict low-calorie diet, it might be time to consider a diet break.

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