Top 5 Ab Strap Exercises

If you're serious about building a strong, functional core, it’s time to upgrade from basic floor crunches and start using a tool that elevates your training. The TBG Ab Straps are a versatile and durable solution to supercharge your abdominal work. Designed with heavy duty materials and wide, comfortable padding, these straps allow you to suspend from a pull-up bar and isolate your midsection with precision.

Whether your goal is a shredded six pack, a resilient trunk for athletic performance, or simply better control of your body in space, these 5 ab strap exercises will challenge your core in ways few other tools can. Here’s a breakdown of the top movements and why each deserves a place in your program.

1. Hanging Leg Raises

This is the gold standard of ab strap training, and for good reason! Hanging leg raises develop strength throughout the rectus abdominis (the “six-pack” muscle), while also targeting the hip flexors and engaging the deeper stabilizing muscles of the core.

How to Do It: Strap your arms into the TBG Ab Straps and let your body hang freely. Start with your legs straight and together. With control, lift your legs upward until they’re parallel to the floor—or go even higher for an advanced variation. Slowly lower them back down.

Pro Tip: Avoid swinging or using momentum. Control is key. If you can’t keep your legs straight, start with bent knee raises and progress slowly from there.

Benefits:

1. Directly strengthens the lower abdominals

2. Builds control and stability in the core

3. Transfers well to athletic tasks like sprinting and jumping

2. Hanging Oblique Crunches

When it comes to core development, symmetry and rotation matter. Hanging oblique crunches give your midsection that essential side-to-side development by directly targeting the obliques, which are key muscles for rotational control and spinal stability.

How to Do It: While hanging from the TBG Ab Straps, bring both knees up toward one side of your torso (try to tap your outer knee to your elbow). Squeeze the side of your core at the top, then slowly return to the start. Alternate sides for each rep.

Pro Tip: Keep your torso square and avoid twisting the shoulders too much. The movement should come from the hips and waist, not your upper body.

Benefits:

1. Trains the obliques and serratus anterior

2. Improves rotational strength

3. Enhances aesthetics by developing the “V-cut” lines

3. Hanging Windshield Wipers

This dynamic movement takes your ab strap training to the next level by demanding strength, control, and mobility. Windshield wipers require serious engagement from the entire core, particularly the obliques and transverse abdominis.

How to Do It: Hang in the TBG Ab Straps and raise your legs to a 90 degree angle. Keeping your legs straight, slowly rotate them from side to side in a controlled arc, as if your feet are sweeping across the horizon.

Pro Tip: Limit the range of motion until you can maintain control. Quality reps with a short range beat sloppy reps with full range.

Benefits:

1. Trains rotational core control and strength

2. Builds isometric strength in the trunk

3. Great carryover to grappling, combat sports, and rotational sports

4. Hanging L Sit (Or Tuck Hold)

Sometimes, holding a position is just as effective as moving through it. The hanging L Sit is a deceptively simple challenge that lights up your abs and builds incredible strength and muscular endurance both the abs and hip flexors.

How to Do It: Hang from the TBG Ab Straps with your legs straight and feet lifted up to hip height, as in the top of a hanging leg raise. Hold this position as long as possible without letting your feet drop or your body swing.

Pro Tip: Breathe evenly and brace your core. Try to set time-based goals (e.g., 30 seconds, 45 seconds, 1 minute) and gradually increase. As fatigue sets in, you can switch from using straight legs to bent knees in order to get in more high quality volume.

Benefits:

1. Enhances muscular endurance in the abs

2. Teaches core bracing and control

3. Perfect for circuits or burnout finishers

5. Hanging Alternating Straight-Leg March

Think of this as a hybrid between hanging leg raises and flutter kicks. This advanced move challenges your core’s ability to resist movement while isolating one side at a time. It’s great for building unilateral strength and control.

How to Do It: Strap in and hang with both legs extended downward. Lift one straight leg up as high as you can, then lower it as the other leg rises. Alternate legs in a smooth, marching rhythm without letting your body sway.

Pro Tip: Keep both legs straight and control the movement by maintaining a strong brace in the core. Focus on precision, not speed. With one leg moving up and one leg moving down maintaining control without excessive swinging is half the battle. 

Benefits:

1. Promotes unilateral core strength and balance

2. Trains deep stabilizers muscles

3. Adds variety to your core routine

Why Use the TBG Ab Straps?

The TBG Ab Straps are built to help you get more out of every rep. Here’s what makes them stand out:

Comfort: Extra wide padding minimizes pressure on the arms, making it easier to focus on your core.

Durability: Heavy duty stitching and reinforced nylon ensure long term use, even under high-volume training.

Versatility: Easily attachable to most pull-up bars, racks, or rigs. Ideal for home gyms and commercial setups alike.

Efficiency: Eliminates grip fatigue so you can focus solely on your core, not holding onto the bar.

These straps allow you to train smarter and harder by taking the stress off your upper body and placing it directly where you want it: on your abs.

Programming Tips

To get the most from these exercises, treat them with the same intention you’d give to squats or deadlifts. Here’s how to implement them:

1. Use 1-2 ab strap exercises in each session.

2. Perform 3–4 sets of 10–15 reps (or 30–60 seconds for isometric holds).

3. Train core 2–3 times per week for best results.

4. Progress from easier to harder variations over time.

Final Thoughts

The TBG Ab Straps unlock a higher level of core training that’s difficult to replicate with standard equipment. Whether you’re an athlete looking to boost performance, a lifter chasing aesthetics, or someone who simply wants a stronger, more resilient midsection, these exercises will help you get there. So strap in and start carving out a core that performs just as good as it looks!