5 Ab Workouts for the Hotel Gym
The hotel gym can be hit or miss but that shouldn’t stop you from getting your abs beach-ready.
If you travel enough, you’ll see every kind of hotel gym. From the tiny one with a treadmill and dumbbells to the massive fitness center and spa, the hotel gym comes in a wide range of sizes and it can be difficult to predict what equipment you’ll find.
The great thing about training your abs is that it doesn’t require much. In fact, there are some great ab workouts that you can do with no equipment.
So don’t worry so much about the quality of the hotel gym and focus more on shredding your core.
The Why and How of Ab Training
Want to get into a spirited debate with someone about a fitness topic? Then bring up ab training.
You’ll get a different answer from everyone you speak to about the best way to train your abs. One thing that most people will agree on, at least for now, is that you need to train your abs directly.
Your midsection is where every movement starts. It’s why it’s called your core. It may be thought of as vanity work by some, but there’s little debate about how awesome a good set of abs look on a man or a woman.
Photo: CrossFit
A key thing to remember with ab training is that to see your abdominal muscles, direct ab workouts will only get you so far.
You have to lose the fat around your midsection to see your abs and this comes primarily from disciplined nutrition, cardio, and exercises that burn a lot of calories. So don’t forget to do your squats and deadlifts.
A simple rule to follow at every meal is to divide your plate into thirds - one-third protein, one-third carbohydrates, and one-third healthy fats. And limit your intake of processed foods and alcohol.
With that said, here are five ab workouts for the hotel gym that will help get you a carved and toned core.
Workout #1
Complete the 15 exercises below in order, taking a 30-second rest every two exercises.
60 Second Plank
30 Seconds of Mountain Climbers
30 Second Side Plank
30 Seconds of Mountain Climbers
30 Second Side Plank
30 Seconds of Lying Leg Raises
30 Seconds of Mountain Climbers
30 Seconds of Reverse Crunches
30 Seconds of Mountain Climbers
60 Second Plank
Workout #2
Do three rounds of this circuit:
20 Crunches
20 Butterfly Sit-Ups (soles of feet together, knees out to the side)
20 Side-to-Side Knee Drops (on back, knees bent up in a right angle)
20 Crunches
20 Flutter Kicks
Workout #3
Complete the following circuit four times, resting 1 minute after the burpees in each round.
20 Leg Raises (From Lying Position)
1 Minute of Bicycle Crunches
20 Sit-Ups
20 Oblique Crunches (Each Side)
10 Burpees
Workout #4 (“Annie”)
This one is a CrossFit WOD (workout of the day) and requires a jump rope. If you have no jump rope, do jumping jacks. Perform the workout as fast as possible:
50 reps each of:
Double-Unders*
Sit-Ups40 reps:
Double-Unders
Sit-Ups30 reps:
Double-Unders
Sit-Ups20 reps:
Double-Unders
Sit-Ups10 reps:
Double-Unders
Sit-Ups
*If you can’t do double-unders, do single-unders and double the number.
Workout #5 (Cardio + Core)
Set a timer and complete this workout as quickly as possible. Using the treadmill in the hotel gym:
Run a quarter of a mile.
Do 25 sit-ups or crunches.
Run a quarter of a mile.
Do 20 sit-ups or crunches.
Run a quarter of a mile.
Do 15 sit-ups or crunches.
Make this workout harder by adding another round or by completing it with a faster time.
The Bottom Line
The hotel gym might suck but that shouldn’t stop you from training your abs. Perform the workouts at high intensity to burn that belly fat as quickly as possible and train your abs two to three times a week.
Remember that direct ab training is only accessory work, meaning you must have your nutrition dialed in and you should be doing cardio, weightlifting, bodyweight training, or some combination of all of them for the best results.
