A large part of getting great abs is adequate cardio; you can’t get defined abdominals with excess body fat. Cardiovascular workouts are a fundamental component in burning off ab fat; this routine effectively interweaves cardio intervals with core strengthening exercises.

In this bootcamp style workout, for every one minute of cardio intervals, there are 20 repetitions of an abdominal exercise. The abs exercises were carefully selected and vary in nature in order to hit all of the hardest parts to tone; especially the obliques and lower abs. The cardio intervals keep your heart rate up and your calorie burn high, meaning that even with only a short 15 minute abs and cardio workout, you don’t have to choose between toning and burning fat.

How to do this routine
Warm up with at least 5 minutes of light cardio. The cardio intervals are each paired with an abdominal exercise that you will need to repeat for the indicated number of reps. Note which exercises require repetitions on each side of the body and which involve alternating limbs.

1 Minute Jumping Oblique Twist
20 Flutter Kicks

1 Minute Jumping Jacks
20 Pilates Side Hip Raises (Repeat on each side)

1 Minute Mountain Climbers
20 Toe Touch Crunches

1 Minute Lateral Jumps
20 Pilates Leg Pulls (Alternating legs)

1 Minute High Knees
20 Jackknife Crunches (Level 1) (Level 2)

1 Minute Sumo Squats
20 Reclined Oblique Twists (Alternate reaching to each side)

Stretch and Cool Down


If you do the routine fluidly, with very little resting time in between exercises, one round of the entire Home Ab and Cardio Workout should take roughly 15 minutes to complete.

Do this routine in two separate workouts throughout the day for an extra metabolism boost. Or, repeat the whole thing twice for a half hour program that will burn roughly 300 calories. Not bad for a routine that doesn’t require any equipment.

The number of times a week that you complete a core toning routine like this one will depend on your fitness level. For example, if you do this for the first time and are not sore the next day, you should be able to perform the same routine the next day without any negative effects on your muscles, however, it’s best to not repeat the same routine or work the same muscle group everyday (ab muscles need rest days just like every other muscle group). Muscles need time to repair themselves; you can actually undo all of your hard work and sabotage your own progress by working out on sore muscles.

Read more about how often you should train your abs: Is it Okay to Work your Abs Everyday?

Instead of repeating abs everyday, create a well-rounded, balanced strength training routine by rotating training upper body, lower body, and abdominals.