Is Gabrielle Union's Ab Workout Worth The Hype?
Gabrielle Union is no stranger to challenging full-body workouts. In fact, her passion for fitness has often led her to share her routines with her fans and followers on social media. According to Insider, Union's fitness goals are largely focused on staying healthy, due to her family history of diabetes and heart disease. However, the actress is also motivated by more aesthetic goals like toning and strengthening her abs and glutes.
To stay in shape, Union works out three to five days a week for 90 minutes at a time, including 30 minutes of cardio. Each workout session includes strength training, plyometrics, pilates, and circuit training. When it comes to cardio, however, Union prefers running, biking, and using workout machines like a Stairmaster or lateral trainer. In a video compiling all the exercises she performs at the gym, she shared one exercise that can engage both your abs and glutes at the same time.
Union's leg lift workout can strengthen your abs and glutes
Commonly used in high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and barre, Union's ab workout with a twist involves a combination of two moves. According to Self, she performs leg lifts using a resistance band at both the top and bottom of her lift. "The leg lift exercise is a great core move to stabilize the spine and strengthen your abdominal muscles," Lisa Wheeler, a certified personal trainer and VP of fitness for Daily Burn, told Self. That's because leg lifts require control, strength, and stability in your core region in order to perform them correctly.
However, adding a resistance band to the movement can also help work your glutes, especially the gluteus medius, which is located on the outer side of your hips. As it turns out, strengthening this part of your glutes can also benefit your back and knees. To perform Union's leg lift, place a resistance band around your ankles and lift your legs up, doing a band abduction in the air. Then, lower them back down to the ground, doing a second band abduction. For best results, repeat this movement for 10 to 15 reps.