Ab Wheel Rollout: Muscles Worked and How to Do It
TL;DR
The ab wheel rollout works your abs as the prime mover, resisting spinal extension as you roll out and pulling you back as you return. Your shoulders stabilize your arms and support your bodyweight throughout the reach, making this one of the most demanding core exercises you can do without added weight.
- Primary muscle:
- Abdominals
- Secondary muscles:
- Shoulders
Muscles worked
Your abs, mainly the rectus abdominis and obliques, work isometrically through most of the rollout, resisting the pull of gravity as your body extends outward and then contracting to pull you back to the starting position. It's a harder version of the same bracing skill trained in a plank.
Your shoulders support a large share of your bodyweight as you extend, especially at the furthest point of the roll where your arms are stretched out overhead. Keeping your shoulders stable there, rather than letting them collapse, is often what separates a controlled rollout from a failed one.
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How to do it
- Hold the Ab Roller with both hands and kneel on the floor.
- Now place the ab roller on the floor in front of you so that you are on all your hands and knees (as in a kneeling push up position). This will be your starting position.
- Slowly roll the ab roller straight forward, stretching your body into a straight position. Tip: Go down as far as you can without touching the floor with your body. Breathe in during this portion of the movement.
- After a pause at the stretched position, start pulling yourself back to the starting position as you breathe out. Tip: Go slowly and keep your abs tight at all times.
Form tips
- Start from your knees before progressing to a standing rollout.
- Roll out only as far as you can keep your lower back from sagging.
- Brace your abs hard before you start moving, and keep that brace the whole rep.
- Pull yourself back using your abs, not by yanking with your shoulders.
- Shorten the range if you feel it in your lower back instead of your abs.
Exercise details
| Equipment | Other |
|---|---|
| Level | Intermediate |
| Mechanic | Compound |
Used by lifters following PPL, 5x5, upper/lower, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the ab wheel rollout safe for your lower back?
It's safe when you keep the range short enough that your lower back stays flat and doesn't sag toward the floor. If you can't control that position, shorten the rollout distance or start from your knees, since a sagging back shifts the load off your abs and onto your spine.
How do I progress the ab wheel rollout?
Start from your knees with a short range, and extend the distance as your abs can control it while keeping your back flat. Once kneeling rollouts feel manageable, progress to a standing rollout, similar to progressing from a plank hold to a harder variation.
More abdominals exercises
Exercise instructions and photos come from the free-exercise-db library, public domain, the same library used inside the PR Streak app.
