The ab wheel is a feisty little piece of fitness equipment that’s awesome to use when it comes to hammering your midsection and seeing what it’s genuinely made out of. However, there are many times when it’s nice to know some similar exercises using different pieces of equipment. Maybe it’s because you don’t have an ab wheel to use, or there’s something about the wheel that isn’t comfortable for your body. Or maybe you just want some variety in your training.

Either way, don’t worry; I’ve got you covered.

The best alternative ab wheel exercises are stability ball rollouts, barbell rollouts, arm walkouts, arm slideouts, plank saws, and pikes. Each of these exercises greatly mimics the demands of the traditional ab wheel while simultaneously offering unique challenges and benefits of their own.

Of course, there are a million other great exercises that fit this criterion. However, the exercises covered in this article are great since they involve some incredibly common or easily accessible equipment while also being highly adjustable based on your individual needs. There’s no point in giving exercises that require equipment that is expensive, complex to use, or hard to find.

Ready to learn some new exercises and challenge your midsection? Then keep on reading!

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Exercise 1: Stability ball rollouts (and variations)
Exercise 2: Barbell rollouts (and variations)
Exercise 3: Arm walkouts (and variations)
Exercise 4: Arm slide outs (and variations)
Exercise 5: Plank saws
Bonus: Pikes (using sliders)

Related article: Best Ab Wheel Exercises for Avoiding Back Pain: Beginners, Listen up!

Exercise 1: Stability ball rollouts (and variations)

The stability ball rollout is a classic exercise that fits perfectly for swapping out the ab wheel. It’s essentially the same movement, but it tends to be a bit more gentle on the lower back throughout the movement; it typically doesn’t force the lumbar spine joints into as much hyperextension when done improperly.

The movement is performed exactly as a rollout with the ab wheel, and you can perform it with some great variations.

The standard rollout

The standard rollout can be done with varying difficulty; if you want less of a challenge, start with the ball closer to you and most of your forearms resting on the ball. If you want a more significant challenge, start with the ball further away from you.

• Roll outwards while pushing your hips & shoulders forwards at the same time
• Don’t let your hips “sag” or drop through
• Roll back to the starting position and repeat

“Stirring the pot”

A great variation that can be done with a stability ball rollout is known as “stirring the pot,” as if you were grasping a giant wooden spoon and stirring the contents within a cauldron.

• Roll outwards and then stir your arms in a circular motion (the bigger the circle, the more you will challenge your core).
• Perform as many circles in that direction as you’d like, then repeat for the same number of repetitions stirring in the opposite direction.
• Roll back to the starting position, then roll back out and repeat.

Exercise 2: Barbell rollouts (and variations)

Barbell rollouts can be the perfect alternative if you’re someone who enjoys using the ab wheel but maybe needs a bit more balance and stability during the rollout process. Again, it’s the same movement as the ab wheel rollout, but with a much wider base of support.

You’ll just need to make sure that the barbell has decent bearings if you intend to use the barbell by itself. If the barbell you’re using doesn’t have good bearings (i.e., doesn’t roll out well, toss on some small metal plates on each end. A 2.5 or 5-pound plate makes for some great wheels).

The standard rollout

Perform the rollout just as you would with the ab wheel. As always, make sure that your hips and shoulders move forwards at the same rate on the way out (to challenge your core effectively) without letting your lower back “sag” or drop through in the process. Roll out as far as you can comfortably, roll back in, and repeat for as many repetitions as required.

The oblique rollout

The oblique rollout is a fun variation to use if you want to put a bit of “spice” into the barbell rollout by targeting your oblique muscles to a certain extent within the rollout (and rollback) process.

• As you roll outwards, slightly push one arm out more aggressively than the other. Doing so will start to cause the barbell to turn in the opposite direction.
• Once you’ve gone as far as possible/comfortable, roll backward by pulling that same arm back a bit more aggressively, which will cause the barbell to straighten back out.
• You can perform all of your repetitions off to one side first before switching to the other side, or you can alternate the direction on each repetition. It’s all up to you!

Exercise 3: Arm walkouts (and variations)

Arm walkouts are the alternative of choice when either needing something less challenging than the ab wheel or when there’s simply no equipment to be found. They’re great when you want to ensure maximal stability throughout the movement or whenever you want to have precise control regarding how you execute the exercise.

The standard walkout

From the starting position, walk your hands outwards, which will bring your body into the same position as if you were rolling out on the ab wheel. Your hips and lower back should not drop or “sag” through at any point throughout the movement. Walk out as far as you can, ensuring that each hand has walked out the same distance as the other. From there, walk your hands back inwards and repeat for as many repetitions as you’d like.

The paused walkout

The paused walkout works great when you want to kick the challenge up a notch from the standard walkout. All you need to do is hold the end range position (i.e., the bridge position) for a few seconds on each repetition before you walk yourself back to the starting position. A longer pause will challenge the core muscles more so than a shorter one, and pausing at the end range of a bigger walkout will intensify the challenge even more so.

Exercise 4: Arm slideouts (and variations)

Arm slideouts are one of my favorite variations when deciding to forego the ab wheel. They can be just as challenging and lend themselves quite well to numerous, unique variations that cannot be performed with the ab wheel itself. What’s even better, a pair of sliders cost only a couple of dollars, and they take up virtually no space at all, making them a great piece of equipment to carry around in the gym bag.

The standard slideout

In the starting position, perform the slideout as if you were performing a rollout with the ab wheel. Your hands should only be a few inches apart from one another and should stay side by side throughout the entire movement. Slide out as far as you can without the hips or lower back dropping or “sagging” through, then pull yourself back inwards and repeat the process for your targeted repetition number.

The pushup slideout

This variation is one of my absolute favorites. Admittedly, it’s not strictly a core muscle-type of variation. However, your core will still work quite a bit if performing it with an extensive range of motion. As with any pushup, you’ll feel your chest and triceps getting quite the challenge when performing this variation.

• Slide both arms out at the same time until you’re in a pushup position.
• Next, keep one arm in place while the other continues to slide outwards and at an angle until you’ve lowered yourself into the bottom of the pushup position.
• Pull your extended arm backward at the same time that you begin to push yourself upwards.
• Once you’re back into the pushup position, slide both arms back until you’re in the starting position of the slideout movement.
• This whole process should be performed in one, single fluid motion without any stoppage of movement throughout the entire repetition.
• Perform as many repetitions as you desire.

Exercise 5: Plank saws

Since exercise 4 didn’t go after the core in a rather aggressive sense, it’s only proper that I make up for it with a movement that does. Enter the plank saw. The position you’ll be in for this exercise is the far outer range of the standard slideout. It’s called the “saw” since you’re essentially sawing your arms back and forth in a small range of motion. Time to cut through the floor!

• Place your forearms on the slider pads (you can opt to go from your hands if you’d prefer).
• Slide out until you’re in a plank position. Make sure you keep your core tight.
• Next, slide your forearms out just a bit further by an inch or two.
• Slide them back underneath you and repeat the process for as many repetitions as you desire
• Feel the burn.

Bonus: Pikes (using sliders)

Suppose you want to “shake things up a bit” in terms of doing a similar movement that targets your core muscles in the same fashion as rollouts yet are distinct enough not to be considered a rollout. In that case, pike sliders may be the perfect ticket! This movement goes after your core muscles in the same way that rollout-based activities do but gets your feet to slide instead of your arms.

To perform the pike with slider pads:

• Start by placing your feet on the sliders and assuming the standard plank position.
• While keeping your arms still and your shoulder girdle tight, begin to pull your feet up towards your head.
• As you do this, push your butt up into the air.
• Slide your feet as close to your head as possible while keeping your knees as straight as possible.
• Once you’ve gone as far as you can, slowly push your legs back to the standard plank position.
• Repeat for as many repetitions as you’d like.

Final thoughts

Whether you don’t have an ab wheel, find it a bit less than ideal to use, or you simply want some variety in your core training, these alternative exercises will all work great when it comes to replicating the demands of typical ab wheel rollouts. So, now that you know some great alternatives to the ab wheel, give them a try and give your core the workout it deserves!