8 Exercises You Can Do From a Chair

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Abdominal exercises are an essential part of an overall fitness routine. But, for many people, getting down on the floor for crunches or attempting advanced moves like hanging leg raises is too difficult.

Fortunately, you can easily do a chair ab workout at home, work, or anywhere you have a chair. These workouts also are easy to fit into your day, regardless of your schedule or fitness level.

Below, you’ll find a mix of exercises targeting the upper, lower, and oblique abdominal muscles. Each exercise is designed to be performed while seated, making it accessible to everyone, including those with mobility issues or new to exercise.

Benefits of Chair Ab Exercises

Building a solid core is essential for your overall health, posture, and daily activities, especially as you age. If your core is strong, it can work how it needs to—helping prevent falls, protecting you from back pain, and making tasks like lifting, bending, and walking easier.

As you age, keeping your core strong is particularly important. A strong core helps with balance and stability—vital for staying independent and active.

Your abdominal muscles are just one part of your core, which includes muscles in your back, glutes, pelvic floor, and diaphragm. They are important for keeping your body upright and stable, protecting your spine and organs, and assisting with movements between your ribcage and pelvis. Adding ab workouts to your fitness routine is one way to improve your overall core strength and stability.

One of the best things about chair-based exercises is their convenience and accessibility. You don’t need any ab machine equipment—just a sturdy chair and some space—and they can help you maintain good posture and reduce back pain.

Chair Ab Workout

According to healthcare experts, chair-based exercises are an ideal simple workout plan for older adults who need a gentler approach to increasing their strength and mobility. These exercises focus on seated movements and are intended for people with limited mobility since chairs provide stability and safety. Chair ab workouts can be adapted to your preferences and needs, and you can modify them if your needs change.

Chair ab exercises also build strength and prepare you for more advanced standing exercises. They improve your ability to perform daily tasks, lift your mood, and increase joint mobility, muscle strength, and coordination. To prevent injuries, each exercise session should begin with a warm-up and end with a cool-down

A warm-up could include gentle seated marches, shoulder rolls, and deep breathing exercises. After your workout, cool down with seated stretches, focusing on your back, neck, and legs to help your body recover and prevent stiffness. Here are some exercises to try at home, although you should talk to a healthcare provider first if you have limited mobility or chronic health issues.

Seated Knee Lifts  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair with your back straight.
  2. Lift your knees toward your chest, engaging your upper abs.
  3. Lower them slowly back down.
  4. Repeat for 10 to 15 repetitions.

Modifications

  • For beginners: Lift one knee toward your chest at a time. Lower it and repeat with the other leg.
  • For a challenge: To engage your obliques, add a twist by bringing your knees toward your chest and then rotating your torso to the left and right.

Seated Crunches  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair and lean back slightly.
  2. Place your hands behind your head.
  3. Crunch forward, bringing your chest toward your knees.
  4. Return to the starting position and repeat for 10 to 15 repetitions.

Modifications

  • For beginners: Sit back on the chair more and hold the seat with your hands for stability. Reduce the range of motion when crunching your chest toward your knees.
  • For a challenge: Hold a small weight or a water bottle in your hands to add resistance as you crunch forward.

Seated Leg Lifts  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair with your back straight.
  2. Extend your legs in front of you and lift them together, engaging your lower abs.
  3. Lower them back down slowly.
  4. Aim for 10 to 15 repetitions.

Modification

  • For beginners: Sit back on the chair with your hands gripping the sides. Lift one leg and hold for a count before lowering. Switch legs.

Seated Scissor Kicks  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair and lean back slightly.
  2. Extend your legs in front of you.
  3. Alternate lifting each leg up and down in a scissor motion.
  4. Perform for 30 seconds to one minute.

Modification

  • For beginners: Tap one heel on the floor between lifts to reduce the tension on your abs.
  • For a challenge: Cross your legs over each other as you perform the scissor motion.

Seated Russian Twists 

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair and lean back slightly.
  2. Lift your feet off the ground.
  3. Hold your hands together and twist your torso from side to side, touching the chair on each side.
  4. Do this for 30 seconds to one minute.

Modifications

  • For beginners: Keep your heels gently on the ground while performing the twists.
  • For a challenge: Hold a small weight or a water bottle in your hands to add resistance as you twist from side to side.

Seated Side Crunches  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair with your back straight.
  2. Lift one knee toward your chest while bringing the opposite elbow toward the knee, engaging your obliques.
  3. Alternate sides for 10 to 15 repetitions per side.

Modifications

  • For beginners: Keep your feet flat on the floor with your hands behind your head. Bend to the side gently, return to the center, and bend to the other side.
  • For a challenge: Extend your opposite arm overhead as you bring your elbow toward your knee for a greater range of motion.

Seated Bicycle Crunches  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair and lean back slightly.
  2. Lift your feet off the ground.
  3. Alternate bringing each knee toward the opposite elbow in a pedaling motion.
  4. Perform for 30 seconds to one minute.

Modifications

  • For beginners: Keep your heel gently on the ground while you crunch on the opposite side.
  • For a challenge: Slow down the motion and hold each twist for a few seconds longer to create more time under tension.

Seated V-Ups  

  1. Sit on the edge of the chair with your back straight.
  2. Extend your legs and lift them while reaching your hands toward your feet, forming a “V” shape with your body.
  3. Hold for a moment, then lower back down.
  4. Repeat for 10 to 15 repetitions.

Modifications

For beginners: Only lift one leg and arm at a time before switching sides.

For a challenge: Hold a small weight or a water bottle in your hands to add resistance as you reach toward your feet.

How to Progress

For beginners, start with the easier versions of the exercises if you’ve never tried them before. If needed, perform fewer repetitions and shorter durations. Also, focus on maintaining proper form.

As you get stronger, you can increase the number of repetitions or extend the duration of each exercise. Once you feel comfortable, try the more challenging chair ab variations.

Bottom Line

Chair ab exercises are a simple, effective way to strengthen your core, improve your posture, and support your overall health. Regularly doing these exercises as part of a well-rounded routine can build a solid core without needing special equipment or a gym membership.

Remember to listen to your body and progress at your own pace. Move on to more challenging variations over time to keep building strength.

Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. Frizziero A, Pellizzon G, Vittadini F, Bigliardi D, Costantino C. Efficacy of core stability in non-specific chronic low back painJ Funct Morphol Kinesiol. 2021;6(2):37. doi:0.3390/jfmk6020037

  2. Krzysztofik M, Wilk M, Wojdała G, Gołaś A. Maximizing muscle hypertrophy: a systematic review of advanced resistance training techniques and methods. IJERPH. 2019;16(24):4897. doi:10.3390%2Fijerph16244897

By Rachel MacPherson, BA, CPT

Rachel MacPherson is a health writer, certified personal trainer, and exercise nutrition coach based in Halifax.


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