Looking to revamp your ab routine? The Daisy Keech hourglass workout might be just what you need. It's still one of the most popular ab workouts online even three years after it was first posted to YouTube. So I gave it another shot, and let me tell you—it’s a highly effective way to challenge your abs.
If you've already tried Keech's quarantine abs workout (check out our fitness editor’s results here), you know she’s serious about delivering quick, ab burning sessions. Whether you’re at home, in the park, or even on vacation, you can easily fit in her 10-minute hourglass routine.
The workout consists of nine exercises, each performed for one minute without any breaks. This format is designed to maximize the burn and fully engage your abdominal muscles.
What sets Keech's ab routines apart is her deliberate avoidance of oblique-targeting exercises to prevent a boxier waistline. While I personally don't think training your obliques will give you a boxy look and I think it's very important to target all the muscles in your core, I decided to follow her routine exactly as prescribed to see the results for myself.
Keep reading to learn how to do the workout and discover my honest thoughts after completing it.
What is the Daisy Keech hourglass workout?
If you’d rather follow the workout without YouTube playing, here are the exercises Keech does in her hourglass workout:
Basic crunches - 1 minute
First up, crunches. To do a crunch, start by lying on your back, with your lower back flat against the floor. Keech brings her legs up to a tabletop position for the crunches in her workout, with her legs crossed. With your hands on either side of your head, engage your abdominal muscles and crunch your torso up towards your knees. Return to starting position and repeat.
Bicycle kicks - 1 minute
To do a bicycle kick, lie on the floor with your back flat against the ground. Place your hands next to your head and raise your shoulders off the ground. Bend your knees and draw your legs up off the ground. Bring the right knee towards your chest as you straighten your left leg, as your right knee comes up, twist your body so your left elbow touches your right knee. Repeat on the other side and make sure your legs and shoulders remain off the ground for the entire exercise.
Jack knives - 1 minute, 15 per side
Start by lying on your back. This exercise is similar to a toe touch, but you lower your torso and extend your arms behind your head, keeping your neck off the ground, between each touch. Start by lying on your back. With your arms extended behind your head and your legs out straight a few inches off the floor, engage your abs to lift your arms and legs as if you are trying to touch your toes. Hold, then lower back down to the starting position.
Russian twists - 1 minute
To perform this exercise, sit on the floor with your knees bent. Keep your back straight, lean back, and draw your legs up off the ground. Twist to one side — as far as you can go without touching the ground — and then twist to the other side. Here's more on how to do Russian twists.
Toe taps - 1 minute
This is a classic Pilates exercise that works the rectus abdominals and the traverse abdominals. Start with your legs in a tabletop position. Engaging your core and keeping your knee bent, lower your right and tap your toe on the floor. Your left leg should stay in a tabletop position. Reverse the move and repeat on the opposite side.
Bicycle crunches - 1 minute, 15 per side
Similar to the bicycle kicks, lying on your back, bend one leg and rest the opposite foot against your knee, so your leg is at a 90-degree angle. Crunch the opposite elbow in to touch the bent knee. Complete 15 repetitions per side, or do 30-seconds on each side. Here's more on how to do bicycle crunches, and the variations to try.
Scissor kicks - 1 minute
To do scissor kicks, raise your legs up to a 45-degree angle, keeping your lower back pressed flat against the floor. Engaging your core, kick your legs out to the side, switching which leg is on top.
Reverse crunches - 1 minute
To do a reverse crunch, lie on your back and put your legs in a tabletop position. Engage your core and breathe in to lift your hips off the floor and your legs back up over your chest. Breathe out as you lower back into your starting position. That's one rep. Find out which celeb also uses reverse crunches to torch her core.
Butterfly kicks - 1 minute
To do butterfly kicks, lie with your back pressed into the floor with your arms by your side. Raise your legs up to the ceiling, then lower them so that they are at a 45-degree angle from the ground. Kick your legs up and down as if you are swimming, keeping this movement small.
I tried the Daisy Keech hourglass workout — here’s what happened
I could really feel it in my core
From the get-go, the absence of breaks between the nine moves amplified the burn. It was relentless, but I did love it, as I felt the workout target my deep core muscles.
Beyond the immediate burn and post-workout fatigue, I can see how continuous practice of ab exercises under intensity could really help to improve my core strength. However, just performing this workout day in and day out would not be enough to garner long-term results. Applying progressive overload to your core workouts will help with continuous muscle growth and development. Hence why I’d be tempted to add one of the best kettlebells into this routine if I do it again.
I had to pay attention
Unlike many other workout tutorials on YouTube, this one lacks consistent music playing throughout or any audio cues to let you know when an exercise is over and it’s time to move on to the next move.
I found myself having to keep a close eye on my phone screen to watch when Keech was finished a move and what the next move was. If you take note of the instructions above or complete the workout enough that you start to remember the order of the routine then this won’t be an issue. But if you’re anything like me and love listening to music while you work out then you might find this ab session a tad unmotivating.
If you fancy trying out this ab workout, make sure you have another device to link up to your pair of the best workout headphones or speaker to listen to some tunes.
You can do it anywhere
I opted to try Keech's hourglass ab routine in the comfort of my bedroom at home, especially considering the freezing temperatures where I am right now. The idea of layering up just to make the trek to my local gym for an ab workout wasn't on my agenda this week.
The beauty of this short, no-equipment workout lies in its simplicity. All you need is to throw on some exercise gear, roll out a workout mat, and dive into that invigorating ab burn. It's the kind of routine that I can envision using when I'm on holiday or in situations where my usual exercise routine isn't feasible, offering a no-nonsense approach to keep my body working.
I wanted some oblique exercises in there!
The Daisy Keech hourglass workout undoubtedly delivered a burn to the abs. However, as I navigated through the exercises, I found myself yearning for the inclusion of moves that also targeted my obliques. Incorporating dedicated oblique exercises could have provided a more comprehensive and well-rounded core workout. By engaging the oblique muscles along the sides of the abdomen, these exercises would not only contribute to a more sculpted and defined midsection but also enhance overall core stability.
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