If you are particularly pressed for time, doing 60 seconds of exercise is better than no exercise at all. You can work your abdominals easily enough in such a short amount of time, though just one minute of exercise will in all likelihood not produce significant results. Perform this 60-second abdominal workout several times during your day to optimize its benefits.
Zero to 15 Seconds
Lay flat on your back. Use an exercise mat if one is available. Place your hands underneath your buttocks with palms flat against the floor and stretch out your legs. Keep your feet together and raise them off the floor approximately 10 inches. This is your starting position. Begin timing your workout and raise your straightened legs until they are perfectly vertical above your hips. Without rest, lower your legs back to the starting position, but don't touch the heels to the floor. Repeat the movement for 15 seconds. Control the raising and the lowering of your legs by squeezing your abdominals instead of using momentum.
16 to 30 Seconds
Finish the leg raises on the upward motion, keeping your legs vertical as you move into toe taps. Bring your hands out from under your buttocks and reach upward toward your toes. Your shoulders should be raised off the floor throughout this stage of the workout. Contract your abdominals hard to bring your upper body toward your feet. Limit the range of motion during your reach to just a few inches. Exhale on the reach up and inhale on the release. Keep the reaches rhythmic, paced and controlled.
31 to 45 Seconds
Your legs should still be elevated as you move into bicycle crunches. Bend at the knees so that they form a 90-degree angle. Bring your hands to the sides of your head but don't pull your head up or forward. Your shoulders remain off the floor. Begin by bringing your left elbow over your abdominals and toward your right knee. Extend your left leg as you bring your right knee in to meet with your left elbow. Exhale as you contract the abdominals and obliques. Then extend your right leg and bring your left knee in to meet with your right elbow as your work the other side.
46 to 60 Seconds
Stretch your legs and keep them hovering above the floor at about a 45-degree angle. Keep your arms elevated at your sides with palms facing down. Your shoulders are on the floor but your head is elevated with your chin tucked into your neck. For the final 15 seconds, vigorously pump your arms up and down within a 6- to 8-inch range of motion. Exhale and inhale once during every five to seven up-and-down pumps. Point your toes and hands throughout the exercise and focus on contracting your abdominals as hard as you can.
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