Professional pole dancer and fitness influencer, Laura Verberne has set a new bar for ab challenges after combining the hanging leg raise with a variation on “Ball in a Maze.” The result? An epic workout for the abs, and a ton of respect earned via social media.
Verberne, who has over 100k IG followers under the handle “x.hellnokitty,” describes herself as a professional pole dancer and a calisthenics athlete, and is never afraid to throw herself into the latest fitness challenge. “POV: You found the most diabolical way to train your core,” wrote the fit female in an accompanying caption, crediting fellow Instagrammer, Emanuela, for the inspiration.
How Do You Do the Tennis Ball Hanging Leg Raise Challenge?
Sitting underneath a bar, you’ll place a weight plate over your shins with a tennis ball balancing on top. Then, grab the bar with both hands and perform a hanging leg raise, keeping the legs straight out, so that the ball does not fall of the edge.
To complete the challenge, you’ll need to hang onto the bar and move your hips and legs to guide the ball into the center hole of the weight plate. This full-body exercise will torch the core as it tries to stabilize the whole process. “This was unnecessarily difficult and took me a LOT of tries,” admitted Verberne. “So, I couldn’t leave out the bloopers.”
What Muscles Does the Tennis Ball Ab Challenge Work?
There’s no place for your abs to hide as they are recruited to hold the body upright and make adjustments to the angle of the plate. Your inner core and the obliques at the side will contract as the body twists and turns. In addition, the hip flexors, forearms and hand grip will also be taxed. Plus, your lats and shoulders will be essential to the process of keeping the body suspended. Expect your quads be worked too, as they help steer from directly underneath the plate.
What Fitness Fans Are Saying About Laura Verberne’s Challenge
On seeing Verberne complete her “diabolical” ab workout, the seriously strong female’s followers were both impressed and filled with fear. “The lightest plate I own is 10 pounds. Oh no,” wrote one Instagram user. “My core is trained just looking at it,” wrote another. “The most diabolical version of the ball in a maze I’ve ever seen. Ima try it,” concluded yet another.
To follow Laura Verberne on Instagram, click here.
