Meet Your Abs, the Abdominal Muscles

External Obliques

abs - external obliques

_{Gray's Anatomy, WickimediaCommons}

The external obliques form a wide band of muscle that runs down, along a diagonal, from ribs 5 - 12 to attach to ligaments near the top of the hip bones.

The external obliques are prime movers when it comes to side-bending and rotating the pelvis opposite the ribcage. They also help with compression and forward bending of the abdomen.
Next: the internal obliques.

• Rectus Abdominis
• External Obliques
• Internal Obliques
• Transversus Abdominis
• There's More to the Core