Article Rundown

• The ab wheel can be a great core builder only if you maintain a neutral spine and true stiffness.
• Poor technique turns it into a loaded flexion exercise that can aggravate discs and cranky backs.
• Most people go wrong by leading with their hips on the return and losing core tension.
• It’s useful for some lifters, but not essential, and many safer alternatives exist depending on your back health.

The Truth About the Ab Wheel

I get asked all the time about the ab wheel. Is it good for your core? Is it bad for your back? Should you be using it if you want a stronger, more resilient trunk? I’ve used the ab wheel since I was a freshman in high school, long before I understood anything about spine mechanics or the difference between flexion, lateral stiffness, and true abdominal bracing.

So in this article, I want to walk through my honest thoughts on the ab wheel now that I’ve spent years studying with Dr. Stuart McGill, coaching lifters, and rebuilding backs. I’ll break down what it does well, what it doesn’t do well, and why it can be either a fantastic tool or a fast track to a flare-up depending on how you approach it.

My Early Experience With the Ab Wheel

My first experience with the ab wheel was like most young lifters. I started on my knees, eventually worked toward full rollouts, and by the time I was in high school I could roll all the way out on my fingertips and come back with ease. It built a great anterior core for me at the time. I even built a solid-looking six pack doing it.

But that was long before I understood the spine. I didn’t know the difference between the anterior core, the lateral obliques, the TVA, or the spinal extensors. I didn’t understand pelvic position. I didn’t understand how easy it is to turn a rollout into a loaded flexion exercise that punishes the lower back. Now that I do understand those things, my thoughts on the ab wheel have changed.

Where Most People Go Wrong

I watched a popular how-to video before making this commentary, and like most internet explanations, it gets part of the story right and part of it very wrong. Yes, you need to avoid dumping into lumbar extension. Yes, beginners should keep the range of motion small. But where these explanations usually fall apart is understanding spinal neutral and core stiffness.

People talk about bracing or anti-extension without understanding what actually creates a resilient spine. True core stiffness is not simply flexing your abs. It is not rounding your mid-back into a cat position. And it certainly is not letting your lats dominate the movement while your spine collapses. What you need is a spine that stays neutral, a pelvis that stays in the correct position, and a core that stiffens before you move. This allows you to roll out without creating motion through the spine, which is exactly what you want if the goal is durability rather than circus tricks.

The Rollout: What Good Technique Actually Looks Like

The rollout itself is simple on paper but very difficult in practice. Here is the honest checklist I’d give anyone:

1. Lock your spine in neutral. This means neither arching nor rounding. You want a position that allows your core to work together as one integrated unit rather than letting one segment collapse or dominate. Neutral gives you the best platform for stiffness and control.
2. Build stiffness before you move. This is the part almost no one teaches well. You need to set your abdominal wall, drop your lats into your back pockets, and create 360 degrees of pressure before the wheel ever leaves the floor. That stiffness keeps your spine from bending during the rollout.
3. Roll out only as far as you can maintain that stiffness. The ab wheel is not a range of motion contest. You don’t get points for touching your nose to the ground. What matters is whether the spine stays locked in place while the arms move. If your stiffness breaks, you went too far.
4. Do not let the hips lead on the return. This is the most common mistake I see. People roll out, lose tension, and then pull their hips back to escape the bottom. The movement is supposed to train the abdominal wall, not turn into a hip flexor-driven reverse hinge.
5. The wheel and hips must move together. They should start together, travel together, and finish together. If you want to test this, set up with your butt touching a bench. Roll out and come back in. If your butt hits the bench early on the return, you cheated the rep. You let the hips dominate instead of your core.

Why Some People Should Avoid It

Here is the part most videos gloss over. The ab wheel can be a fantastic tool for some people and a terrible one for others. If you have flexion intolerance, a posterior disc bulge, or a spine that doesn’t tolerate repeated rounding, the ab wheel can flare you up fast if you lose position. Some of the demonstrations online are basically loaded cat-camel motions with compression and shear added. That is not what we want when we’re trying to build a resilient, pain-free spine.

Where the Ab Wheel Fits Into Real Training

When done well, the ab wheel can challenge the anterior core, the obliques, the lats, and even the spinal extensors. It can be a legitimate strength builder. But I rarely prescribe it. Not because it is bad, but because there are other tools that accomplish the same goal with less risk and more control.

Still, if the movement fits your body, if you have no back pain, and you can hold a neutral spine under load, then yes, the ab wheel can absolutely be a good tool in your arsenal. Just remember to keep training the lateral core, keep isolating the glutes, strengthen the thoracic extensors, and protect the spine from excessive motion. If you do that, the ab wheel can be helpful. If you ignore those details, it can be the thing that takes you out of the gym.

BRIAN DOES ONLINE AND IN-PERSON COACHING!

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