When it comes to building a well-rounded fitness routine, there are a few key elements you can expect to include: adequate recovery, intentional progressions, and necessary variety. That last one is a biggie. Variety of modalities, intensities, and movements all help keep your workouts challenging, engaging, and effective. 

But there’s one type of variation that can be overlooked: plane of motion, or the directions in which you move. It’s important not only to move front to back and up and down, but also side to side and rotationally. 

“Rotation is a fundamental movement pattern,” says Peloton instructor Mila Lazar. Twisting movements are essential to moving dynamically and athletically throughout your workouts, sports, and everyday life—and training that pattern with moves like rotational core exercises will prep your body to handle those demands with ease.

What Are Rotational Core Exercises?

Rotational core exercises aim to “either produce or resist rotation through the torso,” says Kevin Carr, certified functional strength coach and co-founder of Movement As Medicine. These twisting and turning movements strengthen muscles of the trunk (i.e., your core), including the rectus abdominis, obliques, multifidus, erector spinae, and quadratus lumborum, he adds.

Rotational vs. Anti-Rotational Moves

Rotational core exercises focus on creating rotation (e.g., twisting moves, such as a dumbbell woodchop), while anti-rotational exercises involve resisting rotation (e.g., the renegade row). Anti-rotational moves require you to maintain a stable torso against external forces trying to cause rotation, Carr explains.

“Both are essential for improving performance, injury resilience, and everyday functional movement,” he says. “Anti-rotational exercises build stability and control, while rotational exercises develop power and dynamic movement capacity. Together, they teach the body to both generate and resist rotational forces—key for athletic performance and functional movement in daily life.”

The Importance of Doing Rotational Core Exercises

“Rotational core work is often overlooked but it’s one of the most powerful tools for creating a responsive, strong body,” Mila says. It can help improve not just how you move during your workouts, but during your daily life too. 

“Peloton Members often tell me that these exercises improved their real-life movement, such as turning the wheel of the car, reaching for a child, or improving their backswing in golf,” Mila says. In Pilates, for example, you use rotation to strengthen the obliques, deepen core connection, increase thoracic mobility, and balance the spine, she explains.

Rotational core movements offer a wide range of body benefits across recovery, mobility, and athleticism, explains Mila. All that twisting helps promote a healthy spine, and practicing strength and control during rotational movements helps you in many different sports, including tennis, golf, swimming, running, and dancing. 

What’s more, since rotating is a part of everyday movements such as walking, reaching, throwing, and turning, prioritizing this movement pattern in your workout can prevent falls and other injuries as well as keep you moving with ease. And yes, rotational exercises can also help you form some killer core definition through deep engagement of the internal and external obliques, Mila adds. 

8 Rotational Core Exercises to Stabilize and Strengthen

Here, Mila and Carr share their go-to rotational core exercises. Remember, while you’re moving dynamically throughout these movements, you still want to maintain good control. Slow down, modify, or start with anti-rotational exercises if you find yourself wobbling too much to achieve proper form.

1. Criss Cross 

This rotational core exercise is very similar to a bicycle crunch, but you want to move slowly and with control, ensuring your pelvis stays stable. To really dig into the rotation of this movement, “think ribs to opposite hip, not elbows to knee,” says Mila.

2. Seated Spine Twist

You’ll find this rotational core exercise in Pilates classes as it’s excellent for targeting your obliques, deep spinal rotators, and posture muscles, Mila says. Be sure to keep your hips anchored to the floor as you twist. Stop the rotation if you feel your glutes lift off the floor. 

3. Standing Cable Wood Chop (Low to High)

A cable machine is great for both rotational and anti-rotation exercises, but if you don’t have access to one, you can do this movement with a long resistance band looped around a sturdy base at ankle height.  

4. Horizontal Cable Chop

Use a cable machine or resistance band anchored at torso height for this rotational core exercise. 

5. Forearm Side Plank Rotation

To keep your form in check throughout this rotational core exercise, keep your hips lifted and legs active to avoid collapsing into your shoulder. This challenging movement focuses on your obliques and shoulders and is great for working on spinal and hip stability.

6. Saw

One important tip: Don’t force the stretch at the bottom of this sawing position. Don’t round your back or lift your hip off the ground to go further. 

7. Kneeling Side Kick with Rotation

This Pilates move targets the obliques and glutes, building core control and balance. “This exercise is a beautiful movement for rotational strength and balance,” Mila says. “Use the breath to guide the rotation and keep your hips square.”

8. Medicine Ball Side Toss

You’ll need a wall and medicine ball for this rotational core exercise. Give yourself a little space to move laterally, as well. 

How to Add Rotational Core Exercises to Your Routine

Whether you add some rotational core moves onto an existing workout or warm-up or string them together for a complete core session, you can’t go wrong. 

Mila suggests choosing three rotational core exercises from the list above as a way to start building this kind of movement into your routine, aiming for one seated spinal move, one plank-based exercise, and one lying-down rotation. From there, you can sprinkle them into full body workouts or add them together as a standalone core finisher. Try to include rotational core exercises in your workouts two to four times per week, Mila says. 

If you’d rather follow a guided workout, turn to the Peloton App. There, you’ll find rotational core exercises in many core strength classes and Pilates classes (including those taught by Mila!), as well as incorporated into other workouts, including full body strength, warm ups, cardio, yoga, and more. 

Working out in a gym or want to incorporate some of these cable machine exercises into your core work? Check out the Peloton Strength+ app, which allows you to create your own workouts, generate custom plans based on your preferences and goals, or follow self-paced instructor-led programs.