Ryan Martin's ab routine is 900 ab reps a day, built from six exercises at 25 reps each, run through twice for 300 nonstop reps, repeated at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Boxers train the midsection as hard as any athletes on the planet, and Ryan, a two-time world champion, is no exception. Before you decide 900 is crazy, listen to how he breaks it up, because the structure scales to 150 or 300 reps for anyone. This Physical Friday shows you exactly how he does it.
Listen now: press play in the player above and follow along.
Ryan does 900 ab reps a day, split into three sessions of 300 at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Each session is six exercises at 25 reps apiece, which is 150 reps, run through twice without stopping for 300. His movements include in and outs on the straps, bicycles, side planks on both sides, and the half jackknife, but he says you can use any ab movement you want as long as you get the 300 nonstop.
Ryan Martin, a two-time world champion, does 900 per day, every day. Boxers are known for training their abs as much as any athlete on the planet because a strong midsection is armor in the ring, and Ryan has a very strong midsection because he works for it three times a day, not because of any shortcut.
Use the same structure at a smaller dose. Take six ab exercises and do 25 reps apiece for 150 total, and if your level allows, run through it twice for 300. You do not have to do it three times a day like Ryan. One session of 150 or 300 is an awesome ab routine on its own, and the format grows with you as you get stronger.
In the demonstration he showed in and outs using straps, bicycles, side planks for 25 on both sides, and his favorite, the half jackknife. He repeats movements as needed until each block reaches 300. His rule is that the specific movements matter less than getting 300 nonstop, because in his words, when it burns, that is when it counts.
Within each 300-rep session, yes, that is Ryan's standard, 300 straight without resting. The recovery comes from spreading the three sessions across the day rather than resting inside a session. If 300 nonstop is beyond you today, shrink the total, not the intent, and build toward continuous work over time.
We made this episode as audio friendly as possible, but there is a video version on the Saltwater Experience YouTube channel in the Tom Rowland Podcast playlist where you can watch Ryan demonstrate every movement. His full-length podcast episode is there too, and his story is amazing and worth your time.
We had Ryan on the podcast for a full-length episode, and his story is incredible, but I wanted him back for something practical, the actual training that built a two-time world champion. Boxers train abs as seriously as anyone alive, and when Ryan told me his daily number, I knew listeners would assume it was impossible until they heard how he structures it. Hear him walk through it himself, press play in the player above.
Here is the exact structure Ryan uses, scaled however your level allows.
I walk through each of these in the episode. Press play in the player above.
A boxer's midsection is both engine and armor, it transfers punching power and absorbs body shots for twelve rounds. That is why fighters like Ryan put daily volume into the abs that would seem insane in any other sport, and why their core strength shows up in everything they do. Hearing a world champion explain that logic in his own words is worth the episode by itself, so press play in the player above.
The headline number sounds impossible until you see the math, six exercises, 25 reps, twice through, three times a day. Each piece is achievable, and the daily habit is what compounds into a championship midsection. That same math is how you should approach any big training number, including the challenges we run on this podcast. Ryan breaks down his thinking in the episode, so press play in the player above.
You may never take a body shot, but poling a skiff, fighting fish, hauling gear, and long days on your feet all run through the core. A scaled version of Ryan's routine, done a few times a week, builds exactly the kind of midsection endurance that keeps your back healthy on the water. I talk about how I am using it in the episode, so press play in the player above.
Want the full breakdown? Press play in the player above and listen to the whole episode.
Pour yourself a cup of coffee and steal the structure, six exercises, 25 reps apiece, once or twice through, and you have an awesome ab routine no matter your level. Ryan does it three times a day, and you can grow into whatever dose makes sense for you.
Go watch Ryan demonstrate the movements on the Saltwater Experience YouTube channel, and listen to his full-length episode while you are there. His story is one of the best we have had on the show.
Ryan Martin · boxing · ab routine · in and outs · bicycles · side planks · half jackknife · core training · Saltwater Experience YouTube channel · Tom Rowland Podcast playlist · Physical Friday
Physical Friday is my weekly fitness series for fishing guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen — the training, nutrition, and mindset to stay in the game for life. Watch and listen to every Physical Friday episode from Tom Rowland.
I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. On the podcast's Physical Friday series I share the workouts, nutrition, and mindset that keep guides, anglers, hunters, and outdoorsmen strong on the water and in the field, in short, focused episodes you can put to use right away.
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