Exercise for Stomach Fat

With all the fast food we eat, only the fortunate few avoid a flabby gut without doing some sort of exercise for stomach fat. Two of the simplest types are planks and crunches. Before you start on either, bear in mind that pregnant women shouldn’t do these exercises. Also, if you have back problems, doing crunches on a hard surface can aggravate those problems, so don’t do that. As always, warm up before and stretch afterward. Never stretch cold muscles.

Planks

For the ab plank, lie on the floor face down with your weight on your forearms and toes. Straighten your body, as rigid and straight as possible, from neck to ankles for a 30-second holds (use the old “one-Mississippi, two-Mississippi” method for counting the seconds). Do three sets of 20 (or however many you can do to begin with and work up to three sets). Thirty-second holds are a starting point. Gradually increase your hold time as you grow more accustomed to the exercise. If this becomes too easy, do the exercise with a stability ball under your feet. The more you do the more stomach fat you will burn.

Another intense exercise for stomach fat is the side plank, start in the basic plank position (weight on toes and elbows), and roll to one side, placing all your weight on one forearm and placing your upper foot on your lower foot (the weight is now on the side of your foot), and extend your free arm straight upward. Hold that for 30 seconds, and then reverse, holding that for 30 seconds. This exercise can also be done with straight arms, weight resting on the palm of the hand. That’s a little more challenging balance-wise, but like anything else, it gets easier with practice. Again, the goal is three sets of twenty.

Crunches

For a more old-school exercise for stomach fat, do some crunches. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Position your feet as wide as your hips, hands behind your head, and tuck hands behind your ears. Use your stomach (not your hands) to lift your head, neck and shoulder blades off the floor. Don’t pull your head forward with your hands. Keep your chin off your chest. Hold that position until it starts to burn, and then count to five before lowering. Do three sets of however many you can do, and keep going until failure (i.e., until you can’t do anymore).

An oblique crunch adds rotating slightly with your shoulders, moving one of your elbows toward the opposite knee, while doing the crunches. To increase the intensity of your stomach fat exercise, add a stability ball to the mix.

Stomach fat exercise should be part of your daily routine. It not only makes you look better, but it also remedies back pain caused by extra weight imposing on weak muscles in your stomach and back. You don’t get as tired because you aren’t hauling around extra stomach fat. Working your abs helps your posture and eliminates stress. All in all, you couldn’t do yourself a bigger favor.