Stomach Exercises To Help Reduce Belly Fat
For many people, the time to reduce belly fat usually begins during the spring season. These people are concerned with losing weight and want to look good during the summer months. During the long cold winter months, people often put a few extra pounds on and it almost always ends up on the midsection. Once spring arrives the rush begins to lose those excess pounds as fast as possible. There are stomach exercises that will help in the process to reduce belly fat.
Obviously, some exercises will be better than others and some target specific abdominal muscles that will assist you to reduce belly fat. Also, it's important to know exactly what your body is capable of doing, which means seeking the advice of a health care professional before doing any kind of strenuous exercise. It is also a good idea to warm up before any exercise by stretching properly which will help you to avoid any possible injury.
Hip Lift
To begin this type of stomach exercise, you must first lie on the floor backside. You might want to use an exercise mat or thick towel that will help to cushion the spine. Keep your arms to the side of your body with the palms of your hands facing upward.
Raise your legs straight up towards the ceiling so that your body and legs form a 90 degree angle, sort of like the letter “L”. Do not bend your knees and try to keep them as straight as you can. The next thing you want to do is contract your abdominal muscles as if you were trying to push your belly button downwards towards the floor. At the same time try lifting your hips off the floor. You only need to raise your hips one or two inches and don't forget that your legs should remain as straight as possible. Hold this position for a couple of seconds, than lower your hips back down. Continue to repeat this process for several times which will make a complete set. Your goal is to work up to 3 – 5 sets or more gradually.
The Seated Torso Twist
This stomach exercise will also be done on the floor, but in a seated position. From the seated position, bend your knees until your feet are resting flat on the floor. Next, spread your feet apart about the width of your hips. From there, extend your arms so that they are in front of you with your fingers interlocking. Now, contract your ab muscles and start leaning backwards to about 45 degrees. While still holding the contraction, start rotating your torso to either side as if you were being twisted. Rotate only as far as comfortably possible for yourself. Concentrate on only using your ab muscles during this motion. Do not use your upper body to rotate, use your abdominal muscles so your upper body moves all in one motion with your abs and control the motion of your arms. Do not let your arms do the twisting for you. Once you have rotated as far as you can comfortably move, return to the beginning position and do the other side. Try to do a set of 3 – 5 reps and a total of several sets gradually. This is not an exercise to rush with, especially since the movements need to be controlled. An important tip to remember with this exercise is to never use momentum to perform the twist.
Remember, gradually take your time during any exercise routine, especially if you are just starting out. Warm up before and after by stretching your body to reduce the chances of injury. Also, keep in mind that that if you want to reduce belly fat you must also incorporate a balanced diet that includes plenty of nutrients for your body. Eating right combined with some sort of physical program is your best option to reduce belly fat permanently.
Written by: K. Ho from fatloss.synthasite.com
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