Best Exercises For Reducing Belly Fat At Home And Expert Tips

Best Exercises For Reducing Belly Fat At Home And Expert Tips

When we say lower ab workout, we are about training the abdominal muscles that are closer to the pelvis than the thorax. 

These muscles are on the bottom part of the rectus abdominis and the transversus abdominis including the pyramidalis muscle (which is found on the lower part of the abdomen).

Using basic exercises that target these areas will ensure that it gets a better shape and will flatten out those bulging “love handles”. To do this, here are some steps you can follow:

• Reduce your fat intake. Diet is an important part of any health regimen and focusing on the food you eat should be done regularly. Eating properly with 40-40-20 carbohydrate, protein, and fat proportion should suffice. However, you can change the kind of fats that you eat, especially those that can easily be burned by the body. Fruits and vegetables should also be part of all your meals.

Getting rid of the stubborn fat in your belly region is not easy. You must do certain exercises to reduce belly fat. The AARP warns that people with belly fat are at a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and certain cancers. Combat abdominal fat by exercising and changing your lifestyle. This article tells you what to do to reduce and manage belly fat effectively.

Warm up for 10 minutes before starting these exercises. After your muscles are warmed up, take a 10-second break and start with the following exercises:

1. Lying Leg Raises

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat. Place your thumbs under your hips, palms flat on the floor. Lift your feet off the floor a little, look up at the ceiling, and engage your core. This is the starting position.
2. Raise both your legs to 90 degrees and slowly bring them back down.
3. Right before touching the floor, raise your legs again. Do 3 sets of 15 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not place your feet completely on the floor or push your hips up with your hands to lift your legs.

2. Leg In And Out

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Sit on a mat. Place your hands behind you, with your palms flat on the mat. Lift your legs off the floor and lean back a little. This is the starting position.
2. Tuck both your legs in. Simultaneously, bring your upper body close to your knees.
3. Go back to the starting position. Do 2 sets of 20 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not place your hands too wide apart at the back.

3. Scissor Kicks

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat. Place your palms under your hips.
2. Lift your head, upper back, and legs off the floor. This is the starting position.
3. Lower your left leg. Just before it touches the floor, lift your left leg and lower your right leg.
4. Do this 12 times to complete one set. Do 3 sets of 12 reps. Take a 20-second break before moving on to the next exercise.

What Not To Do – Do not do this exercise quickly or hold your breath while doing it.

4. Crunches

Target –Lower and upper abs.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat, flex your knees, and place your feet on the floor.
2. Place a thumb at the back of each ear. Hold the back of your head with the rest of your fingers. Lift your head off the floor. This is the starting position.
3. Initiate the movement by curling up and trying to reach your knees with your head.
4. Go back to the starting position.
5. Make sure you inhale while curling up and exhale while going down. Do 2 sets of 12 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not tuck your chin in.

5. Bicycle Crunches

Target –Upper abs, lower abs, obliques, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat, flex your knees, and lift your feet off the floor.
2. Place a thumb at the back of each ear. Hold the back of your head with the rest of your fingers. Lift your head off the floor. This is the starting position.
3. Push your left leg down and extend it straight. Simultaneously, curl up and twist to your right. Try to touch your left elbow with your right knee.
4. Curl back down and bring your left leg back to the flexed position.
5. Do the same with the other leg. Do 2 sets of 12 reps. Take a 10-second break before doing the next exercise.

What Not To Do – Do not hasten to complete the sets, and do not tuck your chin in.

6. Half Seated Reverse Crunch

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, and glutes.

How To Do

1. Sit on a mat, flex your knees, and place your feet flat on the floor. Lean back and support your body on your elbows. This is the starting position.
2. Lift both your legs off the floor and bring your knees almost close to your nose.
3. Slowly, bring your legs down to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 15 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not scrunch your shoulders or curve your lower back too much.

7. Sit-ups

Target – Lower and upper abs.

How To Do

1. Lie on a mat, flex your knees, and place your heels on the mat. Engage your core and place your hands at the back of your head. Lift your head and shoulders off the floor and look at the ceiling. This is the starting position.
2. Use your core strength to lift your body off the floor and come to a sitting position.
3. Go back down to the starting position slowly. Do 2 sets of 12 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not get confused between sit-ups and crunches. You need to literally sit up and go back down to the starting position to do sit-ups. Do not bring your elbows close while sitting up.

8. Heel Touch

Target – Obliques and upper abs.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat. Kee your legs flexed, feet wider than shoulder-width apart, and flat. Keep your hands by your side, chin up, shoulders relaxed, and core engaged.
2. Bend sideways and try to touch your right heel with your right hand.
3. Bend toward the other side and try to touch your left heel with your left hand.
4. Do 20 of these to finish one set. Do 3 sets of 20 reps. Take a 20-second break before moving on to the next exercise.

What Not To Do – Do not place your feet too close to your hips.

9. Jackknife Crunch

Target –Lower abs, upper abs, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Lie down on a mat. Extend your hands over your head. This is the starting position.
2. Keeping your back and neck in the same line, lift your upper body. Simultaneously, lift both your feet off the floor.
3. Try touching your knees with your hands.
4. Get back to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 12 reps.

What Not To Do – Do not rest your head on the floor completely between repetitions.

10. Russian Twist

Target – Obliques, upper abs, lower abs, and glutes.

How To Do

1. Sit on the mat, lift both your legs, keep your knees flexed, and lean back a little. Join your palms to balance your body. This is the starting position.
2. Twist your upper body to the left and then to the right.

What Not To Do – Do not hold your breath while doing this exercise.

11. Lying Alternate Toe Taps

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, obliques, and glutes

How To Do

1. Lie on the mat and lift both your legs. Extend your hand up, lift your head and upper back off the floor, and engage your core. This is the starting position.
2. Curl up and try to touch your left foot with your right hand.
3. Curl back down.
4. Curl up again and try to touch your right foot with your left hand. Do 2 sets of 15 reps.

What Not To Do – Don’t worry if you are not able to touch your foot. Try reaching beyond the knee and as close to the foot as possible.

12. Crossbody Mountain Climbers

Target – Lower abs, upper abs, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.

How To Do

1. Get into a plank position. Make sure your elbows are directly below your shoulders. Keep your neck, back, and hips in a straight line. Do not pike up and curve down. This is the starting position.
2. Lift your right foot off the floor, flex your knee and bring it close to the right side of your chest.
3. Place the right foot back to its starting position. Now, lift your left foot off the floor, flex your knee and bring it close to the left side of your chest.
4. Speed up and do it as if you are running! Do 2 sets of 25 reps. Take a 20-second break before doing the next exercise.

What Not To Do – Do not place your palms too far away from your body, and do not droop your neck or lower back.

13. Burpees

Target – Full body workout that also targets your abs.

How To Do

1. Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Bend your knees and place your hands on the floor. Let’s call this the “frog” position for clarity.
3. Jump and push both your legs back and get into a plank or push-up position.
4. Hop and get back to the “frog” position.
5. Jump vertically and extend your hands above your head.
6. Land softly on the floor.
7. Get into the frog position again, then go back to the plank position. Do 3 sets of 8 reps. Take a 10-second break between the sets. Also, take a 20-second break before moving on to the next exercise.

What Not To Do – Do not set unachievable goals. Burpees are tough to do. The number of burpees you do does not matter. What matters is how many you do while maintaining correct posture.

14. Plank

Target – Upper abs, lower abs, shoulders, biceps, and glutes.

How To Do

1. Kneel down on a mat.
2. Place your elbows on the mat.
3. Extend your right leg back, then your left leg.
4. Keep your neck, back, and hips in the same line. Keep your core engaged.
5. Hold this pose for at least 30 seconds. Do 3 sets of 30-60 seconds hold.

What Not To Do – Do not place your palms far away from your shoulders. Do not droop your lower back or pike it up.

15. Side Plank

Target – Abs, shoulders, biceps, and glutes.

How To Do

1. Get into a side half-lying pose on your right. Place your left foot across the right foot and on the floor.
2. Place your elbow right below your shoulder and your left hand on your waist.
3. Lift your pelvis off the floor. Your back should be in line with your neck and head.
4. To make this a little tough, open your left hand wide.
5. Hold this pose for 30-60 seconds. Keep breathing.
6. Lower your body. Take a 10-second break, change sides, and do the same on the other side. One set of this exercise is enough for beginners. You may increase the time and sets as you progress.

16-The Best Exercises For Lower Abs

• Focus on your abdomens. When you do the lower ab workout, try to feel that only the muscles in your abdomen are getting tensed. When you feel some other part of your body to be experiencing tension, then you might want to consider altering the techniques you use or exert more effort in putting all the stress only on your abs to workout it out more.

17-The Best Exercises For Lower Abs

• Do some cardio. Know that cardio exercises not only help burn the fats stored in your body prior to doing a lower ab workout, but it also increases your endurance. As the name suggests, you can work out the muscles of your heart before doing any other exercise so that the supply of oxygen throughout your body flowing in your blood would be enough to keep you going, and you will avoid feeling lightheaded. Ten to twenty minutes on the treadmill would be great.

18-The Best Exercises For Lower Abs

• Shorten break periods. When doing exercises that target the muscles in the abdominal area, you have to make sure that it continuously undergoes pressure and that the tension on it is not lost. As you increase the force on it, the more it tends to tighten and be defined. When you stop between intervals, you should keep your rest period as short as possible so the tensions will buildup on your muscles.

19-The Best Exercises For Lower Abs

• Learn to breathe properly. Breathing is an integral part of any exercise, because it helps supply the necessary amount of oxygen that could help burn the stored fats you have in your body.Aside from this, it also prevents the presence of pain after the workout caused by the anaerobic processes on your muscles. Without oxygen, your body would tend to burn the energy in it but release a certain acid that later would make you feel too much pain.

20-The Best Exercises For Lower Abs

After taking note of the tips mentioned above, you will have a basic understanding of the concepts that are related to any exercise routine. Being able to know this can ensure the success of any workout you get into.