Bid adieu to belly fat with these 5 ab exercises

A lot of people desire a flat tummy like their favourite fit and fab film stars, but not everybody wants visibly toned abs! But if you belong to the category of people who are vying for the perfect six-packs, let us tell you some ab exercises to help you lose belly fat.

So in order to flatten your tummy faster, befriend these 5 ab exercises to reduce belly fat.

Ab exercises to get rid of belly fat

HealthShots spoke to Sonia Bakshi, Nutritionist and Founder DtF (Dance to Fitness), about the ab exercises for flat belly.

She says, “Exercising abdominal muscles allows movement while also providing stability, support, and balance to the body.” She adds, “Crunching, side bending, and twisting will not let your abdominal muscles appear if they are covered by a thick layer of fat. So, for burning belly fat, ab exercises are the clear winner. They keep your heart rate elevated for a longer period of time, resulting in more energy burned and, as a result, fat loss and weight loss.”

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While no single exercise can help burn belly fat on its own. As a result, your workout should include a variety of activities such as aerobics, cycling, walking, jogging, skipping, and jumping. Pay attention to these ab exercises as well and remember to stick to a healthy diet plan.

These are 5 ab exercises to burn belly fat:

1. Squats

If you squat regularly, you can burn fat and build muscles. “Squats primarily develop strength, but heavy squats increase your lean muscle mass, which increases your ability to burn calories at rest during the course of the day,” says Bakshi. Due to this, it can help to lose fat all over, including the belly and thighs.

2. Side planks

Lie on your forearm, body straight, and raise your hips and one arm. Rotate your torso towards the floor and bring your arm under your body. Rotate your torso again and straighten your arm. Start with one set of 10 reps. Repeat on the other side.

3. Boat pose

This exercise builds the core and the spinal muscles. From a seated position, lean back and raise your legs into the air to form a V shape. Extend your arms in front so that they are parallel to the floor. Hold for up to one min. Repeat again.

4. Toe reaches

This exercise is ideal for beginners who want to strengthen their core.

Here’s how to do it:

• Lie on your back, feet raised, and legs at a 90-degree angle.
• As you lift your upper body off the mat, engage your lower abdominals.
• Reach your hands to your toes and pause for 1–2 seconds at the top.
• Slowly lower it back down.
• Do 1–3 sets of 15 repetitions.

5. Bicycle crunches

It is also an effective exercise to reduce belly fat. Make sure to rotate your core during this exercise. Draw your shoulders away from your ears and root your lower back into the floor.

Here’s how to do it:

• Lie on your back with your knees bent and heels flat on the floor.
• At the base of your skull, interlace your fingers.
• Engage your core muscles, lift your upper body off the floor, and raise your knees so they are directly above your hips to begin.
• Exhale by twisting your torso and bringing your right elbow and left knee together.
• Straighten and extend your right leg at the same time.
• Hold for 1–2 counts before returning to the starting position.
• Then repeat on the opposite side.
• This is one repetition. Do 2–3 sets of 10 repetitions.

Benefits of ab exercises

1. If you perform ab exercises regularly, your endurance is likely to improve. And endurance helps create a strong, healthy body, boosts your metabolism, helps you lose weight; and increases your body’s ability to endure extensive activity.
2. If you want to continue your workout routine, it is important that your back stays in good shape. And ab exercises bring more strength and stability to your spine and therefore improve your posture, which might result in better back health.
3. Ab exercises boost core strength and overall performance, which is really necessary when it comes to following a weight loss workout routine.