Belly fat is always the toughest to get rid of because it is very stubborn. This fat, also called visceral fat, tends to accumulate around the organs and makes you vulnerable to various kinds of health problems like insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes, heart diseases and some cancers. To eliminate the belly fat, it is important to follow a good diet and exercise regularly. Only dieting is not enough to burn the fat; you will need to perform some of these exercises which can target and reduce the belly bulge:
1. Crunches: Crunches are found to be very effective for dealing with belly fat and can be performed by lying down on the floor with feet flat and knees bent. You have to raise the hands, placing them behind the head; after inhaling, you must lift the torso off the mat as you exhale. You inhale to go down back on the mat.
2. Twist Crunches: Here, you can bend the knees and keep feet flat on the mat. As you lift the torso similar to the regular crunch, you twist the right shoulder to the left maintaining your left torso on the mat. The alternate shoulder has to be then raised while the right torso stays on the mat.
3. Side Crunch: This is almost the same as the twist crunches except that you tilt the legs to the same side along with your shoulders. This targets muscles on your sides; movements however must be slow because you can end up hurting yourself otherwise.
4. Reverse Crunches: The reverse crunch is like the twist crunch and you need to tilt the legs behind the shoulders as you twist them. It is important to maintain a straight back while performing this workout; else injuries are possible.
5. Rolling Plank Exercise: For doing this exercise, you must place yourself on the mat with both elbows and knees resting on the floor. You have to look ahead as your neck is kept aligned with the spine. The knees are lifted up and legs are supported on toes. As you contract the knees, you must keep breathing normally. You have to hold the regular plank for half a minute and then keep shifting to and fro for the next 30 seconds to perform the rolling plank.
6. Vertical Leg Crunch: To do this workout, you must lie down on the mat with legs stretched up towards the roof, crossing one knee over the other. The same crunch movement must be performed. So, you inhale and then raise the torso off the mat; you exhale to bring yourself back on the mat.
7. Captain’s Chair: You must sit down on a chair with spine upright and shoulders relaxed. The hands are at your sides with palms facing your hips. You must inhale deeply and while exhaling, bring the legs up so that your knees come close to the chest. You need to hold this posture without arching your back. When you breathe out you bring the legs down.
8. Bicycle Leg Crunch: In this exercise, you must raise both legs off the floor and keep them bent at the knees. You have to then draw the right knee towards the chest and keep the left leg away. The same action has to be repeated using the alternate leg. The movements resemble bicycle pedaling and this helps to burn the belly fat.
9. Lunge Twist: You have to stand with feet hip-width apart and knees slightly bent. With hands raised before you and aligned with your shoulders, you need to lunge forward. So, you take a step with the right leg and sit down in a way so that the knees are perpendicular to the floor. The left leg has to be positioned backwards and supported by toes. Keeping the spine straight, you must twist the torso to the right and then left.
10. Stomach Vacuum: These are low impact workouts which focus on breathing and are called cat stretch pose. You must be on your fours supporting the body on your knees and hands. When you breathe in, you loosen the abdomen and as you breathe out, you tighten your abs.
11. Walking: Doing cardio exercises are the most effective ways for burning calories and shedding the belly fat; walking for instance can help to burn the belly fat effectively. When you stick to a healthy diet and walk nearly 45 minutes at a steady pace about five times a week, you can notice a sharp drop in the weight.
12. Running: Running is a good break from walking and can help you lose the extra pounds by keeping the heart rate up. This helps to burn greater number of calories and helps you to get rid of the belly bloat.
13. Jogging: For those who are not too keen to stress the knees and joints by running, you can choose to jog instead. Incidentally, according to studies, jogging is perhaps more effective when it comes to losing the unwanted flab. This aerobic workout helps to fight obesity and keeps you fit.
14. Cycling: This is yet another useful cardio exercise which helps you to eliminate the belly fat by accelerating your heart rate and calorie burning capacity.
15. Swimming: This exercise can help you lose body weight and tone your body at the same time. You need to however perform strenuous strokes to notice the change in body weight.
16. Goblet Squats: These squats will target the thighs, glutes, core and hamstrings and can be effective for losing belly fat. To do this, you need to hold dumbbells at chest height, keeping forearms parallel to each other and feet shoulder-width apart. You need to descend into a squat like sitting on a chair with back straight and the chest upright. Now, from this position you must push through the heels to stand up to go back to the original posture.
17. Bent-Over Dumbbell Row: To perform this, you need to get moderate dumbbells and keep palms facing body all the time. With knees slightly bent, you must push the back to the wall so that your chest moves in front as you bend.
18. Exercise Ball Crunch: This requires an exercise ball and demands a lot of stability. You must lie on this ball to support the lower back and keep feet firm on the floor. Hands could be either on your chest or behind the head. You need to contract the abs to raise the torso upwards and forwards. You must then lower the back down again maintaining total stability.
19. Medicine Ball Russian Twists: You must sit n a way so that the upper torso and thighs form the “V” shape and lower legs are raised and crossed. Holding a 5 pound medicine ball or dumbbell you must swivel from left to right, moving the ball as you do so across the body while keeping the “V” intact.
20. Low-belly leg reach: You must lie with face upwards and knees bent at right angles. Contracting abs and holding hands behind the head, you have to keep knees above the hips. Then you need to lift the shoulders as you crunch up. As you exhale you must stretch the legs to 45 degrees and then hold this posture for 5 seconds while you squeeze the lower belly.