Tummy Workouts

Achieving a nice flat tummy is not impossible but will demand hard work and dedication. Exercise alone will not give you flat abs, having a proper diet is also necessary. Before you can do anything to tone and slim the waistline you must change your eating habits.

Once you have implemented a better way of eating you can move on to the muscle building and toning exercises.

The first and possibly most important aspect of getting flatter abs is to incorporate cardiovascular and strength training tummy workouts in your routine. This is to help you not only lose the fat that accumulates around your middle, but also to help strengthen and tone the abdominal muscles.

Tummy workout exercises

There are so many different tummy workouts that are supposed to help flatten and tighten tighten the tummy that it is hard to choose, but some are definitely more effective than others. Some of the most popular tummy workouts, while great for toning, will not help in getting rid of fat. Remember that the abs are beneath that spare tire, so for them to show you must first lose the excess weight. 

Two of the best tummy workouts are:

• Crunches

Crunches, especially those done using an exercise ball can be an exerciser’s best friend in tummy workouts. How: Lie on a large exercise ball, lay on your back with your arms behind your head; try to lift your upper body while contracting your tummy, and then lower yourself. You should feel your abs stretch as you work. Try not to let the ball roll as you perform the routine. Do about fifteen repetitions of about 4 sets.

There are various levels of this exercise, as you build up your strength you can increase the number of sets.

• Bicycling exercise

This exercise got the thumbs up from the American Council on Exercise.

This exercise can be done at home and is something most of us can do with ease. Lie on your back on the floor, place your hands behind your head (for comfort intertwine/lace your fingers together); lift your knees and pull them towards your chest, next raise your shoulders off the ground (Do not pull your neck, just lift your shoulders);

Straighten your right leg to a 45-degree angle, turn your torso to the right while trying to touch your left elbow to your right knee; change sides, that is, turn your upper body to the left while trying to touch right elbow to your left knee. Ten to fifteen repetitions is good.

In addition to the above, Pilates exercises are great for the abs and because they are enjoyable you will find sticking to your routine a lot easier to do. While crunches are great for strength and toning, they do very little in way of helping to shed the fat deposited on the tummy.

Tummy Workouts Summary

To get the best out of your tummy workouts, make sure that you do your abs exercises first. This ensures that you are fresh and not too tired to work your abdominal muscles; it is also easier to get into an aerobic routine afterwards.  Remember also that some exercises work better for men than women and vice versa, but ultimately, if you want to be able to stick with the program find exercises that you like doing.