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A flat stomach is a common fitness goal, and there are a variety of exercises that can help burn fat, tone the core, and build muscle to achieve it. A saggy belly can be the result of an unhealthy lifestyle, extreme weight loss, or childbirth, but targeted exercises for the abs can help reduce sagging. Planks, for example, are a great way to tighten stomach muscles as they engage the arms, legs, and back, burning more calories than other abdominal exercises. Other exercises that can help include boat poses, leg raises, and bicycle crunches.
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What You'll Learn
Target all muscle groups
To firm up tummy muscles, it's important to incorporate exercises that target all the muscle groups that make up your core. The abs are made up of four major muscle groups: external obliques, internal obliques, rectus abdominis, and transverse abdominis.
The external obliques are the muscles on the sides of the upper part of your stomach, while the internal obliques are the muscles on the outer, lower part of your stomach. The rectus abdominis consists of a pair of muscles that start at the sternum and run down vertically. These are responsible for giving your core that “six-pack” look. Lastly, the transverse abdominis muscle runs from side to side, helping with balance.
Some exercises that target all of these areas include:
- Planks: Planking burns more calories than other abdominal exercises since it engages the arms, legs, and back. To do a plank, start on your elbows and knees and place your feet out behind you in a plank position so your body is parallel to the floor. Hold this position for as long as you can, breathing normally throughout, and try to increase the time with each attempt. You can also do a side plank or a forearm plank.
- Leg raises: Lie on your back with your legs straight out in front of you. Engaging your core, slowly raise your straightened legs toward the ceiling. Then, slowly lower your legs without letting them touch the floor.
- Bicycle crunches: Lie flat on your back with your fingers interlaced behind your head. Raise your head and shoulders from the floor, and raise your knees so that they are directly above your hips. While exhaling, twist your torso to bring your left elbow toward your right knee, and extend your left leg. Hold the position for 1-2 counts, then repeat on the opposite side. Aim for 3 sets of 12-20 reps, resting for 30-60 seconds after each set.
- Boat pose: Sit on the floor with your feet stretched out in front of you. Slowly tip your upper body back while raising your feet and legs off the floor. Stretch your arms toward your legs, aiming to make a V-shape with your torso and legs. Hold this pose for up to one minute.
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Plank and boat poses
To firm up tummy muscles, it is important to strengthen your core. This can be done through exercises that challenge your core muscles and get your body off the floor. Certain types of yoga poses and stretches can help with this. Plank and boat poses are an intense workout for your tummy.
Plank Pose
For the plank pose, start on your elbows and knees and place your feet out behind you so that your body is parallel to the floor. You can also do a side plank by lying on your left side, with your left forearm firmly placed on the floor and your hips raised off the floor. Extend your right arm up so that your right wrist is in line with your right shoulder. This low plank variation is especially good for tightening stomach muscles by challenging your stability as you extend one arm while maintaining the low plank position.
Boat Pose
To begin the boat pose, sit on the floor with your feet stretched out in front of you. Slowly tip your upper body back while you raise your feet and legs off the floor. Stretch your arms toward your legs, aiming to make a V-shape with your torso and legs. You can also do a modified boat pose by sitting back on the base of your tailbone with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Raise your arms out from your shoulders so that they are parallel to the floor. With your spine long and chest open, lean back so that your torso is at a 45-degree angle to the floor and lift both feet off the floor, bending your knees so that your shins are parallel to the floor.
Doing these exercises regularly, along with maintaining a healthy diet, will help you achieve a firmer tummy.
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Leg raises and crunches
To firm tummy muscles, it is important to focus on core-strengthening exercises and targeted abdominal moves. While standard crunches are a good starting point, it is beneficial to incorporate variations of the crunch, such as leg raises, to effectively challenge your core and see results.
To perform leg raises and crunches, start by lying flat on your back with your legs fully extended toward the ceiling. Simultaneously crunch your upper body toward the ceiling, reaching your hands toward your feet. Ensure that your upper back remains straight and does not round as you raise your arms. Then, lower your torso back to the starting position, and finish by rolling your hips toward your chest for an extra squeeze.
For a more advanced challenge, you can incorporate the side plank with a leg raise. Begin in a side plank position, with your forearm firmly placed on the floor and your hips raised. Extend your top leg while reaching your top arm toward the ceiling, creating a full-body extension. This variation not only targets your tummy muscles but also challenges your balance and stability, engaging your oblique muscles as well.
In addition to leg raises and crunches, consider incorporating other exercises such as the plank, boat pose, or bicycle crunches for a well-rounded abdominal workout. Remember, combining these targeted exercises with a healthy diet and lifestyle will help you achieve a firmer tummy and a stronger core.
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Lifestyle changes
A toned midsection is not just about aesthetics; it's also about improving your posture, preventing back pain, and enhancing your overall fitness. Here are some lifestyle changes that can help you firm your tummy muscles:
Exercise
Cardio exercises are a great way to firm up your stomach. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a type of workout that involves short bursts of intense activity, such as sprinting, rowing, or jumping, followed by brief periods of rest. This type of training helps burn fat and temporarily increases your metabolic rate, even after your workout is finished.
In addition to cardio, targeted abdominal exercises can help reduce sagging in the belly area. Some examples include:
- Plank and boat poses: These yoga poses are an intense tummy workout. For the plank, start on your elbows and knees, then place your feet behind you so your body is parallel to the floor. Hold this position while breathing normally, and try to increase the duration over time. For the boat pose, sit on the floor with your feet stretched out in front of you, then slowly tip your upper body back while raising your feet and legs off the floor. Stretch your arms toward your legs, aiming to form a V-shape with your torso and legs.
- Side plank: Lie on your left side with your left forearm on the floor and your hips raised. Extend your right arm up so your wrist is in line with your shoulder. Exhale and bring your right knee toward your chest, then extend your leg back out to the starting position.
- Bicycle crunches: Lie on your back with your hands behind your head. Lift your shoulders and bring your left knee toward your chest while twisting your torso to touch your right elbow to your left knee. Focus on slow movements to effectively engage the muscles.
- Russian twists: Sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground. Hold your hands together in front of your chest, or grab a weight for added resistance. Twist your torso from side to side, touching the floor beside you on each side.
Diet
In addition to exercise, mindful eating can help promote weight management. Keeping a food diary can give you insight into your eating patterns, portion sizes, and nutrition intake. This awareness can help you make adjustments to your diet, such as creating a safe calorie deficit, which is key to sustainable fat loss. It's important to note that losing weight in a specific area, like the tummy, can be challenging, and fat loss usually occurs throughout the body.
Stress Relief
Incorporating stress-relieving activities, such as yoga or meditation, into your daily routine can help reduce stress-related behaviors like emotional eating or overeating. These activities can also improve your overall well-being and complement your physical exercises.
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Yoga and Pilates
Pilates is a low-impact workout that can help build muscle strength and tone, particularly in your abs, lower back, hips, and bum. It is an arrangement of activities intended to improve the body's true capacity by rectifying strong uneven muscles, making ideal arrangements, and finding proficient patterns for movement. The core is made up of four muscle groups: abs, obliques, back, and pelvic floor.
Pilates targets the deepest layer of the abs, assisting in developing core strength and shaping the muscles, especially around the waist. The fundamental Pilates move is "pulling your abdominals in", which involves pulling the pelvic floor up and in toward the center line. This move can be used in all physical activities to help provide stability and activate other muscles more efficiently.
Breathing during the "Hundreds" is incredibly difficult and requires tapping into rib cage breathing, which means breathing into your upper ribs rather than doing a belly breath. By practicing this style of breathing, you engage your diaphragm and all the muscles around your rib cage.
Yoga exercises can also help reduce belly fat, burn calories, increase muscular flexibility, and boost metabolism. One of the most important aspects of yoga practice is mastering proper breath, which will enable you to hold poses longer and go further than you thought possible. One common pranayama practice is known as "ocean breath", which involves breathing in slowly through your nose and exhaling slowly through your mouth, making an "Ha" sound. Once mastered, you can exhale through your nose.
There are many yoga poses that can help tone your tummy, including:
- Boat pose: lie on your back with your feet together and arms by your sides. As you exhale, slowly lift your chest off the floor, making sure your abs are doing the lifting, not your neck or back. At the same time, lift your feet off the ground and extend your arms out straight toward your toes.
- Plank: lie on your stomach and press your palms into the mat on either side of your shoulders, tucking your toes under. Push off with your hands to raise your body off the ground.
- Dhanurasana: lie face down on the ground and spread your hands close to your shoulders. Spread your legs back until the tops of your feet are flat on the ground. Inhale and raise your upper body, ensuring your toes and pelvis hit the ground in a horizontal path. Hold for 25-30 seconds, then exhale and return to your lying posture.
- Padahastasana: stand straight with your feet close together. Lift your arms above your head and exhale as you lean forward and downward, keeping your head near your knees and your legs straight. Hold your calves and breathe normally. Hold for up to one minute.
- Ustrasana: stand with your feet slightly apart and your hands next to your body. Inhale and lift your arms, entwining your fingers. Stand on your toes and lift your heels, stretching your body. Hold this position.
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Frequently asked questions
There are many exercises that can help firm tummy muscles, including:
- Planks
- Leg raises
- Bicycle crunches
- Side plank
- High plank
- Boat pose
- Leg-ups straight arm crunches
- Air bicycling
Apart from exercises, making changes to your diet and lifestyle can help firm your tummy muscles.
To do a plank, start on your elbows and knees and place your feet out behind you in a plank position so your body is parallel to the floor. Hold this position for as long as you can, breathing normally throughout and try to increase the amount of time each time you do this exercise.
