Are you worried about your saggy belly? Or has the abnormal body fat stopped you from wearing that slim dress hanging in your cupboard for so long? Or you were discussed in a hilarious way because of your enlarged belly?
No worries now! In this blog post, I will tell you some great exercises that will help you burn your belly fat within days.
The good thing is that all these exercises and workouts can be performed at home with a minimalistic approach and at no cost at all.
What is belly fat?
An excess amount of fat that is present in your abdomen becomes belly fat. There can be 3 types of belly fats: triglycerides, which are those that circulate in your blood. Subcutaneous fat, which lies under your belly skin, and visceral fat, the fat that surrounds your organs.
Visceral fat is the most dangerous one as it poses risks to your health like high cholesterol levels, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, heart diseases, and breathing disorders.
To avoid all such diseases and disorders, let’s have a look at the exercises/workouts that help reduce belly fat.
Aerobic (Cardio) Exercises
Walking
The most effective and natural way to reduce belly fat is walking. A brisk walk for 30 minutes a day can do wonders. Not only does walking help reduce belly fat but it also aids in shedding extra fats from all over the body. Walking, especially in the morning, has many beneficial effects on overall health. It helps in metabolism and blood pressure regulation. Not only health but walking can aid in mood elevation and has proven a positive impact on the attitude of an individual.
Dancing/ Zumba
Zumba workout is a fun way to burn your extra belly fat. Zumba is different from the traditional boring and serious sort of exercises since in Zumba you exercise your muscles with the dance moves. Not only does Zumba help in reducing belly fat but it also helps in lowering BP, cholesterol, and elevated heart rate. Zumba or dancing can also serve as a mood elevator.
Rope skipping
Rope skipping is a very effective Aerobic exercise that helps not only in burning extra calories from the belly and whole body but also aids in metabolism, and elevates heart rate and respiratory rate to supply the increased demand. Faster and rigorous skipping helps in quicker calorie burnout compared to slower skipping. Also, rope skipping helps in strengthening muscles and bones. Luckily, rope skipping is not limited to children only. Adults can rope skip too.
Swimming
Swimming can reduce belly fat if done in a specific manner. For this purpose keep your core muscles straight in water and work against the water, so as to add resistance to your exercise. Do this cardio swimming for at least 15-20 minutes. This will help you burn belly fat quickly. Not only does swimming help in burning belly fat but strengthens core muscles, regulates BP, and gives the body a sense of relaxation.
Cycling
Cycling is an aerobic exercise that is considered best to lose calories from the belly area. According to a study, cycling burns 300 calories in an hour. Cycling should be made a routine by those who are worried about their belly fat. In fact, obese people should make cycling a part of their lifestyle by not hesitating to use a cycle to go out to the supermarket and workplace, etc. Besides burning extra calories, cycling helps in reducing stroke, diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer. It also builds muscle tone in the lower body.
Anaerobic Exercises
Straight leg raises
These are the simplest exercises that can be performed at home and are easy to understand. Just lie on your back straight, place your palms under the hips, and slowly raise your legs up making a 90°angle at your hip joint with knees straight and feet pointing towards the roof. Keep this posture maintained for as long as you can. If you are new to it, maybe you won’t be able to make a complete 90°angle at first. Or if you can do so, start with let’s say 5 sec to maintain the posture, then lower your leg for 5 sec, then elevate the leg again for 5 sec. Keep the task done with at least 10 repetitions. Slowly increase the time to maintain posture as well as the number of repetitions. This exercise is great for burning lower abdominal fat.
Burpees
A burpee is an extended squat thrust that is great for losing belly fat and in fact fat from the whole body. It is a 4-step exercise, first, make a squat position of your body, next throw your back into an extended plank position, then immediately return back into a squat position, and at last stand up from the squat position. One can do burpees according to his level of endurance, starting with a smaller number of repetitions and then gradually increasing the repetitions. Pushups are also modified forms of burpees. Since burpees are hard to do, they are great for the metabolism, burning large amounts of calories. Also, they build up muscle strength and maintain CVS.
30-sec Planks
Planks are so effective in losing belly fat. They not only help in losing belly fat but also strengthen core muscles. To do a plank, try to raise your body, bearing the weight of your upper body on your elbows or palms of your hands and of your lower body on your toes. Make sure to keep the whole body aligned. Do not lower your belly, hips, or legs otherwise, the exercise will lose its impact on the belly fat. Keep the position maintained for 30 sec and then take a rest for 30 seconds. Do as many repetitions as you can. Besides weight loss, planks are great for maintaining the attention span of an individual.
All these exercises must be done gradually and not rigorously so as to avoid any sort of accident or injury. Also, these are written as a general guide to help those struggling to lose belly fat, if you are having some medical issue, then please consult your physician before commencing any exercise.
