The 10 most effective exercises for weight loss in the abdomen and ribs

A "lifeline" in the middle is a problem known to many women. And you? Then try these tried and tested belly and rib slimming exercises.

body lift for belly slimming

How and why does fat accumulate in the body?

By understanding the mechanism of this process, it will be easier for you to create a weight loss program and reduce the volume of problem areas. "Fat accumulates due to excessive calories in the diet. This is the extra energy that the body retains, - he explainsVictoria Kasilova,personal trainer and founder of the personal fitness workshop.You can draw the following ratio: imagine that you took money, bought gold bars and put them in a safe, locked them with a key. Now imagine that you have decided to get this money back. You must first find the key to the safe, open it, take out these bars, go and exchange them for money. The same goes for lipolysis: to start the fat burning process, you need to activate many factors: a hormonal background, a calorie deficit. It is necessary to create such a need for energy that the body itself wants to spend these reserves.

Remove the ribs and abdomen: where to start?

By understanding the fact that the human body can not lose weight locally, ie only in a specific area. "You put on extra pounds and lose weight according to your composition and your genetics, " he says. Ekaterina Demidova, master trainer in the direction of group programs.

To get rid of the infamous "sides" and the stomach became flatter, you need to lose weight in general - restructure diet and exercise.

However, you must choose them wisely. "There is a myth that where we train a muscle, we burn fat, " says Victoria Kasilova. - This is not true. Because the process of burning fat occurs throughout the body, and not locally. But we can work in the problem area. From which point of view; Build muscle there, develop strength or mobility. In particular, we can not burn fat at some point, because it leaves in the way calculated by the characteristics of your body. Someone easily and quickly loses volume in the leg area, someone - in the abdomen, and someone first reduces the chest, upper back and only then everything else. The body first of all leaves the fat from those places where it considers its storage less priority. And one of the most important places for him (in women it is more often only the abdomen, the sides and the hips), he gives "reserve" much worse ".

Therefore, a balanced weight loss program will include strengthening exercises, cardiovascular exercises and proper nutrition.

Lose belly fat: Major mistakes

The most common mistakes that coaches consider are:

Use of thermo-corset or plastic film in training."There is a widespread myth that where we sweat, we lose weight, " says Victoria Kasilova. "But it's not like that. Fat does not leave with sweat. If everything was so simple, you could just go and lose weight in the sauna. In fact, as a result, only liquid escapes. And sometimes good, necessary. "By being swept away by 'sweating devices', you dehydrate the body and increase the load on the cardiac system. "

And also - you risk damaging the internal organs. "For example, a corset during training increases the pressure on the internal organs, impairs blood circulation and does not allow the deep muscles to function, " warns Ekaterina Demidova.

Denial of functional exercise.The idea of rapid belly fat loss is so enchanting to some who ignore any exercise, leaving only pressing moments for the press in their fitness program. And in vain! "First, there are no strengthened abs in an uneducated, relaxed body, " says Victoria Kasilova. "If a person starts training, first he has a noticeable relief of the arms, legs, back and only then - the abdominal cubes. "

And all this can be achieved only if you have strength and functional training in your "sports menu", ie again you have to work with all the muscles of the body.

Second, the abdominal exercises themselves are not as energy-intensive as many basic movements such as squats, death lifts and push-ups. "To create a higher calorie expenditure (a prerequisite for weight loss in the abdomen, sides and whole body), you need to work with large muscles. This is how a car engine works: a "small car" consumes less gasoline, an SUV - several times more. So the SUV is the leg muscles, and the "ruunabout" is the type muscles. "

In addition, overworking the abdomen only carries the risk of injuring your back. "Not knowing how to work with your body and fanatically loading your abs, you are more likely to get a back injury, hernia or bulge than a beautiful abdomen. "Because these movements have a compressive effect on the spine, " adds Victoria.

Performing useless or inappropriate exercise.The first include lateral turns with weights. "It's not effective to fight the sides this way. This way you will not make your waist thinner. Strengthen some muscle groups, but you will not achieve the expected result. Bend with dumbbells if it does not hurt, if there is no discomfort in the lower back, if it helps you like a placebo. But there will not be much benefit from this exercise. "Instead, it is better to make a diagonal twist while lying down, it is safer for the lower back, " recalls Victoria Kasilova.

Experts also do not recommend performing very complex exercises, which are available only to highly trained people: athletes, fitness models. "Take, for example, the hanging legs. It is believed that this is an exercise for the press, - says Victoria Kasilova. - But in fact, if you start disassembling it in terms of biomechanics, the main action in it is the bending of the hip. The main muscle that bends the joint is the rectus femoris, quadriceps. Therefore, if your leg muscles are not well developed, they will be the first to get tired, the press just will not light up. If this is a real hangover and not a support, you need to have strong muscles in your arms and back to support your body. In addition, the body must be thin enough for the hands to support its weight.

Who should do abdominal and lateral exercises

Experts advise you to focus on exercising the type muscles only in certain cases. "It is necessary to pump this belt separately for beginners, for those who have no preparation at all - after rehabilitation, after childbirth. Here, an easy type of twist lying on the floor, a board and similar exercises on solid supports will be useful, - says Victoria Kasilova. - This is necessary to combine the sternum and pelvis into a single unit. The coupling between these zones is soft. To make it difficult and to be able to do the usual exercises, to cope with the housework without back injuries and you need simple exercises for the abdominal muscles ".

The same goes for the athletes who perform. "It's also worthwhile to include press training exercises for those preparing for competitions - for example, fitness bikinis, " adds Victoria Kasilova.

If you are training for a long time and you are not going to participate in fitness bikini competitions, it does not make sense to draw extra press. "Once a person has been training for some time, has developed coordination, abdominal exercises are excluded from the program as a less priority. Because the abs in large exercises act as a stabilizer, they support your body when you do heavy squats, pulls, bench presses, death lifts, push-ups. »

The most effective exercises for slimming the abdomen and ribs

There are many types of exercises for this area, but not all of them are able to give you the desired result. In addition, not all home training activities are available. "I would recommend doing exercises at home that are technically simple. It is recommended to do a program of various movements: the press consists of many small fibers located at different angles. By combining different exercises, you can use them all ", adds Victoria Kasilova.

We asked the experts to compile a list of the most effective, easy and simple abdominal exercises. Here is:

  • Plank."It is a flexible exercise in which the deep muscles are actively involved, including the transverse abdomen and the obliques. You can perform different types of boards - classic, lateral or dynamic, the most important thing is to execute them skillfully and correctly. "Instead of small planks, it will be more efficient to run many small planks with a break of a few seconds, the so-called 'fractional plank, '" says Ekaterina Demidova.
  • Incomplete critical moments."When you twist, you only lift the lower extremities of the shoulders to activate the rectus abdominis and the oblique muscles, " comments Ekaterina.
  • "Square"."In this position, if done correctly, you can work the core muscles in isolation, " recalls Ekaterina Demidova.

Exercises "not intended" directly for this area will also help to effectively work the abdomen and ribs. This is almost the entire strength base - squats, deadlifts, etc. "It should be understood that abdominal exercises do not always work not only the abdominal muscles, we have the whole nucleus involved - the muscles in the middle of the body, connect the sternum and pelvis. ", - concludes Victoria Kasilova.

We asked Victoria to show us a set of exercises that took all of these factors into account.

How to make a lesson

  • Start your workout with a few simple joint exercises or a 10 minute cardio workout. This will help prepare your muscles and joints for stress.
  • Perform all the exercises in order.
  • Watch your breathing: the main effort must be made on the exhale.
  • Participate in this program 4-6 times a week.
  • Increase the load gradually. "Adjusting the body (and therefore the change in appearance) only happens when we create stress, overload, " says Victoria Kasilova. "Therefore, it is advisable to gradually complicate the lessons each week: use weights, increase the number of repetitions. "
  • Complete your workout with cardio workouts. If your schedule does not include regular strength training, be sure to add cardio to your core - 40-50 minutes of swimming, cycling and running two or three times a week will suffice. "Cardio will create the expenditure of these calories, with its help we can get rid of part of the fat, but the exercises for the press will help to make the muscles stronger", concludes Victoria Kasilova.

To complete the band, you will need a rug and a fitball.

Straight twists

Lie on your back with your knees slightly bent. Push your lower back on the floor. Working with the abdominal muscles as you exhale, lift your shoulders off the floor, stretch your arms forward, touch your knees with your palms. Do not stretch your neck and shoulders. Gently lower your back to the mat. This will be a repetition. Implementation15-20 of them.

Oblique twists

Lie on your back with your knees slightly bent. Push your lower back on the floor. Working with the abdominal muscles as you exhale, lift your shoulders off the floor and turn your body to the right. Stretch your arms in front of you. Do not stretch your neck and shoulders. Return smoothly to the starting position. Implementation15-20 repetitionsin any direction.

Reverse creases

Lie on your back with your arms outstretched along your body. Bend your knees slightly and lift your legs up. Push your lower back on the floor. Using your abdominal muscles as you exhale, lift your pelvis off the floor and bring your legs further behind your head. The abdomen should touch the thighs. Smoothly lower yourself to the starting position. Implementation15-20 repetitionshigh schools.

Twisting by raising the pelvis

Lie on your back, put your hands in a lock on the back of your head. Relax your neck and shoulders. Push your lower back on the floor. Pull your legs up, crossing your ankles. As you exhale, working your abdominal muscles, lift your shoulders and pelvis over the mat at the same time. Return smoothly to the starting position. Implementation15-20 repetitionshigh schools.

Side bar in dynamics

Lie on your right side, bend your right hand at the elbow and rest on your forearm. Stretch your legs and rest on the floor with the side surfaces of your legs, place your left hand on your thigh. Do not bend at the lower back. With one exhale, lift the pelvis off the floor, work the abs and back muscles. Fasten at the top for 3-4 seconds, return to the starting position. Implementation20 repetitionsin any direction.

Rotation of the legs from a prone position

Sit on a rug with straight legs. Lean slightly back. Bend your elbows, take them back a little and lean on your forearms. Bend your legs at the hip joint and stretch them upwards. Press the sacrum to the floor. Working with the press muscles, core and thighs, smoothly move the toes and straight feet to the left, return to the center and lower them to the right. This will be a repetition. Implementation10-20such.

Lifting body in fitball

Lie on the fitball with your left side, placing your body and pelvis on the ball. Stretch your legs and rest on the floor with the side surfaces of your feet. Bend your left hand and place your palm on the back of your head. With your right hand, support the ball slightly in front of you. Working with the press and core muscles as you exhale, gently tear off the upper body from the fitball. Do not bend or bend at the lower back. With one inhalation, return to the starting position. This will be a repetition. Managed by20-30 of them in each direction. . .

Raising the pelvis to fitball

Stand on a board with straight arms, placing your feet on the fitball. Do not add back arch or tilt. Bending your knees and working your abdominal muscles, push your pelvis up. Pull your hips towards your stomach, rolling the fitball closer to your hands. Return smoothly to the starting position. This will be a repetition. Implementation20-30 of them.

Lowering legs with fitball

Lie on your back, stretch your legs forward, press the fitball between your legs. Stretch your arms along the body. Raise your legs with a fitball perpendicular to the floor and, working your abs and torso muscles as you exhale, lower them at an angle of 30-40 degrees. This will be a repetition. Implementation20-30 such. . .

Dynamic board

Emphasize straight arms. Do not raise the arch at the bottom of the back, relax your neck and shoulders. Activate the muscles of the front surface of the body - the muscles of the body, the thighs, the arms. Then bend your elbows alternately and lower yourself to the forearm board. Return to the starting position. Do as many repetitions of the exercise as possibleOne minute. . .

When to expect results?

Many experts agree: rapid weight loss (in 10 days, for example) will harm your health and lead to the same rapid weight gain. In addition, there is a high risk that the returned pounds will "bring friends with them" - the body will store fat in case of a new hunger strike or a period of exhausting training.

It makes more sense to lose weight gradually. "Our efforts are always directly proportional to our results. Adherence to proper nutrition and exercise 4-5 times a week, after a month you will definitely see the first results. But do not forget that the process of losing weight is very individual, it is always necessary to take into account the characteristics of each and, say, the "initial data". "The most important thing is to focus on what you want to achieve and not on the difficulties, and then you will definitely achieve any goal", comments Ekaterina Demidova.

So follow our exercise program, do it regularly and you will be able to observe the first results of weight loss in a month.