Getting the flat stomach of your dreams isn’t a simple task. Whether you’ve been working hard at the gym or not, getting your abs to pop isn’t as easy as doing a few sets of sit-ups and Russian twists every day. There are many factors involved in achieving a toned core, and some of them are out of your control, like how much body fat you have.
Having a strong core is important to help you perform many daily tasks, including lifting heavy objects, bending over and reaching for things. But to really show off your core, you need to reduce your overall body fat percentage. That will take a combination of eating healthy and exercising regularly. Luckily, we have some tips to help you get started.
When it comes to exercises for the core, there are a lot of options available to you. But some of the best ones are those that target multiple muscles at once, such as bicycle crunches and planks.
A plank is an excellent way to strengthen your abs and improve your balance. It also challenges your core by forcing you to keep your back straight as you move. This will challenge the muscles in your torso and core to support you as you move, and it can also help prevent back pain.
Another great exercise for your abdominals is the clam. It’s an easy exercise to do at home, and it can also be done with a friend if you want to add a little more fun to the workout. The clam is a simple exercise that targets the lower and side abdominal muscles. It’s a good option to incorporate into your workout routine if you have trouble performing full planks on your own or if you’re new to core exercises.
When you do these ab exercises, be sure to breathe normally and don’t hold your breath. This can lead to fatigue and injury. Also, don’t push yourself too hard during the workout. You don’t want to overwork the abdominal muscles, which can cause injuries like hernias or a diastasis recti.
During pregnancy, the muscles in your abdomen separate to accommodate for the growing uterus. Often, that gap will close after pregnancy, but sometimes it doesn’t. This condition is called diastasis recti, and it can cause your belly to protrude in the form of a mommy pooch. If you search online for ways to fix the problem, you’ll find a deluge of exercises that claim to help coax your abdominal muscles together.
One exercise that has shown promise in helping to repair diastasis recti is the bicycle crunch, a version of the standard crunch that uses your legs and feet instead of your arms. The exercise has been shown to be effective in a small pilot study, which tracked the progress of 63 women who did this exercise both before and after pregnancy. They all saw improvements in their abs, despite the fact that some of them had diastasis recti before starting the exercise.
Milena Estêvão is a YouTuber passionate about sharing her experiences (challenges, successes and motivations) in the fitness activities she is involved in.
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