Flat stomach, tight abs By Dr Anmol Arora

Is no more a drea

In my previous article on loosing the belly fat and getting six pack abs I have discussed about the diet and regimen for losing weight. Following those in addition here are some of the abdominal exercises which tone up the abdominal muscles and its regular practice will make your dream of having flat stomach come true in six weeks.   Here’s how to get them, with step-by-step instructions and photographs.

Postural Guidelines for Abdominal Exercises

Exercising in proper postural alignment will increase your workout’s effectiveness and substantially decrease your likelihood of injury. Therefore, correct posture should be maintained at all times during your abdominal exercises. Follow the simple guidelines below to improve your posture.

Postural Guidelines Abdominal

1. Make sure your head is horizontal to the ground and centered over your shoulders.

2. Bring your chest up.

3. As you bring your chest up, your shoulders must relax and not go up. Therefore, relax your shoulders down and back.

4. Tighten your abs by pulling your belly button to your spine.

5. Align your knees with your second and third toes.

6. Make sure your knees are not locked. There must always be a slight bend in them.

7. Lay with your feet spaced comfortably apart (usually hip width).

Abs Exercises

So let’s get to it. Here are the experts’ choices on the most effective abdominal exercises. These should be performed two to three times weekly (for beginners, two is plenty to start). Each exercise should be executed until the point of momentary muscular failure, which should happen between 30 and 90 seconds. This is considered one set, which should be no more than 15 to 20 repetitions. Rest for 30 to 60 seconds. Concentrate on performing each exercise slowly with good form. Work up to completing two to three sets of each exercise.

Â

Reverse Crunch: Lie flat on the floor with a neutral spine, with knees at a 90-degree angle, feet a few inches off the floor and legs together, hands by your sides (behind your ears if you’re more experienced). Focus on contracting your abdominals to lift your hips up and in toward your rib case. Exhale as you contract; inhale to return to starting position. Done correctly, this exercise isolates the lower half of the rectus abdominis and the transverus.

B .

Bent-Elbow Plank: This exercise works the whole trunk, particularly the transversus abdominis muscle . Start by lying on your belly and then lift yourself up onto your toes and forearms (elbows in line with shoulders) while contracting your abdominals and keeping your back neutral. Hold that position for five seconds, then rest and repeat. Ultimately, strive to hold the pose for 90 seconds without any rest — for one set. If you’re more experienced, you can also do this exercise on your hands and toes. (As a beginner, start on your hands and knees with a neutral spine and simply contract the abdominals on an exhale without moving your back.)

C.

Bicycle: This exercise works your obliques as well as your rectus abdominis. Lie on your back, hips and knees bent at 90-degrees, chest curled over ribs, hands behind your head. Extend the left leg out while bringing the right knee in towards the chest and rotating the left shoulder toward the right knee. Keep the arm from crossing the face. Rotate from the trunk through the center to the other side without dropping your chest. Move in slow, controlled movements without shifting your hips.

If you perform these exercises consistently, you will notice a significant difference in the strength and tone of your entire torso within six weeks.

“Be consistent,” “Be patient and believe a flat stomach is possible.”