While workouts designed for tightening your stomach may not have an impact on losing weight, if you make healthy choices on diet and do cardio workouts on a regular basis, you could as well help in lowering the body fat. By consulting a Coquitlam personal trainer, you are able to get tips on how you can simultaneously incorporate oblique and abdominal workouts in your exercises. This can go a long way in decreasing the fat percentage and toning those muscles and making them more visible.
Some of the exercises, which can help in tightening your stomach while at the same time reducing weight are bicycle crunch, front plank, and hanging leg raise. In front plank, it entails isometric abdominal exercises, which are capable for forcing the abs to contract and be able to hold one in position rather than doing repetitions of movements.
What you do is lie on your stomach and set the elbows so that they are positioned directly with the shoulders. Then bring the legs together and lift up onto the forearms as well as toes in order for the torso, thighs, and hips to remain off ground. Ensure you create a straight line on your body while holding in that position for as long as you can manage. Do about two to three sets of holding the front plank till the abdominal feels fatigued.
Bicycle crunch is considered to be one of the best exercises if you want to target the obliques and abdominals. Lie on your back on a mat and place the fingers interlocked and your hands behind the head. Then bend the knees while lifting the up off the floor. Now, crunch up as you twist to the left in order for right elbow to cross over the chest.
While in that position, extend the right leg and take the left knee up the chest to meet with the right elbow. Then lower to the floor mat and repeat the step. You can interchange the position by crunching and twisting to the right and cycling your legs to allow the left leg extend while the right knee meets the left elbow. You may now complete about three sets of this exercise each consisting of about 15 or more reps.
With hanging leg raise, you will need to use a pull-up bar. By reaching up and grabbing the bar using your hands that are placed wider than shoulders and the palms facing forward, you hang from the pull-up bar with legs extending to floor. With the legs straight, ensure you lift them up so that they are parallel to floor and lower them back down to the start position. This exercise may be performed in three sets with as many repetitions as you can.