Strong abdominal muscles
The 5 best abdominal exercises that aren’t sit-ups
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Do you want to do something for your abdominal muscles, but are not a fan of the classic sit-ups? Then we have five alternative exercises for you – which are also much more effective!
Strong abdominal muscles are important for health. A strong core protects our back, especially the sensitive lumbar spine. In addition, the lower abdominal fat, the so-called visceral fat, can be very harmful to your health because According to studies, it can promote cardiovascular diseases as well as diabetes and high blood pressure.
This makes it all the more important that we train our abdominal muscles. We can reassure anyone who immediately thinks of boring sit-ups. Because there are exercises for the stomach that are much more effective – and a lot more fun. Here are our favorites.
5 abdominal exercises for visceral fat that aren’t sit-ups
1. Squats
Our largest muscles are in our legs. To burn calories, you should also train your legs. Combination exercises such as squats are best – they activate the leg, buttocks and core muscles at the same time. This is how you can actively reduce belly fat.
That’s how it’s done:
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart or slightly wider. The weight should rest primarily on the heels.
- Now bend your knees, push your hips back and lower your buttocks. Be sure to keep your knees behind your ten tips. Ideally, your knees form a right angle. Also make sure not to arch your back, but rather to activate your core muscles. This protects the lumbar spine and strengthens the abdominal muscles.
- Then come back up again in the same controlled manner and slowly repeat the squats at least 20 times.
2. Plank
The plank is an optimal full-body exercise that primarily strengthens the deep muscles in the stomach.
That’s how it’s done:
- From a four-footed position, extend your legs and keep your body in a straight line. Make sure that the buttocks are not pointing upwards – the body should really be straight as a board.
- Hold for about 45 to 60 seconds and increase the time depending on your training level.
- As a variation, you can also practice the forearm plank. To do this, come onto your forearms and hold here for 45 to 60 seconds.
3. Side support
The side abdominal muscles at the waist are worked on in side support, a variant of the plank.
That’s how it’s done:
- To do the side plank, shift the weight from the plank onto your right arm and stack your left foot over the right. The left arm is stretched upwards.
- At the beginning you can also place your feet in front of each other to have a little more stability.
- Hold the side plank for about 30 seconds and then switch sides. Again, you can adjust the duration as you exercise more.
4. Boat (Navasana)
The yoga posture “The Boat” (“Navasana” in Sanskrit) is one of the most effective exercises for the core – it primarily strengthens the deep muscles in the stomach and back.
That’s how it’s done:
- First, come into a seat with your legs stretched out and your back upright.
- Next, use the strength of your abdominal muscles to lift your legs and tilt your upper body slightly backwards so that you maintain a right angle at your hips. The arms are stretched out straight in front of the upper body.
- Hold the boat for about 30 seconds. Make sure your back stays straight and you lift your breastbone upwards.
- If you want to make the exercise dynamic, you can also slowly lower your arms and legs to the floor and raise them again.
5. Burpees
With burpees you activate your entire body and especially strengthen your abdominal muscles.
That’s how it’s done:
- From a straight position, first squat down and place your hands on the floor.
- Now jump your feet back until your legs are straight and land in the plank or push-up position.
- From the push-up position, jump your feet forward again and come to a standing position.
- Repeat the whole thing several times. You can gradually increase the number of burpees depending on your training level.
Sources used: gymondo.com, yogaeasy.de