Have you been looking for a simple but effective belly fat workout at home? We are currently going through a pandemic, and with parts of the world going into a second lockdown, at-home workouts have become the go-to option for many.
If you have gained a few extra pounds this year, or are looking to slim down to finally fit into that pair of jeans that has been sitting on a shelf for way too long, try and commit yourself to the following at-home belly fat workout and you will see great results in no time.
Why Should You Have A Workout Routine To Lose Belly Fat At Home?
We are now living in a more body positive time where we are all learning to love our bodies irrespective of size or the number of kilograms on a scale. The great thing about this is that most people no longer feel the pressure to look a certain way.
While this is a great thing, there are some dangers that can be posed by having excess fat in the body, especially around the middle. Here is why having a belly fat at home routine can be beneficial to your health.
Two Types Of Fat
The human body has two types of fat; subcutaneous and visceral fat:
Subcutaneous fat is the visible and pinchable fat found directly under the skin. Everyone has some subcutaneous fat in their body. It is usually harmless and can even protect the body in some instances.
Visceral fat. Unlike subcutaneous fat, you cannot touch or see visceral fat. This type of ‘deep fat’ wraps itself around your abdominal organs deep inside your body. Visceral fat can be found in both obese and thin/skinny people.
While we may be unable to see or touch visceral fat, it is actually more dangerous to us than subcutaneous fat. Visceral fat put us at risk because:
It can create insulin resistance in our bodies, which in turn, puts us at a higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
It increases the production of cytokines. These are immune system chemicals that increase your risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Its close proximity to the portal vein. Free fatty acids released by this fat enter the vein and travel to the liver, influencing blood lipids that can increase LDL (bad) cholesterol (1).
Increases the risk of high blood pressure.
Increases the risk of cancer. In 2017, a study found that a certain protein released by this fat can turn non-cancerous cells into cancerous ones (3).
If you are unsure whether your belly fat is either visceral or subcutaneous, here is how you can figure it out:
Body Mass Index. If your BMI is 30 or higher, this is a sign that you are overweight and have fat wrapped around your organs.
Waist Size. If you measure yourself and realize that your waist size is 35 inches or more in women, or 40 inches and more in men then your belly fat is a sign of visceral fat.
Body Shape. If your upper body has more fat (is bigger) than your lower half this often means that you have more visceral fat.
If you are wondering ‘What is a good belly fat burning workout I can do at home?’, here are some examples that can help you burn the fat around your stomach area. Before getting into the exact workouts, you must first realize that you can’t spot reduce belly fat.
What does this mean? When coming up with a belly fat workout at home routine, many people will automatically start adding exercises such as sit-ups and crunches to their routine. While there is nothing wrong with such exercises, they are not necessarily fat-burning.
According to a study published in 2011 in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning, abdominal exercises are not sufficient to reduce abdominal subcutaneous fat (2). They are best used to strengthen and tone your core muscles.
This shows that spot-reduction is a myth. Training a specific part of the body will not result in fat loss in that specific area. The best workout to lose belly fat at home is one that involves compound exercises. These are workouts that involve more than one joint and muscle group at a time.
Compound moves are considered an effective belly fat workout at home because they burn more calories, adding more intensity to your routine. Here is how to burn belly fat fast workout men at home (these exercises also work for women).
Not only do they target your core, they also work your hips, glutes, and hamstrings, and the upper body, including your shoulders and lats.
Stand with feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart as you hold a kettlebell in front of your body with both hands, arms straight.
With a slight bend in your knees and a flat back, hinge at your hips and swing the kettlebell back through your legs.
Use that momentum to stand and swing the kettlebell out in front of your body, up to shoulder height. Thrust your hips forward, and engage your glutes and core as you stand up straight.
When the kettlebell hits shoulder height, your knees should be straight, and glutes contracted in a full hip extension.
Allow the kettlebell to swing back down through your legs.
Burpees are a total body workout that will have you sweating and burning calories in just a few reps.
Start in a standing position with your feet shoulder-width apart.
Squat down with your back straight and your hands on the floor between your feet.
With your weight on your hands, kick your feet back so you’re on your hands and toes, and in a pushup position.
Do one push-up before jumping your feet back to their starting position.
Push strongly from this position and jump, reaching your arms over your head.
Burpees are considered a pretty hard workout even by gym veterans. If you are a beginner, here are some things you can do to make this exercise easier.
Omit the push-up entirely or do it on your knees.
Instead of jumping, just stand and stretch your hands in the air.
Mountain Climbers
Like burpees and kettlebell swings these are a total-body fat burning move. They are also quite effective for exercising the muscles in your glutes, legs, triceps, and shoulders.
Begin in a traditional plank position with your shoulders directly over your hands and wrists.
Be sure to keep your back flat and your butt down, maintaining a neutral spine – do not curve your back or sag your hips.
Engage your core and lift up your right knee, bringing it toward your elbow (or as far as you can). Return the right knee back to the starting position as you simultaneously drive your left knee up toward your left elbow.
Return to the starting position and continue switching legs as you pick up the pace. It should feel like you are running in place in a plank position.
Also known as high-intensity interval training, it is effective for fat loss as it helps you burn a lot of calories in a short time, keeps your BMR high for hours after the workout, ensuring that you continue to burn calories long after you are done working out.
It also helps you lose fat and gain muscle. Muscle is important in a weight loss journey as every pound of muscle gained helps burn six to seven calories a day.
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Overhead Medicine Ball Slams
These are a great full-body workout that engages your core, shoulders, triceps, back, glutes, hamstrings, and quads.
To start, stand tall with your feet roughly shoulder-width apart, your knees and hips slightly bent, holding a medicine ball in both hands at your torso.
Engage your core and keep your back straight.
Reach both arms overhead, fully extending your body. Slam the ball forward and down toward the ground.
Extend your arms toward the ground as you slam and don’t be afraid to bend your knees as you hinge over. Squat to pick the ball up and then stand back up.
Yoga is a low-impact exercise that can help with reducing belly fat. Some yoga asanas that you can add into your belly fat workout at home routine include Tadasana, Surya Namaskar, Padahastasana, Pavanamuktasana, Uttanpadasana, and Bhujangasana, among others.
Here is how to do the Bhujangasana – aka Cobra pose:
Begin by lying down flat on your stomach.
Place your palms flat on the ground directly under your shoulders. Bend your elbows straight back and hug them into your sides.
Pause for a moment looking straight down at your mat with your neck in a neutral position. Anchor your pubic bone to the floor.
Inhale to lift your chest off the floor. Roll your shoulders back and keep your low ribs on the floor. Make sure your elbows continue hugging your sides. Don’t let them wing out to either side.
Keep your neck neutral. Don’t crank it up. Your gaze should stay on the floor.
Hold this position for up to five breaths and the exhale to release back to the floor.
Tadasana
Start by standing tall with the bases of your big toes touching and your heels slightly apart.
Engage the muscles on the front of your thighs, drawing them upward, causing your kneecaps to rise.
Rotate both thighs inward, maintain the natural curves of your spine, and brace your core by pulling your navel toward your spine and back.
Pull your shoulders up to your ears (in a shrug) and then roll them back to release your shoulder blades down your back.
Let your arms hang naturally with the elbows slightly bent and the palms facing forward.
Keep your neck long, do not tuck or lift your chin, the crown of your head towards the ceiling, your tongue at the floor of your mouth, and soften your eyes.
Breath easily and stay in this position for 5 breaths, 30 seconds, or for a full minute.
Do you have that little pouch that sticks out of your jeans and dresses? While this may not bother many people, some do find that they are conscious of this extra fat. If your lower belly is giving you sleepless nights or denting your self esteem, here is a lower belly fat workout at home ideas to add into your routine.
90-Degree Static Press
This a simple and beginner-friendly lower belly fat workout that targets both your core and hips.
Lie faceup on a yoga or exercise mat with your knees and hips bent at a 90-degree angle. Keep your feet flexed.
Extend the arms and press both palms on top of your thighs.
Take a deep breath in, and as you exhale, brace abs in tight, pressing lower back against the floor as you push thighs into hands, pushing back against them.
Stay stable in this position for up to 3 breaths and remember to keep contracting your core.
Release your legs and arms back to the floor.
This is one rep. Do this 10 times for one set.
Dead Bug
While the name may sound funny, the dead bug is a great workout to lose belly fat at home. Including it in your routine will have that lower pouch gone in no time. It is also a fantastic compound exercise that targets your core, back, shoulders and hips.
Begin by lying flat on your back with arms fully extended along your sides.
Bend your knees and bring them up so that your thighs and hips form a 90-degree angle and your calves are parallel to the floor.
Brace your core and reach one arm up and behind your head while straightening out the opposite leg (if you reach up and back with the right hand, straighten the left leg). Don’t let the straightened leg and outstretched arm touch the floor.
Slowly and in a controlled motion, return to the starting position to repeat on the other side.
This is one set. Do this up to 10 times on each side to complete one set.
The U-Boat
While it may look like a simple workout for losing belly fat fast at home for women, it is a killer move that will have your lower abs screaming for mercy. There are two variations to this:
Sit on a mat with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
Lean back to rest your upper body up on the elbows. Your palms should be facing down while your back remains lifted.
Brace your core and touch your knees together, point the toes and lift the legs into a 90-degree angle.
Slowly bring your knees toward one side of your body, keeping both of your hips on the floor. Lower your legs slightly, then trace a “U” in the air with your knees.
Once you are back to the starting position, lower your legs to the other side and trace the letter ‘U’ again.
That is 1 rep on each side. Do 10 reps for each side for a full set.
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Inchworms
Not only is this among the best at home workout to get rid of belly fat, but it is also a great full-body workout that targets your core, delts, chest, hamstrings, and glutes.
Stand tall, with your feet roughly hip-distance apart and your core engaged.
Take a breath in, then as you exhale, look down at the ground and start reaching your hands toward the floor in front of your feet, allowing your back to bend forward, rolling down one vertebra at a time. Allow your knees to bend slightly, as needed, to enable your hands to reach the ground.
Place your hands on the floor in front of your feet. Inhale and walk your hands forward, one at a time, allowing your heels to lift off the floor as your body begins to straighten. Stop once your hands are directly under your shoulders. This should put you in plank position with your core, chest, quads, triceps, and shoulders engaged. Keep your body in a straight line. Do not sag or arch your back.
Keeping your legs relatively straight, begin walking your feet forward, one at a time, toward your hands, lifting the hips toward the ceiling. Exhale with each step.
Stop when your feet are as close to your hands as you can comfortably bring them. Remember, you can bend your knees slightly to ease the stretch on your hamstrings, but try to keep them as straight as possible.
Return to standing by slowly rolling your back up from the hips, straightening one vertebra at a time. Inhale as you go.
Repeat this 10 to 12 times.
Inching Elbow Plank
This is another compound exercise for lower belly fat workout at home lose fast options. It engages your abs, hips, back, and shoulders.
Start in plank position, with your elbows directly beneath your shoulders, forearms on the ground, and feet hip-width apart.
Tighten your abs and raise your hips into the air as you take small, alternating steps forward with your feet, keeping your elbows stationary. Then, inch your feet back slowly to return to the starting position.
Spiderman Walk
Also known as a spider walk, this workout targets your whole body including the core pectorals, deltoids, latissimus dorsi, trapezius, triceps, biceps, obliques, hamstrings, glutes, quadriceps, adductors, and abductors.
Get down into plank position.
Push the toes of your left foot into the floor. Raise the right foot and externally rotate the leg. Brace your core and tighten the glute muscles, keeping your back flat, and bringing your right knee to the outside of the right elbow. When your knee gets close to your elbow, squeeze the core muscles.
Extend your left arm out in front of you, palm on the floor, while your right knee comes towards your right elbow.
Staying low to the ground, alternate your bent knee and hand as you walk/crawl forward
Continue this pattern, alternating right leg with left leg, until you ‘walk’ the desired distance.
The Bottom Line
Having a belly fat workout at home routine is a convenient way to help you battle belly fat from the comfort of your home. However, while exercise is essential for this, it will not work if you do not improve your diet and eat at a calorie deficit. Ensure that you are consuming wholesome and nutrient-dense food so as to avoid ingesting empty calories. Also make sure to reduce your food energy intake by 500 to 1000 calories a day.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any medical conditions. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!
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