The size of your waist is mostly determined by the amount of body fat you carry and the strength of your abdominal muscles. Even with low body fat, if you don't have good core strength, the weight of your internal organs can cause your stomach to bulge out. On the other hand, if you're carrying extra fat around your organs, well-developed abdominal muscles can minimize its appearance. The key to a smaller waist is to maintain low body fat and perform an abdominal workout routine that strengthens the entire core by working it from different angles.
Cross-body Crunch
The cross-body crunch is an exercise for slimming the waist. It works the upper, lower and oblique abdominals at the same time. This creates the sort of total abdominal development you need to prevent bulging. To perform a cross-body crunch, lie on your back on an exercise mat with your feet flat on the ground. Place your fingertips behind your ears. Raise your left knee to your chest and at the same time crunch your right elbow to your left knee. Relax back down, then do the same thing with your right knee and your left elbow. That equals one rep. Perform cross body crunches in sets of 10 or more reps.
Ball Passes
The "Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding" describes the ball pass as one of the most difficult and effective ab exercises. It's also an efficient exercise because it works the upper and lower abs, and works deep into the core. To perform ball passes, lie on your back on a mat with your arms extended beyond your head holding an inflatable ball. Perform a leg lift and at the same time crunch your upper body up and place the ball between your legs somewhere between your knees and ankles. Relax back down. Perform the same movement to pass the ball back to your hands. This equals one rep. Perform ball passes in sets of 10 to 20 reps. Use a weighted medicine ball to increase the difficulty.
Trunk Rotations
In "The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding," Arnold Schwarzenegger explains that he likes trunk rotations because they allow you to work the oblique abdominal muscles without added weight, ensuring that you tighten them without adding bulk. By strengthening the obliques, your waist will appear more slender from the front and back. To perform trunk rotations, hold a light bar across your shoulders as if you were about to do squats. Twist to one side, hold the contraction, then twist to the other. Contract your oblique abdominals with intensity. Trunk rotations may be easier to perform seated to isolate the rotating to your waist. Perform sets of 10 to 20 reps. If you have back problems, avoid trunk rotations.
Cable Crunches
According to Schwarzenegger, cable crunches are an exercise to finish your abdominal routine with because many people can't properly feel the exercise until their abdominal muscles are pre-exhausted. Cable crunches work all of the external abdominal muscles, including muscles in the lower abdominals such as the pyramidalis that get missed with other exercises. To perform cable crunches, attach a lat bar to a high pulley. Kneel on the ground, pull the bar to the back of your neck and hold it there throughout the set. Crunch your abs against the weight, tilting your ribcage toward your pelvis. Be careful not to do all of the work with your front hip flexors. Perform sets of 10 to 20, really focusing on contracting deep into the core.
References
- "Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding"; Robert Kennedy; 2008
- "The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding"; Arnold Schwarzenegger; 1998
Member Comments