Fun Ways to Lose Belly Fat

Fun Ways to Lose Belly Fat
Photo Credit ball exercises image by Paul Moore from Fotolia.com

A well-rounded exercise routine works best to burn calories and reduce belly fat, according to the Mayo Clinic. Finding an exercise that you like will help you work out on a regular basis. Depending on your own definition of fun, your workout routine might include aerobic exercise, such as competitive sports or aerobic dance. However, certain kinds of exercise work off stomach fat more than others and may be more fun than your average sit-up.

Sports Fitness

Some people don’t enjoy working out unless it involves a challenge. The love of competition is what drives some people to pursue sports. The good news is that most kinds of aerobic exercise will burn belly fat, according to the Mayo Clinic. With many sports, core strength is essential because moving and twisting the torso throughout a game is often necessary, according to Abs Exercise Advice. This action requires athletes to tax the core and work abdominal muscles. With the combination of such targeted muscle movement and general aerobic burning of calories, belly fat tends to melt away.

Group Aerobic Exercise

While many people enjoy competing in sports, others prefer group exercise, such as Jazzercise, step or yoga. Aerobic dance started a craze when it first showed up in gyms in the 1970s, and since then, it has expanded to include all sorts of activities and group exercise, according to the Indiannetzone website. Aerobic dance later evolved to include competition, called sport aerobics, the site explains.
If you don’t particularly enjoy moving to a beat, find a gym or fitness club that offers martial arts or variations of it. Burn belly fat while enjoying kick boxing or group indoor cycling for moderate- to high-impact aerobics, and yoga or pilates, which provide a low-impact form of aerobics and include movements that task core muscles, according to Power and Fitness Health Club.
The same core work is required for many aerobic dance workouts, especially Zumba, which is usually an intensive aerobic exercise based on Latin dance moves, according to Power and Fitness Health Club. This type of dancing utilizes the core while working stomach muscles because many of the moves include repetitive hip and stomach back-and-forth movement as well as circular action. Belly dancing is another low-impact aerobic exercise that works the core and stimulates muscle development in the abdomen, according to Power and Fitness Health Club.

Competitive Dance

If you're tired of group exercise or just looking for a change but love to dance as well as compete, ballroom dancing might be a fun way to lose belly fat. Dancing is a natural form of aerobic exercise. For example, Latin dancing, such as merengue, salsa and cha cha, requires a lot of hip and stomach action, as explained by Ballroom Dancers. You can also tone your core with other forms of ballroom dancing, including the waltz and swing dance.

References

Article reviewed by Joseph Keefer Last updated on: Feb 8, 2012

Must see: Photo Galleries

Member Comments