Cardio Exercises For A Flat Stomach

Obtaining a flat stomach can be an elusive goal, but with proper diet and the right types of exercise you can get your stomach firm and flat. Your exercise program should include a balanced total-body strength training program and plenty of cardiovascular-- or cardio--exercise. The right types of cardio exercise can take your stomach from mediocre to magnificent.

Dance-Based Cardio

A dance-based cardio workout, such as zumba, Latin dance or bellydancing is terrific for obtaining a flat tummy. These formats are filled with moves that focus on engaging the abdominal muscles, particularly the obliques, which help pull the tummy in for a flat appearance. Hip shaking, hip circles, pelvic tilts, hula-hooping movement, salsa steps, full body rotations, twisting and side-bending style movement all add up to terrific abs. If you love to dance, this type of workout won't feel like a workout at all, which makes it even more enjoyable. You do want to make sure you burn plenty of calories with this workout, since burning the calories results in keeping the body fat off your stomach. When looking for a class or workout DVD, you will want to try each workout three to four times to be able to tell if it makes you sweat and gives you an intense enough workout.

Cardio Kickboxing

Boxers always have ripped abs due to the intensity of their workouts, the interval style of boxing matches and all of the upper body rotation as they throw and dodge punches. Cardio-kickboxing classes build upon these elements for an intense calorie-burning workout. A cardio-kickboxing workout includes throwing punches and using blocking moves, each requiring dynamic rotation of the torso powered by the abdominals These punching sequences are mixed with martial arts style kicking combinations, which also recruit the abdominals to stabilize and burn high amounts of calories since they use the large lower body muscles. Also within a cardio kickboxing class you will find athletic drills such as jumping rope, running in place, jumping jacks and shuffles--all of which are significant calorie burners. This workout will not only give you a flatter stomach, but will add definition to your abs as well.

Cardio Interval Training

Cardio interval training is a technique to increase the caloric burn of your workout by adding high-intensity work intervals throughout your otherwise moderate-intensity workout. The high-intensity work intervals have a higher rate of calorie burn by nature of their intensity; however, when you return to your moderate intensity exercise you will continue to burn calories at a higher rate because you revved up your metabolism by pushing harder for a brief interval.
You can create your own cardio interval training in several different ways. For example, if you are out for a run you can add sprints. Try sprinting as fast as you can for the length of two to three houses in every other block, then return to your normal running pace until your next bout of sprinting. If you are on an elliptical machine in the gym, work for two minutes at a moderate pace, then go as fast as you can for one full minute before returning to your moderate pace. Continue these intervals for at least 30 minutes; perform a cardio interval workout two to three times per week to help flatten your belly.