Sit-Ups to Lose Weight

Jan 12, 2011 | By Nicole Hogan

Buttoning shirts and fastening your jeans can be challenging when you have excess weight to lose in your midsection. Working the abdominal muscles will help tone the area, but this is only one part of the equation. Strength training, cardiovascular exercise and a healthy diet help to increase metabolism and burn fat. Incorporate sit-up workouts into your exercise routine to lose weight from your midsection.

Sit-Ups

Performing basic sit-ups stimulates the abs, obliques and lower back. Lie on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground. Place your arms across your chest. Exhale and squeeze your abs while sitting up. Inhale and lowly lower your upper body to the starting position. Repeat for four sets of 25 repetitions.

Medicine Ball Sit-Ups With a Toss

Medicine ball sit-ups use added resistance to work the abdominal muscles. Begin seated on the floor with your knees bent, and hold a medicine ball at chest level. Have a workout buddy stand in front of you. Inhale and lower your upper body to the ground. Exhale and sit up while tossing the ball to your partner. Have your partner toss the ball back to you, and lie back down on the floor. Repeat for four sets of 25 repetitions.

Decline Sit-Ups

Decline sit-ups recruit the lower abdominals. Have a seat on a decline bench with your feet hooked behind the foot pads. Place your hands behind your head to support your neck. Inhale and lower your upper body back to a 45-degree angle. Tighten your abdominal muscles, exhale and sit up, returning to the starting position. Repeat for four sets of 25 repetitions.

Oblique Sit-Ups

Oblique sit-ups work the abs while targeting the sides of the waist. Lie on your back with your knees bent. Place your hands behind your head. Exhale and sit up while twisting your left shoulder toward your right knee. Inhale and slowly lower your body to the floor. Repeat the motion on the opposite side. Perform four sets of 25 repetitions on each side.