The Best Exercises For Reducing Stomach Fat

Extra weight around the middle does influence more than how tight a pair of jeans may feel. Stomach fat increases the risk of developing diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. While heredity, aging, metabolism and physical activity all influence stomach fat, regular exercise can help reduce it. Physical activity, combined with a diet rich in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and lean protein, will help you trim stomach fat. Smart exercise choices will also combat and decrease stomach fat.

Aerobic Exercise

Spot reduction, or trying to lose fat in a particular area, is impossible. Aerobic exercise decrease body fat stores in the body. According to Mayo Clinic, daily moderate intensity exercise is the best way to reduce stomach fat. Burning calories causes weight loss and reduces stomach fat. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) defines moderate intensity exercise as exercise that increases your heart rate and causes you to break a sweat while allowing you to maintain a comfortable conversation. Jogging, walking, hiking, cycling, dancing and jump roping are all appropriate modes of aerobic exercise.

Strength Training

Strength training reduces overall fat, adding to weight loss in the abdominal area. Using weights, resistance bands and other forms of external resistance during your sessions will help you decrease fat stores in the body, replacing them with lean muscle mass. While stomach muscle weighs the same amount as fat, it takes up less volume. Muscle tone decreases abdominal size, contributing to a tighter and toned stomach. ACSM recommends two weekly strength training sessions that consists of eight to 10 different exercises. Strength training exercises include lunges, biceps curls, single arm rows, dips, planks, push-ups, squats, hammer curls and pull-ups.

Bicycle Maneuver Exercise

A 2010 study, conducted by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) and San Diego State University, evaluated the effectiveness of different abdominal exercises. Results revealed that the bicycle maneuver exercise is the best exercise for the rectus abdominus, or the muscle that runs down the middle of your stomach. The bicycle maneuver is the second best exercise to do for your obliques, or the sides of your stomach. To tone your abdominal muscles with the bicycle maneuver, lie on your back, and press your lower back against the mat. Place your fingers behind your head and tighten your abdominal muscles. Place your fingers behind your head without interlacing them. This prevents you from pulling your neck forward during the exercise. Bend your knees. Lift your feet off of the mat, aligning your knees directly above your hips. Simultaneously, crunch your right elbow and left knee toward one another. After touching your elbow to your knee, lower both to the start position. Do the same with your left elbow and right knee. Often, people time themselves during this exercise and attempt to do it for 30 to 45 seconds.