What are Abdominal Muscles (Rectus Abdominis)?
The abdominal muscles help stabilize the internal organs and the overall core of the body (torso).
They also aid breathing, enable movement, protect internal organs, and are responsible for postural support and balance.
There are four main abdominal muscles:
- Rectus abdominis muscle
- Transverse abdominis muscle
- External oblique muscle
- Internal oblique muscle
It is important to maintain strength in all of these muscles.
Strong abdominal muscles help improve posture and balance. They can also help reduce back pain and increase flexibility (, , ).
Result:
The abdominal muscles allow free movement and provide stability, support and balance. Strong abs can prevent back pain and other problems.
How to breathe correctly when pumping your abs?
When it comes to how to properly pump up your abs, proper breathing technique is very important. A mistake many novice athletes make is holding their breath almost to complete the entire approach. This is fundamentally wrong, because the muscles, without receiving enough oxygen, suffer, which negatively affects the effectiveness of your workouts.
Correct breathing technique maintains the normal functioning of the muscles, it helps us get tired less, and accordingly, the effectiveness of the workout increases. Also, correct breathing prevents hellish muscle pain, leaving only a pleasant, characteristic burning sensation. Breathing technique
is always identical regardless of the exercise being performed: inhalation is done when you relax, that is, returning to the starting position, and exhalation is done during the actual exercise, when the muscles are as tense as possible. For example, during normal lifting, you exhale when you lift your body, and inhale when you lower it back.
There Are Two Types of Abdominal Fat
Excess abdominal or belly fat is associated with a higher risk of developing insulin resistance (the body's resistance to insulin), type 2 diabetes (non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus) and heart disease ().
Abdominal obesity (central obesity) is also one of the main causes of metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance syndrome) (,).
However, abdominal fat is different from abdominal fat. There are two types - subcutaneous fat and visceral fat (internal fat).
Subcutaneous fat
This is the type of fat that you can pinch. It is located under the skin, between the skin and muscles.
Subcutaneous fat is not directly related to metabolic risk. In moderation, it will not significantly increase the risk of disease (,).
Visceral fat
This type of fat is located in the abdominal cavity around the internal organs.
It is associated with metabolic syndrome and diseases such as type 2 diabetes (non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus) and heart disease (, ,).
Visceral fat is hormonally active. It releases substances that affect certain disease-related processes in the human body ().
Result:
There are two types of abdominal fat - subcutaneous and visceral. Visceral fat releases hormones that are associated with disease.
Having Strong, Muscular Abs Isn't Enough
Exercising your abdominal muscles will strengthen them.
However, twisting, twisting and bending will not make your abdominal muscles visible if they are covered in a thick layer of fat.
If present in large quantities, subcutaneous fat will obstruct the view of the abdominal muscles.
In order to have ripped abs or six-pack abdominal muscles, you must get rid of subcutaneous fat in the abdominal area.
Result:
Exercising your abdominal muscles will help them become strong and muscular. However, you will not be able to see them if they are covered with subcutaneous fat.
Do Ab Exercises Burn Belly Fat?
Many people do abdominal exercises because they want to lose belly fat.
However, evidence suggests that targeted abdominal exercises are not very effective.
Local Fat Burning May Not Be Effective
The term “local fat burning” means the misconception that you can burn fat in one specific place (localized area of the body - point by point) by training that part of the body - doing exercises for a given muscle group. It's true that acupressure exercises will allow you to "feel the burn" locally while the muscles grow and strengthen. However, research shows that they won't help you lose belly fat.
One study followed 24 subjects who did abdominal exercises 5 days a week for 6 weeks. Only this workout did not reduce subcutaneous belly fat ().
Another study tested the effects of a 27-day sit-up press program. It was found that neither the size of the fat cells nor the thickness of the subcutaneous belly fat decreased ().
This is typical not only for the abdominal area. This applies to all areas of the body.
For example, the authors of one study asked participants to undergo 12 weeks of strength training, training only their non-dominant arm.
They measured subcutaneous fat before and after the program and found that participants lost fat throughout their entire body, not just in their trained arm ().
Several other studies have shown similar results (, , ,).
However, Some Studies Conflict
Some studies seem to contradict the above results.
One study tested whether local fat burning could reduce subcutaneous arm fat. It showed that exercising a specific part of the arm reduced fat in that area ().
Another study tested whether the location of subcutaneous fat matters. Subcutaneous fat next to working muscles was compared with fat next to resting muscles.
Interestingly, no matter how strenuous (intense) the exercise, blood flow and fat breakdown were higher in subcutaneous fat, which was close to the active muscle ().
However, the technique or measurement methods used in these studies may have contributed to the conflicting results.
Result:
The evidence is mixed, but many studies have shown that training one part of the body will not help you burn fat in that area. Research also shows that abdominal exercises alone have no effect on belly fat.
When and how often is it better to pump your abs?
Experts recommend training in the morning
, before you had breakfast. Before this, on an empty stomach, drink a glass of water. Water is generally extremely important for those who play sports; train yourself to drink at least one and a half liters of clean liquid per day.
However, not everyone manages to study in the morning. If it is more convenient for you to pump up your abs in the evening, do it 1-1.5 hours after eating a couple of hours before bed.
How often to exercise your abdominal muscles correctly is another pressing question. The abdominal muscles recover quite quickly, but there is simply no point in pumping them up every day - they should get at least 24 hours a day to rest. It is optimal to pump your abs 3-4 times a week. Rest days can be devoted to cardio exercises or working out other muscle groups.
The optimal duration of training is about an hour. A smaller one may not allow the muscles to be fully worked out, and a large one will lead to their exhaustion, due to which they will not be able to grow as actively as you want. If you are a beginner, you don’t need to overload yourself right away - start with small loads and increase them gradually.
Best Exercises to Burn Fat
One of the reasons why targeted fat loss doesn't work is because muscle cells can't use the fat stored in fat cells directly.
Fat mass must be broken down before it can enter the bloodstream. This fat can come from anywhere in the body, not just the part of the body that is being worked by the exercise.
Additionally, doing sit-ups and crunches are not particularly effective at burning calories.
What Exercises Should You Do?
Regular, full-body exercise speeds up your metabolism and burns calories and fat. Aerobic exercise (cardio) can also be effective in targeting visceral belly fat ().
Intensity plays a role too. Moderate-to-high-intensity exercise can reduce belly fat mass compared with aerobic exercise or low-intensity strength training (, ).
In addition, you need to train often if you want to achieve significant results ().
For example, do moderate-intensity cardio for 30 minutes, five days a week, or high-intensity cardio for 20 minutes, three days a week ().
The muscle changes that occur in response to exercise also contribute to fat loss. In other words, the more muscle tissue you gain, the more fat you will burn even at rest ().
Combining Multiple Types of Exercise Can Be Effective
High intensity intermittent exercise (hiie) is another approach that has been shown to reduce body fat more effectively than standard aerobic training (, , , ).
HIIE is a type of interval training that combines short periods of high-intensity exercise followed by slightly longer, but less intense periods of recovery ().
Aspects of high-intensity intermittent exercise that make it effective include appetite suppression and increased fat burning during and after exercise ().
Additionally, combining resistance training with aerobic exercise has been shown to be more effective than aerobic training alone (, ).
Even if you don't want to do intermittent high-intensity exercise or strength training, research shows that brisk walking can also effectively reduce belly fat and overall body fat percentage (,).
Result:
Aerobic training and intermittent high-intensity exercise burn calories and speed up your metabolism. A combination of aerobic exercise and strength training appears to be particularly effective.
Changing Your Diet Is The Key To Losing Fat
You may have heard the saying, “ Abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym”
" There is truth to this because good nutrition is essential if you want to lose belly fat.
As a beginner, start eating less processed foods (convenience foods, grocery items, processed foods) now. They are usually packed with sugar and high fructose corn syrup.
Consuming too much sugar can lead to weight gain and increase your risk of metabolic diseases (,).
Instead, focus on eating plenty of protein. High protein diets are associated with increased feelings of satiety, which can lead to decreased calorie intake.
A study of overweight and obese men found that when protein foods made up 25% of their caloric intake, appetite control and satiety increased by 60% ().
Additionally, consuming protein at approximately 25-30% of total daily calories can increase metabolism by 100 calories per day (, , ).
Increasing your fiber intake is another good strategy for losing weight. Vegetables high in soluble fiber have been shown to aid in weight loss. They can increase feelings of fullness and reduce calorie intake over time (, , ).
Portion control is another effective tool, as eating in moderation has been shown to help induce weight loss (,).
When you eat whole foods, more fiber, more protein, and control your portions, you're more likely to cut calories.
Achieving a long-term calorie deficit is critical to losing weight and belly fat.
Research shows that people can lose belly fat with moderate to vigorous intensity aerobic exercise, as long as they maintain a calorie deficit (, ).
Result:
Good nutrition is important for losing belly fat. Eat less processed foods, control your portion sizes, and eat more protein and fiber.
Proper nutrition for weight loss
Calculation of the required number of calories
One of the effective ways to lose weight is to correctly calculate calories.
So, to find out how many calories your body should receive per day, you can go to one of the specialized sites where you can calculate the amount you need, indicating your height, age, type of activity, and physical activity.
The system will give you the result. As a rule, for women it is a thousand to one and a half a day. For men - about two thousand calories.
It won't be easy at first, because counting calories is a little annoying. You need to look at the calorie content of the product and calculate how much you consumed. However, the result will quickly please you. Every day the weight will come off a little. And beauty, you know, requires effort.
Refusal of junk food
It will not be entirely correct if, when calculating the required amount of calories, you eat fast food, chips and other harmful foods. So you can lose weight if you follow the norm when counting calories. But you will definitely spoil your health.
Food should be healthy. That is, not fats and carbohydrates, an excess of which leads to obesity. And healthy fiber, proteins and amino acids.
There is no need to completely switch to fruits and vegetables, giving up everything else. A sense of proportion is important in everything!
For example, replace fast carbohydrates with complex ones - they are digested more slowly and give you a feeling of fullness. For proteins, choose lean meat, the so-called dietary meat: poultry, horse meat, rabbit, turkey.
.
Lean more on fish
,
low-fat or low-fat
dairy products Citrus fruits are healthier because they break down fats well. Pineapple, apple, pear
are low-calorie sources of vitamins.
Remember to eat a big breakfast, share your lunch, and skip your dinner, as the saying goes. And it’s better to eat more often, but less.
Choosing the right diet
It is better to have a personal nutritionist. However, not everyone has this luxury.
The most popular and effective diets:
- "Japanese"
- "Kremlevskaya"
- "Egg"
- "Kefirnaya"
- "Belkovaya"
- "Dukana"
- "Buckwheat"
- "Cabbage" and others.
Not only your chosen diet will play a role for you, but also your metabolism. Metabolic speed is an important factor when choosing a diet.
Please note that diets should not be abused; they are designed for a clearly limited period of time. Increasing this period may result in harm rather than benefit.
How to Effectively Burn Belly Fat
Evidence and research shows that you cannot lose belly fat by doing abdominal exercises alone.
For overall fat loss throughout the body, use a combination of aerobic exercise and strength training, such as weight lifting.
Also, eat healthy foods with plenty of protein, fiber, and portion control, all of which have been proven to help reduce body fat.
These methods will help you burn calories, speed up your metabolism and make you lose fat. This will ultimately lead to getting rid of belly fat and give you a flat stomach.
Alternative Methods
When you can’t pump up your abs, but you want to remove your belly, there is a way out: first pump up your back. When performing exercises to strengthen the back muscles, fat slowly but surely disappears from both the abdomen and thighs.
Exercise "Rocking chair"
- Lie on your back with your knees bent. Feet are on the floor.
- Inhale slowly, and as you exhale, lift your pelvis. Shoulders remain pressed to the floor.
- Inhale again, as you exhale, the pelvis returns down, the spine presses to the floor as close as possible.
If you do the exercise every day 15–25 times, then after a few weeks you will notice the result - fat is burned, the stomach will gradually go away, and the lower back will take a natural position.
Exercise “Stomach retraction”
- Bend forward with your hands on your knees. Make sure your back is straight.
- Inhale while pulling your stomach inward.
- Exhale and relax.
If you do abdominal tucks several times throughout the day, you will notice how excess fat goes away.
The benefits of aerobics
Along with training your back muscles, you need to give your body aerobic exercise. When doing aerobics, all muscle groups work. Fat is burned everywhere, including on the stomach. The respiratory system and cardiovascular system are strengthened. The body will get used to the gradually increasing load and will acquire clearer contours.
Can't do without a diet
Those who decide to lose belly fat will have to change their diet. To lose fat, you have to stop eating whatever you want. It is not at all necessary to go on a strict diet and walk around constantly hungry and angry. You just need to take note of the principles of proper nutrition and do not overeat.
Eat fewer foods containing fats and carbohydrates, focus on proteins, give up bad habits.
The main enemy of a flat stomach is beer. When it is consumed, men deposit fat according to the female type. Hops, which is contained in beer, contain phytoestrogen, which acts like a female sex hormone. Under its influence, the belly grows, which is difficult to remove later. Therefore, you should give up beer first of all.
Abdominal massage
You can do self-massage in the morning right in bed. You need to start with stroking, then start pinching and twisting the skin until it turns red. In the shower, it is recommended to massage with water jets using a contrasting douche.
Ice is used as an additional means to remove excess fat. You can wipe the skin with a piece of ice, then dry thoroughly with a towel. Thanks to massage procedures, unnecessary fat will gradually disappear.
