10+ Most Effective Flat Belly Exercises Karen McKay FLAT BELLY FOR LIFE SERIES Copyright 2012 Karen McKay Published by Monumental Press, 2012 www.MonumentalPress.com All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical except in the case of brief quotations in articles or reviews - without the express written permission of Karen McKay. To contact the author, please send an email to Karen McKay at KarenMcKay.author@gmail.com. Disclaimer & Limits of Liability The information contained in this book is strictly for educational purposes. The author and the publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information contained in this book. It is sold with the understanding that neither the author nor the publisher is engaged in rendering medical, legal, or other professional services.The advice of a competent health or other professional should be sought before undertaking any diet or exercise program. All facts and information are believed to be accurate at the time this book was written.Other titles by Karen McKay on Kindle: FLAT BELLY FOR LIFE SERIES: Flat Belly Solution: Remedies for Belly Fat Belly Bloating: What Causes It and How to Stop It Lose 3-5 Pounds in 24 Hours Flat Belly for Life Boxed Set Contact Karen directly at: KarenMcKay.author@gmail.com www.MonumentalPress.com/karen-mckay Introduction Having flat abs has become a national past time, it seems, and everybody wants them. So much that they will diet, exercise until they fall over, and they still cant achieve their goal. The good news is that belly fat is relatively easy to burn off, but the not as good news is that it takes a diet of proper nutrition combined with exercise. Why exercise? Cant I just lose the weight without having to do the exercise? Well, yes and no. You could lose the weight, if you burn more than you take in. BUT if you are not building muscle mass, then you could be losing not just fat but muscle too. And that is not a good thing. Lean muscle is also important for keeping the body stoked up so that the metabolism runs hotter, making it more efficient at burning off that belly fat. Abdominal muscles are important to keep strong because they are your core stabilizers. So you arent doing abdominal exercises just to get six-pack abs. Youre also creating a strong core for your body to operate from. Please note that I am not a medical practitioner and as such I cannot certify that these exercises are safe for you to do. If you have any physical limitations or any question about whether you should do them, please consult with your physician first. How do we know which exercises are the best ones to do? After all, we hear conflicting advice on whether or not sit ups are even effective. Well, some researchers at San Diego State University did a study of abdominal exercises, to determine which ones were the most effective. They discovered that exercises that required abdominal stabilization along with body rotation strengthened the abdominal muscles the most effectively. These are the top 5 belly exercises, as they ranked them.1.The Bicycle The bicycle is a great abdominal exercise because it not only works your main abdominal muscle but it also works the obliques.1.Lie on your back, hands up by your ears, with knees bent.

2.Using your abdominals, lift your head and one shoulder up, while raising the opposite knee at the same time, to meet your elbow. Extend the other leg straight out at the same time. Be careful to not pull on your neck to lift you up.

3.Switch sides and repeat on the other side. 4.Continue the pedaling motion, and do 1 to 3 sets of 12 16 repetitions. 2.The Captains Chair Leg Raise To do this exercise you either need to use a piece of equipment at a gym of find somewhere that you can use your arms to rest your weight on and stabilize your body, with your back against something solid. The legs should be hanging free.With your back pressed flat, bring your knees up to your chest, tightening your abs. Slowly lower them back down.Dont swing the legs and use momentum to bring them up, and keep the knees bent.Do 1 3 sets of 12 16 reps. 3.Exercise Ball Crunch This exercise is very similar to the Full stretch crunch below. The ball makes it easier to target the abs so you dont let the legs help. 1.Lie on the ball, so it is under your lower back. You will be half leaning back against it, and half lying back on it. 2.Either cross your arms over your chest, or put them behind your head. 3.Contract the abdominals so that your torso comes up off the ball, curling your ribcage toward your hips. The ball should stay stable and not roll. 4.Vertical Leg Crunch In this exercise, lie flat on your back, feet straight up in the air. Cross your legs at the knees to stabilize them, and keep the hands behind your head. Keeping your legs still, contract the abdominals and raise your shoulders (dont pull on your head) into a crunch. 5.Long arm crunch This exercise is like a regular crunch sit up except that the arms are extended straight above your head and acting as a lever. Lie flat on the floor, arms straight over your head, next to your ears. Do not pull with the arms, but instead, lift your shoulders by contracting the abdominals, rolling up into a crunch. Arms should stay straight above the head, arms next to the ears. Efficient Core Exercises Some people who look like they have a belly actually have a pot belly, which is the result of very poor core muscle tone. This lets the pelvis tilt forward, causing what is known as a sway back. When the back is out of alignment in this way, the abdomen is forced outward, therefore, a belly. There are exercises that address this as well. One interesting fact is that research shows that crunches are not the best way to have strong abdominal muscles. Even though most exercise routines include them, it is probably more because people expect to have to do them than because of what they actually achieve.Instead, it is better to do a workout that focuses on all the muscles that support your whole core, including the sides and the back. There are 4 sets of abdominal muscles. All of them work together to allow movement but they also hold in the internal organs in the abdominal cavity. When those muscles are not kept toned and tight, everything in the abdominal area organs as well as fat can pooch out and even hang over the belt. This is where exercising the abdominals will help tremendously with keeping the belly flat.Since we dont use our abdominals much in our daily lives, they get out of shape quickly, causing belly pooch as well as being a cause of back pain. Doing isometric exercises while watching TV, sitting in traffic, or at other times of the day, goes a long way toward keeping those muscles strong.Dont overdo the exercise. Michele S. Olson, Ph.D., a professor of exercise science at Auburn University in Alabama, says, A workout that is too rigorous or lasts longer than 60 minutes can dramatically decrease blood sugar, which can affect mood and the ability to think clearly for days. When you are planning your exercise regimen, remember to include cardio for burning fat and calories, and strength training to build muscle and increase your metabolism. To help yourself keep motivated while exercising your core, vary the routine and cut a day out now and then to give your body a chance to rest and energize. These first two exercises are two of the most effective ones core exercises there are. If you just totally hate to exercise, or have no time, at least do these. They only take a few moments each day to do and you will see results in just 2-3 weeks. A big thank you to my niece who posed for these pictures. They are meant to show you how the exercises should look when being done.Suck It Up This one exercise gets such good results that if you dont have time for more than one exercise, this is the one to do. It helps to strengthen the deepest of the main abdominal muscles, which are hard to target specifically otherwise.1.Get on all fours and look just a little bit in front of you, or down at the ground, but not up. Your back should be straight, not arched. 2.Take a deep breath, and then exhale fully through your mouth, using your abdominal muscles to push all the air out of your lungs. You should be pulling your abdominal muscles in and up as you do this, trying to push your belly button against your backbone as much as possible. Be sure to push until there is no air left in your lungs.

3.Hold this position without moving for 8 12 seconds. Then take a deep breath through your nose. 4.Take another full breath to relax and then repeat. Build up until you are able to do 10 reps at one time. This exercise can be done standing up or sitting as well, but is easier to do on all fours. It is a good one to do during the commercials on TV, and any time you happen to be sitting with nothing to do. You can even do it while sitting in your car stopped at a red light. You will be surprised how quickly you begin to see results. Full Stretch Crunch This crunch is different from other kinds of crunches and different from the Exercise Ball Crunch above because it actually uses the full range of motion of the abdominal muscles. In order to achieve this, it fully extends the back muscles.You will need something to lie back on, preferably a BOSU ball. If you dont have access to one, find something that you can pile up like cushions or pillows, a smaller ball, or even a larger ball with half the air let out of it. I found that a somewhat deflated larger ball works great.Find something that lifts you off the floor enough so that your bottom is about 6 inches off the floor and you can stretch your arms all the way over your head and then arched downward a little bit. 6.Lie back over the ball, face up, with knees bent, so that your butt is up off the floor. Keep your hands together and your arms up next to your ears (or behind them) as you do the exercise. (The model should be up on the ball a little more.) Remember keep your butt a little higher on the ball than this. 7.Start with your arms stretched up toward the ceiling, and then lower them backwards slowly, with control, to a slow count of 4. Go all the way, trying to reach your hands to the floor, stretching as far back as you can.

8.Pause for 2 seconds, and then slowly come back up, again using good control, stopping when your arms are pointed straight up at the ceiling. Pause at this point for 2 seconds. That is one complete move. 9.Once you are able to do 10 of these, you can make it harder by holding small weights or objects in your hands. Hip Flexor Stretch If you tend to have a pot belly because you have whats called a sway back, then hip flexor stretches will help correct the pelvis tilt, making your stomach look flatter and more attractive. This is one type of hip flexor stretch; there are others that are easy to find if you do a search on the internet. 1.Start on one knee, the other knee bent and in front, hands on your hips.

2. Put one hand straight up in the air while twisting to the opposite side, eyes and head following the twist. Dont move your legs out of position. Feel the stretch in the hip area, and hold for 30 seconds. Repeat on the other side. Twist a little more to the side than the model is showing.

Planking Planking exercises are considered among the best for strengthening the core muscles and they help to keep the waist defined by working not only on the core muscles but also the hip muscles. The front and side planks are pretty well known, but in case they are new to you, here is how to do them. Front plank: Lie on the floor in a position as if you are going to do a pushup, get off your knees and keep the toes on the floor, leaning on your elbows. Your body should be in a straight line, and look like a plank. Keeping your eyes focused down toward your hands or a little in front of you, and hold the position for 30 seconds to start. Side plank: Side plank is exactly the same, except that you are in a side position, leaning on one elbow, the other hand resting on your hip. Keep your eyes focused straight ahead and hold for 30 seconds. Work up to 90 seconds for the front and each side plank per day. Windshield Wipers This exercise targets the main abdominals, the transverse abdominals, and the back muscles. 1.Lie on your back, arms extended straight out to the sides, and lift your legs straight up in the air. Press you lower back flat into the floor and raise your butt just a little. 2.Slowly lower your legs to the right side, keeping your feet together and your back flat on the floor. Raise your legs back up slowly and lower to the left side, in one fluid motion, slowly with control. Do 10 to 15 reps. Toes to Ceiling 1.Lie on your back, hands down at your sides, feet straight up in the air. 2.Contract your abs and lift your hips as high as you can, keeping your feet in the same position throughout.

3.Slowly lower your hips back to the floor. Try to not use your arms, but contract your abs to do the work. A variation of this is to keep the knees bent.

Towel Push This exercise will only work if you are on a surface that you can slide on.1.Kneel on all fours, putting something lightly padded under your knees for comfort. Rest your hands on a folded towel that will slide.

2.Brace your abs and push the towel in front of you, so that it lowers your upper body closer to the floor.

3.Go as far as you comfortably can and then return to your starting position, using your abs and not your arms to pull yourself back.If your abdominals are week, only push a little ways forward and then back until you are able to increase the distance. Towel Pull This is the opposite move of the exercise above.1.Start in a push-up position with a folded towel under your toes. Hands should be straight under your shoulders.

2.Using your abs, bend your knees and bring your feet toward your body.

3.Extend them back out straight again and repeat. If week, start with only a short distance until you can bring your legs up as close to your butt as you can. Arm & Leg Extension 1.Get on all fours. 2.Lift one arm straight out in front of you, while raising the opposite leg straight out behind you. Be sure to keep your back straight. Fingers should be pointing ahead, toes pointing behind. One thing the model could have improved on was to be sure her back was in a straight line, and not bowing in. This will entail pulling the abdominal muscles in while doing the exercise. Everything should be in as straight a line as possible. 3.Switch sides, doing the same movement on the opposite side. Try to keep the hand straight under the shoulder if possible. Easy strength-training exercises I've included a few fairly simple strength-training exercises. These are good to include so that you keep your muscle mass from declining, and helps to keep your metabolism revved up.Dumbbell Lunges There are several variations of a lunge press. It can be done without hand weights if desired. This exercise is great for working the stabilizer muscles in your core. 1.Start by standing straight with feet together. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and have arms bent at a 90 degree angle, hands in front of you facing each other.

2.Take a step back with one foot, leaving the other foot planted. Land on the ball of your foot and bend both knees. The leg in front will have the thigh parallel to the floor.At the same time, push your arms behind you and straighten them. Hold briefly, then pressing into your front foot, stand back up straight and return your arms to where they started.3.Repeat with the other leg. Squat & Curl This can be done with dumbbells or without. The squat itself works the abdominal and core muscles. 1.Stand straight with feet together, hands down at your sides with dumbbells facing forward. 2.Move one foot a couple of feet out to the side while bending your knees and hips, using the same motion as if you were trying to sit in a chair. Keep your body as straight up and down as possible and be sure your knees are back behind your toes. If using dumbbells, bend them at the same time, pulling your hands up toward your shoulders, dumbbells facing backwards. Keep your shoulders and upper arms still. Try to get a deeper squat than the model shows. Ideally, your thighs should be parallel to the floor.

3.Stand up back and move your foot back to the starting position and repeat, moving the opposite foot. Side Lunge 1.Stand straight, feet together, right hand on hip and the other arm at your side.

2. Move your left foot out to the side, going down in a side lunge and dropping your left arm down in front of you. Just as in the squat curl, keep your knees behind your toes and your back as straight up as possible.You will be leaning forward from the waist, which the drawing doesnt show. 3.Stand back up straight, raising your left arm all the way up to shoulder height, out to your side, palm down. At the same time, lift the right leg straight out to the side, as high as you can.4.Return to starting position and repeat with other side. When youre all done, you can relax!