Wondering if ab workouts actually burn belly fat? Let’s find out and see which ab exercises are the best.
You might think that ab workouts burn belly fat, but is there any truth in that statement? You might be experiencing that stubborn belly fat around the stomach especially after having a baby. Us women gain weight throughout the pregnancy. But even after childbirth, the lingering effects of weight gain last well beyond the postpartum phase.
So, you are ready to lose the belly fat around your waist and probably resort to ab workouts. But do they work at targeting the belly fat around your waist?
Today we are going to dive deeper into this topic and find out. Let’s see if ab workouts really do burn belly fat postpartum.
What Are Ab (Abdominal) Muscles?
First let’s understand what abdominal muscles are.
They are commonly known as the abs or your core.
“The abdominal muscles are located between the ribs and the pelvis on the front of the body. The abdominal muscles support the trunk, allow movement and hold organs in place by regulating internal abdominal pressure.” –Better Health
The 4 muscles in the core region include:
- Rectus abdominis
- Transverse abdominis
- External oblique
- Internal oblique
Why is it so important to have strong abs? Because having strong abdominal muscles can help improve posture and balance.
Plus these muscle, when toned, help the waistline to be slimmer, thus improving their appearance and self-confidence. But more importantly, having a strong core can help reduce back pain and increase flexibility.
Do Ab Workouts Help Reduce Belly Fat?
Ab workouts can help tone and strengthen the muscles in your abdominal area, but they may not necessarily burn ALL the belly fat on their own.
The good news is that ab workouts can help reduce the amount of belly fat you have in the core region, although they won’t necessarily get rid of your belly fat altogether.
Strengthening these core muscles also helps increase your metabolism, ultimately helping you to burn more calories and fat.
Keep in mind, in order to lose belly fat postpartum, you need to focus on creating a calorie deficit through a combination of exercise and a healthy diet.
Let’s just look at it this way, if you do all the ab exercises in the world, for hours upon hours at a time and you consume a case of Coca-Cola every day, do you think you are going to lose the belly fat? Absolutely not. That’s just insanity to think that will ever happen.
It’s important to understand that calories turn into fat, and with increased calorie consumption comes increased fat production.
The Secret Behind Ab Workouts and Spot Reduction
Did you know that spot reduction, or targeting fat loss in a specific area, is not exactly possible? When you lose weight, it happens all over your body, not just in one particular area. Just because you do ab workouts specifically and nothing else within your workout doesn’t mean you will only lose fat and weight around your belly and waist.
So, while ab workouts can be a part of your postpartum fitness routine, it’s important to also include a combination of cardio exercises and strength training that work your entire body. This can help you burn calories and build muscle, which can lead to overall fat loss.
Plus, you’ll also want to follow a healthy diet plan that includes plenty of whole, nutrient-dense foods and limiting processed and sugary foods from your pantry.
Nutritionally, What Is The Best Way To Lose Belly Fat?
Just like there’s no one perfect workout to lose belly fat, the same goes for dieting. There’s no one perfect nutrition plan or diet to lose belly fat.
I do recommend even completely cutting out alcohol and minimizing sugars and processed foods.
But if you take away one thing from this article about nutrition, remember you need to reduce your intake of processed foods and fast foods.
Eat at home more often, skip going out to meals at restaurants and only bring in healthy food into your home. Completely avoid shopping for processed foods, and if you do choose to buy processed foods, put them in a spot that is hard to reach and further away from your main traffic area.
What Is The Best Way To Lose Belly Fat?
If you are serious about losing the belly fat and want to do it the right way, the most effective way, you just have to do 3 things.
1. Follow a consistent program of healthy eating.
2. Cardiovascular exercise
3. Strength training (which most certainly should include ab exercises).
It’s not a one-and-done situation, and spot reduction is unlikely to happen with ab exercises alone.
But out of all three of those mentioned above, the best way to reduce belly fat is through weightlifting.
How Does Lean Muscle Burn Fat?
Weight lifting is the best way to increase lean muscle as we just mentioned. But how does it actually burn fat to help you lose weight?
Muscle production actually boosts your resting metabolism, which causes your body to burn more fat. And the beauty of this is our bodies can even do this at rest. So while we are resting, not working out, our increase in metabolism is working hard at burning fat off our bodies.
That intense weight lifting and strength training workout that you just finished is going to pay off in the long run. And be sure to include ab training into that routine because as we mentioned earlier, the ab workouts do help to reduce fat around the belly.
10 Best Core Workouts To Burn Belly Fat
So if you are motivated to get your abs strong and the belly fat gone, let’s start with these Top 10 Best Core Workouts on Youtube to help you burn the belly fat.
You’ll find a variety of ab workouts on the internet but these are among the most popular and the most effective ab workouts that will get the job done.
Can Strong Abs Get Rid Of Belly Fat After Having A Baby?
Something that is important to remember is that even with strong abdominal muscles, if your core region is covered in fat, you will not see the 6 pack abs you desire. So abs alone won’t eliminate all the belly fat around your stomach.
However, when it comes to postpartum bellies, the uterus is protruding out, thus giving your stomach the look of a bigger belly.
This is not necessarily fat, but just the sagging of the uterus that is not properly being held in by the abdominal muscles.
That’s why core strengthening of the deep, inner muscles within your rectus abdominis is so important. To learn how to strengthen these specific muscles after pregnancy, watch this 45 minute video training from a physical therapist, Postpartum Abs 101: How To Safely Start Postpartum Ab Exercises In Less Than 2 Minutes A Day.
This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.
**It is important to always consult your doctor before beginning any exercise program and get medical clearance. Always warm up thoroughly and stretch after all workouts. LiveCoreStrong.com and Jena Bradley will be not be responsible or liable for any injury sustained while exercising at home, gym or elsewhere. Perform exercises at your own risk.
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