Abs For Women: A flat, sexy tummy is every woman’s dream. And there’s nothing hotter than a set of badass six-pack abs. No, six-pack abs are not a “man thing” anymore. Take a look at Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and Jennifer Lopez. Even a little peek-a-boo of their tummy shows their chiseled abs, which do more than just amplify their X factor. Here are 21 ways in which you can sculpt your abs that will improve your posture and gait, boost your confidence, and bring an overall positive change in your personality.
Best Abs Workout For Women
Can women get a six-pack? Let’s be real, you cannot get six-pack abs without working your ab muscles. As you already know, it is very tough to get rid of tummy flab.
How long it actually takes to get abs
Getting abs doesn’t happen overnight or on a snap of a finger? It takes time. As much as genetics play the prime role in the whole abs growth ‘scenario’, your diet and workout are still the key elements. So, it all depends on how well you plan your workout and how long you stay clean with your diet.
The starting point matters. It will tell how much belly fathttps://tfortrendz.com/how-to-burn-fat-health-trends/ you need to lose before the Abs pop up. Losing at least 1 or 2% of body fat each month is a good sign. According to the health line, as a woman, you need to aim for a body fat percentage of about 14 to 20.
For a man, a good percentage is from 6 to 13. The whole point is setting a goal. For instance; a person with a body fat of more than 30% can take a year to get to shape, with lesser, it can take even 6 months. If you want abs ASAP! You need to engage the core more in your first-month workout plan. Then, prepare to increase your physical activity as you work your way up.
You cannot get six-pack abs without working your ab muscles. You need to lose belly fat to chisel your abs.
1. Crunches
Crunches work the mid-section of your abdominal area or the rectus abdominal muscle. This is an effective exercise to start with if you want to strengthen your core. Here’s how you should do it.
Steps:-
- Lie down on your back on the exercise mat
- Flex your knees and keep your feet flat on the ground
- Place your hands on either side of your head to support its weight
- Now, curl up at an angle of 30 degrees and exhale
- Inhale and go down to the starting position
- Repeat this for 2-3 sets of 10 reps
Also read: Importance of Yoga In Our Life
2. Sit-Ups
Sit-ups are similar to crunches and work on the rectus abdominal and external obliques. This is one of the best ways to get a six-pack for women. Here’s how you can do sit-ups.
Steps:-
- Lie down on your back on the exercise mat
- Flex your knees at an angle of 90 degrees and keep your feet flat on the mat
- Cross your hands on your chest so that your palms are lightly placed on the opposite shoulders
- Keep your abdomen engaged and keeping your feet flat on the ground, lift your head up, and then your shoulders
- Pause for a second and slowly go down to the starting position
- Repeat this for 2-3 sets of 10 reps
3. Lying Leg Raise
Lying leg raise is a tad challenging exercise, especially if you are overweight in the lower body region. This exercise is highly recommended if you want to lose weight from your belly region and carve your abs. Here’s how you should do it.
Steps:-
- Lie down on your exercise mat with your hands on either side and palms facing down
- Point your toes out and raise both your legs up. Stop when they are at 90 degrees angle with the floor
- Slowly lower your legs and bring them back to the starting position
- Repeat this for 2-3 sets of 10 reps
4. Plank
Plank helps to strengthen the core, improve posture, and reduce back pain. It reduces your tummy bulge and works on the rectus abdominal, internal and external obliques, transverse abdominal, arms, shoulders, quads, back, and hip muscles. Here’s how to do the plank correctly.
Steps:-
- Kneel down on your exercise mat
- Put your palms in front of you. Your palms must be flat on the mat, and arms straight (Cat Pose)
- Bend down and place your forearms on the mat
- Extend your legs behind. Keep them straight, and the toes flexed
- Hold this pose for 10-20 seconds (or more) and feel your shoulders, core, and quads burn
- Release and repeat this 3 more times
Also read: Best Ways to Burn Fat Fast: Health Trends
5. Hanging Ab Curl
This is an amazing and fun exercise to tone your abs. It works on the lower ab muscles, inner abs, and transverse abs. Here’s how you should do it to get Abs For Women.
Steps:-
- Grip a pull-up bar and let your legs dangle. Make sure your legs are straight
- Exhale, bend your knees and pull your legs up towards your chest
- Inhale, slowly lower your legs, and bring them back to the starting position
- Do 2 sets of 10 reps
6. Arm Pull Over Straight-Leg Crunch
This exercise works on your lower, middle, and upper abs, hip flexors, and hamstrings. Here’s how you should do it.
Steps:-
- Lie down on your exercise mat. Make sure your legs are straight, and the arms are extended behind
- Pull up your legs at a 45-degree angle
- Raise your head and shoulders, bring your hands towards your feet, and move your legs up until they are at a 90-degree angle with the ground
- Slowly release this pose and bring your hands and legs to the starting position
7. Superwoman
This is a fun and very effective workout. It works on the hip flexors, glutes, lower abs, upper abs, quadriceps, and hamstrings. Here’s how you should do it.
Steps:-
- Lie with your face down on the exercise mat. Your legs must be extended, and your toes must point outward
- Keep your hands extended in the front. Make sure your palms are facing down
- Lift your legs and hands as if you are flying
- Hold the pose for 5 seconds and then release
- Do 2 sets of 10 reps to burn the calories. This is a fun and very effective workout. It works on the hip flexors, glutes, lower abs, upper abs, quadriceps, and hamstrings. Here’s how you should do it
Also read: Benefits Of Drinking Water: Health Trends
8. Bicycle Crunches
Bicycle crunches help build the abs and also work on the quadriceps and hamstrings.
Steps:-
- Lie down on your back on the exercise mat
- Place your hands on either side of your head to support its weight
- Curl up at an angle of 45°, exhale, and twist to your right. Bring your right knee towards your chest and try to touch your right knee with your left elbow
- Turn your upper body to the left. Bring your left knee towards your chest and try to touch your left knee with your right elbow
- Repeat this for 2-3 sets of 10 reps each
9. Mountain Climbers
The mountain climber exercise mimics the movement of climbing a mountain. It helps burn belly fat and strengthen your core.
Steps:-
- Get into a plank pose. Make sure your shoulders, elbows, and wrists are aligned
- Bend your right knee and bring it close to your chest. Place your right foot back down
- As you place your right foot back, hop, and raise your left foot off the floor
- Bend your left knee and bring it close to your chest
- Do this at a higher speed to feel the burn in your abs and thighs
- Do 3 sets of 20 reps each
Are abs really made in the kitchen?
It is unfortunately very true that you can’t out-train a bad diet. In reality, we all have the coveted six-pack, it just sits under a protective covering called body fat (cue the dad jokes).
To uncover them, we’ve got to remove the fat. To do that, along with exercise, we need to change up our eating habits. Here are some things to consider.
1. Reduce calories
Losing body fat means losing weight, which means reducing caloric intake. Generally, you can cut 500 calories per day in order to lose around 1 pound per week.
That can amount to consuming 250 calories less per day while increasing activity to burn an additional 250 calories. There are a number of ways to look at this, but a calorie deficit will help you lose body fat.
2. Focus on whole foods
Aiming for minimally processed, whole foods is the number one recommendation for healthy eating. Regardless of ab-revealing power, putting whole foods at the top of your diet to-do list ensures you’re getting lots of nutrients while avoiding cravings.
A diet focused on whole foods will include fruit, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein like eggs, fish, lean meats, and poultry, and healthy fats like avocado, olive oil, nuts, and seeds.
3. Eat complex carbs
Carbohydrates are necessary to fuel, and you should aim to include complex carbohydrates in your daily plan. That means fruit, vegetables, beans, legumes, and whole grains.
Put the pasta on the back-burner for now and focus on sweet potatoes, quinoa, squash, and oats. On the road to a six-pack, the majority of your carbohydrates should come from vegetables, but all high-quality complex carbs have their place. On that note…
4. Eat more fiber
Foods high in fiber are great for weight loss. Besides the sheer number of nutrients in fiber-rich foods, they also take a while to digest. Fiber-rich foods include fruit, vegetables, beans, legumes, and whole grains.
Non-starchy vegetables in particular should be a diet staple when fat loss is the goal. They’re nutrient-dense gems full of fiber and water, which helps fill you up, while also being low in calories.
Aim for at least 4 servings of non-starchy vegetables per day.
Fruit brings the nutrient goodies to the table in the form of vitamins, minerals, and fiber and you should aim for 2 to 3 servings per day.
Looking for the best choices? You can never go wrong with berries. Low in calories and sugar with antioxidants for days, these babies will never steer you wrong.
Beans, legumes, and whole grains are also great sources of protein, in addition to fiber. Whole grains like steel-cut oats, quinoa, farro, and sprouted grains also contain a bit of a protein punch.
Stick to 2 to 4 servings of whole grains per day for optimal results.
5. Drink more water
Water is an essential nutrient. It’s necessary to turn food into energy and to help nutrients reach your muscles, and also support vital organs. If that’s not enough, dehydration is a real energy killer.
If you feel thirsty, you’re already dehydrated. Drink consistently throughout the day and aim for a minimum of 2 liters per day. Add 1 liter for each hour spent exercising.
Also read: Fashion Trends For Spring-Summer 2018: For Women
6. Eat less added sugar
Not all sugar is bad, but to bust out those abs you’ll want to reduce as much added sugar from your diet as possible. Sugar-sweetened drinks like soda, juice, and energy drinks are obvious no-nos, but you’d be amazed where added sugar shows up.
Would you expect sugar to be an ingredient in that whole-wheat bread you bought? What about the whole wheat crackers? Did you know that flavored yogurt can have as much sugar as a Snickers bar? Vitamin water, dressings, sauces and marinades, meal replacement bars, the list goes on and on.
Read labels and you’ll be shocked by all the products with added sugar.
Also read: Stylish Indian Street style Fashion Ideas for Women: Fashion Trends