by Samantha Coogan, MS, RDN, LD
With the flow of the holiday season, our midsections may have taken a toll. Now, of course to shed fat around the midsection, you’ll need to do more fat-burning types of movements along with a touch of cardio. Remember, that when we work a muscle group, we cause hypertrophy (muscle growth), which means more crunches won’t make your abs visible, it will simply make those muscles grow. You’ll be building them underneath, but that fat layer will need to be minimized in order to see them. So along with your regular strength training and cardio sessions, try out these ab defining movements to maximize on all the hard work you’ve already put in.
Side Plank
• Start by lying on one side with elbow directly under shoulder and legs stacked on top of each other.
• Place opposite hand on hip.
• Engage abs and lift hips off the floor until you are balancing on your forearm and feet (body should be diagonal).
• Hold for 45 seconds to 1 minute (if you can’t hold it straight through, work up to a total of 45 seconds to 1 minute in the plank position).
• Repeat on the other side, and complete 2 more sets each side.
Walkout from Push-Up
• Start in a push-up position with hands approximately 2 inches from the shoulders.
• Walk your hands out as far as possible, then walk them back.
• Repeat for 3 sets of 10-15 reps.
The Roll Up
• Start lying on the floor on your back.
• Raise your arms up straight so that they are perpendicular to the floor.
• Now sit up into an upright position, keeping arms straight (they should now be stretched out in front of you parallel to the floor.
• Roll back down to starting position.
• Repeat for 3 sets of 10 reps.
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