People nowadays are staying inside to self-isolate themselves due to the Covid-19 outbreak, however, for people to stay healthy, exercising is imperative. With gyms and fitness centres closed, staying in shape has become harder than ever. Due to the quarantine mandates, there has been minimal physical activity, resulting in unwanted weight gain and belly fat. People in today's age yearn for a flat tummy, however losing belly fat can be a task. There are several healthy ways to help you lose weight and burn those extra calories. These hacks will not only help you in your goal towards a flat stomach but will also boost your confidence, making you healthier and happier in the process.
(Also read: How To Lose Belly Fat: These 6 Lifestyle Changes Could Work Wonders)
Effective Ways To Get a Flat Tummy
Here are some of the ways to reduce your tummy during coronavirus pandemic:
1. Make Your Diet Healthier
A healthy diet is a good diet. Getting a flat tummy cannot be achieved by exercising alone. If you want to lose fat, especially around your stomach, you need to eat a healthy, balanced diet including a lot of whole foods, fibre, protein while cutting back on processed foods. You can easily make your diet a bit healthier by replacing all white, refined products with brown, such as brown rice, brown sugar and brown bread.
Also, sugar is bad when it comes to weight loss, as it induces weight gain when taken in excess. Sugary drinks like soft drinks are very difficult to burn, hence it is necessary to reduce your calorie intake by switching to natural fresh juice.
2. Indoor Cardio Exercises
During this pandemic, indoor cardio workouts can be an excellent choice whether you have 5 minutes or an hour. There are several cardio exercises that will help elevate your heart rate and leave your body toned and tightened. With people locked in their houses, on-spot jogging can be a great option as this requires little space. It's an effective calorie-burning exercise that works well for beginners as well as experts.
3. Jumping Jacks
You can also include some jumping jacks, high-knees or skipping to switch between routines. Jumping jacks is a great exercise that works on the entire body and helps increase blood circulation, while high-knees is an intensive exercise which helps engage the core while strengthening the leg muscles.
4. Plank Is A Must
Planks are one of the simplest and most important workouts that can help you burn belly fat and build strength and stability in your entire body. Though it is simple, holding a plank is never easy. It targets your core and activates a range of muscles, boosting your calorie burn. There is also the side plank which is excellent for building strong abs and can also help in improving balance and concentration.
5. High Intensity Workout Like Tabata
Tabata is a high-intensity interval training cardio session conducted for short periods. It includes a session of workout, rest and workout again. It is excellent for beginners with a 1:2 ratio of work to rest. So basically go all out on a chosen activity for, say, 30, 60, or 90 seconds, rest for twice as long, then start on the next set. Tabata not only improves strength and burns calories, but betters the cardiovascular system as well.
6. Large Muscle Workout Like Squats, Lunges
It is good to keep things simple especially if you are a beginner and the best way to keep fit and healthy is bodyweight exercises. You can achieve your daily goal anywhere, even in your own home by only bodyweight exercises some of which are squats, lunges, squat jump etc. Squats are arguably the best exercise you can do because it is both challenging and safe and targets a lot of muscle groups such as hamstrings, glutes, core etc at the same time. Squats jump on the other hand improves upper and lower body strength, and burn calories faster than regular squats. Lunges is another effective workout which strengthens legs, boosts metabolism and helps you lose weight much faster. It also works on the shape and strengthening of your lower body.
(Also read: All You Need Is 20 Minutes To Do This Expert Workout At Home)
7. Isometric Workout
Isometric exercises are contractions of a particular muscle which occurs when the muscle tenses while not changing length. These exercises help maintain strength and are useful in enhancing stabilisation; maintaining the position of the affected area. It can also be helpful to those dealing with an injury or suffering with arthritis
We need to remember that in order to achieve our goals of a flat tummy, regular exercise along with good nutrition is a must and this can only be achieved with determination.
About the author: Meenakshi Mohanty is a fitness expert. Combining fitness with unperturbed inspiration, Meenakshi is an eclectic Delhi-based fitness enthusiast bringing together a wide gamut of exercises and regimes to promote the most holistic and healthy lifestyles amongst the conscious-dwellers.
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