The 10 Best Exercises for a Flat Belly

The 10 Best Exercises for a Flat Belly

Sculpt your abs and blast away the belly flab that covers them with these moves

By the editors of Men's Health [1], February 28, 2015

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[3] TAGS: abs [4], core [5], flat belly [6], stomach [7], core exercises [8], core workouts [9]

A flat belly is a badge of honor. It's an outward sign that you keep fit and watch what you eat. And beyond the vanity aspects, a more chiseled torso makes you stronger and less prone to injury. Thats because the dozens of muscles between your shoulders and hips are involved in every movement you do. To create a lean, rock-hard waist you need to start with the right moves, says BJ Gaddour, C.S.C.S., creator of Men's Health StreamFIT [10]. Choose moves that sculpt your abs while shredding the fat that covers them, he says. Its the perfect one-two punch for a flat belly.

Start with the following 10 exercises to hammer the dozens of muscles between your shoulders and hips and rev your metabolism at the same time. And for a complete cutting-edge exercise and nutrition guide that you can use on your computer, tablet, or phone, check out The Lose Your Spare Tire Program [11]. Its the easiest and most effective way to drop 20, 30, or even 50 pounds (and flatten your belly forever!). Stock Image from ThinkStock

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1. Burpee

If you want to lose your gut, you need to work as many muscles as possible. The burpee does just that. The explosive exercisewhich entails going from a pushup position to a jump and back to a pushup positionhits every muscle from head to toe. In fact, a recent study from the American College of Sports Medicine found that 10 fast-paced reps are just as effective at revving your metabolism as a 30-second all-out sprint, so you can burn your belly fat faster than ever before. DO IT: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Lower your body until your palms rest on the floor about shoulder-

width apart. Kick your legs backward into a pushup position, perform a pushup, and then quickly reverse the movement and perform a jump when you stand. That's 1 rep. Photographs by Beth Bischoff

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2. Mountain climber

Think of the mountain climber as a moving plank. You perform a mini crunch when you explosively draw one knee into your chest. What makes this move so difficult, however, is that your core has to work overtime to keep your body stable and straight every time you lift a foot off of the floor, according to Gaddour. "You can also do it interval-style, making it a serious conditioning move to ramp up your heart rate and burn a ton of calories," he says. For example, do as many reps as you can for 20 seconds, rest for 10 and repeat for 4 minutes for Tabata Workout That Will Blast Belly Fat [12]. DO IT: Assume a pushup position with your hands below your shoulders and your body forming a straight line from

your head to your heels. This is the starting position. Lifting your right foot off of the floor, drive your right knee towards your chest. Tap the floor with your right foot and then return to the starting position. Alternate legs with each repetition.

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3. Archer row

Poor posture can lead to a bulging gut, so your desk-jockey slouch may be your flat bellys enemy number one. To fix your day-to-day form, try the archer row to strengthen your core and your back at the same time. "As your row the dumbbell in the plank position, you have to use your back muscles to keep your body in one strong, straight line," says Gaddour. If your shoulders round forward even a little bit, youll topple towards the pull of the weight. Holding this position will help you build strength in your back and ab muscles to keep you upright. DO IT: Grab one dumbbell. Get into a pushup position with your hands under your shoulders and your body forming a

straight line from your head to your heels. Separate your feet so they're slightly wider than hip-width and turn them so

they both point to your left. With your right palm on the floor, hold the dumbbell in your left hand and perform a row. Be careful not to let your torso rotate with the weight of the dumbbell. Photographs by Nick Grieves

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4. Half Turkish getup

The half Turkish getup might fall into the category of "core exercise," but it's far from an isolation move. "It works everythingyour shoulders, hips, back, core, arms, and so many other muscles you never even think of," says Robert dos Remedios, C.S.C.S. "It's about as complete a full-body exercise as you'll find." That means its a comprehensive muscle-builder that will burn belly fat long after your workout is done. DO IT: Lie faceup with your right leg bent and your left leg flat on the floor. Holding a dumbbell or kettlebell, raise your

right arm straight overhead. Roll onto your left side and prop yourself up onto your elbow or hand, keeping your right arm overhead and your eyes on the weight. Pause, and then reverse the movement to return to the starting position. Perform all prescribed reps on one side before switching.

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5. Dumbbell hot-potato squat

This cutting-edge fat-loss exercise will get your heart pumping and abs burning in almost no time. The squat attacks your largest muscle groupslike your glutes, quads, and hamstringswhile the dumbbell toss hits your upper body and ramps up your heart rate. "Plus, holding the weight on just one side of your body increases the demand placed on your core," says Gaddour. "As the weight changes from side to side, your core muscles are worked from every angle." DO IT: Grab a medium- to light-weight dumbbell and hold it in the racked position with your elbow bent and the end

resting near your shoulder. Squat down so your quads are parallel to the floor, and then quickly pop up to standing, tossing the dumbbell from one hand to the other in front of your face. Photographs by Beth Bischoff

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6. Mogul jump

You may associate moguls with cold and snow, but this version will burn a ton of belly fat. "It trains your abs, lower back, and hips to work together to rotate your body from side to side," says Todd Durkin, C.S.C.S., owner of FitnessQuest 10 in San Diego, California. And the more powerfully you explode off of the floor, the more you'll elevate your heart rate and work your muscles. DO IT: Get into a table-top position with your hands directly below your shoulders and your knees directly below your

hips. Dig your toes into the floor and elevate your knees so they hover just above the ground. Keeping your feet together jump them to the left, pause, and then jump them to the right. Repeat for reps or time. Photographs by Beth Bischoff

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7. Kettlebell swing

The kettlebell swing might be one of the best calorie-torching exercises of all time. In order to propel the heavy ball of iron, you need to engage big fat-burning muscle groups like your glutes, hips, and quads, explains Gaddour. The explosive nature of this movement skyrockets your heart rate right away, but it also hammers your core. The momentum of the bell at the top of the swing will try to pull you forward, so you have to clench your abs as if you were performing a standing plank, says Gaddour. DO IT: Bend at your hips and hold a kettlebell with both hands at arms length down in front of you. Rock back slightly

and "hike" the kettlebell between your legs. Then squeeze your glutes, thrust your hips forward forcefully, and swing the weight to shoulder height. Reverse the move between your legs and repeat. Photographs by Mitch Mandel

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8. Medicine-ball slam

If you havent used a medicine ball since high school, youre missing out. It may be one of The Best Core-Chiseling Tools [13] around. Your core is your center of power, so performing explosive movements like the med-ball slam requires all the muscles between your neck and your hips to work together, says Sean De Wispelaere, an expert coach for Men's Health Thrive [14].

And if you pick up the pace and propel the ball with more power and velocity, youll elevate your heart rate and burn some serious belly flab, he says. You dont even need to increase the weight. A 6-pound medicine ball will work just fine if you go hard and push yourself. DO IT: Hold the ball above your head with your feet shoulder-width apart. Slam the ball on the floor as hard as you

can. Catch the rebound and repeat. Photographs by Beth Bischoff

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9. Dumbbell overhead walking lunge

Add a dumbbell overhead during a lunge, and you suddenly have a core chiseler. As the load shifts with every rep, all of the muscles in your torso need to work together to keep the weight directly above you, says Tony Gentilcore, C.S.C.S., strength coach at Cressey Performance in Hudson, Massachusetts. The move engages your back and butt, too, because hunched shoulders and weak glutes also contribute to a bulging belly. DO IT: Grab a pair of medium- to light-weight dumbbells. Press the dumbbells overhead so your palms face each

other. Be careful not to scrunch your shoulders up by your ears. Step forward into a lunge position, pause, and then bring your back leg forward to step your feet together. Alternate legs as you walk forward. Photographs by Nick Grieves

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10. Valslide leg curl

This move hits your front and backside at the same time, making it the perfect recipe for a flat belly. "While the leg curl hammers your glutes, you need to turn on every muscle in your torso to keep your back straight from your shoulders to you knees," says Nick Murtha, an expert coach for Men's Health Thrive [14]. (Think of it as performing a

plank lying on your back.) The combination will hit your abs, work your upper back to help fix poor posture, and hammer the large, metabolism-revving muscle groups in your lower body all at the same time. DO IT: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your heels on a pair of Valslides. Lift your hips so your body forms

a straight line from your knees to your shoulders. Keeping your core tight, extend your legs as far as you can without allowing your back to curve. Pause, and then using your glutes and hamstring, pull your heels back toward your body until you return to the starting position. (For a complete for exercise and nutrition guide that can help you lose 20, 30, or even 50 pounds, check out The Lose Your Spare Tire Program [11].

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The 6 Best Back Exercises

The 6 Best Back Exercises

Sculpt a bigger, stronger back with these moves

By Tony Gentilcore [1], February 26, 2015

Image from Thinkstock

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[3] TAGS: upper back [4], muscle building [5], back exercises [6], lower back [7], upper-body exercises [8]

I want you to answer a question for me, and I want you to answer it truthfully. Do you spend nearly as much time working your back as you do your chest? If you're like most men, the answer is probably no. But I'm here to change that. Sculpting a bigger back comes with a long list of benefits. For one, you'll stand taller. Training your back targets common weak spots that lead to poor posture. Say goodbye to your caveman hunch. And working your back helps you bench press more weight. The muscles in your upper- and mid-back help stabilize your shoulder joints. The stronger and more stable your shoulders, the more weight you can lift in just about every

upper-body exercise. Your arms will grow bigger, too. The reason: The exercises that work your back are also great for targeting your arm muscles. So whenever you bend your elbows to lift a weightduring a row or a pullup, for instanceyou're training your biceps. You'll also rev your metabolism when you concentrate on your back. That's because your posterior chain contains big muscle groups. And the more muscles you train, the more calories you burn. And, finally, my favorite reason: Ladies love men with V-shaped torsos. Studies have shown that women are most drawn to muscular men whose shoulders measure 1.6 times the size of their waist. The only way to chisel a ripped torso that's wide on top and narrow at the bottom is to hammer your back. Now are you ready to work your back more? Get started with some of my favorite exercises that work your entire back. (If you're carrying extra weight, check out the Lose Your Spare Tire Program [9]. It can help you lose 20, 30, even 50 pounds. Use the promo code MHREADER1 to save 50% on your purchase!)

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Pullup or Chinup Variations

If you want a V-shaped torso, you must do pullups and chinups. They build width because they target your latissimus dorsi (a.k.a. lats), the large back muscles that wrap around the sides of the upper body just below the arms. These muscles are the ones that give the torso a wider, flared shape, and can make you appear slimmer even if you haven't lost an inch around your middle. Below is a list of variations from easiest to hardest. As you pull your chest to the bar during each rep, think about pulling your shoulder blades toward your back pockets. This will force you to use your upper-back musclesas opposed to your bicepsto perform the move. For each rep, you'll start in a dead hang and then pull your chest to the bar. CHINUP: Grab the bar with a shoulder-width underhand grip. NEUTRAL-GRIP PULLUP: Grab the parallel handles of a chinup station so that your palms are facings each other. MIXED GRIP CHINUP: Placing your hands shoulder-width apart, use an underhand grip with one hand and an

overhand grip with the other. PULLUP: This is the same movement as a chinup except that you grab the bar with an overhand grip that's slightly

wider than shoulder width. START-AND-STOP PULLUP: Perform a pullup, and then slowly lower halfway down to a dead hang. Pause, then

pull your chest to the bar again. Pause, now lower all the way down to a dead hang. That's 1 rep. ISO PULLUP: Perform a pullup, but hold your chin above the bar for 10 to 15 seconds. You can do this for several

reps or on the last rep of your last set of pullups. TOWEL PULLUP: Find your hand positions for a chinup, then drape a towel over each of those spots on the bar.

Grab the ends of the towels so that your palms are facing each other. Grasping the towels engages more of your forearm muscles, improving your grip strength and endurance. Make your muscles bulge with The Back and Biceps Builder [10], a 2-exercise workout that gives you super gains.

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Lat Pulldowns

While you can't beat the chinup as a back builder, the lat pulldown is also great for increasing muscle. In fact, bodybuilders swear by it. Get the most out of the move by performing the exercise at a slow, controlled tempo. You should "feel" your lats working each rep. Do 8 to 12 reps like this, making sure your upper body remains in nearly the same position from start to finish.

DO THIS: Sit down at a lat pulldown station and grab the bar with an overhand grip that's just beyond shoulder width.

Without moving your torso, pull your shoulders back and down, and bring the bar down to your chest. Pause, then slowly return to the starting position.

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Deadlift

When it's done right, the deadlift is an excellent back builder. As you pick up and put down the weight, your upper-back musclesincluding your rhomboids, traps, erector spinae, rear deltoids, and latsmust fire on all cylinders to keep your torso straight and your lower back from rounding. It's when you fail to engage these muscles that injuries can occur. DO THIS: Load a barbell and roll it against your shins. Bend at your hips and knees and grab the bar with an

overhand grip, your hands just beyond shoulder width. Keeping your lower back naturally arched, pull your torso up and thrust your hips forward as you stand up with the barbell. Lower the bar to the floor and repeat. Want more reasons to add the deadlift to your routine? World-renowned fitness expert Dan John explains why you should Deadlift for Total-Body Strength [11].

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Bent-Over Underhand Barbell Row

Compared to other variations of the rowlike the single-arm dumbbell rowthe barbell version allows you to use more weight. Rowing with heavier loads elicits more muscle growth in your middle and lower traps, rhomboid major, rhomboid minor, upper traps, rear deltoids, and rotator cuff muscles. Use an underhand grip to target your rhomboids, the small muscles that start at your spine and attach to your shoulder blades. They assist your traps with pulling your shoulder blades together. These muscles tend to be weak due to the long amount of time we spend sitting at desks, in cars, or on couches every day. DO THIS: Grab a barbell with an underhand grip thats just beyond shoulder width, and hold it at arms length. Lower your torso until its almost parallel to the floor, and bend at your hips and knees. Let the bar hang at arms length. Pull the bar to your upper abs as you squeeze your shoulder blades together. Pause, and slowly lower the bar back to the starting position.

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Front Squat

You probably didn't expect to see a squat variation on the best back exercises list, but front squats are an excellent way to build the upper back. Because the barbell is placed in front of your body, your back muscles must work overtime to keep your torso upright so you don't tip forward. As you lower down into the squat, keep strict form. Maintain a tall chest and keep your upper arms parallel to the floor throughout the entire movement. DO THIS: Grab a barbell with a shoulder-width grip and place it in front of you across the tops of your shoulders. Now

raise your upper arms until theyre parallel to the floor, allowing the bar to roll back onto your fingertips. Without letting your elbows drop, lower your body by pushing your hips back and bending your knees until your thighs are at least parallel to the floor. Push your body back to the starting position.

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Seated Cable Row w/ Pause

Seated cable rows are a traditional upper-back exercise. Adding a pause for three seconds when the bar gets to your torso, however, can increase your gains. The pause keeps your scapular retractors working longer. Strengthening these muscles is important because a weakness can lead to unstable shouldersand that limits your strength and muscle gains in nearly every upper-body exercise, including the bench press and arm curl. When you start this movement, pull your shoulders down and back. Otherwise, you'll keep your shoulders elevated, which stresses the shoulder joint. Over time, this can cause your joint to become unstable, which often leads to injury. DO THIS: Attach a straight bar to a cable station and position yourself with your feet braced. Grab the bar using an

overhand, shoulder-width grip, and sit upright. Pull the bar to your upper abs. Pause for three seconds, then slowly lower your body back to the starting position. Your torso should remain straight and motionless throughout the movement. Don't lean forward and backward to perform the exercise.