Exercises to Lose Belly Fat in Three Months

When it comes to belly fat, it is really not gender specific. Both women and men can suffer from the accumulation of this adipose tissue above the belt line. With that being said, the goal is to lose this fat in three months. Three months is equal to 12 weeks and although that might not seem very long, it is definitely enough time to make some serious progress. The plan of attack has to involve some exercises that target not just the belly, but the whole body.

Cardio Training

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  Cardiovascular exercise is performed by doing a repetitive movement for a duration of time that involves the large muscles in the body such as the legs. It not only strengthens the lungs and heart, but it also consumes calories while it is being performed, which can lead to fat loss. Being that there is no such thing as spot reduction, this fat loss can occur all over the whole body including the belly. In order to get the best bang for your buck in three months, cardio should be performed for 45 to 60 minutes, three days a week. Some examples of exercises are running, biking, swimming, rowing, stair stepping, elliptical training and rope jumping.

Major Muscle Groups

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  In addition to targeting the belly, the rest of the muscles in the body should be worked as well. This can add on more muscle, which can in turn increase the metabolism as muscle is metabolically active. These exercises should focus on the chest, shoulders, back, triceps, biceps and legs. Some exercises that can be done to work these areas are chest presses, upright rows, lat pulldowns, tricep extensions, bicep curls and lunges. To increase the caloric expenditure and recruit more muscle fiber, dumbells can be used instead of machines being that they take a lot of the work away from you.

  Compound Exercises

  • Another option for weight training is doing compound exercises. This type of exercise involves multiple muscle groups being worked at once with multiple ranges of motion going on. This can lead to an increase of muscle fiber recruitment with a high caloric expenditure. Some examples of these exercises are pushups, pullups, bench presses, military presses, back rows, squats and deadlifts. Being that these exercises are intense, they should be performed at the beginning of workouts.

  Abdominals

  • Melting the fat off of the belly is going to reveal what is lurking underneath. In this case, that would be the abdominal muscles. Working them will give you definition and also more motivation to lose the fat that is covering them. The areas of the stomach that should be worked are the upper and lower abs and the obliques which are found on the sides of the ribcage. Some examples of exercises that can be done are leg lifts, hanging knee raises, cross crunches, side crunches, floor crunches, pullover crunches, leg scissors, bicycle crunches and planks.

    To make abdominal exercises more intense and to recruit more muscle fibers, a Swiss ball can be used. This increase in muscle fiber recruitment is spawned from the fact that you are more off balance and your body has to compensate by tapping into other muscles to maintain stability. There are also some ball specific exercises that can be done such as jacknifes, also called "pull ins." This exercise is done by placing your feet on the top of the ball with your hands on the floor, then drawing your knees into your chest by contracting your abdominal muscles.