Walking for Weight Loss
When it comes down to losing weight many different exercises get suggested. The usual exercises suggested include jogging, swimming, cycling and the like. All very powerful methods for losing weight, but one of the most powerful weight loss methods often gets left out – walking for weight loss.
Many people don’t realise just how powerful walking is to help lose weight, it is usually considered the poor relation of weight loss exercises. But this is a mistake, it can be more powerful than, for example, running. For instance if you were to run 4 miles you could actually burn less calories than if you walked 4 miles.
Why Walk?
So why is walking such a powerful weight loss exercise that can be used ahead of running or cycling?
- Calories. As we just showed you actually burn more calories going for a brisk walk over a distance than you do by running. This means that walking should be considered alongside other top exercises for weight loss.
- Metabolism. Not only does walking burn you a large amount of calories, it also continues burning them. It is your metabolism that decides how many calories you are burning at any one time, whether exercising or at rest. Walking boosts your metabolism more than running or cycling.
- Less impact. The problem with many exercises is the impact it can have on joints and bones. Many people are unable to jog because of the impact it has on their knees, for example. Walking is far less wearing on joints.
- No expensive equipment. There is no membership fees and no expensive equipment such as a bike needed to lose weight from walking.
- Easy to fit in. Walking is easily fit into a daily routine, whether it is walking to the shops rather than driving, or getting off the bus two stops earlier. Far easier than an hours round trip to the gym, never mind the hour or so you need to spend there.
The Best Stomach Exercises for Women – Fat Burning and Toning
When it comes to the best stomach exercises for women that we can there are two aspects to consider.
- Weight loss
- Toning
This is because we first need to get our bellies slim before any tightening up work we do can even be noticed! This also means that we should be looking to split the two areas into separate exercise regimes, first to get us slim, then to get us toned.
That is not to say that certain exercises can’t do both, indeed to a certain extent all the best stomach exercises for women are able to do both, it is just with each aspect comes a different focus, and so we should be approaching them slightly differently.
Weight Loss
What we are looking for here is to burn the fat off. This means cardio work and metabolism boosting work. For the most part it is hard to target specific areas for weight loss (very different to toning) as fat is burned as energy form around your body, not in certain areas.
This means that a lot of basic cardio exercises are very good here – and for the most part they are useful in toning the stomach anyway.
- Running. If you pick the speed up then running really works the abs – so make sure you are not simply gently jogging along. The flat tends to be best for stomach toning (uphill is more for your bum).
- Swimming. This one is one of the best stomach exercises for women of all time. Not only is it a great cardio work out, but if you are doing front crawl of breast stroke you are providing your abs with a great work out.
- Rowing. Whilst not as stomach focussed it still gives a great cardio work out, which burns the fat we are trying to do at this stage. It also does provide some work out to the abs, and especially the lower back, which is also important when trying to slim down around the waist.
Toning for a Great Looking Stomach
Whilst losing weight around the stomach is a lot of cardio work, as well as dieting and the like, toning the stomach is a much more direct, intense work out. Here it is very possible to target the ab muscles.
Most of the exercises below use basic gym equipment you will find in any gym. Remember as well to stick with the swimming and other 2 exercises above to keep yourself trim.
- Crunches
One of the most popular ab exercises. We recommend doing your crunches with a swiss ball (aka exercise ball) to help increase the work out and tone the surrounding muscles (which get worked as you balance on the ball).
Simply sit towards the front of the ball, lay back, with your lower back on the ball, put your hands to your temples (or across your chest) and raise and lower yourself to and from the sitting position.
- Bicycle Exercise
No, not involving a bike, but laying down. This is in fact the top of all the best stomach exercises for women around – as discovered by the American Council for Exercise. It isolates and works the rectus abdominis (which you better know as the 6 pack muscles).
Lay on your back, with your feet in the air (knees bent so your shins are horizontal). Place you hands behind you head. You want to develop an ‘air cycling’ motion, straightening one leg whilst bringing the other towards your chest, twisting your body towards the incoming knee as you do so. Aim for 3 sets of 12 reps as a starting point.
- The Plank
A favourite of many celebrities this one, and one of the best stomach exercises for women. The trick is that you are holding your body straight as a plank – which works the abs, back and stabilizer muscles – toning your entire core (perfect for looking slim and toned all over).
Place yourself face down on a mat, then raise yourself off the floor so that you are resting on your elbows/forearms and toes. Ensure that your bum is not sticking out – you want your back and body to be perfectly in line in order to work your stomach muscles, this may mean tilting your pelvis forward slightly. Hold the pose for 30 seconds, before lowering. Repeat 4 times.
The Top 5 Most Effective Stomach Exercises
One of the most common ‘problem areas’ that people have is their stomachs. Whether it is wanting to lose weight from around our bellies, or tone up our muscles there, looking for the most effective stomach exercises is something done by hundreds of thousands of people every year.
Which is why the American Council of exercises decided to commission a study to help learn which of the huge number of stomach strengthening exercises that there are out there is best, which are the most effective stomach exercises that you are able to perform to get a slim, toned stomach that you can be proud of.
The study was conducted on 30 men and women of various age groups, by Peter Francis PhD of San Diego State University. Each exercise was studied by using an EMG which showed muscle effort in both the upper and lower abs, and the external obliques.
This meant that they were able to study the effort that each of the stomach exercises forced on our muscles, so that they knew which was causing us to work the hardest, and which was simply putting us through the motions with little to no real benefit.
There were some surprises in the list. So to ensure that you are aware of the most effective stomach exercises that you could be doing we present to you the top 5. Make sure that they are part of your own stomach exercises if you want to get a belly that you can be proud of.
Top 5 Most Effective Stomach Exercises
- Bicycle ManoeuvreAka ‘air cycling’. This came in at #1 on the list of the most effective stomach exercises( and #2 when looking at effort on the obliques). It scored a 248% of mean activity, making it 148% more effective than a traditional crunch.
To perform this exercise you need to lay on your back (we suggest on a mat for comfort). Lift both legs in the air, bending you knees 90 degrees so that your shins are horizontal to the ground.
Then place you hands behind you head and start, slowly, performing a cycling motion with your legs – straightening one leg whilst bringing the other knee towards your chest. In addition to this you should be twisting you body towards the incoming knee.
- Captains ChairThis is the 2nd most effect stomach exercise (and came 1st for the olbiques) with a mean activity score of 212%, making it 112% more effective than the traditional crunch.
This uses a specific piece of gym equipment called the captains chair. On it you lift yourself off the ground so you are supporting your weight on your forearms and gripping the handles of the ‘chair’ with your legs dangling.
You slowly raise and lower your legs, lifting them so that your thigh is horizontal to the floor and your knees bent at right angles. Always maintain a slow, controlled pace.
- Crunch on an Exercise BallThe first ‘crunch’ on the list comes in at 3rd in the list of the most effective stomach exercises (and #6 for the obliques) scoring 139%, making ti 39% more efficient than the average crunch.
Lower yourself into a sitting position on the ball with your feet flat on the floor. Slowly allow the ball to roll backwards from you. You need to keep lowering yourself until your thighs and torso are horizontal with the floor.
The simply cross your arms over your chest and start ‘crunching’, raising and lowering yourself by 45 degrees.
- Vertical Leg CrunchThe vertical leg crunch scored 129%, making it 29% more effective than the normal crunch for working our stomach muscles, and therefore one of the most effective stomach exercises around.
To perform this you need to lay on your back and put your legs in the air, keeping them straight and vertical (at right angles to the floor). Slightly cross your ankles. Then simply start raising and lowering your torso towards your legs in the normal ‘crunch’ motion.
- Torso TrackAnother useful bit of home gym equipment to make the list of the top 5 most effective stomach exercises. With 127% it is 27% more efficient than a basic ab crunch.
This equipment allows you to slide your body form a kneeling position backwards and forwards, gripping the handles as you do so. The effort required to hold yourself up and pull yourself back gives the abs a work out. If you tend to have lower back issues though this may not be the exercise for you.
As you can see all 5 of our top 5 most effective stomach exercises list are more efficient than ab crunches, so make sure you include them in your own workouts.