8 Simple Sit-Up Exercises You Can Burn Your Belly Fat With
If you want to melt your belly fat then you should do straight leg sit-ups. It is a simple exercise that you can do without any formal training or guidance. And there are plenty of ways in which you can make sit-ups more interesting.
Know more about sit-ups
Sit-ups are great for burning belly fat because this exercise works well for abdominis, obliques, and chest and neck muscles. Sit-ups will strengthen your spine and back muscles that can keep your back straight and prevent the folding of skin around the belly. Crunches can also work on ab muscles but sit-ups are more suitable for burning belly fat.
Before you start sit-ups, you should know three things that you shouldn’t do with this activity
- Never anchor your legs
- Always maintain a posterior tilt. It will provide the necessary support you need for sit-ups.
- Never tuck your chin or strain your neck. Your eyes should always be on the ceiling.
Basic Straight Sit-ups
• Sit on a mat with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Your hands should be on the sides of your thighs.
• Roll down on your back for the starting position. Rest your back and head on the floor to start. Your hands will still be on the sides of your thighs.
• Push your upper body up for sit-up. Keep your eyes at the ceiling to avoid tucking the chin. Your hands will slip from thighs to the knees.
• Wait for a couple of seconds and then roll back for the second sit-up.
In addition to the basic sit-ups, you can try the following 8 sit-up exercises to bring variety to your exercises.
Hands To Heels
• Lie down on a mat with flexed knees. Keep your feet flat on the floor and legs hip-width apart and stretch your hands backward on the mat. Your back and head should rest on the floor.
• Push your upper body up and bring your hands towards the heel without bending your forearms.
• Keep your eyes up at the ceiling to avoid tucking up your chin while touching your heels.
• Stop for a couple of seconds before rolling back to the first position. Repeat the sit-up a couple of times.
Straight Leg Sit-Ups
• Lie down on a mat with your legs hip-width apart and hands stretched backward on the mat.
• Be comfortable by resting your back and head on the ground to start the sit-ups.
• Push your upper body up with your hands stretched above your head and come to a sitting position. Your legs should be straight on the floor and hands above your head.
• Stop for a couple of seconds and then roll back to repeat the exercise of straight leg sit ups.
Butterfly Sit-Ups
• Sit on a mat with flexed knees and make a butterfly position by opening your thighs and resting the soles of your footwear against each other.
• Roll back on the floor with your hands stretched backward on the floor.
• Push your upper body up to come in a sitting position. But you should keep your hands stretched and extend them to your toes in the sitting position.
• Stop for a while and then roll back to repeat the exercise.
Bent Leg Sit-Ups
• Lie down on a mat with your knees flexed and feet flat on the floor. Also, your hands should be stretched backward on the floor.
• Push your upper body up with your hands in the stretched position and your heads up at the ceiling.
• Keep your knees flexed and feet firm on the floor. Wait for a couple of seconds before rolling down on the mat for repeating the sit-up.
V-Ups
• Lie down on a mat with your legs straight and hands stretched at the back. Here your spine should be in a posterior tilt to start the sit-ups.
• Push your upper body up and raise your legs to make a V position with your upper body.
• Your hands should be stretched towards your toes.
• Here you shouldn’t tuck your chin but fix your sight at the ceiling.
• Stop at the V position for a while and then go back for the second sit-up.
Oblique V-Ups
• Lie down on a mat on your right side with your right hand stretched towards the outer side and your left hand upward towards the ceiling. Your legs should be closed together.
• Raise your legs and try touching your left leg with your left hand by pushing your upper body up.
• Come down to the starting position and switch to the left side to repeat the exercise with the right hand.
Weighted Sit-Ups
• First, take a dumbbell or a plate you are comfortable lifting.
• Sit down on a mat with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, legs hip-width apart, and spine straight.
• Hold the weight in both your hands and raise it slightly above your head.
• Be comfortable in this position to start the sit-ups.
• Rollback slowly while holding the weight in your hands. Rest your back and neck on the floor. The weight should be held firmly behind your head.
• Push your upper body up with the weight in your hands. Come in the sitting position without stretching your legs.
• You shouldn’t tuck your chin but look up at the ceiling. Go back to the starting position and repeat the exercise.
V-Sit Russian Twist
• Lie down on your back with your legs hip-width apart and shoulders relaxed.
• Bring your lower back in a posterior tilt and your palms together
• Lift your legs and bend your knees for sit-ups. At the same time, you can push your upper body up for twisting sit-ups.
• Bring your body up and twist your upper body first on your right and then to left.
Sit-ups can be rewarding when performed correctly. The advantage of this exercise is that it can be performed at home and you don’t need additional accessories for doing sit-ups. Weighted sit-ups are the only exception to this rule. But beginners should be careful while doing sit-ups so they don’t harm their spine.
