Flat Stomach Exercises

In addition to toning your stomach muscles stomach exercises make your abdominal muscles bigger.

Adding more muscle to the body causes us to burn more calories, and this helps to increase our metabolism.

It takes more energy to maintain bigger muscles so you are burning more calories and losing more fat while you rest after the exercises.

Don't forget to combine stomach exercises with correct eating habits and cardio exercises to get the best results in the shortest time.

Why are there three best flat stomach exercises and not just one?

Your abdominal muscles are actually devided into three smaller groups of muscles. The upper abs, the lower abs and the obliques also known as the love handles. Each group needs a slightly different ab exercise to train most effectively, that's why there are 3 best exercises for your abs.

Are there any other ab exercises?

There are many abdominal exercises some are more effective then others, there are simple exercises for beginners and harder exercises for more advanced athletes.

So what are the best three exercises for a flat stomach?

Best Upper Abs Exercise : The Basic Crunch

Lie on your back on the floor or on an exercise mat with your hands to the side of your head. Keep your knees bent at a 90 degree angle with your feet resting on the floor.

Lift your shoulder blades of the ground as if you are trying to touch your knees with your chest but do not move the legs. Concentrate on lifting using your stomach muscles only.

At the top of the movement contract your ab muscles intensely and the slowly lower your body down. Lightly touch the floor with your shoulder blades and repeat.

Repeat 15-30 times. Breathe out on the way up, in on the way down. Rest a few minutes and do another set. Try to do 3-4 sets.

If you are a beginner or if this is hard for you do 10 repetitions for one set and gradually work your way to the recommended amonut of repetitions.

When doing this ab exercise it is important that you don't actually sit up. When you sit up your hip flexors do most of the work and it can be bad for your back.

Best Lower Abs Exercise : The Reverse Crunch

Lie on your back on the floor with your hands behind your head or on the floor by your hips, with your knees bent and your feet lifted six inches above the ground.

Slowly bring your knees toward your chest and lift your butt of the ground. Concentrate on contracting your abs, you should feel your lower abs working after a few repetitions.

Use your abs do not swing your legs to create momentum. slowly lower your legs to the starting position, six inches of the floor.

Repeat 15-30 times. Breathe out on the way up, in on the way down. Rest a few minutes and do another set. Try to do 3-4 sets.

If you are a beginner or if this is hard for you do 10 repetitions for one set and gradually work your way to the recommended amount of repetitions.

Best Obliques Exercise : The Cross Crunch

Lie on your back, knees bent, so your left foot is resting flat on the floor. With your right knee bent, place your right foot across your left knee.

Place your left hand at the side of your head and your right hand on the left side of your abdominals or on the floor next to your thigh.

Curl your body up with a twisting movement, bringing your left shoulder toward your right knee. slowly lower your body to the ground.

Repeat 15-30 times. Breathe out on the way up, in on the way down. Rest a few minutes and do another set. Try to do 3-4 sets.

If you are a beginner or if this is hard for you do 10 repetitions for one set and gradually work your way to the recommended amount of repetitions. Don't forget to do the same for the other side as well.

Bonus : The Bicycle Exercise

This is a bonus exercise that works all three areas of your stomach simultaneously.

Lie on your back on the floor with your hands behind your head. Slightly bend your knees and bring them in towards the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground.

Straighten the left leg out to about a 45-degree angle while simultaneously turning the upper body to the right, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee.

Switch sides, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee. Continue alternating sides in a 'pedaling' motion for 15-30 reps. Rest a few minutes and do another set. Try to do 3-4 sets.

If you are a beginner or if this is hard for you do 10 repetitions for one set and gradually work your way to the recommended amount of repetitions.

Be sure to consult your physician before starting any new exercise programm.

Healthy eating habit tip : Eat more often to increase your metabolism

You should eat 5-6 meals a day to increase your metabolism. Make your meals smaller and add healthy snacks between meals - eat more often.

It all goes back to the days of our cave dwelling ancestors when food was available only if the hunt was successful. When we eat, our bodies are designed to store fat for the future when we might have less food available. If our body is starving it does everything to store fat after every meal and your metabolism slows considerably. On the other hand when when your body feels you have plenty of food available your metabolism increases and you store a lot less fat.

This is why starving yourself ( and diets that require you to eat less than 1500 calories a day ) will never work in the long run as a way of losing fat. Your metabolism will slow down and when you go back to eating like you did before the crash diet you gain a lot more fat than you lost.

So increase the frequency of your meals and the amount of healthy food you eat and increase your metabolism to burn more calories after each meal and to store less fat.

There are other benefits to changing your eating habits to eat more meals a day. When your body digests food it burns scalories, so by deviding what you would eat in a day into smaller meals and eating more often will burn more calories. You will also feel full for longer periods and it will prevent you form feeling hungry during the day.

Healthy eating habit tip : Start eating early and dont eat late at night

You should eat breakfast as soon as possible when you wake up, this will start your metablolism that slowed during the night, if you dont eat breakfast your metabolism will slow even further as your body reacts to the hunger.

Stop eating at least two hours before you go to bed. This will allow your food to digest properly and help your body rest and recuperate better from the previous day.

Healthy eating habit tip : What you should and shouldnt eat

This is simple. Dont completely change your diet all at once. Start by eating the same foods you are used to only the healthier versions of those.

Eat wholemeal and wholegrain bread instead of regular white bread. Eat wholemeal pasta and brown rice, low fat milk products, egg whites as well as lean meat and tuna.

Counting calories you should consume and the calories each meal contains is tedious and is generally not necessary for the average person. Simply stay away from the foods you know are bad for you, cut down on sweets, cakes, pastries and soft drinks. Eat less saturated fat.

Aim to consistently give your body what it needs: fruits, whole grains, vegetables, nuts, and lean protein. Drink lots of water.

Most effective way to get a 6-pack and improve upper body

The key to getting a 6 pack is to reduce your body fat percentage to a point where your abdominal muscles can be seen. Everyone has abs, they're usually just hidden beneath a layer of subcutaneous fat. The most effective way to burn fat is to couple cardiovascular activities with a healthy diet. This "diet" does not mean severely reduced calorie intake or that you should eat only protein and no carbohydrates or anything like that. All you need to do is make simple healthy changes. Cut the soda, fried foods, sugary treats, and fast food. Substitute with lean beef or chicken, whole wheat breads, vegetables, fruits, and any other "clean" food you can think of. This change will speed up your metabolism allowing you to burn more fat. The basic formula for abs is a clean diet, cardio, and of course some exercises that specifically target your abdominals. Don't go overboard with the ab exercises though. Finally, don't expect from your body what it can't give you yet. At fifteen you've begun to hit a major growth stage. It is only the beginning though and as a male your muscle mass and potential won't peak until you are in your early to mid twenties. You can still get abs but they aren't going to look like those bodybuilders' in the magazines. You're going to have to wait a few years for that. With devotion and some hard work you can expect to see a harder more defined stomach in 3 to 6 months. Just relax and stay focused making sure to not get frustrated if it takes longer. Everyone is built differently. Some people might be able to get a six pack in a month and for others it may take a year. As far as improving upper body strength all I have to say is push ups, push ups, and more push ups. Once you can move your body weight easily, hit the bench press and add some pull ups into the routine. Good luck in your quest for the six pack!