Kenneth Gardner

Your questions answered

Hello Mr. Gardner,

I saw your article, 'I want muscles' and thought that maybe I could get some tips from you. I have excess, no I would think moderate belly fat. I started doing crunches and leg raises to help to reduce the fat in that area because I am starting to feel uncomfortable with all that bulge in my clothes. I have also stopped eating after 7 p.m. I really don't want to use only one method as it might become boring. I would rather try a few and then I could decide which method works best for me. I would really like to have a flat tummy. Could you please help me in this regard?

Nordia

Good day, Mr. Gardner,

I would like to ask you a question. I have a big tummy and it got worse after I had my first and only child three years ago. I would want flatter abs. Are sit-ups good to get that result and how much would you recommend per day and how long would it take for me to see results? Thanks in advance.

Dear Readers,

Reducing belly fat and exercising to develop your abdominals, take as much mental and physical work as exercising any other part of the body. Abdominal exercises alone, no matter how many reps or sets you do, will never be enough to develop your abdominals unless you focus on burning the extra fat that is covering the muscles.

The key to developing flat, firm abdominals is by lowering your body fat. Simply, you needto burn more calories than you consume through regular cardiovascular exercises (running, jogging, cycling, etc). Regular cardiovascular exercises will allow you to use up much of the energy that is stored in your midsection as fats. By doing this you will reduce the amount of fats you have stored in your body, resulting in a healthier body and more visible muscles.

A healthier diet, combined with cardiovascular and abdominal exercises, provides a successful formula for the development of your abdominals. To develop well-defined abdominals, it is critical that you do regular cardiovascular exercises to reduce your body fat, and then perform specific abdominal exercises that will work all the muscles of the abdomen.

Here is a list of abdominal exercises that you can choose from.

Sit ups

Lie on your back on the floor and hook your toes under a heavy piece of furniture.

Bend knees comfortably and keep position throughout set.

Place hands behind head and lock fingers together.

Curl your upper body forward, slowly, until your torso is off the floor.

Hold position for a second, and then repeat movement.

Twisting sit-ups

Lie on your back on the floor and hook your toes under a heavy piece of furniture.

Bend knees comfortably and keep position throughout set.

Place hands behind head and lock fingers together.

Curl your upper body forward and twist to the right side as you raise yourself.

Repeat movement and twist to the left.

Side bends

Stand straight with arms down at your sides.

Bend sideways while resting one hand on your side and the other pointing down.

When you reach a point where you cannot go any further, raise yourself back to the erect position.

Repeat movement and bend to the other side.

Leg raises

Lie on your back on an inclined board with your head towards the raised end.

Grasp the upper end of the bench with hands to stabilise your body.

Use your abdominal muscles to raise your feet directly above your head.

Slowly return feet along same path to starting position and repeat activity.

Killer ups

Lay on your back with your feet under a stationary object.

Begin a normal sit up movement.

When you are halfway in the exercise, tense your abdominals and hold for a count of three.

Keeping your abs as tense as possible, slowly return to a proned position.

Repeat movement.