 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Fitness: How to get rid of love handles
It's one thing to get toned arms and legs, but how do you get rid of love handles? Fitness trainer Bindiya from Leena Mogre's Fitness shows you four basic exercises that will get rid of tyres around your waist.
1. Regular crunch
Lie down on a mat with your feet raised up. Ensure the knees are in line with the hip and your hands are behind you head. With a little help from your hands, raise your upper body towards the knees, exhaling as you come up and inhale when you go back. Do not jam your chin down while doing so. You could do one to three sets of 20 repetitions.
2. Basic plank position
In a quadruped position come down to your elbows with your fists tightened. Stretch your legs to the end of the mat. At this point, your body should look like a plank of wood -- your back to the ground. Hold this position for a minimum of ten seconds gradually building to two minutes.
Videos: Afsar Dayatar
Side planks and alternate crunches
3. Side plank
With your feet apart, shift your weight off the mat and lengthen the arm towards the ceiling, pushing your hips away from mat and your navel drawn towards the spine. Look at your palm as you do this. Hold for a minimum of 10 to 30 seconds, gradually increasing to a minute or so. Repeat on the other side.
4. Alternate crunches
Lie down on a mat with your hands behind your head and legs folded at the knees. The pattern for the alternate crunch is similar to the regular crunch, except that you twist your upper body in a way that your left elbow almost touches the right knee and vice versa. You could do one to three sets of 20 repetitions.
Using the medicine ball to shape up
5. Squats with a medicine ball
Place your feet hip-width apart and draw the navel to the spine. Now push the medicine ball over your head and keep your arms extended. Squat parallel to the floor keeping your arms extended. Inhale as you go down and exhale as you go up. The key here is to ensure that the knees shouldn't go beyond the line of your toes to prevent injuries to your knees.
6. Diagonal wood-chop with a medicine ball
Keep your toes out and feet apart. Stretch your arms to the right side of your body. Bend in the knees and now touch the ball to your left foot. This is a wood chop movement. Ensure equal number of repetitions on the other side too.
Lunges and mountain-climbing
7. Lunges with a twist
Bring your feet together and hold the medicine ball at chest level. Put your right leg forward, lunge, twist and return to the standing position. Repeat this with the other leg.
8. Mountain climber
Place the medicine ball on a stable surface. Get into the plank position and switch legs alternately like you would cycle.