6 Exercise For Smaller Waist and Flat Stomach With Picture

Exercise For Smaller Waist and Flat Stomach With Picture

Having a small waist in proportion to your body shape is considered to be an attractive feature in women, as evidenced by the hourglass figures flaunted by many famous film stars of bygone eras. Although women's natural waist size is mainly determined by genetics, it is possible to achieve a smaller waist through weight loss, dedicated exercising and strategic clothing choices.

Just doing crunches won't get you the flat stomach and small waist you desire. Excess body fat that lies below the skin or around the organs -- known as visceral fat -- can only be burned off with cardiovascular exercise and a healthy diet. Add targeted ab exercises to define the waist and flatten your stomach.

Trim and Tone

To shrink your stomach and trim your waist, you've got to burn body fat overall by doing regular cardio. Work up a sweat doing brisk walking, running or cycling three to five times each week for 30 to 60 minutes. Keep your intensity moderate to vigorous to burn calories, increase fitness and lower your risk of disease. To boost fat burning, perform resistance exercises with your body weight, free weights or machines two or three times each week on nonconsecutive days. Do one to three sets of eight to 12 reps of each exercise, and do one exercise for each major muscle group.

Tone-it V hold

Uses fast-twitch muscle fibers (the ones that contract during high-intensity moves and help improve muscle tone) 


Sit with knees bent and feet on floor. Clasp underside of thighs with both hands, hinge back, and lift feet until lower legs are parallel to floor; release hands. Straighten legs and reach for your toes; hold for 8 breaths. Repeat 3 times.

Ab Training

Work your abs at least three to five days per week to flatten the stomach and tone the muscles of your midsection, according to exercise physiologist Len Kravitz Ph.D. of the University of New Mexico. The core muscles are resistant to fatigue, so they can be worked as often as every day if you choose. Pick five to 10 different exercises that combine different motions such as curling and rotating your spine to work your abs from all angles. Do eight to 12 reps with proper form, then move onto the next exercise. You can perform this ab circuit one to three times with 30- to 60-seconds rest between each circuit.

Side crunch & pulse

Hits obliques (sides of abs), seratus anterior (muscles below chest), and six-pack

Lie faceup, knees bent to 90 degrees, hands behind head. Lower knees to left and crunch up; do 15--25 reps. Return to start, lift shoulders, extend left arm, and pulse forward for 15--25 reps. Repeat sequence on right side. This is 1 set. Do 2 sets.

Effective Abs Workout

ACE-sponsored research conducted by the Biomechanics Lab at San Diego State University studied some common ab exercises and ranked them best to worst as determined by an electromyogram, or EMG. The EMG measured electrical activity in the rectus abdominus and obliques, or stomach and waist. The study found that many of the best ab exercises don't require equipment. To incorporate some of these into your routine, perform a long-arm crunch with your arms extended overhead. Follow that with a bicycle maneuver rotating your torso side to side. Then go right into a reverse crunch lifting your hips off the ground. Keep your legs up and do a vertical leg crunch with your arms behind your head. End your workout with a plank, or hover, and hold for up to 60 seconds.

Eat Healthy, Not Deprived

An unhealthy, high-calorie diet will hide your abs, even if you follow the exercise guidelines. Focus your diet on whole grains, lean proteins, unsaturated fats and lots of fruits and veggies. Include a variety of foods so you don't get bored and to get all the necessary nutrients. Fluids are also important to avoid bloating and to stay hydrated for activity and weight loss. The Food and Nutrition Board released new fluid intake guidelines in 2004 that recommend at least 125 ounces for men and 91 ounces for women daily.