Your time is precious, which is why it’s important to get the biggest bang for your buck in your exercise routine. To help you out, we chatted with a fitness pro and are here with the best workouts to lose weight and sculpt abs at the same time. The below training modalities offer a well-rounded blend of strength training and cardio to promote fat loss while building lean muscle.
“Combined strength and cardio workouts are time-efficient because they engage multiple muscle groups at once. This intensity maximizes calorie burn in less time and optimizes fat loss while building core strength,” explains Ronny Garcia, CPT, with Blink Fitness. “Fat loss across the body, combined with core strengthening, makes your ab muscles more visible and defined.”
Now, let’s dive into the best workouts to lose weight and sculpt abs.
The Workouts
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
“HIIT alternates between intense bursts of exercise and rest periods,” Garcia tells us. “This workout boosts your metabolism and burns fat even after you’ve finished exercising (i.e. EPOC: excess post-exercise oxygen consumption).”
In a HIIT workout, you’ll find exercises like mountain climbers, jumping jacks, and burpees, all of which engage the core.
Circuit Training
“Circuit training is a combination of strength exercises and cardio done back-to-back with minimal rest in between,” says Garcia. “This method keeps your heart rate elevated, promoting fat loss while building lean muscle.”
This training method activates your core through various exercises, such as presses, lunges, and squats, which help sculpt your abs.
Strength Training (With Compound Movements)
Compound exercises engage multiple muscle groups simultaneously. “Lifting heavy weights with compound movements such as deadlifts, squats, and overhead presses not only builds muscle but also increases your metabolism, leading to fat loss,” Garcia explains.
Core-Focused Strength Training
While ab exercises won’t melt fat alone, they help strengthen and tone your muscles under the fat.
“When combined with a calorie deficit, ab exercises help reveal a more defined stomach,” Garcia notes. “Planks, leg raises, and Russian twists are excellent at targeting the abs directly.”
Bodyweight Workouts
Bodyweight workouts utilize just your body weight for resistance and can be performed essentially anywhere, making them incredibly convenient choices.
“They often involve movements like lunges, pushups, and burpees, which engage the abs,” says Garcia. “Core-focused bodyweight exercises, such as mountain climbers and flutter kicks, will sculpt the stomach.”
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Alexa Mellardo