We’re all working toward different goals at the gym. Some of us are trying to lose weight, others are trying to build muscle, and many gym members are doing both at the same time! One of the most common goals for gym members is to reduce their stomach size and get that nice, flat tummy everyone admires. Lots of people struggle with extra belly fat and wonder, are there any specific exercises they can do at the gym to shrink their midsection fast?

If you’re looking to lose some belly fat, read this blog to learn about the best workouts you can do at our Thornton gym to help you achieve this goal as quickly as possible.

How Do I Shrink Belly Fat at the Gym?

It seems logical that the way to get rid of belly fat is to do more exercises that target the stomach, right? Unfortunately, however, this is a myth.

“Spot reduction” — or the idea that you can exercise to target fat in a certain area of the body — is simply not possible. The unavoidable truth is that you can do abdominal exercises forever, but until you get your total body fat down, you won’t reduce your belly or be able to see your abs.

The only way to get rid of belly fat is to create a calorie deficit through a mix of regular strength training, plenty of daily cardio, and eating fewer calories than you burn. As your total body fat shrinks, so will your stomach, and you’ll eventually see the results you’re looking for.

Another cruel trick of nature is that you can’t control what areas of your body will lose fat first. Everyone’s fat is burned at different rates and from different areas of the body, which is mostly based on genetics. Therefore, as you work to burn more calories than you consume, your belly fat might remain pretty much status quo while other areas of your body will get noticeably thinner. Don’t give up hope, though! With enough work and perseverance, you will break through your plateaus and achieve your goals.

Now, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t exercise your stomach muscles at all, either. When you’re at the gym, it’s important to incorporate the best ab exercises to strengthen your core so that you have awesome ab muscles to show off once you’re leaner.

Gym Exercises That Can Help You Shrink Belly Fat

When accompanied by a calorie-controlled diet, the following calorie-burning and strength-building gym workouts will support your goal of losing belly fat and gaining a trim stomach.

Weighted Squats

Squats target several large muscle groups including your glutes, core, hamstrings, and quads. Your glutes are the biggest muscle group in your body, so you burn the most calories when doing exercises that involve them. Don’t be afraid to push your glutes to their maximum potential! They can lift a lot more weight than you realize. When you add weights to your squats, you burn even more calories and put your glutes to the test.

There are several variations of weighted squats you can try at the gym. For example, you can hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in each hand at your sides while you do squats. Or, you can load a barbell onto your shoulders and complete basic squats. With overhead squats, you hold a barbell or weighted ball over your head during your squats.

Burpees

Burpees are a great cardiovascular exercise that recruits muscles throughout your upper and lower body. When you do burpees, focus on improving your pace and being explosive with each part of the exercise. To perform a burpee:

1. Start in a squat position with your knees bent. Keep your back straight and your feet about shoulder-width apart.
2. Lower your hands to the floor in front of you so that they’re placed just inside your feet.
3. Put your weight on your hands and kick your feet back so that you’re on your hands and toes, in a pushup position.
4. Do one pushup while keeping your body straight from your head to your heels.
5. Do a frog kick and jump your feet back to their starting position.
6. Stand and reach your arms over your head.
7. Jump quickly into the air and land.
8. Bend your knees, get into a squat position, and do another burpee. Repeat as many times as you can to get your heart and lungs working.

Research has shown that the short bursts of intense exercise provided by burpees can be an effective way of burning body fat.

Bent-Over Rows

The bent-over row is another gym exercise that targets some of your biggest muscle groups, namely, the muscles in your upper back, lower back, glutes, hamstrings, shoulders, and lats. Just like squats, the bent-over row targets large muscles that burn a lot of calories when you exercise them.

To perform a traditional bent-over row, load a barbell with the amount of weight you want to lift. It’s better to start off lighter until you get your form perfected, and then work up to heavier weights. Also, with this exercise, it’s better to use a lighter weight so that you can stick to slow, controlled movements instead of jerking up a massive weight and possibly losing control. Here is the basic bent-over row technique:

1. Stand in front of the barbell with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Bend your knees and lean forward from the waist. Your knees should stay bent but your back should stay straight, with your neck keeping in line with your spine.
3. Grab the barbell with your hands (palms down) just wider than shoulder-width apart. Lift the barbell off the ground until your back is at about a 45- to 65-degree angle. Let the barbell hang below you with your arms straight.
4. Brace your core, squeeze your shoulders together, and bend your arms to lift (or “row”) the weight up until it touches your hips. Try to keep your elbows behind you.
5. Stop for a moment at the top of the rep and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
6. Slowly lower the weight back down again. This is one rep.
7. If you have a light weight, aim for four sets of 8-10 reps.

As with most exercises, there are variations to the bent-over row. In one variation, you can replace the barbell with a set of dumbbells. This requires a little more coordination.

Another variation is to use the barbell, but reverse your grip so that your palms face up. This will place more of a load on your lower traps and lats.

More Ways to Get Rid of Belly Fat, Inside and Outside the Gym

It turns out, carrying excess belly fat is more than just a vanity issue. Excess fat that surrounds your organs is a predictor of heart disease, insulin resistance, Type 2 diabetes, and some cancers. If diet and exercise haven’t reduced your stomach as much as you expected, there could be other reasons such as your age, hormones, metabolism, and genetic factors at play. Below we’ve listed a few more strategies you can try to banish your belly fat.

Drink Less Alcohol

Alcoholic drinks have a lot more calories than you might expect — 12 ounces of regular beer has over 150 calories and 5 ounces of red wine has 125 calories. Some cocktails, like pina coladas, have 500 calories in a 9-ounce drink!

In addition to calories, there might be another reason why alcohol could be causing your waistline to widen. It’s believed that your body can’t store the calories in alcohol, so it’s forced to burn those calories first. That means your body won’t burn fat until the alcoholic calories are spent, so your belly fat remains untouched.

Ramp Up Your Workouts

Belly fat can be stubborn, so you might have to do more intense workouts to get rid of it. Studies have shown that people who stick to high-intensity workout regimens lose more belly fat than those who follow low-intensity plans. In fact, low-intensity exercises have been shown to not significantly change belly fat at all. Exercise at full intensity for as long as you can to burn more calories, and you’ll break though your belly fat plateau!

Make Sure to Add Strength Training and a High-Protein Diet

High-intensity cardio workouts are great for burning calories, but don’t forget to strength train 2-3 times per week, too. Full-body strength training and following a high-protein diet will help you maintain and build muscle mass, which burns more calories than fat tissue, even when your body is at rest.

Do the Right Exercises at the Gym

The best exercises to reduce belly fat are those that engage your core and as many large muscle groups as possible like your back and glutes. These types of exercises will give you the greatest calorie burn and will build the most muscle tissue. Planks are an ideal whole-body exercise because they activate your core, arm, leg, and butt muscles.

Avoid Eating Too Many Processed Foods

Refined foods like white bread, chips, crackers, sugary drinks, and decadent desserts increase inflammation in our bodies and are easily converted to fat. Belly fat and inflammation go hand-in-hand, so eating too many calorie-dense, processed foods will hinder your ability to get rid of that stubborn tummy. Focus on eating natural, whole foods like vegetables and whole grains that are full of nutrients and antioxidants. Their anti-inflammatory properties can help you prevent belly fat.

Find Healthy Ways to Handle Stress

Thanks to tight deadlines, bills, and packed schedules, we all face stressful situations in life, but having too much stress can make it difficult for you to lose weight. Part of that is because we tend to eat high-calorie foods when we’re stressed (hence the term, “comfort food”). Another reason is because stress causes our bodies to release a hormone called cortisol, which has been linked to higher levels of belly fat. The good news is that exercise is well-known for its ability to reduce stress and improve mental health, so not only will working out at the gym burn those calories around your middle, but it will also help you handle stress, too!

Get Enough Sleep

Research has shown that one easy way to whittle away at your waistline is to get the sleep you need. One 16-year study of almost 70,000 women found that those who slept 5 or less hours per night were 30% more likely to gain 30 or more pounds, compared to those who slept 7 hours per night. The National Institutes of Health recommends that adults sleep 7-8 hours per night.

Get Motivated

Reducing belly fat is hard work and forces you to go all-in. It will require you to follow a low-calorie diet that’s high in protein and low in carbs and sugar, combined with plenty of high-intensity cardiovascular and strength training workouts. If you are willing to do the work, you can beat your genetics and lose that belly fat.

Honey, I Shrunk My Waistline at the Gym!

Losing belly fat is one of those goals that pushes us out of our comfort zones, but if you follow a nutritious diet and the right workout regimen, you can achieve the results you’re working for. And the staff and personal trainers at AFAC gym are here to support you during this challenging journey. We are confident that you will win the battle of the belly bulge!

If you would like more information about how to be a member of AFAC, the best gym in the Thornton, Colorado, area, please stop by the gym or give us a call. You can also contact our gym owner, Susan, at 720-849-0245 or susan@adventurefitness.club for assistance.

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