10 best abdominal exercises for women after 40 years: effective ways to remove the belly

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“For women after the age of 40, keeping fit becomes more and more urgent and also more challenging. This is especially true for the abs area. In this article, we will analyze the reasons for the appearance of fat deposits in the abdominal area, the importance of working with it for women over 40, we will list strength, breathing and other useful exercises, analyze their technique of performance and features.”

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Why does fat appear in the abdominal area after 40?

Why exactly in the abdominal area after 40 years of age in women accumulate fat deposits? There are several factors that can influence this.

Decrease in metabolism. The metabolic rate decreases with age, the body spends less energy to maintain vital functions.

Lack of dietary control. Of course, this may not only be the case after the age of 40. But the consumption of more calories than the daily consumption, taking into account the slowed metabolism leads to the accumulation of fat in the abdominal area.

Low physical activity. With age, more often than not, women become less active and do not move much. This is one of the reasons for low daily calorie consumption.

Approaching menopause. At this age, women have an imbalance of sex hormones (primarily estrogen and testosterone), which leads to the accumulation of fat in the abdominal area.

Effects of stress. Over the years, stress levels increase, leading to higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which in turn raises blood sugar levels, increases protein breakdown and causes localized fat deposits in the abdominal area.

Benefits of abs workouts

Increased strength. Strong abdominal muscles increase overall body strength and stability. This helps in performing daily tasks and household movements.
Maintaining good posture. Beautiful posture is not possible without tightened abs muscles, both visually and functionally.
Preventing back pain. Training the abs strengthens not only the abdominal muscles, but also the intercostal muscles, spinal extensors, lumbar muscles and in general forms a natural corset, which reduces the load on the spine and relieves back pain.
Improved overall health. Exercises for the abdominal area provide massage of internal organs, have a tonic effect on the intestines, organs of the digestive and reproductive systems.
Improved blood circulation. Exercises for the abs provide blood flow to the abdominal area, so fat deposits can go away faster than in the presence of stagnation.

Exercises for abs for women after 40 years of age

Very often we meet the division into exercises for upper and lower abs. This is not entirely true. The muscles of the abs are divided into:

internal (internal oblique, transverse);
external (straight, external oblique).

Speaking of upper and lower abs, they mean the upper and lower parts of the rectus abdominis muscle. In fact, the upper and lower abs are a single muscle, the fibers of which are located from top to bottom along their entire length. Therefore, any abs exercise works the entire rectus abdominis muscle. However, with the help of some exercises you can emphasize the upper or lower part of it.

Exercises for “upper abs”

To begin with, let’s analyze the exercises that maximize the load of the upper part of the rectus abdominis.

Straight twists. Starting position – lying on your back, feet on the floor, hands in a lock behind your head, chin pressed against the chest. Perform twisting of the body on active exhalation.
Straight twists with raised legs. Starting position – lying on the back, straight legs held vertically, hands locked behind the head, chin pressed against the chest. We perform the lifting of the body on an active exhalation, with a hand reaching for the outer part of the opposite foot, repeat on the other side.

Next, let’s consider exercises that maximally work the lower part of the rectus abdominis.

Exercises for the “lower abs”

“Scissors”. Starting position – lying on your back, hands under the buttocks, straight legs stretched along the floor. Perform crossing of the legs.
Leg circles. Starting position – lying on the back, hands under the buttocks, straight legs stretched along the floor. Draw small circles with legs first inward, then outward.
Pelvic twists. Starting position – lying on your back, arms along the body with palms down, legs raised perpendicular to the floor. On exhalation slightly lift the pelvis above the floor, twisting it, keep the legs in an upright position, without piling them on themselves.

Exercises for oblique abdominal muscles

Side twists. Starting position – lying on the floor, legs bent (feet are on the floor or on the weight), arms at the sides of the body. Raise the body and reach for the same shin, then to the right, then to the left.
Elbow to the knee. Starting position – lying on the floor, legs bent (knees are above the pelvis), hands locked behind the head, chin pressed against the chest. With an exhalation pull the elbow to the opposite knee and again on exhalation change sides.

Each exercise can be performed for 15-30 repetitions of 3-4 approaches of each exercise, and you can combine them in a circle consisting of exercises for different parts of the press and perform 3-4 circles in a row with rest between them.

Static abs exercises

In addition to dynamic abs exercises, there are static ones. One of the most famous such exercises for the abdominal area is the plank. It strengthens not only the abs, but also the muscles of the back, arms, legs, buttocks. This exercise helps to develop endurance, it is very energy-consuming, which accelerates metabolism and can be used not only to work the muscles, but also for fat burning.

There are many variations of the plank (on straight arms, on the elbows, with a raised arm or leg, lateral), but the basic principles are the same.

Let’s consider the technique of performing the plank on the elbows: we take the emphasis on the forearms and feet, the elbows are located under the shoulders, the forearms are parallel to each other. The body forms a straight line parallel to the floor, the lower back is not bent, the top of the head is pulled forward. During the exercise, pull in the abdomen and keep the muscles of the abs, legs and arms in tension.

Hold the position for 30-60 seconds with a short rest between approaches. You should not hold the bar longer and even more so to set records, as the target muscles quickly get tired, and then the load is taken by stabilizers and ligaments, which prevents you from effectively working the desired muscles.

You should not train your abs every day. These muscles are just like any other muscles, and after an intense workout they also need time to recover. It is recommended to perform 2-3 abs workouts per week.

What is important to consider when strength training?

When strength training exercises on the abs, it is very important to follow the correct technique of execution. If it is not observed, then in the best case you can get a pumped but bulging belly, or even health problems. What you need to pay attention to during exercises on the abs:

pull the belly in (imagine that it is a balloon that deflates);
keep the abdomen flat, it should not rise “domed” (pull the navel to the back);
the abdominal tissue should be dense, without failures at the hip bones (you can check by coughing and touching the abdomen during coughing – at this moment it is always dense);
during the exercises we focus our attention on the abs, try to consciously reduce them even more, not to shift the emphasis on other muscles.

Vacuum for the transverse abdominal muscles

Now let’s see how to strengthen the transverse abdominal muscles. In the usual strength exercises on the abs, the transverse one does not participate, so a special exercise – vacuum – is needed to work it.

In addition to this function, vacuum has a positive effect on the health of the cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, reproductive organ systems.

This is a breathing exercise based on the activation of deep muscles, on the delay of breathing with a stationary body. Vacuum should be performed on an empty stomach, better in the morning on an empty stomach, but not less than three hours after a meal.

Technique of vacuum

Starting position is standing, legs slightly bent, body tilted forward with hands resting on the hips. We exhale through the mouth, then a deep inhalation through the nose and a full exhalation through the mouth (we exhale all the air completely). Hold your breath and pull your belly up to your back and under your ribs. To begin with, it is enough to hold your breath for a comfortable time, which can be increased later. Finish the exercise by breathing in and relaxing, if necessary, take a break to avoid dizziness from too much oxygen. Repeat several times.

Contraindications to vacuum

Vacuum is a very useful exercise, but there are contraindications:

pregnancy;
critical days;
heart failure;
venous thrombosis;
infectious diseases;
glaucoma and increased intracranial pressure;
exacerbation of chronic diseases of internal organs;
recent abdominal and pelvic surgeries.

Exercise with a roller

Another very useful exercise for women after 40 years – lying on a roller. It makes the abdomen flat by normalizing the position of bones and internal organs, makes the waist thinner, improves posture, and also has a powerful, complex effect on the entire musculoskeletal system.

You do not need to buy a special roller, it can be twisted from a towel or plaid. To begin with, the thickness should be no more than 5-7 cm. Then it can be gradually increased, the maximum diameter of the roller is 12 cm.

We lay on the roller as follows:

lie on the floor, put the roller under the thoracic spine near the shoulder blades or slightly below;
stretch your arms behind your head, palms turned to the floor, connecting little fingers;
Extend the legs and turn the feet so that the heels are far apart and the big toes touch each other.

The first time we lie for 2-3 minutes, then gradually increase the time. The maximum is about 7 minutes. Get up after the roller should be through the side roll, helping yourself with your hands, slowly and without sudden movements. For a couple of hours after the roll exclude excessive axial impact on the spine (do not run, do not jump, do not lift weights).

You can and even need to perform this exercise daily. The optimal time – in the morning after waking up or in the evening before going to bed.

Exercises for the abdominal area are very important for the health of women after 40 years. They help not only to keep the body in good physical shape, but also affect many processes inside the body, improve the health of all systems and the body as a whole, and help to fight various manifestations of age-related changes.

But it should be remembered that in order to achieve a sustainable result, a comprehensive approach should be applied, which includes not only training, but also diet, sleep and rest.