Simple Exercises to Get Rid of Love Handles
- Obliques are the muscles that are located under where love handles develop. Focusing on these areas to tone the muscles will help reduce the fat that covers the obliques.
To perform an oblique crunch, lie on your back with your legs up and your knees bent and feet on the floor. Put your hands behind your head, lightly touching the back of your head near your neck. Do not clasp your hands. Raise your head/chest up into a sit-up position, but instead of doing a regular sit-up, twist to your left, making sure you are lifting your shoulders off the floor. Slowly lower your shoulders and head back, and lift up again, this time twisting to the right. Do these in three sets, 20 repetitions on each side
A variation to this would be to hold the crunch for a few seconds. You could also switch this on and off with the regular oblique crunch. Perform this exercise several days a week. - Stand up straight with your knees slightly bent, feet shoulder width apart. Bring your hands up in a punching position, and slowly twist only your torso to the left while crossing your right arm into a punch across your body. Be sure to not fully extend your arm, to prevent elbow injury. This exercise is similar to trying to punch the corner of the room. Bring your arm back to the starting position, and repeat with your left arm and right side.
Start out slowly doing this exercise, and increase speed as you feel comfortable. Try to do 50 repetitions; 25 on each side. For a better workout, try adding hand weights to your hands. - In addition to the exercises mentioned above, be sure to do cardiovascular exercise four to five days a week for at least 30 minutes a day. This can be as simple as going for a run, a brisk walk, riding a bicycle or following an aerobic workout video. Sweating burns calories and in turn burns fat, which will help in seeing results with the exercises you are doing for your love handles. Always keep a bottle of water handy; it's important to stay hydrated during your exercise.