The Best Exercises To Target Your Muffin Top

Muffin top exercises are a must in the cold season when we tend to be less active. Here are five exercises to target your muffin top area.

When you don’t like the shape of a certain body part, you can always try targeting that region with exercise. Muffin top is among the most common areas of concern, especially for women.

Getting rid of muffin top is not easy, but it can be done with a holistic healthy lifestyle, good nutrition, and the right exercises.

You’ll want to eat whole foods and calculate a slight caloric deficit. Avoid fad diets and stick with a good nutrition plan.

The following muffin top exercises will help you replace fat with muscle and feel better about your body as a whole.

The Best Muffin Top Exercises

Here are five of the best exercises to target your muffin top and get rid of the extra fat around your waist:

1. Side Planks

Instead of doing a traditional plank, move onto your side:

Lay on your side with one foot stacked on top of the other.
Raise yourself up on your forearm and place your other hand on your hip.
Hold for 30 seconds at first but try to stretch it out to two minutes if you can.

The side plank will be difficult at first, but when you feel like you’ve built up your muscles, move on to the more advanced hip dips.

You’ll hold your side plank for a few seconds, then dip your hip to tap the floor and lift back up. Do 10 of these on each side.

2. Pretzel Knee Crunch

Here’s how to properly perform the pretzel knee crunch exercise:

Sit down in a pretzel-like position with one leg bent in front of you, the bottom of the foot touching the thigh of your opposite leg.
Both knees should be at a 90-degree angle, and you’ll want to lean forward about 45 degrees while keeping your back straight.
For beginners, place your hands on either side of you for more support.
When you’re ready to advance the move, bring your hands in front of your chest in prayer position.
When you’re all set, lift the leg that’s behind you and bring it forward. The goal is to tap your back knee with the elbow on the same side.

Keep your abs and back muscles tight, and don’t move the rest of your body as you do this move so that it targets the muscles you want to strengthen.

3. Plank Twists

Planks are awesome for toning your abs and back, and you can target that pesky upper hip fat with a few twists mixed in.

Set yourself up with a traditional plank with toes and forearms on the floor, but rather than making a straight line, raise your butt a little higher.
Then, do the twist by rotating your hips towards the floor and pivoting onto the sides of your feet.
Try to keep your knees straight and tighten your abs during the rotation.
Do 10-15 on each side.

4. Swimmers

As the name suggests, you’ll look like your swimming out of the water while targeting the fat on your back and hips.

While lying on your stomach, keep your abs and back taut while you raise your legs and arms off the floor.
At the same time that you reach your straightened right arm to your ear, you’ll lift your straightened left leg to be slightly higher than your hip.
Do the same with the other arm and leg, and alternate 15-20 times for three sets.

5. Lying-Down Butt Lifts

One of the best and simplest muffin-top-shredding exercises is the butt lift.

Lie on your back with feet flat on the floor.
Lift your butt as high as you can with your shoulders pressed to the floor, then lower it slowly to the ground.
Repeat 15-20 times.

There’s another, more advanced move in the same category often called “heatwaves”:

Lay as if you’re doing a traditional butt lift by raising your hips while keeping your shoulders on the ground.
Then, move your hips side to side in a wave motion to target your upper buttocks and hips.

It will take time and dedication to do these muffin top exercises and adopt a healthy nutrition plan. But in the end, you’ll get rid of that annoying muffin top.

Give yourself plenty of time and grace as you do this. Reducing your muffin top is possible, but you have to stick with this workout routine.