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Why you cannot lose weight by doing sit-ups?

Sit-ups are a great core workout since they work your lower back, hip flexors, and abdominal muscles. Sit-ups won’t hurt your back if you perform them slowly and properly; on the contrary, they can help with digestion, build muscle, improve your posture, but can they really help in losing weight?

Sit-ups and other ab workouts like them will help you burn more calories overall, but they won’t help you lose a lot of weight by itself. To lose weight and keep it off, you’ll need to combine some dietary adjustments with a regular exercise schedule.

How To Do Sit-Ups (Crunches) Correctly ?

By performing sits-ups properly, you’ll be able to burn calories more efficiently and prevent yourself from some unwanted injuries.

So here are the steps to help you perform sit-ups perfectly :

  1. Begin by bending your knees while lying on your back. The best place to perform sit-ups is on a soft surface, like a mattress. Keep your feet flat on the ground and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle.

If you perform sit ups while lying on an exercise mat, you might find it more comfortable.

  1. Place your fingertips behind your ears. The elbows on each side of yourself should be bent and directed outward. When performing sit-ups, you can avoid pulling yourself up by your neck by cupping the back of your ears with your fingertips rather than placing them on the back of your head.
  1. Lift your torso up, as much as you can, toward your thighs. Keep your feet flat on the ground as you move slowly and steadily. Your lower back should be off the ground, when you are done lifting your torso.
  1. Now return back to the starting posture by lowering your torso to the ground. Use a smooth, steady motion to lower your torso down, just as you did when you raised it to your thighs.
  • If you want to perform more reps, you can continue the exercise once you are back in the starting position.
  1. Perform 2 sets of 10 to 15 repetitions. Allow your body to relax between sets for about a minute. Reduce the number of sit-ups you perform until you are stronger if you find it difficult to maintain the proper form.
  • Start with 2 sets until you are able to perform more sit ups if you are having problems completing 3 sets.
  • Try a different exercise that targets the deeper abdominal muscles, such the plank or the dead bug, for a more strenuous workout.
  1. Do sit-ups at least twice per week. You should refrain from performing sit ups every day for the finest outcomes. Give your abs a day off in between workouts because recovery helps your muscles to grow the fastest.
  • For instance, you might perform sit-ups on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and refrain from performing any ab workouts on the other days.
  1. For a more effective workout, combine sit-ups with other stomach exercises. The upper and lower abs can both benefit from performing a range of ab workouts since it keeps your body adapting, which is beneficial for muscle building. Try other ab workouts when you’ve gotten the hang of sit-ups, such as:
  • Crunches
  • Flutter kicks
  • Leg raises
  • Planks

Try Cutting Your Calories

A week of doing 100 sit-ups a day is not a tested strategy for losing belly fat. If losing weight is your aim, in particular around the midsection, you should start by examining your daily diet. You must create a calorie deficit (burning more calories than you consume) in order to see the scale tip in the right direction. There are many keto diet pills which claim to help promote weight-loss, but we recommend you to consider them only after taking your doctor’s prescription.

Start by figuring out how many calories you need to consume daily in order to maintain your present weight, or maintenance calories. Use a food diary or an app to track your intake over a few days to determine this value. This number represents your maintenance calories, assuming no weight growth or loss.

Next, progressively reduce your calorie intake to create a deficit. It’s generally okay to reduce your daily calorie intake by about 500. Eliminating processed meals that are high in calories is among the simplest methods to achieve this.

Ample servings of fruits and vegetables in a rainbow of hues should be on your plate. According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, plants are low in calories but high in vitamins and nutrients. Particularly rich in fibre, a nutrient that digests slowly and keeps you feeling full for longer, are leafy greens like spinach and kale.

Instead of refined sources like bread or pasta, get your carbohydrates from healthy grains like brown rice, quinoa, or oats. Choose lean protein sources like poultry and fish because they are low in fat and calories.

Exercises To Lose Belly Fat (With Or Without Sit-ups)

Sit-ups are a great exercise for weight loss, but they shouldn’t be your only form of exercise. Also we wouldn’t exactly call performing sit-ups each day a fun time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises scheduling at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity cardio, such as walking or hiking, to burn fat while also boosting heart health.

Think about doing high-intensity interval training (HIIT) if you want more strenuous cardio. You increase your heart rate and burn calories by switching between harder and easier intervals. Additionally, you can include those sit-ups in an HIIT exercise.

In order to enhance lean muscle mass, which boosts metabolism and aids the body in burning more calories, you should also aim for at least two strength-training sessions per week.

It is also advised to give compound movements more priority during strength training in the gym. These exercises, such deadlifts, squats, and chest presses, work multiple muscles simultaneously to increase your flexibility, strength, and cardiovascular fitness.

A Healthy Tip

Sit-ups can definitely burn hundreds of calories every week, but performing an exercise too frequently can cause overuse and injury (not to mention boredom). Instead, stick to a nutritious diet and a more extensive exercise regimen, and you’ll start to lose weight. If you have any medical condition, starting up with a weight loss regime could be dangerous as well, therefore, it is recommended to consult your physician first.

(ThePrint ValueAd Initiative content is a paid-for, sponsored article. Journalists of ThePrint are not involved in reporting or writing it.) 

Source: The Print

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