A large number of people have trouble with "love handles." Far from being lovely or lovable, these are deposits of fat on the sides of one's lower torso, around the external oblique muscles.

Traditional crunches and sit-ups will not do much for this, as they mainly work the abdominal muscles and not the obliques.

The good news, however, is that there are a few stomach exercises which specifically target the obliques, helping to get rid of love handles.

1. Side Bend

A simple exercise, side bends are also probably the most effective method for getting rid of love handles. Start by standing upright. Position your feet shoulder width apart and bend your knees slightly. Lower your whole torso to one side, then back to the other. Lean only side to side, not backwards or forwards.

2. Torso Twist

This stomach exercise is also effective at reducing love handles, and is good to do right after the side bends in your routine, as it is also done in a standing position. Again, with feet shoulder width apart, slowly twist the body to one side, then to the other. The key here is to twist from your torso, not from the hips. As much of the twisting work as possible should be done by your oblique muscles, not your hip flexors. Keep your torso upright with no bending.

3. Side Crunch

The next two stomach exercises require you to get off your feet and lie down, preferably on the floor or other flat surface. Use a mat or towel as a cushion if you have a particularly hard floor to work with. Lie down on one side. For simplicity, let us say you are on your right side to start. Bring your right arm across your waist so that your right hand comes to rest on your left side. Touch your ear with the fingertips of your left hand, so that your left elbows winds up pointing straight upward. Lift your shoulders up off the floor while simultaneously raising your left leg to height of about twelve inches (30 cm). Contract your obliques as you do this. Hold for a few seconds, then gently lie back down. Do this for an entire set, then switch to the right side.

4. Seated Knee Drop

First, position yourself on the floor so that you are resting on your hipbones (not sitting on your butt). You can put your hands on the floor behind you to keep yourself stable in this position. Bend your knees so that your feet are flat on the floor. Put your ankles together. Now lower your knees to the right. Your feet will roll on to their sides, but should remain on the floor. Continue this lowering move until your knees are about six inches above the floor. Hold for one second, then go back up and down to the left side. Move slowly and under control, using your stomach muscles rather than momentum to raise and lower your legs.

As with any new physical activity, consult a professional before beginning and be sure to properly warm up to avoid injury.

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Many people are concerned about getting rid of belly fat which stands between them and a flat stomach.

The good news is that there are some good exercises that are specifically for trimming belly fat to speed along the process of getting a flat stomach.

1. Hip Lift

For this stomach exercise, you will need to lie on your back on a flat surface, such as the floor. Use a mat or towel to cushion your spine. Put your arms at your sides with palms facing up to the ceiling. Put your legs straight up in the air so that the soles of your feet are facing the ceiling and your legs make about a ninety degree angle with your torso. Keep your knees unbent and as straight as possible. Now, contract your ab muscles so that it feels like your belly button is being pulled toward your spine, while at the same time gently lifting your hips off the floor. Raise your hips to height of a few inches, keeping your legs extended straight upward. Hold this position, then slowly lower your hips back to the floor. Repeat for an entire set.

2. Seated Torso Twist

Stay on the floor for this stomach exercise, getting into a seated position. Bend your knees so that your feet are flat on the floor. Position your feet about hip width apart. Extend your arms straight out in front of you, interlocking your fingers. Contract your abdominals and lean back about forty-five degrees. Holding the contraction, rotate your torso as far to one side as you are comfortably able. Use your abdominals to control this motion so that your upper body moves at once, do not lead with your arms. Remember to keep your arms in from of you with fingers locked-- pretend you are aiming an imaginary gun. Once you have rotated as far as you feel omfortable, rotate back to center, then to the other side. Repeat these steps for an entire set. Take care to go slow and keep a controlled movement. Do not allow your momentum to twist you.

As with any workout routine, be sure to consult a professional before beginning and always warm up properly to avoid injury.

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Want flat and beautiful abs? Crunch it out with this effective 2 minute ab workout.

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Start with these 3 Exercises!

The stomach area is a problem for numerous people and many of them are wondering how to get a flat stomach...

A balanced diet is a good place to start, but there are also some great stomach exercises to help along the process. The exercises discussed below meet this description, as they are specifically designed to help reduce belly fat, and therefore, help you get a flat stomach.

These particular exercises are targeted at beginners, so give them a try if you are just starting out. Once you have mastered these, feel free to advance to something more challenging.
When doing these exercises, it is important to move slowly so as to maintain control and not allow momentum to take over.

1. Vertical Leg Crunch

This is a variation on the traditional crunch that focuses more specifically on reducing stomach fat. To begin this stomach exercise, first lie on your back on a flat surface, such as the floor. Use a mat or towel to cushion your spine. Put your hands behind your head, with elbows out far enough that they are out of sight. Now lift your legs straight up into the air, crossing your ankles and bending your knees slightly. Contract your abdominals and lift your shoulders, head and upper back up to about a thirty degree angle. Be aware of not lifting with your hands or leading with your head.

2. Long Arm Crunch

For this stomach exercise, remain on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat. Lie back and extend your arms straight back on the floor as though you are reaching above your head. Contract your abs and slowly lift your arms, head and shoulders off the floor to about a thirty degree angle. Hold it, then slowly lower your shoulders back to the floor. Repeat for an entire set. Be careful not to lead with your arms, keeping them straight and alongside your head.

3. Reverse Crunch

You will need to stay on your back for this stomach exercise. Use a mat or towel to cushion your spine. Put your arms at your sides with palms facing up to the ceiling. Put your legs in the air so that your knees are bent at ninety degree angles and your hips make about a ninety degree angle with your torso. Keep your knees unbent and as straight as possible. Now, contract your ab muscles so that it feels like your belly button is being pulled toward your spine, while at the same time gently lifting your hips off the floor. Raise your hips to height of a few inches, keeping your legs extended straight upward. Hold this position, then slowly lower your hips back to the floor. Repeat for an entire set.

As with any workout routine, be sure to consult a professional before beginning and always warm up properly to avoid injury.

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As with all things, there is a right way to go about working for a flatter midsection, and several wrong ways. Working out the wrong way can lead to no physical improvement or worse, serious injury.

Proper exercise technique is important. When doing stomach exercises or any other exercise, be sure to consult a professional, warm up properly, and remember the following tips to help you avoid wasting time and potential injury.

1. Keep Your Knees Up

When doing crunches, you want your knees to be bent and your feet flat on the floor so that your knees are centered and pointed upward. Keep them centered and up, not to one side. If you drop your knees to one side, you are unnecessarily compressing your vertebrae, which can lead to a painful back injury.

2. Sit-Ups

Traditional sit-ups actually do very little for the abdominal muscles. Even when done properly, the strain is mostly on the hip muscles. There is also the tendency to pull the torso up with the arms, which of course is not the point of the exercise. Further, when sit-ups are done very quickly, as people have a tendency to do, it is momentum that mostly forces the torso up and down, rather than any muscle groups. The crunch is a good alternative to old school sit-ups.

3. Straight Leg Lift

Another traditional "stomach exercise," this move actually works the lower back more than any muscles in the midsection. This is also another way to put strain on your back, possibly leading to injury.

4. Too Many Reps

There is never a need to do more fifty reps of a stomach exercise. If fifty reps is not giving you results, doing more than that will not help wither. As you build strength, if you feel the need for a bigger challenge, try a more difficult exercise as an alternative to adding reps.

5. Sleeping

Believe it or not, how you sleep has an effect on your stomach exercise routine. If you sleep in a position that cause back pain, it will make it much more difficult to work on your midsection in the morning. Sleeping mostly on your stomach is one of the best ways to cause back pain, as it forces your back to arch, often resulting in annoying back pain. The best way to avoid this is to sleep on your back with a pillow under your knees. This will help keep your vertebrae in line, prevent back pain and allowing you work out pain free in the morning.

6. No Resistance

All stomach exercises need resistance to be effective, whether it comes from a resistance band, an exercise ball, or just gravity. Exercises that do not use any resistance, such as standing broomstick twists, will not be beneficial to your midsection. The good news is that this particular exercise will not do any harm and is actually a good warm up for your trunk. Just do not expect it to flatten out your stomach.

Be sure to research thoroughly before beginning a new exercise, and always consult your physician before beginning any physical fitness routine.

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How to get a flat Stomach - Where to Find Free Exercises

Many people believe that in order to get their desired results when it comes to a flatter stomach, they must spend a lot of cash in order to achieve their goal, especially if their goal to flatten the stomach fast.

There are hundreds of sources for finding exercises to flatten stomachs. Some of these sources require a purchase or even an investment. Just because a person paid for the information does not necessarily make it better. The same results can be achieved without spending any extra money, which is really good news for people who do not have or want to spend money in order to get a flatter stomach. Remember, the best exercise is the exercise that works for the individual, regardless of the source.

Here are some of the most common places to find Free exercises:

1. The Internet - There are hundreds of sites a person can find just by using the search words "free stomach exercises" or "how to get a flat stomach". These sites will give step-by-step instructions on how to perform a variety of exercises to flatten stomachs. When a person finds several exercises he or she likes, it is simple to print them out and have the paper available when performing the exercise.

2. Your local library - The library may actually have more information then the internet; it is just not as convenient. A person who takes the time to visit the library can find books on how to flatten their stomach read magazine articles and borrow videos that talk about exercises to flatten stomachs.

3. The television - If a person can set aside a specific time during the day for exercise, there are many television programs on throughout the day that are exercise related, even channels dedicated just to exercise and health. Many of these shows will focus on flattening stomachs, since this is a primary goal of most people that exercise.

4. Your doctor - For people that truly need to loose weight around their stomachs for health reasons, doctors are probably the best source for free exercises to flatten stomachs. They will have available many brochures and other material that will help the person in their goal to look and feel better. In addition, a doctor would be a good source for finding out other places to obtain this information.

5. Most people are already aware of several exercises to flatten the stomach fast, they just need to take the time to do them. The Crunch is a very popular and basic exercise designed to flatten and tone the stomach muscles. There are of course variations of this basic exercise, but for many people just being consistent with this one movement is enough to bring about the desired results.

Also, a flat stomach is a combination of exercise and diet. A person can do as many exercises geared at flattening their stomach as they can, but if they eat a lot of extra food, or fattening foods, they will not get the flat stomach they hope for.

Exercise is not about the amount of money spent nor does it necessarily equal the results that person can expect to get. It is true that if a person spends a lot of money, they may find themselves more committed to exercising since they do not want their money to go to waste, but for those that do not have the money, or just do not want to spend a lot of money, there is no reason to believe that a flat stomach is unachievable. It is about the time and dedication spent on exercising.

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Exercises for the stomach muscles are among the most popular type of exercise done among people wanting to build a better body. When anyone plans a workout program to build and strengthen muscles, abdominal workouts are always included in the routine.

Why is this? Why are more people concerned with their stomach muscles then any other part of their body?

1. Health reasons - It has been documented that people carrying around a lot of extra fat around their stomachs are at a greater risk of certain health conditions then people that may be carrying the weight in other areas of their body. This reason alone is enough to entice many people to exercise their stomach, and a major reason why doctors suggest doing exercises for the stomach.

2. The stomach is the core of the person's body, when the stomach is strong; it helps make the rest of the body look and feel stronger. Most people want to feel strong and be strong, whether it is so they can do their jobs, play with their children or just to feel better about themselves.

3. Back problems are a big problem with many people, this is another good reason to keep the stomach muscles strong by exercising them. When the stomach is strong, it helps to take away pressure from several muscles in a person's back.

4. The biggest reason are looks. People tend to think that a good looking stomach equals an overall good looking body. There are not too many people that find a bulging stomach attractive. When people look in the mirror, or someone passes by them that they want to impress, usually a natural reaction is to suck in their stomach.

5. Women that have just had a baby are usually extra concerned with their stomach muscles, and find themselves wanting to do exercises for the stomach as soon as they are able to. This is not only for appearance sake but also for health reasons since their stomach muscles really need to be strengthened after their bodies have been put through childbirth.

Health and looks are the primary reasons to do exercises to get a flat stomach, but people have many different reasons motivating them to actually do exercises for the stomach.

And no matter what the reason may be, as long as the person is motivated enough to continue their exercise program until they see results then the reason is a good one.

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How To Get A Flat Stomach...Why is it so popular?

There are many times in a person's life when they really want to look their best...perhaps it is for a high school reunion, a wedding, or probably the most popular time for wanting to look good is during swimsuit season. For all of these times, and many more times, most people's focus turns to their stomach and they start thinking about how to get a flat stomach. People tend to think that a flatter stomach means better looks and most people want to look their best.

There are also medical reasons why people should concentrate on exercises to flatten the stomach. Medical evidence suggests that people that carry extra weight around the stomach tend to be more likely to develop serious medical conditions, including diabetes.

The stomach is also the core of the body, this means that the stronger and healthier the core is, the more likely the rest of the body will be as well. Consider a person with back problems, which is a common problem with many people. These people benefit greatly from doing exercises to flatten their stomachs. This will help improve posture and relieve tension in the back as excess weight is removed from the center of the body.

When a stomach is flat, it also helps the person to walk taller and straighter, giving the person more confidence and improves their overall looks compared to a person that walks hunched over.

Besides looks and health, another reason why exercises to get a flat stomach are popular is because they are easy to do. They can be done practically anywhere, in a gym, at home or anywhere else. They also do not require equipment to do them. All a person needs is some room to lie down and the desire to improve their stomach.

There are a wide variety of exercises that target this area of the body, so a person can choose which moves will work best for him or her.

Because this type of exercise is so popular, most workout programs, whether on a video, at a health club or any other program a person follows, will include exercises to flatten stomach muscles, because it is so important to keep them strong and also because of the popularity of this type of exercise. Most people are not interested in simply working on their legs or arms or other parts of their bodies unless they are exercising their stomach as well.

Obviously there are many reasons why people want to flatten their stomach and spend a lot of time doing exercises to get a flat stomach. Whether the reason is vanity or health, it is important to remember that like with all things, it will take time to get the desired results and a person must stick to whatever program they are comfortable with until they have the stomach they want.

The good news is that stomach muscles respond very well to even a little exercise, with some exercise and a good healthy diet, most people can see results, provided there is no medical reason why they probably won't succeed.

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