News flash: Strong muscle curves look good on everyone. (Just look at these strong ladies who make muscles look drop-dead sexy.) By building strength in key areas (your shoulders, butt, and legs), you can make your body appear more shapely.
This strength circuit incorporates dynamic, balance-based exercises that will engage your whole body—while also tightening the muscles around your stomach to help define your waist. If you're looking for a more intense ab burn, add this five-minute waist-sculpting ab routine at the end of your workout too. (Don't forget: Diet is just as important—if not more—than exercise for losing belly fat.
Total Time: Up to 30 minutes
You will need: Free weights
1. High low crunches
- How to:
- To perform this workout get a chair.
- Now sit down in front of the chair in the crunch position, starting with your feet under the chair.
- Move in the crunch position raising your feet above the chair and below it without touching it.
- The purpose of the chair is to help you maintain balance and intensity.
- Do three sets of 25 reps.
Reps: 12
2. Side plank raise with chair
- How to:
- For this move get a chair and get into the side plank position with your right leg placed on the chair.
- Now slowly deep your hips in the side plank position, up and down.
- Do 3 sets of 15 reps.
Reps: 12
3. Mountain climbers
- How to:
- Get into the standard plank position.
- Now start the wide walking motion with your legs as if you're walking up a steep hill.
- Do three sets of 25 reps.
Reps: 12
Squat to Rotating Press
- Stand with feet slightly wider than hips, holding dumbbells together in front of body.
- Push hips back and bend knees to lower into a squat, reaching dumbbells to the floor.
- Press through heels to extend legs as you curl weights up into chest, drawing abs in tight.
- Immediately press weights overhead as upper body rotates right, pivoting left heel up (palms should be facing in with arms slightly in front of head in full extension).
- Immediately return to starting position; repeat on opposite side to complete 1 rep.
Reps: 12
2. Reaching Row
- Grab a pair of dumbbells and stand in a split stance with right foot forward.
- Lower into a lunge, hinging forward from hips about 45 degrees (be sure to keep back naturally straight), reaching dumbbells down toward feet with palms facing thighs.
- Bend left elbow behind body, opening elbow out to side, pulling weight in front of shoulder.
- As left arm extends back to floor, bend right elbow behind body to switch sides, moving arms quickly.
- That’s 1 rep.
- Do all reps on the first side, then repeat with opposite foot forward.
- Keep abs drawn in tight and allow torso to rotate slightly from side to side during row.
Reps: 12
3. Curtsy Curl
How to:
- Grab a dumbbell in left hand and shift weight onto left leg.
- Cross right leg behind left and lower into a curtsy lunge, bending both knees (keep most of bodyweight in left leg), hinging slightly forward from hips, reaching dumbbell to the outside of left leg.
- Rise up out of lunge, extending right leg out to side as left leg straightens, rotating torso to the right as left elbow bends to curl the weight across chest.
- Immediately return to starting position; repeat.
- Do all reps on the left, then repeat on the right to complete 1 set.
Reps: 12