Are you trying to lose those tires around your waist? Do you do loads of sit-ups each day to lose that belly fat? Well, you're not alone.
Several people are under the notion that sit-ups are the key to a washboard tummy.
And they couldn't be more wrong.
If you do scores of sit-ups daily thinking that you're on the way to getting fabulous abs you're barking up the wrong tree.
Sit-ups are probably the worst exercise to tone your abs.
The sad truth is that sit-ups do not directly target your abs.
Here's why.
When you do sit-ups you bend at the hips to pull your upper body forward.
This flexes your hips but doesn't really work your abs.
Most of the activity in a sit-up is performed by your hips rather than your abs.
You only work your abs at the very beginning in your sit-up when your upper body is about 30 or 40 degrees off the ground.
Everything else is done by your hip flexors.
Moreover, when we get exhausted during a session of sit-ups, our abdominal muscles tend to do almost no work at all.
We forget to use our abs and only use our hips to pull our upper body forward.
Sit-ups if not done correctly can also cause back problems and other aches and pains.
Crunches are favored as compared to sit-ups.
These involve lying flat on your back and folding your knees.
You pull your torso forward to 30 or 40 degrees using only your abs and then go down.
Here, you use your abs rather than your hips.
Hence, crunches are a tad more effective as compared to sit-ups.
Moreover even if sit-ups work to a minimal extent, they merely focus on strengthening the abdominal muscles.
The abdominal muscles even if toned are still buried under that layer of fat.
In fact your stomach may actually get bigger and the bulge may get more pronounced.
The best way to lose belly fat is through a combination of a healthy diet and interval training.
Sit-ups are probably the least effective exercise to get the abs you've always dreamed off.