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These Gut-burning Exercises Will Tighten Your Midsection, Trainer Says

Fire up your metabolism with these moves.
FACT CHECKED BY Alexa Mellardo

If your workout goal is to burn belly fat and lose your gut, then you'll have to make strength training a priority. Know that you'll have to work hard to get results, but with some solid motivation, these gut-burning exercises will make your midsection toned and tight. Keep your eye on the prize, and read on to learn how you can get it done.

Strength training should be the main form of exercise for you, or at least what you need to prioritize because it burns more calories than cardio, elevates your metabolism, and will give you the toned and tight look you desire by building lean muscle mass. There are many different tools you can use for strength training, with dumbbells arguably being the best one.

When choosing dumbbell exercises, you want to choose moves that engage your core, create tons of muscle tension, and elevate your heart rate. This will provide a combination of both toning and conditioning—the best of both worlds!

We've put together a combination of gut-burning exercises you can easily incorporate into your own routine or as a standalone workout. If you do this as a workout, you can either do the following movements one at a time or back-to-back as a giant circuit. Let's get started burning some fat! Check them out below, and next up, don't miss The 6 Best Exercises for Strong and Toned Arms in 2022, Trainer Says.

Dumbbell Goblet Squat with Pulse

dumbbell goblet squat
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.

Begin Dumbbell Goblet Squats by holding one dumbbell in a vertical fashion in front of your chest. Keep your core tight, push your hips back, and squat down until your thighs are at least parallel to the ground. Come up ¼ of the way, then back down, and then drive through your heels and hips to stand back up, flexing your quads and glutes to finish. Complete 3 sets of 10 reps.

Related: The Worst Exercise Habits That Are Aging You Faster, Trainer Says

Single-Arm Dumbbell Snatch

dumbbell snatch gut-burning exercises
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.

Start Single-Arm Dumbbell Snatches by standing with your feet outside shoulder-width with a dumbbell on the ground in between. Keeping your chest tall and core tight, squat down and grab the weight with one arm. Pick the dumbbell up by driving through your heels and hips, exploding up. Use the power from your legs to bring the weight up, then pull with your elbow high up towards your face. Once it reaches your face level, punch the weight up, locking it out overhead. Lower the weight under control to the floor, performing all prescribed reps before switching to the other arm. Perform 3 sets of 8 reps on each arm.

Bent-Over Pronated Rows

bent-over pronated row exercise to get rid of armpit fat
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.

Begin the Bent-Over Pronated Rows with a dumbbell in each hand, bending forward at the waist until your body is about 45 degrees. Keeping your chest tall and core tight, flare your elbows out to the side, and drive them back, squeezing your shoulder blades and rear delts hard at the end. Straighten your arms fully, getting a good stretch at the bottom before performing another rep. Do 3 sets of 10 reps.

Related: The #1 Workout To Lose Your Beer Gut for Good, Trainer Says

Offset Cossack Squat

cossack squat gut-burning exercises
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.

To do the Offset Cossack Squats, hold a dumbbell up to your side, and get into a wide stance with your feet slightly turned out. With an upright posture, push your hips back, and sit towards one side of the leg as low as you can comfortably. As you shift back, straighten the opposite leg while rotating the foot out. Get a good stretch on the inner thigh of the trailing leg, then shift towards the other side.

Move back and forth until you complete reps on both legs. You can alternate arms with each set. Complete 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps on each leg.

Dumbbell Floor Press

dumbbell floor press
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.

Now it's time for Dumbbell Floor Presses. Grab a pair of dumbbells, and lay flat on your back with your feet fully extended. Start by having your elbows flared out about 45 degrees, resting on the ground. With your abs tight, press the weight up towards the ceiling, flexing your triceps and pecs to finish. Lower the weight back down until your elbows and arms touch the ground before pressing back up for another rep. Perform 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Tim Liu, C.S.C.S.
Tim Liu, CSCS, is an online fitness and nutrition coach based in Los Angeles Read more about Tim
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