5 Standing Exercises That Shrink Belly Overhang Faster Than Gym Sessions After 60

By Alexa Mellardo

June 26, 2026

If you’ve noticed extra weight accumulating around your belly area, you’re far from alone. Not only is belly fat challenging to avoid, it also increases your risk of health issues, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. It’s essential to include the right workout in your self-care routine to deal with this extra fat. To get you started on the right track, we spoke with Jacob Siwicki, founder and head coach of Siwicki Fitness, NCSF and AFAA certified, former top 1% globally ranked Equinox group fitness instructor (2019), Dartmouth economics graduate and former Dartmouth football player, fitness expert on FOX 5 DC, ranked #1 personal trainer in D.C. in 2021, who recommends five standing exercises that can help shrink belly overhang faster than gym sessions after 60.

“Nothing burns fat off one spot. That’s a nutrition and overall-movement thing. But these tighten up the muscle underneath, clean up posture, and pull everything in, so people genuinely look and feel firmer through the middle. That’s what they’re really getting,” explains Siwicki. “Why standing beats a machine or floor work? On a machine you’re sitting, strapped in, and the machine holds you steady, so your deep core basically naps. On the floor, crunches mostly teach your abs to bend, which isn’t the core’s real job and can be rough on an older back. Standing, the core has to do its actual job: keep your spine steady while everything else moves. That’s what carries over to walking, reaching, and grabbing the counter when you lose your balance. The stuff that matters at this age.”

Below, Siwicki shares five standing moves he uses most with his clients who are 60+.

Standing Knee-To-Elbow Crunch

1. Begin standing tall with your feet shoulder-width apart and hands behind your head, elbows out wide.
2. Activate your core and lift your left knee toward your left elbow as you crunch your torso to the side, keeping your chest tall.
3. Use control to lower.
4. Lift your right knee toward your right elbow as you crunch your torso to the side.

Woodchops

1. Hold a dumbbell with both hands and stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2. Lift the dumbbell toward your right side, keeping your arms straight.
3. Twist your torso, and carefully rotate your legs to bring the dumbbell down to your left.
4. Bend at the knees while dropping your hips to bring the dumbbell toward the ground.
5. Repeat by lifting the dumbbell back to the right and overhead.

Pallof Press

1. Stand with your left side beside an anchored resistance band at about chest level.
2. Stand upright and brace your core, standing with your feet shoulder-width apart.
3. Hold the cable or band in both hands, and push the handle to about chest height.
4. Hold the handle out for 10 slow breaths while bracing against the resistance of the weight.

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Standing Oblique Side Bends

1. Stand tall, holding a dumbbell in your left hand at your side.
2. Slowly bend at your waist toward the weight, stretching your obliques as you do so.
3. Return to standing.

Farmer’s Carry

1. Hold a dumbbell in each hand at your sides.
2. Start walking forward, keeping your torso still.