6 Best Standing Exercises To Melt Belly Fat in 30 Days

If you’re looking to melt stubborn belly fat, there’s no need to roll out your mat and hit the floor. Standing exercises can be just as—if not more—effective at helping you achieve your fitness goals. To get you started, we spoke with a trainer who outlines the six best standing exercises to melt belly fat in 30 days.

“Standing exercises naturally recruit more muscle groups, core, glutes, legs, and even posture muscles, which means a higher calorie burn per rep,” explains Joe Ghafari, certified personal trainer and nutritional educator at Eden. “They also improve balance, coordination, and functional strength. When done in a circuit style with intensity, they spike your heart rate and help create the metabolic demand that’s needed to reduce overall body fat, including visceral belly fat.”

Standing exercises give you the best of both worlds—burning calories while building muscle that keeps your metabolism going strong.

Below, Ghafari breaks down the best standing moves to shrink, tighten, and tone your midsection.

6 Best Standing Exercises To Melt Belly Fat

Standing Cross-Body Knee Drive

1. Stand tall, feet hip-width apart and hands behind your head.
2. Activate your core as you drive your left knee toward your right elbow.
3. Return to the start.
4. Repeat on the other side.
5. Complete 3 sets of 40 seconds per side.

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Dumbbell Woodchopper

1. Stand tall, feet shoulder-distance apart, holding a dumbbell above one shoulder.
2. Breathe in, chopping the weight diagonally toward your opposite foot and bending your knees.
3. Reverse the motion.
4. Repeat on the other side.
5. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps per side.

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Squat to Overhead Press

1. Stand tall, feet shoulder-distance apart.
2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand at shoulder level, palms facing inward.
3. Bend your knees and press your hips back to lower into a squat.
4. Drive through your heels, exploding out of the squat as you extend your legs and press the dumbbells overhead in a smooth motion.
5. Lower the weights to shoulder height.
6. Return to a squat.
7. Perform 3 sets of 15 reps.

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Barbell Squat

1. Stand tall, feet shoulder-width apart, barbell placed on your upper traps.
2. Bend at the knees and hips to lower into a squat until your thighs are parallel to the floor.
3. Maintain a tall chest throughout.
4. Press through your heels to return to standing.
5. Complete 3 sets of 12 reps with a heavy weight.

Deadlift

1. Stand tall, feet hip-width apart, with a dumbbell in each hand.
2. Bend your knees slightly and hold the weights in front of your thighs.
3. Press your hips back as you lower the dumbbells down your leg. Maintain a straight back as you do so.
4. Squeeze your glutes to stand tall.
5. Complete 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps with heavy dumbbells.

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Reverse Lunge With Twist

1. Begin standing tall.
2. Step one foot back into a lunge.
3. Twist your torso forward toward the front leg.
4. Perform 3 sets of 12 reps per side.