5 In-Car Exercises To Burn Belly Fat

Diet Fitness

oi-Amritha K

By Amritha K

on May 28, 2019

As suggested by various studies, an average man spends 100 to 120 minutes a day in the car - be it driving or simply stuck in traffic. This constitutes the fact that a person spends so much time in their car their whole life that, one could drive to the moon and back not just one time, but three times. Imagine if you could utilise all this time without it all going to waste, being stuck and irritant for the traffic to move along^[1] .

With a significant portion of our days being spent in the traffic jams, it is better to make use of the time for something productive rather than being grim about the time lost. And one of the most effective, easy and rewarding way to convert this time is by making yourself fit and healthy. How? There are various types of exercises that you can follow to lose some unwanted weight and get a flat tummy^[2] . These easy-to-do car exercises that you can perform while waiting for the traffic signal to turn green can help you get fitter and utilise the time efficiently.

Read on to know the types of exercises you can adapt to make use of the long-hours spent stuck in traffic.

Exercises For Belly Fat

1. Abdominal hollowing

This type of exercise helps you improve your core strength as it focuses on the layer of muscle on the front and side of your abdominal wall (transversus abdominis). It helps reduce lower back pain and adds muscle mass to the transverse abdominus^[3] . Abdominal hollowing focuses on reducing that extra fat around your tummy in a healthy manner.

• Step 1: Keep your back erect and sit straight, then pull back your shoulders.
• Step 2: Contract your stomach muscles (pull it in) and hold the pose for 2-3 minutes.
• Step 3: Make sure to keep your chest and pelvis area still.

2. Sitting twists

Doing these can help get rid of the excessive fat deposited around your hips. Likewise, it also helps strengthen your core. Make sure that you do it only when there is traffic as it requires you to sit still and be attentive ^[4] .

• Step 1: Sit straight keeping your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Step 2: Then, stretch your right arm towards your left side.
• Step 3: Try and touch the headrest of your seat while stretching your arm.
• Step 4: Come back to the original position
• Step 5: Repeat the same process with your left arm.

3. Seated pelvic tilt

This exercise works your core and pelvic region, which causes the excess fat on your stomach to burn off, which has been proven by scientific studies [5]. As per a study published in the Journal of Neurosciences in Rural Practice, performing seated pelvic tilt regularly can significantly help you shed that extra weight ^[6] .

• Step 1: Sit with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Step 2: Using your core muscles, maintain the position.
• Step 3: Breathe in and move your pelvis forward.
• Step 4: Hold the position got three seconds and come back to the original position.
• Step 5: Try doing it 5 to 10 times.

4. Deep breathing

This exercise helps improves your metabolism and reduces the body mass index in obese individuals, especially teens. Although it may not reduce your overall weight, deep breathing can help get rid of tummy fat. While doing the exercise, that is when you breathe in deep, your oxygen intake also increases, which in turn aid in breaking down fat molecules which are made of water, oxygen and hydrogen^[7] .

• Step 1: Sit normally and place your hands on your knees.
• Step 2: Keep your shoulders relaxed.
• Step 3: Start exhaling slowly, up to the count of five.
• Step 4: Pause for two seconds.
• Step 5: Inhale up to the count of five.
• Step 6: Repeat for 5 to 10 times.

5. Chair dip

For you to carry this out, make sure you are not on the driver's seat but in the back seat or the side seat. A chair dip exercise makes use of your muscles and also strengthens the arms^[8] .

• Step 1: Rest your palms on either side of your hips.
• Step 2: Using your arms, try to lift your feet from the ground.

On A Final Note....

Do not carry out these exercises while driving. Make sure you do these only when the car is stationary, that is, stuck in traffic (wait for the light to turn red!) or while waiting for someone.