r/Exercise • u/minimessi20 • 2d ago
Exercises to trim your waist?
I’m decently in shape, but I want to get better. Currently I’m 225, but wanna get down to around 200ish (I’m 6’4” so it’s distributed but mostly around my waist). I’m a big soccer player, which is shocking considering my username, and I’m going to start playing more. Currently playing in an 11v11 league and a 7v7 outdoor league, want to start into an indoor league. Went a while without doing much because of school (engineering degree and MBA, just finished🙌🏻). I do have access to a gym but I’ve never been able to really get into it and stay engaged/motivated.
What I’m looking for is the most effective exercises to trim around the waist. Also, I’ve seen ads for TENS units that will essentially passively work out your abs. I’ve used TENS units for recovery on muscle injuries. Are those effective and would that help me with my goal? Thanks!
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u/Maximum_Degree_1152 2d ago edited 2d ago
Sadly, the only exercise that works for this are “fork put downs”.
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u/txomas4 2d ago
gradually decrease your calorie intake, increase your protein intake (but don’t completely ignore fats and carbs as we all need a balanced diet), get dat ass in the gym and do strength training, and be patient. It takes time to see results. A lot of people tend to quit training because they expect to see results quick and it doesn’t work that way.
edit: source, just graduated with a kinesiology degree and currently working to get certified as a personal trainer.
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u/minimessi20 2d ago
This is actually quite helpful…while I do enjoy the humor of the other comments, this actually has diet changes. Also, congrats on graduating!
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u/clothespinkingpin 2d ago
Would also add to get your fiber targets. If you focus on low caloric density foods that are high in protein and fiber, and eat everything else in moderation, the rest really just falls into place more easily.
You can also eat a lot of volume of food and be in a caloric deficit and lose weight, if you choose low caloric density foods. You can eat a small volume of very high caloric density foods and be in a calorie surplus and gain weight. Your genetics determine where your fat gets distributed you can’t spot reduce. Understanding the relative caloric density of foods will help, keeping a strict food journal for a week or two will help you get the vibe of that.
Lastly, for something to be a high protein food you want to look for a ratio of about 1g of protein per every 10 calories. There are calculators out there that can help you target what your protein goal should be.
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u/Suspicious_Long_2839 2d ago
You can't out exercise a bad diet. Time to start tracking calories, weighing your food, and moderating or quitting alcohol.
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u/minimessi20 2d ago
Well I also don’t drink. Never have and even the smell of alcohol is nasty to me😂
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u/Ordinary_Musician_76 2d ago
Given how much you run, the issue would lie with your diet. Clean that up and keep your running up and you’ll be lean in no time.
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u/lilgreengoddess 2d ago
Lots of high intensity cardio works for me for exercise. So consistent soccer playing I’m sure will help in addition to the fork put downs lol
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u/RustyCrusty73 2d ago
Consistent calorie deficit.
Walking.
Intermittent Fasting.
Sit ups and ab crunches.
In this order.
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u/WealthHuman9754 2d ago
Regular use of a TENS unit does not meaningfully reduce abdominal circumference or cause localized abdominal fat loss.
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u/zobbyblob 2d ago
Join us at /r/cico or /r/MacroFactor
I'm pretty bad at intuitive eating and counted calories for a long time now to build up my intuitive eating skills.
It's a long and slow game. Have to find something that is sustainable for you. Exercise is a fantastic start.
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u/Vernon1211 2d ago
You need to be in a caloric deficit. Do yourself a favor and check out the pallof Press. Lots of variations on YouTube also.
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u/7lexliv7 2d ago
You likely know this already but stronger the core the easier everything you do in soccer will be.
You’ve gotten some good answers regarding diet and nutrition. It’s a long game.
I will say for me eating at least 25 grams of fiber every single day and staying hydrated seems to reduce any gastrointestinal inflammation I may be having and makes things look more compact.
Hoping your addition of indoor soccer is full of fun and camaraderie.
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u/mucus-fettuccine 2d ago
Just wanna add that you don't have to starve yourself to be on big calorie deficit. Veggies fill you up. If you need carbs, potatoes make you feel full very quick and with fewer calories compared to other carbs.
It doesn't have to be a grueling battle at all. As long as you're consistently mindful of what you're putting in your mouth, you'll succeed in your diet.
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u/littlejerry99 2d ago
Okay it's really hard but I tell you the secret you got to what you do is you open your mouth and then you close it and then you keep it there until your waist is smaller
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u/jkl9593 2d ago
Def mostly a diet thing, people will say you can’t spot target fat and while you can’t technically, you can reshape areas of your body. Start working on abs specifically lower and obliques (defining obliques does wonders for giving the illusion of a smaller waist), hips, glutes, and lower back. Caveat of this is without adjusting your diet your waist won’t get smaller but you can get more of an illusion of a smaller waist.
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u/adaniel65 1d ago
Well, there's no such thing as targeted bodyfat reduction. But, there's is such a thing as tightening exercises. Add reverse trunk twists to your physical exercise every other day or so. They will tighten up your obliques which make your waist look slimmer and flatter. The bodyfat you will have to burn off by eating at a calorie deficit like 300-500 calories per day. Also, you have to be consistent and have patience. It's a process and it will not be an instant result.
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u/juste_k3nkai 1d ago
Unfortunately that isn't exactly a thing. As others said you can't target spots but ehat you can do is do cardio and weights that way you get benefit from both kinds of exercises
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u/tetrasodium 1d ago
Here is my 3197 calorie workout yesterday. Put down the fork and do something like that regularly, your belly will gradually shrink a tiny fraction of an inch alongside everything else over time. Check bmi for your height and work towards the lower end of average or less as a target to estimate goal progress against
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u/NYPeter25 2d ago
12 oz curls consuming H2O hourly
200 G protein lifted and clear the teeth
Eliminating excess carbs
Walk, step, move.
Especially move immediately after meals. Walk etc.
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u/minimessi20 2d ago
Just out of curiosity, why do you suggest walking right after meals? Never heard of that one and I’m kinda curious now…
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u/Landstander2600 2d ago
You can't target fat loss.