Natural changes occurring in your body during your 50s may be difficult to come to terms with, and maintaining a toned belly requires effort and commitment. Luckily, you can find encouragement from Melody Morton-Buckleair, who is the proprietor, teacher, and head at Elmwood Place Pilates, to help you introduce crucial modifications to your exercise regimen.

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“I’m 58, I’ve had two kids, and I run a ranch. So when I say this midsection is powered by core work and not crunches, I mean it,” Melody—aka The Pilates Cowgirl—shares. “After 50, gravity is real, sugar hits harder, and posture starts to tell on you. Your core is your power center—it holds your spine up, keeps your digestion moving, and makes sure you don’t throw your back out picking up a bag of chicken feed or a grandbaby.”

If you want to sculpt and flatten your midsection, Melody says, “You gotta go deep.” It’s not just about powering through crunches and praying for miracles, either. Melody stresses the importance of breathwork, training your pelvic floor, and engaging the transverse abdominis (your inner corset muscle).

So if you’re serious about your belly being flat and not flabby, check out Melody’s five-move core workout that keeps her midsection in shape at 58.

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Pelvic Curl

“This exercise wakes up your glutes and teaches your low back to behave,” Melody tells us.

1. Begin lying down flat on your back.
2. Roll your spine up slowly, one bone at a time, pressing your hips toward the ceiling.
3. At the top of the move, inhale.
4. Exhale as you lower your hips.

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Toe Taps

“This movement recruits your deep abs without hurting your neck or back,” Melody explains.

1. Lie flat on your back, legs in a tabletop position.
2. Exhale and tap one toe to the mat.
3. Inhale and return.
4. Repeat on the other side and continue to alternate.

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Dead Bug

“The dead bug is great for stability and motor control,” says Melody.

1. Lie flat on your back with your arms extended toward the ceiling and knees in a tabletop position.
2. Press your back into the floor and engage your core as you lower one arm and the opposite leg.
3. Repeat on the other side and continue to alternate.

Modified Plank

“The modified plank builds functional core strength without compression,” Melody points out.

1. Lie flat on your stomach.
2. Place your hands below your shoulders or rise onto your forearms.
3. Your body should form a straight line from your head to your feet.

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Breath-Driven Ab Hollowing

“This is the secret sauce,” Melody says. “It rewires the core from the inside.”6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

1. Lie flat on your back with bent knees, feet flat on the ground, and arms at your sides.
2. Maintain a neutral spine with a small curve in your lower back.
3. Breathe in, allowing your belly to rise.
4. Slowly exhale as you pull your belly in toward your spine and gently “hollow” out your abs without allowing your ribs to flare.
5. Hold for a moment at the end of the exhale.

Alexa Mellardo