If you’re aiming to shed stubborn belly fat, you don’t necessarily need to lie down on a mat for floor exercises. Standing exercises can be equally, if not more, effective in reaching your fitness objectives. To assist you in getting started, we consulted a trainer who has identified six top standing exercises that can help you melt belly fat in just 30 days.

“Standing exercises naturally involve more muscle groups such as the core, glutes, legs, and even posture muscles, which leads to a higher calorie burn per repetition,” says Joe Ghafari, a certified personal trainer and nutritional educator at Eden. “These exercises also enhance balance, coordination, and functional strength. When performed in a circuit style with intensity, they increase your heart rate, creating the metabolic demand necessary 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.

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.

Alexa Mellardo