Tackle those “love handles” with these powerful standing exercises designed to target stubborn areas.
As we age, our bodies naturally undergo transformations influenced by muscle loss, shifts in hormone levels, and decreased physical activity. These changes often lead to extra fat accumulating around the midsection. This gradual weight increase, often referred to as “weight creep,” can add up to a pound each year if left unchecked.
While these changes can be exasperating, they can be managed with some strategic lifestyle adjustments. We consulted with Terry Tateossian, the Founder and Certified Lifestyle Medicine Coach, Trainer, and Nutritionist for Women 40+ at THOR – The House of Rose. She suggests five standing exercises that can more effectively trim the waistline after 60 than traditional abdominal workouts. Tateossian brings a wealth of advanced training in women’s health and age-related weight management.
“Even if you’re staying active, hormonal changes are a major factor in why we gain weight around the belly after 60,” Tateossian explains. “As estrogen and testosterone levels drop, our energy and motivation can wane. Additionally, if we don’t focus on resistance training, our bodies naturally begin to lose muscle mass,” she adds.
“Some of the most common reasons we develop extra weight around the midsection after 60, despite being active, is hormonal shifts as we get older. Estrogen declines, testosterone decreases and we start to have less drive and motivation. In addition, when we don’t do resistance training as our prioritized training method, our bodies start to naturally lose muscle mass,” Tateossian shares.
After 60, the goal of many of Tateossian’s clients isn’t to sculpt aesthetically pleasing abs, but rather to build a strong, stable core that promotes solid posture, daily movement, and metabolic wellness.”Traditional ab exercises may not necessarily address those priorities,” she says. “However, I will say that ab exercises in general do not provide ‘the six pack’ most people desire. It is actually nutrition that creates the ‘six pack’ and having low body fat overall.”
Below are five standing moves that can help tighten and firm your waistline quicker than standard ab workouts.
Standing Oblique Crunches
- Begin standing tall with your feet shoulder-width apart and hands behind your head, elbows wide.
- Activate your core and lift your left knee toward your left elbow as you crunch your torso to the side, keeping your chest tall.
- Use control to lower.
- Lift your right knee toward your right elbow as you crunch your torso to the side.
- Perform 3 to 4 sets of 20 total reps, keeping the tempo slow and controlled with 60 seconds of rest in between sets.
Standing March With Core Engagement
“The key here is to brace the core—so imagine you are sneezing. That contraction that happens in the belly, keep that the entire set but continue breathing,” Tateossian says.
- Start by standing tall with your feet hip-width apart and arms at your sides.
- Lift your left knee up to hip height while swinging your right arm forward and left arm back. Keep your core engaged.
- Lower your foot and repeat with your right knee, swinging your left arm forward and right arm back.
- Maintain solid posture and steady breathing throughout.
- Perform 3 to 4 sets of 20 total reps, keeping the tempo slow and controlled with 60 seconds of rest in between sets.
Standing Paloff Press
- Stand tall, perpendicular to an anchor point, with your feet hip-width apart and a soft bend in your knees.
- Hold a resistance band at chest level.
- Breathe out as you extend your arms ahead of you, resisting rotation.
- Return your arms back to the starting position.
- Perform 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 12 reps on each side, keeping the tempo slow and controlled with 60 seconds of rest in between sets.
Standing Side Leg Lifts
“This move is great for the hips as well, as it builds hip and core connection. Lift one leg to the side, you can keep the knee bent or straight. [Your] torso stays stable,” Tateossian says.
- Begin by standing tall with your feet hip-width apart and hands placed on your hips or holding onto a sturdy chair or wall for extra support.
- Activate your core as you shift your weight onto your left leg.
- Keep your right leg straight and toes pointed forward as you lift it out to the side as high as you’re comfortably able to.
- Hold at the top for a moment before lowering.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Perform 3 to 4 sets of 20 reps in total, keeping the tempo slow and controlled with 60 seconds of rest in between sets.
Standing Cross-Body Punches
- Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart and knees slightly bent.
- Bring your fists up to your face and tuck your elbows.
- Extend your left arm across your body in a punching motion, rotating through your torso.
- Return to the center.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Perform 3 to 4 sets of 20 reps in total, keeping the tempo slow and controlled with 60 seconds of rest in between sets.
