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The power belly, or power gut, is nothing short of a display of irony. You’ve probably come across big, burly, men in the gym with rather large bellies. But right after you secretly judge their capabilities in your head, they shock you by performing multiple reps of bicep curls with 60 lbs in each hand.
Basically, a power-belly is what happens when you consume excess calories every day but also lift heavy - very heavy - for prolonged periods. Power belly is quite common in powerlifters.
While power belly is almost inevitable when your focus is on powerlifting and not a six-pack, there are ways around it. You can get rid of a power belly!
6 exercises to get rid of power belly
Let’s take a look at some of the best exercises out there to help get rid of the power belly, or even avoid it. Prevention is better than cure, after all.
1) Burpees
Although they may be hard to do at first, burpees are a great plyometric exercise to shed fat, helping with getting rid of the power belly.
• Stand straight with your feet hip-distance apart.
• Drop to the floor onto your hands, and jump with your feet to extend your legs straight out behind you.
• Drop your body down to the floor, but do not rest there.
• Push yourself back up with your hands and jump again to return your feet to their starting position near your hands.
• In one swift motion, stand up straight and jump up as high as you can before moving on to the next rep.
2) Jump Squats
Jump or pop squats are an intense yet simple fat-burning exercise. This is also a great way to build your endurance.
• Stand straight with your feet hip-distance apart.
• Push your hips back and lower yourself into a deep squat with your back straight.
• Push yourself back up into a standing position and launch yourself up into the air as high as you can.
• As you land back on your feet, prepare yourself to move onto the next rep by getting into a squat again.
3) Mountain climbers
The mountain climber is a dynamic exercise that works the entire midsection and burns fat all over in the process.
• Get into a high plank position on the floor.
• Bring your right knee up, tucking it towards your chest.
• Straighten the right leg and bring the left knee in the same way.
• Continue alternating legs as fast as you can.
4) Kettlebell swings
Kettlebell swings is a popular exercise that is performed with a kettlebell. Although it is primarily a lower-body exercise, it does burn a lot of calories, which helps shed belly fat.
• Stand straight with your feet hip-distance apart. Hold the kettlebell in both hands between your thighs.
• Lower your hips into a half-squat with the kettlebell lowered deeper toward the ground.
• Stand back up quickly, pushing your arms forward with your hips, and swing the kettlebell up toward shoulder-level.
5) Medicine ball slams
Medicine ball slams, another intense exercise that works the upper body and helps shed fat while building explosive power. As the name suggests, you would need a medicine ball for this exercise.
• Stand straight with your feet hip-distance apart. Hold the medicine ball in both hands.
• Raise the ball over your head while stretching your body.
• In one swift motion, bring the ball down, crunching your abs and smashing it on the floor.
• As the ball bounces off the ground back into your hands, grab it and repeat the movement.
6) Russian twists
The russian twist is a dynamic ab exercise that is believed to have been developed as a training movement for Russian soldiers. It is effective in strengthening the core and burning fat in the midsection. You may hold on to a kettlebell or a medicine ball.
• Sit down on the floor and bend your legs up in front of you. Lean back slightly and hold the ball in your hands in front of your chest.
• Lift your feet off the ground and balance yourself on your pelvic muscles.
• Twist your upper body to the left while maintaining balance and moving the ball with you in the same direction.
• Rotate back to the center and then twist to the other side.
While all these exercises are effective in toning the ab muscles and shedding fat from power belly. Your diet is also an important factor in losing a power belly. Sure, it's important to stick to your calories, but be sure to watch that you’re having a balanced diet, whole foods that are rich in protein and carbs and are low in saturated fats. Of course, getting stronger allows you to eat a surplus of calories, but binging on junk is not the way around it.
Work hard, eat well, hydrate frequently, and be sure to take your rest days!
