The lower belly is one of those seriously frustrating body parts, and it’s not even an entire body part, it’s part of a body part – the lower bit of your tummy. This vexing semi-body part is the bane of anyone who’s lost weight, toned up, put in the hard work, done everything right, but just can’t seem to shift that lower belly bulge.Women (and men!) are constantly searching for exercises that will help eliminate that dreaded lower-belly pooch.When you’re trying to target your lower abs, all abs-strengthening moves are not created equal. Fact is, some are much more effective at working those tough-to-get-to muscles.Our lower belly may be pouching out because of under-developed abdominal muscles.  Your transverse abdominis, a deep abdominal muscle that wraps around the torso, helps stabilizes your back and also pulls your waistline in, making you look smaller and your stomach flatter. This muscle effectively acts as a corset pulling you in. Standard ab exercises like sit-ups and crunches aren’t going to cut it because they mostly target the upper abs. Working your lower abs and deep abdominal muscles will pull you in and slim you down, as well as tone and define your lower belly area.

Most of these effective exercises target multiple abdominal muscles, so you’ll maximize your belly-burn with every rep.

First, a quick physiology lesson: Your rectus abdominis is really one, long muscle that includes both your “upper” and “lower” abs. So, there are no exercises that explicitly isolate either half individually .

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Warm-Up: Ab Prep

Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Inhale and tuck your chin to your chest. Exhale and slowly curl just your head, neck, and shoulders off the floor as you lift your arms and reach toward your feet. Pause and breathe in. Slowly return to the starting position, breathing out as you go. Repeat eight times.

Roll Up

Lying on your back, stretch your arms and extend your legs so you form a straight line. Inhale, bring your arms overhead, and begin to curl your upper body off the floor.  Exhale when halfway up and continue rolling forward to reach your toes. Inhale and reverse the move, exhaling halfway down, to return to start. Repeat 10 times.

Hip Lift

Raise both legs toward the ceiling and extend your arms on the floor at your sides, palms down. Inhale and tighten your core muscles. Curl your hips toward your ribs as you exhale, lifting your hips off the floor and reaching your feet straight up. Breathe in as you slowly lower. Repeat 10 times.

Leg Drop

Raise both legs toward the ceiling. Breathe in and tighten your abs.) Exhale and slowly lower your legs until they’re about four inches above the floor (or as low as you can go without lifting the small of your back). Pause and breathe in. Breathe out as you raise your legs to the starting position. Repeat 10 times.

Scissors

Raise both legs toward the ceiling. Keeping them straight, lower your left leg until it’s about six inches off the floor. Lift your head and shoulders off the floor and grasp the back of your right leg, gently pulling it toward you. Switch legs and repeat on other side. Quickly complete 10 reps.