Tackle Your Love Handles With 4 Easy Moves From Carrie Underwood's Trainer

Doing these exercises will make all the difference

By Taylor Stephan Mar 23, 2017 1:00 PMTags
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If you plan on wearing a bathing suit this spring, the thought of exposing your love handles has probably crossed your mind.

We get it: You're full of self-love, but when it comes to bikini season, little is left to the imagination. So even if you don't normally mind that stubborn layer of fat camped out on your midsection, you're more than willing to put in a little extra work into that area right about now. Thankfully, Erin Oprea (a.k.a. Carrie Underwood's trainer) has got you with four simple-yet-effective, ab-targeting moves that can be easily sprinkled into your regular workouts a few times a week.

"Just remember: You can do a ton of ab work, but it's not going to matter unless you're eating clean and throwing some cardio in there, too," said the pro.

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Side Plank With Twist 

Step 1: Start by positioning your weight on your right elbow in a side plank with your feet stacked.

Step 2: Place your left hand gently behind your head at your ear with your elbow up.

Step 3: Once you are balanced, twist your body, bringing your left elbow toward the ground. Pro tip: Be sure to keep hips aligned and in plank position throughout the twist.

Step 4: Return to the starting position and repeat for 30-60 seconds. Switch sides and repeat resting on the opposite elbow.

Sumo Squat Side Bends

Step 1: Get in a sumo squat position by setting your feet wider than hips distance and angling your toes pointed out.

Step 2: Once in position, drop down into the sumo squat and place both hands behind your head. (You will hold that position for the remainder of this maneuver.)

Step 3: Touch your elbow to your knee to perform side crunches, alternating sides for 45 seconds.

Belly Froggers 

Step 1: Laying on your belly, cross your arms in front of you, just under your chin.

Step 2: Bend your knees and touch the soles of your feet together behind you.

Step 3: Keeping your neck relaxed, raise your quads up off the ground while keeping your feet glued together.

Step 4: Hold this position off the ground and perform little pulses up and down for 20-30 seconds.

Lunge Hold Twist  

Step 1: With both hands, grab a dumb bell (between 5-12 lbs.) and hold your arms locked straight out in front of you.

Step 2: Bending both knees, drop down into a lunge. Pro tip: Your front leg should be bent at a 90-degree angle and your back knee should be hovering just off the ground.

Step 3: Holding this position, twist over the side of the front leg and then back to center without moving your feet.

Step 4: Repeat 12-15 times without letting your arms drop before switching legs and twist direction.

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"Lastly don't forget to consume protein within 30 minutes to an hour after working out to help repair your muscles," noted the pro. 

Erin's favorite combo is USANA MySmart Milk Chocolate Optimizer protein powder and PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter mixed with a little almond milk or water in a shaker bottle. "It's so easy and it tastes just like a chocolate-peanut butter shake."

Done and done!