The Taming of the Bulge

There’s no such thing as spot reducing, but certain exercises can help your stomach look more toned once you reduce overall body fat. By building muscle mass there, you burn more calories.

Three types of exercises are suggested by Kris Alesna, a Santa Monica exercise physiologist and personal trainer, and Rudy Hayek, a Tarzana exercise physiologist and trainer.

* Short abdominal lifts: Lying on your back, with knees bent and feet flat on the floor, chin up and hands supporting the neck and head, lift up three or four inches. For a variation, place the hands on the abdomen so you can feel the muscles tightening.

* Abdominal crunches: Lying on your back, with the feet up and knees bent, move knees and elbows toward each other with knees higher than elbows. Don’t join elbows as you rise, Hayek warns.

* Bicycle-style exercises: Lying flat on the floor, with hands behind the head, extend your right elbow to your left, bent knee, then switch arms and legs as if you were riding a bike while prone.

Keep the legs at a 45-degree angle so that you don’t arch your back, Hayek says. And don’t lock your knees.

“Don’t go overboard on repetitions,” Alesna tells exercisers. She recommends that beginners limit themselves to two or three sets of 15 with one-minute breaks. Intermediate level exercisers can do sets of 25, advanced up to 30.