What is an Adonis belt?
The Adonis belt is the V-shaped muscle that runs diagonally from your hip bones to the pelvic region. It’s made of the inguinal ligament and the transverse abdominis (TVA). It’s the deepest core muscle group in your abdomen.
The Adonis belt is more visible in certain people. If you’d like to make yours more prominent, try these exercise and lifestyle tips.
Add these highly-efficient exercises to your normal workout routine. They target your oblique muscles and the transverse abdominis. These exercises can help you reveal the Adonis belt and make it more visible.
1. Lateral heel touches
This exercise works your oblique muscles.
- Lie on your back with bent knees.
- Draw your heels in toward your hips.
- Bring your arms alongside your body.
- Lift your head, neck, and shoulders and crunch your right oblique to bring your right hand to your right heel.
- Then, crunch your left oblique to bring your left hand to your left heel.
Continue this movement for 1 minute. Repeat for at least 3 rounds. For a more advanced version, interlace your hands behind your head and bring one elbow at a time toward your heel.
2. Planks
This exercise works all of the core muscles.
- Come onto your forearms with your palms down.
- Lift up your hips and knees as you press into your toes.
- Keep your body in a straight line. Contract the abdominal muscles as you engage your entire body.
- Hold this position for up to 1 minute.
- Do 3 sets.
3. Plank hip drops
This exercise targets your obliques and lower back muscles.
- Come into a plank position with your hands interlaced in front of you.
- Keep your hips and legs raised.
- Slowly drop your right hip over to the side.
- Return to the starting position.
- Drop your left hip over to the side.
- Return to the starting position.
- This is one repetition.
Do three sets of 15 repetitions. Move slowly and with control. Avoid any jerky or sudden movements.
4. Side planks
Side planks require stabilization that activates the TVA and oblique muscles.
- Come onto your right side with your elbow underneath your shoulder.
- Extend your right hand in front of your body at a 90-degree angle.
- Keep your weight balanced between your elbow and wrist. Avoid putting strain on your shoulder.
- Stack your left ankle on top of the right and lift your hips and body. You can place your left ankle on the floor in front of your right foot for added support.
- Keep your left hip extending high toward the ceiling.
- Extend your left hand straight up to the ceiling. You can hold a weight in your left hand for increased difficulty.
- Hold this position for up to 1 minute.
- Repeat on the opposite side.
Do three sets on each side. Keep your chest high, and avoid bending forward.
5. Windshield wipers
This exercise works the muscles in the upper and lower abdominals.
- Lie on your back with your arms outstretched in a T-position and your palms facing down.
- Lift your legs straight up toward the ceiling.
- Slowly lower your legs over to the right until they’re an inch off the ground.
- Lift your legs back to the starting position.
- Lower your legs over to the left until they’re an inch off the ground.
- Slowly return your legs to the starting position.
- This is one repetition.
Do 3 sets of 15 repetitions. Keep your shoulders toward the ceiling the entire time. Use the weight of your arms for support and to stay grounded. As you lower your legs to one side, the opposite oblique will be stretched. Use the strength of this oblique to lift your legs back up again. You can do this exercise with bent knees to reduce pressure in the back and spine.
6. Reverse crunches
This exercise works the oblique muscles and the TVA.
- Lie on your back with bent knees so that your shins are parallel to the floor.
- Interlace your fingers behind your head.
- Lift your head, neck, and shoulders.
- Bring your elbows in together as you lift.
- At the same time, bring your knees slightly in toward your midsection.
- Return to the original position.
Make sure you’re not rocking back and forth throughout this exercise. Flatten your lower back as you press it into the floor.
There are certain myths surrounding the development and visibility of an Adonis belt. Some say that only people with certain genes can have one. This isn’t true — everyone has the capacity to develop the Adonis belt. Genes do play a factor in your overall physique to a certain degree. Genes can influence the size, shape, and symmetry of the abdominal region. However, everyone can work the muscles around it to make it more visible.
Myth: Do sit-ups
Sit-ups are sometimes advised as an effective way to get an Adonis belt, but they aren’t the best exercise. There are plenty of other abdominal exercises that you can do. Sit-ups can also cause lower back pain.
Myth: Eat “fat-burning” foods
Certain foods are touted as being able to help you burn fat to help show off the Adonis belt. However, foods can’t burn body fat. You need to reduce your calorie intake, get plenty of physical exercise, and work on building muscle. You have to keep your body fat percentage at 10 to 13 percent for a visible Adonis belt.
Myth: Do daily ab exercises
You may have heard that you should do ab exercises every day to develop and maintain an Adonis belt. Your abdominals need a chance to recover in between workouts, though. Do ab workouts 3 times per week or every other day.
To get a more visible Adonis belt, you also have to focus on diet and nutrition. You need to reduce your calories so that you lose the layer of fat that may be covering the muscle.
Establish a healthy lifestyle. Try to:
- eat a healthy, balanced diet
- reduce or limit your calorie intake to lower your body fat percentage
- do cardio exercises a few times per week
- do strength training to develop lean muscle mass
Take a slow, balanced approach to developing your Adonis belt. Results won’t happen overnight. Once you obtain the physique you’re striving for, you’ll have to work hard to maintain it.
Create a well-rounded fitness program that works for you, and then stick to it. Gradually increase the duration and difficulty of your routine. Keep yourself motivated by setting and achieving short-term and long-term goals.
