Just like old-school bodybuilders.
An old cliché you used to see a lot in sitcoms was people sucking in their stomachs in an effort to look thinner. Now, obviously, you shouldn’t do that all hours of the day, as you’ll probably hurt yourself, but as it so happens, a little bit of stomach sucking is actually fantastic waistline exercise.
The official name for this move is the “stomach vacuum,” and it’s inspired by an old practice used by many professional bodybuilders, wherein they’d suck their stomachs in in order to better emphasize their pectoral muscles on stage. Performing this motion for a few quick sets actually engages your inner-ab muscles while simultaneously supporting your spine. Waist-watching enthusiasts have sworn that a few weeks of this has shaved off an entire inch from their waistline, as well as soothed back pain and strengthened their core.
Performing a stomach vacuum is super easy. All you gotta do is stand up straight, slowly expel all the air out of your lungs, then take a quick, deep inhale, sucking in your stomach in the process. You wanna suck it in as much as possible; try to visualize your belly button touching your back, as creepy as that sounds. Hold that position for about 20 seconds, relax your stomach, then do it again two more times. You should find that doing this every day for a few week will gradually make it easier to suck in your stomach for longer, to the point that by the third week, you should be able to hold it for an entire minute before resting.
It may be an old cliché, but hey, if we can get them to work for us, there’s nothing wrong with occasionally indulging the classics.
