Flutter Kicks: How-to, Benefits, Variations & More

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December 31, 2021

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What Are Flutter Kicks?

Flutter kicks are a type of exercise that works on your lower abdominal muscles, lower back muscles, hip-flexor muscles, quads, etc. It is a bodyweight cardio exercise that is able to target your lower abdominal muscles even better than well-known exercises like crunches and sit-ups.
If you perfectly learn how to do flutter kicks and do practice, it can improve your cardiovascular health and improve your heart rate. What makes flutter kicks so loved by health enthusiasts is that although it is not intensive, it is still able to work on your core muscles efficiently. You don’t need any special equipment for traditional flutter exercise, although ankle weights can be used for variation.

Flutter Kick Exercise Benefits

If you are having second thoughts about having flutter kicks abs with this workout, here is a list of some flutter kicks benefits that might help you make the decision:

Strengthen your core muscles: The most important one of all flutter kick exercise benefits is the strengthening of your muscles. With strong core muscles, you will improve your mobility, body balance, and stability. Strong core muscles also protect your spine against jerks and accidents.
Improve your body posture: A stabilised body with strong core and back muscles stays in the right posture. Flutter kicks exercise is great at improving your posture since it helps in all three: strengthening your core muscles, back muscles, and stabilizing your body.
Help you burn calories: Yes, an intense workout like HIIT helps in burning calories at a fast rate but you can also settle at something less intense than that. Since flutter kicks include dynamic body movements, it is able to fire up your muscles, make flutter kicks abs, increase your heart rate, and burn calories. This means that you can add it as a weight loss exercise in your workout.

A few other lesser-known flutter kicks benefits are improving your body balance and increasing the ease of doing physical activities such as playing golf or doing household work.

How To Do Flutter Kicks

After learning what are flutter kicks and the benefits of flutter kicks, now it’s time to jump to the practical part and learn how to do this exercise. Here is a step-by-step guide that will help you master the exercise:

Lie down on a yoga mat keeping your legs straight. Keep your arms by the side of your body and place your palm on the ground.
Keep your chin tucked as if there is an egg under your chin.
Keep your ribs and pelvis slightly tucked.
Now, lift both your legs about 4 to 6 inches from the ground while engaging your core muscles.
While lifting the legs, point your toes against your body.
Every repetition of flutter kicks should start from this position.
Maintain the alignment of your body and raise the left leg a little higher than the right one. Then, lower down the left leg a little and raise the right leg.
Keep doing this movement for the number of repetitions you want.
While ending the exercise, bring your legs closer and gradually lower them down.

Flutter Kicks Variations

If you get bored of doing the traditional form of flutter kicks, you can do the following flutter kicks variations:

1. Prone Flutter Kicks (Also Called Reverse Flutter Kicks)

Prone flutter kicks are a variation of flutter kicks that target obliques, glutes, hamstrings, and lower back. Just like the traditional flutter kicks, this variation also does not require special equipment except a flat bench. Here is a step-by-step guide of how to do this callisthenics exercise:

Lie down on your stomach, stretch out your elbows but keep your hands together in front of your face.
Rest your chin on your hands.
Engage your core muscles and lift your legs from the ground to your hip height.
Now, lift one leg and then the second in a fluttering motion imagining that you are swimming in water.
Repeat reverse flutter kicks three times with ten reps on each side.

2. Seated Flutter Kicks

This is another variation of the traditional flutter kicks that is often included in the workout by swimmers and runners. You can do this exercise either lying flat on your back or seated on a chair at an angle of 45 degrees. Here is a step-by-step guide of how to do seated flutter kicks:

Sit in an upright position on the ground.
Keep your torso at a 45-degree and stretch your legs in front of you.
Now, engaging your abdominal muscles, lift your legs off the floor.
Keep your knees slightly bent while doing the exercise.
Finally, flutter your legs up and down in the air.

There are some other variations of this exercise like the weighted flutter kicks. To do the exercise, put a medicine ball above your chest and smash the hollow-hold flutter. Always remember to start with small weights when doing weighted flutter kicks.

Precautions And Safety Tips

Practising flutter kicks carelessly can put a strain on your muscles. To avoid that, keep the following precautions and safety tips in mind:

If you have a serious medical condition, consult your doctor before practising flutter kicks exercise.
Reduce the weight if it is not letting you have full control over your body throughout the exercise.
Incorporate warm-ups in your workout before starting flutter kicks.
Give your body enough rest (about 24-48) after hitting a set of muscles with flutter exercise.
Maintain a neutral spine while doing the flutter kicks workout or you will end up putting strain on your back.
Generally, it is safe to practice flutter kicks in the first trimester. Still, you should stay on the safer side and consult your physician before adding it to your workout during pregnancy.

Conclusion

Flutter kicks workout is a fun and effective way of strengthening the abdominal muscles. Though maintaining proper form is essential, it is easy to learn this exercise. You can add this exercise to your workout at home or practice it at the gym under the supervision of a fitness professional. Either way, you are going to get a tonne of health benefits of flutter kicks.

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