Thursday, April 7, 2011

Some of the Most Effective Ab Workouts for Women

It's unfortunate, but as women get older, they often begin to accumulate excess weight around the lower part of the body. It's common for weight gain to settle on the thighs, hips and the belly. It's difficult to lose fat in these areas, with belly fat being the hardest to lose. While ab workouts for women can help, it's often not enough. These workouts will tone the abs, but if there is too much fat in the area, the toned abs will not show. To remedy this, combine the following ab workouts for women with a healthy eating plan that will help you lose excess weight.
There are many reasons that women want to lose weight and flatten their abs. Some of the most common reasons are as follows:
• Improve overall health
• Post partum recovery
• Upcoming events

No matter why you want to flatten your stomach, the following ab workouts for women can help you reach your goals.
Exercise Ball Crunch
This workout uses an exercise ball to support your body during the workout. Lie on the ball, carefully positioning it under the lower back. The feet are placed flat on the floor, shoulder width apart. Cross your arms either behind your head or over your chest. Next, contract the abs, lifting your torso upward, off the ball, then lower yourself back down onto the ball. Repeat this movement 12 times, completing 1-3 sets.
Plank on Elbows and Toes
This is one of the most effective ab workouts for women when done properly. Lie face down on the floor, with your weight resting on the forearms. Push your body from the floor using your arms and toes, resting your full weight on the elbows. You body should be kept perfectly straight, resembling a plank of wood. Make sure your back is not arched and your but is not up in the air. The position should be held for 20-60 seconds before lowering to the original position. Do 3-5 reps.
Vertical Leg Crunch
Lay on the floor, flat on your back, ankles crossed and legs extended straight up, toward the ceiling. You can place your hands either flat on the floor or behind your head. The abs are then contracted, shoulders lifting from the floor, legs holding the original position, before lowering the legs. Complete 1-3 sets of 12 reps.
Reverse Crunch
This workout starts with you lying on the floor, hands behind your head or beside you on the floor. Bend the knees, bringing them to your chest, creating a 90 degree angle. Your feet can be crossed if desired. Contract the abs, lifting the hips from the floor. At the same time, reach the legs upward, toward the ceiling. Complete 1-3 sets of 12 reps.
These are just a few of the ab workouts for women that can help your reach your goal of having flat, toned abs. There are a number of online resources that can be used to learn the proper form for each of these workouts. With a little bit of effort and a reasonable diet plan, you can reach your goals.


By Matthew Mitchells .

Want To Know The Best Ab Workout For Belly Fat Loss?

It's a common request: "Hamish, tell me the best ab workout for belly fat loss".
Well, guess what I tell them?
There isn't one! There is no ab workout that can burn enough calories alone to create a sufficient calorie deficit for noticeable belly fat loss.
As a self-proclaimed fitness fanatic and avid researcher of the best ways to flatten your stomach, people constantly grill me for info on the best exercises and workouts to shed stubborn stomach flab and unveil a trim and sexy waistline. While the questions aren't exactly "wrong", the issue is that most folks with unwanted belly fat think there's some kind of "magical ab workout" that will whittle their waistline down to visible abs while still eating hamburgers and guarding the couch (by sitting on it for extended periods).
Sorry people... You need to look at the problem from a different angle. See, ab workouts alone just won't cut it.
And while you folks keep spending your time and energy purely on ab workouts to get your excess love handles handled, you're missing out on the easiest and quickest way to strip stomach fat - through correct full body workout routines that will do the job safely and effectively.
Simply put: the best ab workout is actually a full body workout and would include the following multi-joint exercises:
Different types of squat, the lunge, the dead lift, the clean and press, the snatch, the kettlebell swing, different types press and pull exercises, the mountain climber, the semi-occasional sprint, and more.
Personally, I'd use this list to make up the majority of each workout and then chuck in some direct ab workout stuff for fun. See, a workout made up of exercises from the list above massively increases the calories burned during, and long after, each session. And the more calories you burn the more belly fat you're likely to lose. Sound fair enough? Great!
Please understand... I don't have anything against direct ab / core work, but I wouldn't base a whole workout on it because there are better options available to get better results faster. Whole body exercises elicit greater changes to your metabolism and hormone profile to create the best environment for fat loss. Plus, most whole body exercises greatly tax the midsection anyway - so you get your ab workout without having to do a single crunch!
Now you're clear about exercise there's another thing to consider, nutrition is probably the most crucial part of belly fat loss. In fact several scientific studies have proven, no matter how many crunches you do, if you're eating sucks you will never get a flat stomach - simple as that. Strangely, I think almost everyone knows this but some choose to ignore it. The availability of sugar laden / fat filled processed food makes healthy eating a lot harder (and maybe even a lot less enticing) than it used to be. However, if your diet isn't right the belly flab will not budge.
Summing this all up:
Crunches, leg raises and all that direct ab stuff is great as part of a whole body workout program. But steer away from ab workout routines where you're only doing abs and nothing else. Go for intense full body workouts made up of compound (multi-joint) exercises combined with a sound diet. Stay away from processed foods and drink plenty of water rather than sodas. Do all the things above and you'll be on the path a flat stomach and visible abs in no time.


By Hamish Shephard.

Lose Your Beer Belly - A Simple Secret to Lose Your Beer Belly

So you want to lose your beer belly using this simple secret. The truth is, that you're not going to be too surprised when you read what this simple secret is. But I will nonetheless state it here for you together with some addition advice. I read an article recently that gave advice on "how to lose your beer belly without giving up drinking beer". I had to laugh because to me, it was like saying, "how to get rid of your smoker's cough without giving up smoking 40 fags a day". It's a bit oxymoron if you asked me!
Sometimes I think it's necessary to mention the obvious, as we can tend to look for all kinds of solutions that just won't work and don't make a lot of sense. That said, I'm going to be a bit direct now and hope you don't take offense as it's not meant to be impolite in any way, it's just my way of stating what you already know, but won't admit to your self that it is is the correct solution. If you are sincere in wanting to lose your beer belly, then you need to do one or both of the following: Either quit boozing or cut down. That's it! The simple fact is that this will work in every case and you know it.
The real problem is that we love a good splosh-up. We like boozing with the boys full-stop! We like the associating and the company that we mix with in the pub/club. It's a way of releasing the tensions of the day's work and all the pressure that we get on a daily basis. It's our outlet and for a few hours or more each night and we get to forget about all the crap that's going on in our lives. Or sometimes, we use it to get away from the troubles we might be having in the home. Whatever! (The truth is, that boozing is one of the main causes for break-ups at home.) Going down to our local gets to be an enjoyable habit at a cost that is more than just money - it's our health as well, which is far more important. Just take a good long look at yourself (front and side) in the mirror without your shirt on. What a lovely sight. Ha!
We find ourselves out of shape and tired most of the time. We are getting fatter and less fit by the day and it's costing us an arm and a leg. When we realise that we're skint, we blame it on the fact that we're just underpaid and the cost of living is too high. We aren't likely to admit that our boozing habits are now the real problem. When you enter the pub do you ever notice what a nice warm greeting you get from the landlord? If you haven't been in for a few days, they'll tell you, "what a good night you missed the other day". I found that all the publicans were very much the same. You know why? Because it's us mugs who are fattening and filling up their wallets and bank accounts each time we knock out our money in the pub/s.
The only thing that they really miss when we don't come in, is our money! If you really believe that they're that genuine a friend to you, then pull them aside one night and tell the landlord (your very good friend) that you've got a spot of money trouble and can he lend you a grand until you get back on your feet. See how he reacts to that, eh? He'll definitely need a drink. He'll say something like, "if you'd only asked me a few days ago, I could have done it for ya, but I've just had to fork out a bundle for blah blah blah", and the other load of old cobblers.
If you are serious and really want to lose your belly blubber, then just quit guzzling lager and save yourself a bundle of dough at the same time. Go join a fitness club, get fit and lose that fat gut and start to feel great again. It don't take a genius to work that one out. Give the pub the finger and get a life! Associate with winners. Associate and mix with go-getters and people who care about how they look and feel. Like attracts like. Get yourself a good fitness workout program, get on the floor and do some useful belly fat exercises three times a week, eat a healthy diet and lose your beer belly. (Then go down the pub and pour a dozen lagers down your scrag to celebrate - I'm only joking!) Wishing you all the very best.

By Anthony Marquis.

Women Over 50 - Lose Your Flabby Belly, Here is How

Are you a woman over 50 with a goal to lose your flabby belly? It is no fun dealing with belly fat and unfortunately this becomes a growing problem for women as they age and approach menopause. Hormones begin to change the way a woman's body distributes fat making it less likely to get deposited in the legs and butt and more likely to get stored in the belly. Even though your body is shifting you can still get this weight off with the right steps. If you would like to learn more then I encourage you to take a couple of minutes and read on.
Lose Your Flabby Belly
1. Be smarter with carbohydrates. Carbohydrates offer a wonderful source of energy for your body because they are quick to break down to their basic element - sugar. However when you eat these later in the day when your body does not need as much energy they are more likely to go into storage and end up in fat cells on your belly. To be smarter with carbohydrates finish eating them in the first half of your day and limit or remove them from dinner and snacks in the evening.
2. Add a protein choice to every meal. Protein gives your body what it needs to maintain muscle (very important for your fat burning metabolism) and it also stimulates the production of a hormone called glucagon which can counter some of the fat-making properties of carbs.
3. Add 2 to 3 sessions of weight training to your week. Women lose muscle with age unless they take specific measures to build it up. Why is this important to belly flab? Well every pound of muscle on your body burns about 50 calories a day so the more muscle you have the easier your body will find it to burn off belly fat.
If you are a woman over 50 who needs to lose your flabby belly then get started with these great tips.


By Dr. Becky GillaspyPlatinum Quality Author.

How to Lose My Fat Belly? 5 Powerful Enemies That Prevent You From Losing Your Belly

Let's face it-the jiggling fat around your waist is far from pretty. It's hardly attractive for the opposite sex and it often makes you feel uncomfortable in your own skin. Belly fat is also associated with a variety of health risks starting from heart disease, cancer, diabetes, elevated blood sugar levels, high blood pressure and so on. The list of potential health hazards is endless. That's why getting rid of the belly bulge is vital-it will boost you confidence as well as save you from a heart attack. However, before you embark on the hard task of fighting your belly fat, you should recognize your most powerful enemies.
1 Calories- in order to lose belly fat, you have to reduce your calories intake. Wow, that's a news! The problem lies in the fact that a lot of calories are not taken into account when you come up with a daily diet plan. Your Starbucks latte in the morning or tasty margarita cocktail at night constitute more than half calories you need for the day! So watch out-it all adds up in the end.
2 Alcohol-Alcohol can be a powerful enemy in any weight loss attempts. It slows down your metabolism. It can affect negatively the production of fat burning hormones. It also contains the so called empty calories-calories that have no nutrients and are immediately stored by the body in the form of fat.
3 Lack of water- Water is essential for a flat tummy. Research shows that you have to consume at least 8 glasses of water per day. It could be difficult the first couple of days while your body is adjusting to the increased water intake. But after that the habit will become natural. The reason that water is so important is the chemical makeup of your body. 70% of the human body is water. When we don't get enough of it, the body naturally holds on to its water resources, thus leaving you bloated . Once the water intake is sufficiently increased, the body releases water supplies which can result in the shedding of many excess pounds.
4 Lack of balanced exercise-working out is important. Balanced working out is even more important. The thing is you can't really spot reduce your weight by targeting just a certain group of muscles. Crunches, sit-ups and all kinds of ab exercise will help you strengthen your muscle abs. However, you have to combine them with all kinds of exercise-walking, cardio, aerobics, weight lifting etc. Only a balanced workout program can bring sufficient belly fat results.
5 Cortisol and stress- This is a big one. Stress and dieting in particular make the body produce more of the stress hormone cortisol. Elevated cortisol levels result in the deposition of more fat in the midsection of the body. It's a catch-22 situation. The more you diet, the harder it gets to lose belly fat. The only way to counter the effect of cortisol is to use potent cortisol blockers.
" How to lose my fat belly?" is not a rocket science. It's a simple set of rules that have to be followed. Good habits can be hard to form, but once in place they will bring the desired results.


By Irena Bocheva.

Find Out How to Lose Your Fat Belly & Get Your Slim Figure Back

Are you one of the many looking to lose your fat belly and get that body back you used to have? Today is your lucky day as we are going to tell you how to do just that. Now go and take a good look at yourself in the mirror, because in 60 days, you will not be seeing that version of you again!
Excess abdomen fat is a plague that is affecting over 45% of North Americans according to scientific reports. With worries of flu's, West Nile Virus and Aids, the health risks from excess body weight is almost ignored by the general public yet "more people die each year due to health complications from being overweight than all those other issues combined "(2002 article American Medical Association).
You are aware of the health risks of being overweight so we will not waste your time going over them. What you want to know is "How to lose your fat belly". The ability to lose excess fat is possible by everyone yet the rate of weight loss varies for each individual, so don't be discouraged if someone else is losing faster than you. When you start out, don't just focus on your stomach region as you might not see the weight loss that occurs in your face, neck, arms, legs, thighs or buttocks. I know that you want to lose fat belly yet your body uses the stomach area to store its main reserves of fat so it will use body fats found in other areas first. This is why you will see results in these other areas faster.
Exercises such as sit-ups or crunches will NOT help you target and lose fat belly faster. The exercise will build muscle and burn excess fat yet your body will determine what fat is to go first... and it will not be the abdomen if other deposits exist. This is why I requested that you look at yourself in the mirror before you start. You will notice the gradual changes to these areas yet there is not better feeling than having someone you have not seen in a couple weeks say to you "Have you lost weight?" That is when you realize that your weight loss is truly working.
So how do you lose fat belly and see results within 60 days? Let's start out by telling you what to avoid as these tend to be traps many fall into and don't get results they wanted.
Avoid The Following:
  1. Expensive Exercise Equipment - Ab Blaster or any other TV infomercial promoting the next miracle flab busting machine. Exercise is good but these expensive gimmicks will not help you lose fat belly any faster than going for a 20 minute walk.
  2. Anything that says it targets any specific area of fat - Nothing can target just your fat belly... not exercises, machines, pills or foods, nothing. They are just targeting YOU for a sale of their potentially useless product.
  3. Expensive Weight Loss Franchises or Meal Programs - Weight loss franchises are very expensive and results are not guaranteed. Why? They make money by having you on the program not off it. Many provide meal programs (additional cost) that reduce calories but doesn't teach you how to eat and keep a healthy lifestyle. This is the main reason these franchises and meal programs end up failing you.
So what CAN you do to lose fat belly and start seeing results in 60 days?
What many of us don't focus on is healthier eating and lifestyle as we think that it is too difficult to maintain. The funny thing is, many of us started out eating better than we do today it is just that we have forgotten how or just don't have the time. To lose fat belly and see sustainable weight loss start a weight loss program that you can do from home, at work or anywhere you need to be. Find a balanced weight loss program that will allow you to eat everyday foods without the need for pre-packaged diet meals, supplements or the need to count calories. It must allow you to eat the foods that you would normally find in a grocery store (including treats) yet teach you what your body needs. If it provides additional tools to help make quick and healthy meals for those busy days then all the better. Make sure it is flexible for you so you want to stay with it to make it effective. Exercise is not necessary for weight loss yet will help you burn fat faster.

By John J Roberts.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Lose Belly Fat Tips - Effective Workouts That Shred Belly Fat

Effective Lose Belly Fat Tips
 
Millions of people are struggling in vain to find effective how to lose belly fat tips.  The conventional wisdom is not always the best. And the bad thing is that these people follow this bad advice and only see temporary or no results, and then quit trying to lose that layer of belly fat.  You have to be careful who you get your information from.  The following lose belly fat tips are aimed at your workouts.  Apply these lose belly fat tips, and watch your results skyrocket.
 
  • Start slow.  If you are just returning to working out after a long layoff, be careful that you don't overdo it.  You do not need to impress anyone.  Start with light cardio routines and lighter weights that you can manage.  After a week or so, you will know what exercises you can handle the increased intensity with, and which ones you should just work with some more.  It is important that you do not over exert yourself and become so sore that you do not continue with your journey to lose that belly fat.
  • Employ variable cyclic training as opposed to long steady cardio routines.  This is one of those lose belly fat tips that goes against conventional logic.  Many trainers suggest 45 minutes - 1 hour of cardio.  Long cardio routines are boring after a while, and do not provide near the benefits that the variable cyclic training does.  Your cardio routines should include short bursts followed by short recovery, and then repeat.  This type of workout will increase your metabolic rate will help you immensely in losing belly fat.  Think of what a sprinter looks like as opposed to a marathon runner.  The marathon runner has a more lean figure, whereas the sprinter is also lean, but muscular as well.  Next time you are at the gym take a look around.  Do you see the guy or girl that is in perfect shape on the treadmill for long periods of time?  Probably not.
  • When planning your cardio routines, factor in some fun alternatives.  For example you could swim, jump rope, rock climb, kayaking, wind sprints at the track, bike, whatever.  The key is to keep it interesting so that you will stick with it.
  • When lifting weights, focus on your core exercises as opposed to single body parts.  For example, you will get much more benefit from doing squats with free weight, than you will with doing leg extensions on a machine.  The squats not only use your quads, but also use your entire midsection and back muscles for stability.   Exercises that work entire groups of muscles are much better.  Examples are the squat, clean & press, & bench press.  These exercises work multiple muscles and joints at the same time.  These type of exercises also work the midsection which will help you lose belly fat.
  • Vary your weight routine.  Many get hung up on the old 3 sets of 10 reps.  Try something different.  Why not try 10 sets of 3 reps with 20 seconds rest in between.  Or how about 5 sets of 5 reps with a bit heavier weight.  Also try altering your routine every 4-8 weeks.  Keep your muscles guessing and you will see results.
If you apply these how to lose belly fat tips in your workouts starting today, you will start to see the results you seek. You can lose your belly fat and be happy with the person in the mirror.

By Lonnie Sallas. 

What is the Best Way to Lose Lower Belly Fat? Discover the Truth About Losing Belly Fat

No matter where you look you will find pictures of women in their bikinis and men with their shirt off showing their perfect abs. Its on the Internet, on TV and through out magazines. But many people just can't find the best way to lose lower belly fat to get that perfect six pack.
Time and time again people ask me "what is the best ab workout for losing belly fat?" They have tried nearly every thing but that stubborn fat is still there. Surprisingly the answer is...
None! Simply doing ab workouts alone is enough to create a metabolic response in your body to lose lower belly fat. So what is the best way to lose lower belly fat, and what are the best types of workouts and exercises for losing belly fat in order to bring out hidden six pack abs? The thing that most people do not realize when trying to lose belly fat or trying to uncover their abs is that there is no magical abdominal workout or exercises that will supernaturally strip that fat of their abs in no time.
The truth is, these people are approaching their lower belly fat totally the wrong way! You can do all the crunches you wish, but you do not lose belly fat by doing ab workouts. How many crunches have you done? Have you found your six pack abs hidden under all of your belly fat? Probably not.
If you are spending all of your time and efforts focusing on abdominal workouts and exercises in an attempt to flatten your lower belly, you will never get six pack abs. In a since you are only wasting your time. Instead of doing ab workout exercises you need to focus on doing the correct workout programs that not only focus on your abs but your whole body. This will help you lose the belly fat and keep it off for good.
While there are many exercises you can do to help fatten you lower belly. The best way to lose lower belly fat is to include full body exercise such as the following: various types of squats, cork screw, leg lunges, dead lifts, clean & presses, snatches, swings, presses and pulls, mountain climbers, and sprinting.
There are many types of full body exercise not mentioned, but those are some of the more popular full body exercises I would recommend you do, over exercises directly targeting the abdominal muscles.
Not to get ahead of myself, there are a very few amount of ab exercises that I would recommend to any one trying to lose lower belly fat by directly targeting the abs and core. However, it is better to spend your time focusing on your entire body to stimulate the maximum hormonal and metabolic changes in the body. In addition when you do full body exercises you will indirectly be working on you abs while you are not specially targeting the abs.
So what is the best way to lose lower belly fat and get six pack abs? Full body exercises, and equally important a solid and nutritious diet is crucial to six pack abs. You should follow a solid weight loss program when you are trying to lose lower belly fat. If not despite all of your hard work, you will never lose the fat if your diet is not nutritional and you are still eating junk foods. A nutritional diet is the best way to lose lower belly fat, without a doubt!

By Cathy Powell.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Finally! Lose Your Belly Fat With a Total Body Routine, Not Endless Crunches

Objective: Lose your belly fat with a simple and efficient abs workout routine.
Fact: The best abs workout routine is a total body routine.
The biggest misstep you are likely to take in learning how to lose your belly fat is thinking that simply an abs workout will get rid of those stubborn love handles. An abs workout routine is essential to lose your stomach fat, however the secret is that the best abs workout is really a total body routine! Chances are that you are in the same position as many Americans - trying to lose your stomach fat and trim your love handles. Maybe you are just looking for that final step to finally show off your great six pack abs.
So let us start by discovering why you just cannot seem to shed those last few layers of love handles and stomach fat. Your body stores fat in a variety of places. The two places that your body stores the majority of your fat are (surprise) your stomach and your butt. Simply put, these two areas are a reflection of your total body fat. No matter how much fat you have in your body, the two places where this fat shows up the most are these two.
Translation: To lose your belly fat, lose your body fat.
You may have heard that abs workout routines - crunches, sit ups, abs machines, etc - do not work. Well, they actually do but maybe not in the fat-burning way you may think. Most abs exercises you do build muscle, but that is about all. They actually do very little - relatively - to burn fat. These abs workouts are great for muscle-building and toning but really are just one step in the process of how to lose your belly fat. Picture a man or woman in your head with a great waistline and perfect six pack abs. Beyond the muscles, what do you see? Maybe more appropriately, what don't you see? Fat. The key to showing off six pack abs is not necessarily to build those muscles, but to lose the fat around it. So what is the best way to do that?
If those abs workouts are not effective at helping you to lose your stomach fat than how do you lose it? With a total body routine that trims fat all over your body! If your stomach is simply a representation of your total body fat, than you need to focus on your total body. Get started on a total body routine and the results will come faster than you think. Total body exercises, weight lifting (all muscle groups), a healthy and balanced diet, essential vitamins, and proper sleep habits all are vital in maintaining total body fitness. That sounds boring and you knew that right? Well if you want to lose your belly fat invest yourself 100% into these habits and you will be amazed at the results! If you need help in choosing a total body routine and abs workout, do some research and invest in a program or personal trainer. The fact is that the more muscle you build, the more fat (and stomach fat) you will actually burn. Every pound of muscle in your body burns an extra 50 calories per day of fat.
If you want to get serious about getting a six pack or how to lose your belly fat, think not of an abs workout routine but of a total body routine!


By Michael A Anthony. Platinum Quality Author

To Improve Your Health, Lose Your Belly Fat

Sure, belly fat is unattractive. Your clothes don't fit right and you may even be relegated to wearing two different sizes of clothing to compensate for your apple-shaped body. Smooth body lines are everyone's desires, but what you may not be aware of is how dangerous belly fat is to your life, not just your appearance.
Obesity is a worldwide health problem. In the United States alone, 66% of the American population is overweight. Being overweight is unhealthy in its own right, but belly fat is particularly dangerous, as it is linked to heart disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
Belly fat "leaks" fatty acids into the bloodstream, affecting the liver, the heart and other major organs. Scientific studies have determined that the size of your waist is a great indicator of how liable you are to develop these diseases. A waist size of 39 inches (or about 1 meter), or more, puts your life at risk.
Being overweight is linked to diabetes in that it causes insulin resistance. Blood sugar levels are out of whack. Blood vessels become clogged with glucose and other clogging materials that fat introduces, and, as a result, clogged arteries leads to heart disease.
Heart disease and stroke go hand in hand. A stroke happens when blood vessels in the brain explode (from being clogged). If the brain goes without oxygen for as little as 6 minutes, areas of the brain affected will die. Belly fat is directly linked to clogged blood vessels.
Consider the history of your family when determining your risk factors for heart disease, stroke and/or diabetes. If your family has these problems, you likely do as well. Having extra weight only makes the likelihood that you will develop these problems even stronger.
You may want to reduce your belly fat to look better, and to be sure, that a good reason. But the more important reason is, truly, the condition of your health. What's the point of looking good if you die from something completely preventable? Head off the problems of heart disease, stroke and diabetes by trimming the belly fat before these diseases become your own.
What's it going to take to put yourself in control of your health and lose your belly fat? The three factors you need to take into consideration are your diet, your activity levels and the amount of restful sleep you get, which aids in stress reduction. Even small, gradual changes will help and eventually, when that fat is gone, you will know that you not only look and feel great, but your health is much improved.


 By Susan K Johnson.

How to Lose Your Belly Before Your Wedding Day, the Fast and Healthy Way

Making the wedding vow is all about making a commitment for life, this is not any different for losing weight. Staying healthy, losing weight and keeping fit, are not things you must do only before your wedding day, but also afterwards. To you it may seem that you are becoming more tense and nervous as your wedding day is coming closer and closer. All because you're afraid you are not going to fit your wedding gown. You become even more desperate trying to find an answer to the question: "How To Lose Your Belly Before Your Wedding Day". As you are planning and organizing to make your wedding a memorable day, you will not allow yourself any time to eat healthy food and so you will go for the fat and easy snacks. The planning of your wedding is not the only thing that takes some degree of devotion, losing weight before your wedding day also counts for that matter.
What You Should Not Do.
Most brides seem to become so desperate that they are willing to try everything, just to make them lose that belly before their wedding day. What you will see is that most brides, searching the Internet on how to lose your belly before your wedding day, tend to go for the fast and easy way of supplements or dieting pills. Dieting pills are certainly not the healthiest way to lose weight and more than often these pills don't even work.
A second thing to keep in mind is this: Diet pills DO NOT change your eating habits. The solution for losing weight lies not in pills but in eating healthy food, doing your exercises and getting rid of these stubborn unhealthy habits.
What Can You Do To Lose The Extra Pounds To Fit Your Wedding Dress?
So now I have shown you that the most significant thing to do is to try to eat healthy food. On your wedding day you won't be sitting a lot so take some rest now, as you will certainly have to feel fit. This will also help you to better cope with the stress involved with your most important day.
Do some exercises, as you will certainly have to feel fit, because you won't be sitting a lot on your most important day. If you want to look and feel the best on your wedding day, just follow these tips.
So the answer to: "How to lose your belly before your wedding day", is all in the HOW and WHAT. But I'm glad to say that your search is over as I have found the perfect way for you on how, and what to do, to lose your belly before your wedding day, the fast and healthy way and afterwards.

By Isis Laros.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Dietary Fiber May Be Your Weapon to Lose Your Belly Fats and Keep Your Waistline at Bay!

Dietary fiber is an important part of our diet because it helps to prevent constipation. However, it is increasingly becoming famous due to much research showing that a high-fiber diet may help prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes and also provide solutions on this question on how to lose your belly fat!
No need to worry about eating bowls of oatmeal one after the other, however; filling up on fiber is easier than you think.
What is fiber?
Dietary fibers are the indigestible parts of plant foods that help to move undigested matter in the large intestine. They help to prevent constipation and can be divided into two groups: Soluble fibers and insoluble fibers.
Soluble fibers are found inside plant cell walls and dissolve in water to form a gel-like, sticky substance. This gives cooked beans their mushy centers and oatmeal its gummy texture. As it passes through the alimentary canal, soluble fiber will bind itself to dietary cholesterol, helping the body to eliminate them.
Sources of soluble fiber are legumes (peas, soybeans, and other beans), oats, barley, broccoli, carrots, potatoes, onions and berries.
Insoluble fibers, however, are the chewy parts of a plant that does not dissolve in water. It helps in the forming of the plant's structure and can be found in stringy vegetables, crunchy whole grains and fruit skins. This type of fiber passes through the body mostly intact, taking in water and adding bulk to the stool. This not only speeds up the rate at which your food goes through your system, it also helps to prevent constipation.
Whole grain foods, bran, nuts, seeds, vegetables such as green beans, cauliflower, celery, and the skins of some fruits such as tomatoes are rich in insoluble fiber.
According to the Micronutrient Center of the Linus Pauling Institute, legumes, wheat bran, prunes, Asian pears and quinoa are the most fiber-rich plant foods in respective order. Fruits such as raspberries and blackberries are also exceptional sources of fiber, so do remember to stock up on the foods I have mentioned!
Hopefully, this dietary fiber article can solve many of your problems and you can start planning on your personal "how to lose your belly fat" diet plan too.


By Andrew Choong. Platinum Quality Author

Lose Your Belly Fat - Simple Things to Know

If you have been trying to lose weight, then you know that looking for ways that work in eliminating belly fat could be quite a challenge. However, there are some researches that say that losing weight can easily be done with the proper mindset. Here are some other tips to help you lose your belly fat.
1. Make sure that if you belong to a family with a history of being overweight or obese, take charge of your eating habits and exercise routines early on. The sooner you are able to have the mindset that you would need to lead a healthy lifestyle to avoid your genetic tendencies of being overweight as well. However, if you are already overweight, then thinking about what caused your weight problem could help. If you are always blaming yourself for becoming fat, at least, you can put in mind that you came from a family with tendencies of being overweight and that you can still do something about it.
2. Make sure that each meal that you have starts with the food types that are filling. For example, you can eat your meat first before your potatoes or pasta since protein is more filling compared to the starchy foods. You would end up feeling full instantly and avoid overeating.
3. Try to eat each meal slowly. If you have always been the type of person who eats at lightning speed, then try to slow down. Make it a habit to put down your utensils every now and then or try to sip some water from time to time. If you eat slower, you would feel full even after eating less food.
4. Make sure that you eat the right food choices. Try to carefully watch what you eat and how much you eat. Steer clear of foods that have too much salt, fat, carbohydrates and sugar.
These are just some of the ways on how you can lose your belly fat. Remember that it would help to have the proper attitude. Once you are dedicated to a goal, you would definitely be able to lose your belly fat in the soonest time possible.

By Steve Blackman.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Lose Your Belly Fat - By Adding These 4 Veggies To Your Diet

If your waistline has been expanding lately, then you may be suffering from a dangerous accumulation of belly fat. Belly fat, which is more formally known as abdominal obesity, is caused by the buildup of fat around the abdominal area. While a visual examination is enough to make a diagnosis of abdominal obesity, its severity is determined by measuring the waist and the hip.
People who have waistlines greater than 40 inches (for men) and 35 inches (for women) are deemed to be obese. Another indicator is the waist-hip ratio (the ratio of the circumference of the waist and the hips); men who have a WHR greater than 0.9 and women greater than 0.85 for women deemed to suffer from abdominal obesity. Excess belly fat is associated with health risks such as hypertension, heart disease and Type-2 diabetes. You should seek means to lose your belly fat if you exceed the two requirements listed here.
Although you can lose your belly fat by undertaking a regular exercise program and a low-fat diet, you can speed up the fat-burning process by eating more cruciferous vegetables. These are a family of vegetables that are noted for being rich in nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and soluble dietary fiber, as well as phytochemicals that are noted for their cancer-fighting properties. They help you to lose your belly fat by increasing your metabolism and helping to block the effects of estrogens, a female sex hormone that generates arousal in women but has also been shown to facilitate the accumulation of abdominal fat.
The four most important cruciferous vegetables that you can add to your diet are cabbage, cauliflower, radish and broccoli. One cup of broccoli contains 165% of the daily recommended value of Vitamin C as well as having at least 200 mg of plant-based Omega-3s.
If you want to add more of these four vital veggies to your diet, make sure to eat them raw or lightly steamed since overcooking them risks making them unappetizing. You can add florets of broccoli and cauliflower to your green salad or chop up the vegetables and include them with your soups and casseroles. And while the ideal is to eat fresh cruciferous vegetables, frozen and pre-packaged vegetables that you can get at your local supermarket are a good enough alternative. Take action today and you will lose your belly fat!

By John Richly.

I Won't Shop For Clothes Until I Lose My Belly Fat

I must lose weight, especially my visceral belly fat, or I won't buy any new clothes even though I need some. Summer is around the corner and being seen in public in a bathing suit is out of the question. I would be so embarrassed because of my big waistline. I look like an apple on sticks. Pear and hour glass shapes do not apply to my body. I no longer look good in any clothes. My clothes don't fit!
How about you? Are you in the same spot? Have you tried on clothes lately and found that everything makes you look very round and pudgy? That deep visceral fat surrounding your internal organs is much harder to lose than the subcutaneous fat found under your skin. And, it's that visceral fat that is giving you such a large waistline. It makes it difficult for your organs to work properly and puts a strain on your heart besides keeping you from being attractive in clothes. Bummer.
Losing weight has become quite a challenge. When I just had to lose weight from subcutaneous fat, it was pretty easy. But losing weight from my intra-abdominal fat takes dedication and good habits. It can be done! First, you must get a good plan. There are a variety of plans you can get online. Second, you must do exactly what the plan says. Finally, you must make healthy lifestyle changes in order to permanently keep off your belly fat.
Don't take your round stomach area lightly. There is proof that visceral belly fat is dangerous to your health and may even kill you. In addition to making your clothes not fit nicely, it is producing hormones, chemicals, and compounds that are harmful to your body. You and I must lose our belly weight so we won't possibly have a heart attack or get diabetes as a result of our visceral fat.
Besides eating a healthy balanced diet, you must exercise regularly. Even if you are currently not in the habit of moving your body, you must begin to at least walk for 30 minutes three times every week. There are many other options to accomplish the necessary exercise to lose weight, strip your belly fat, and become fit. Some exercise activities are:
• Swimming
• Yoga
• Playing ball in the park with your friends, kids, or dog
• Running
• Tennis
• Pilates
• Weight training
• Exercise classes
Choose your plan, your diet, and your exercise options to begin losing belly fat and weight right now. You will also get a smaller waistline in the process and be able to have fun shopping for clothes.

An Aid to Lose Stubborn Belly Fat - 3 Tips

Do you notice that your belly is the main place that fat seems to be camping out at? If your belly is the main spot, then stress could be the cause. Stress causes your body to release cortisol and your stomach have more cortisol receptors than any other part of your body. This is the reason why most body fat gathers to your stomach.
Stress will cause you to get hungry, then you begin to eat more, then you gain fat and it goes to your belly where most of the cortisol receptors are located. What you would want to do is to get rid of the stress. Now even when you get rid of the stress you still have the problem of dealing with the fat that has accumulated in your belly. Getting rid of the stress will eliminate a cause of the fat. Over eating is another cause especially when you don't exercise. The combination of over eating and not exercising is a sure way of developing this problem.
Also, not eating at all will cause belly fat because your body will hold on to the fat for energy since you're not feeding it in order to get energy. For years I've had a pudgy belly. Others did not think so but I knew the real deal. I would try sit ups but it never seemed to have worked for me. What I learned was, sit-ups and/or crunches tighten your muscles after or while you're loosing the belly fat. Now it is definitely possible to lose fat, while doing sit-ups and crunches however, I found that for me it wasn't the best solution.
Reduce the Calories
Reducing the quantity of calories you take in without going into the starvation mode is the most effective way to get rid of belly fat. Reducing your intake of food packed with sugar will help you to lose tummy fat. Start eating foods that burn fat! This combined with daily exercise will help you shed that extra belly fat weight.
Walking and Exercising
Walking is one of the best ways to lose belly fat. You should also maintain a daily exercise routine. Aerobics and strength training are both good forms of exercising to help you lose belly fat. Working only your abdominal muscles isn't going to benefit you much. Use resistance training to keep and firm your muscles.
Drink Plenty of Water
In order to lose belly fat, you need to drink plenty of water, particularly when you workout or sweat. Your body requires water in order to function at its best and your body will not be able to function properly if you are not drinking enough water. Try to drink at leat 8 glasses of water each day. Avoid consuming drinks with high sugary content.
Don't forget to include proper amounts of sleep otherwise you will be stressed again and the battle of belly fat continues.


By Martha C. Johnson.

Losing Your Fat Belly the Natural Way - 3 Best Tips on Naturally Trimming Your Waist!

Fat belly is unsightly and finding a natural way to trimming or losing it may sound a little unrealistic to some if not many. What are the 3 best tips on naturally trimming your waist? It will be discussed and dealt with as we go along in this article. Fat belly is fact of life. How do we get fat belly? We acquire this by eating foods that packed with very high calories that our body fails to utilize. In layman terms, we eat more than we can burn. For most women give birth, losing fat belly the natural way sounds very impossible?
Why, because it's natural to gain so much weight on the course of pregnancy and especially around the belly where the baby resided for 9 months. When the baby is out though, unfortunately the belly fat does not go away as easily and in fact is a challenge for most. Men are not spared too. As they grow older, losing belly fat the natural way becomes harder and harder. In short, both men and women face the same dilemma.
So what are the 3 best tips on naturally trimming your waist? They are:
Make over your eating habits.
Does this mean that you need to start a starvation campaign? No. Just choose foods that are high in fiber content so you don't have to eat a lot. Opt to breakdown your meal times into 5 or 6 meals eating smaller portions.
Another 1 on the 3 best tips on naturally trimming your waist is to get moving!
Do you remember your doctor telling you that you need to exercise to keep your body healthy? Do exercises that help in losing your belly fat like stomach crunches for one.
The 3rd tip on naturally trimming your waist is to get into the habit of tucking you tummy in. The principle is that when you tuck your tummy, you strain your muscles and these help a lot when you're exercising.
Now you want to have more energy, be Healthier, look Younger, lose weight, and cleanse your body, right?
 
 

Skip Cardio to Lose Fat and Get Into Better Condition

Cardio exercise, such as jogging, is far from the best type of exercise to lose fat and get into better physical condition, in fact, it can be harmful to your health.
Obviously, many experts will scoff at this idea but it is a concept which is rapidly gaining credibility in the fitness world. More and more true fitness experts are pushing the concept of conditioning your heart by doing short burst of intense exercise rather than doing long, boring cardio.
Your body wasn't designed for long, repetitive exercise. Worse, it can make you more vulnerable to disease. This type of long continuous, strenuous workout, without rest, mimics stress and causes your body to adapt in a way that is counterproductive to your health and longevity.
Our ancestors didn't run marathons or jump around for an hour doing aerobics. And they didn't sit in front of computers or the television the entire day. They moved around a lot at a low level of exertion. And then every once in a while they exerted themselves at nearly 100% of their capacity - hunting prey or escaping from it. This pattern of doing short intense movements, followed by rest, and lots of lower level activities is implanted into your genes. Your muscles, bones and organ systems are reflections of this genetic design. The way they work together is the formula for strength, vitality and long life.
Your body is not a machine - it's an adaptive organism that has its own intelligence. Nature has designed your body to adapt to whatever environment it encounters. If you ask it to perform the same activity over and over again, it will gradually switch the systems involved to meet the challenge more effectively.
Endurance exercise causes your heart and lungs to adapt for endurance. But these organs are already endurance machines. Your heart beats continuously and your lungs expand and contract with every breath you take. Forced, continuous, endurance exercise prompts your heart and lungs to "downsize." Reducing to smaller capacity allows you to go further, more efficiently, and with less rest and less fuel.
But shrinking the output of your heart and lungs means you've traded reserve capacity - which you might need in an emergency - for overall efficiency. Heart attacks don't occur because you lack endurance. They occur when there is a sudden increase in cardiac demand that exceeds your heart's capacity. That's why you need some output to spare.
As far as losing fat, specifically belly fat, short intense bursts of energy is the way to go. While the long cardio workout may burn more calories while you are jogging the workout that incorporates short bursts of energy will increase your metabolism so that you are burning those excess calories long after the workout.
An extra advantage to doing the short bursts of energy as opposed to cardio is that it takes less time and isn't boring at all.
An example of this kind of workout would be running sprints, but don't let that scare you off. It can be adapted to any form of exercise. You could swim intensely, as hard as you can for 30 seconds and then take a break for 2 minutes and the repeat it 5 more times and you get a fantastic fat burning, heart building exercise.
You could also adapt this type of exercise to whatever gradient is needed. If you aren't able to walk around the block once without keeling over you have to scale it back to start out. In that situation, you could walk rapidly for 10-20 seconds, then stop and catch your breath and repeat the action. The important thing to concentrate on is to gradually do a little more in each of your workouts even if it's only a few steps.
If you can adjust your thinking away from long, boring cardio and start to do the type of workout I've described here you will start losing fat and get a much stronger heart.


By Al Stevens.

Essential Ways to Tighten Your Loose & Fat Belly

You can use these essential tips tighten your loose fat belly. I have focused on these 3 key areas which has given me great results: diet, exercise, and anti-stress strategies. It's not difficult to tighten your loose fat belly. It needs some dedication and perseverance.
Cool Relaxation Tips to Shed Body Fat
Everyone knows stress kills. Did you know that stress is fattening too?
When you encounter stress, including lack of sleep, your body will produce a hormone called cortisol. This will keep your appetite stimulated and also keeps glucose production high. The body converts excess glucose into fat, which is usually stored in the midsection for quick access by your body.
So, get enough sleep. Only you know how much sleep you need, but if you are routinely dragging during the day feeling sleepy, lethargic, exhausted, etc., then you probably need to get more sleep.
Simple Diet Tips to Tighten Your Fat Belly
Eat lots of vegetable and fruits that have a low glycemic index to tighten your loose fat belly. To reduce fat in your diet, steam your vegetables or stir fry in broth. Additionally, drink your fruits and vegetables! This is an easy way to eat healthy. Blend up smoothies, vegetable drinks, or quick puree soups. If you eat meat, buy organic meats which have lower saturated fat content.
Easy Exercise Tips to Tighten Your Loose Tummy
Hold your belly muscles in to remove belly fat during the day whenever you can think of it. This will strengthen your abdominal girdle and create a flatter belly. You should also sit up straight and pull in your belly muscles when sitting. You might want to create physical reminders to do this such as a post-it note at your desk or a loose rubber band around your wrist.
I've struggled with my weight and have tried all sorts of methods to shed my extra pounds - from fancy ab contraptions to expensive diet pills. Finally, after years of mistakes and heartache, I realized that to tighten your loose fat belly effectively, I needed to take a holistic approach. This is it!


By Claire P. Summers.

Lose Fat Through Dancing

Many people are of the misconception that in order to lose fat belly, one must hurt, suffer and sweat. That's not necessarily the case. In order to burn calories, you need physical activity but physical activity doesn't always mean painful exercise. As long as your body is moving and working, then that's enough for you to burn off fat.
One of the most overlooked methods of keeping in shape is dancing. It's not only fun to do but it also uses all kinds of different muscles, hence prompting the whole body to work. In fact, compared to lose fat exercises, dancing can burn approximately up to 500 calories per hour, depending on the intensity of the movements.
Belly dancing is one such activity that you could really enjoy. Not only is it a good cardiovascular exercise, but the movement specifically focuses on the belly muscles. However, belly dancing is not your only option. The world of dancing is actually very large and won't just make you lose fat belly.
When it comes to dancing, muscles work together in pairs to perform a specific movement. Also, dancing prompts a person to improve his or her flexibility, balance and body coordination. However, if you aren't really used to dancing, then you might want to start off with small moves. Actually, there are various fitness dancing videos available that could help you dance your way to fitness.
Of course, like most exercises, dancing can also pose risks to your body and health. Some dance movements are very intense and require joint flexibility. For this, one must take extra care when doing said movements.
The good thing about dancing is that you can do it with other people. Organize a group and start moving your way to a good sweat. It need not be fancy or with great moves. All you need is a big space and good fast music that would prompt you to move your body.
Like with most lose fat exercises, what you must remember are that there is no such thing as spot reduction. You need a full body workout for a full body fat loss. This is why dancing is such an excellent exercise type. Like walking or jogging, it utilizes all body faculties, developing the muscles, burning up calories, stretching the muscles and toning the body.
I suggest that you first try out dancing to your favorite tune by yourself. Even watching the music videos of those songs can prompt you to move your body along with the melody. Try it out for a few days and if you like it, then allot at least one hour of dancing per day. It doesn't have to replace your exercises, but it's definitely one way to keep the blood pumping.
During your dance regimen, you might also want to try going on a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables. After all, regardless of how much exercise you do, without a proper diet, it won't really be of much use.

By Bob Brendon.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Getting a Fat Belly? 3 Reasons to Be Proud of Your Pot Belly

So you're getting a fat belly. In fact that pot belly you have is really pretty amazing isn't it. Sure it gets in the way when you try to buckle a seat belt, and it's tough to keep a shirt tucked in and sometimes your pants start to fall off because your belt is down around your hips instead of your waist. But hey, it's who you are right? And you're not alone there are millions of pot bellied men walking this planet.
Now some people see a fat belly as unattractive. In fact there's a whole industry built around losing belly fat. But you already know that most of those fat busting gimmicks, diets and magic pills don't work because you've tried them all. Of course that was before you came to the realization that you were just meant to have a pot belly.
Well stand up and stick out that gut. Here are three reasons why you can be proud as punch. Getting a fat belly takes some work but it does have its rewards.
In Nigeria you would be considered a successful, attractive man.
That's right. Nigerians, like many under developed nations where getting enough food to survive is still a problem, view big bellies as a sign of prosperity. They're logic is if you're fat, you are wealthy enough to eat all the food you want, something most Nigerians can't do. Can 129 million Nigerians be wrong? Think what a big hit you'd be in Ethiopia. Do you have a valid passport?
A pot belly is the ultimate sign of self confidence in your body image.
You don't care what other people think. You are your own man. If you're married you know your wife will be true to you after all she loves you. Sure the sex may not be as good as when your belly didn't get in the way but hey, you are what you are. If you're single you probably aren't having the same success as you used to when prowling the clubs. Your idea of a good time now is a NASCAR tailgate party where you can hit up on former contestants for the Ms Bud Lite 1984 title.
A pot belly is a sign of an independent thinker.
You use your own personal logic when faced with decision making challenges. For example you're not fooled by all that hype about belly fat causing serious health problems.   You're pot belly is rock hard. Underneath that fat is a ripped six pack right?   Why else would it be so firm?
Well pork boy, your belly is rock hard most likely because you have visceral fat pushing your abdominal muscles out.
What you ask, is visceral fat?
Well it's that really nasty fat that is deposited underneath your muscles and which cramps up any number of already crowded organs. Not only is it executing a squeeze play on your vitals, it's gurgling out chemicals that can cause any number of diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure and colon cancer. In other words this is really nasty stuff and despite what you may want to think, it can be a very serious health risk.
But you say, "How can I lose this stuff I tried everything before?" Well if you did and you didn't lose it before, that simply means you didn't know how to do it not that it can't be done. The good news is visceral fat is typically the first type of fat (as opposed to subdutaneous fat) to melt. The even better news, if you put your heart into it and you have a plan based on nutrition and exercise, you can see significant result in as little as two weeks.
So study up and get to it belly man; your wife and your life will love you for it. Of course if you are single, Ms Bud Lite will probably dump you for the fat guy on the motorcycle wearing the unintentional crop top Tee shirt.

By Rachel Willson.

Lose Fat Belly is a Serious Business - The Risk of Excess Fat in Belly

Why is it important to lose fat belly? For most people the answer is simply because fat belly is ugly. They would like to look good in their hipsters, bikinis, beach shorts or for a nearing event such as Christmas, wedding and birthday. However fat belly is beyond the vanity issue. It is also a deadly issue which is highly dangerous to your health.
The Risks of Excess Fat in Belly
Carrying extra pounds in your midsection area is a serious business. Excessive fat in your belly area is more risky than fat in other parts of your body. This is because visceral fat lies beneath your belly area, in between your organs, which is more unfavorable for your health than subcutaneous fat that lies under your skin.
According to scientific evidence, extra weight around the mid area appears to boost inflammation and is associated to hardening of the arteries. That means if you don't start to lose fat belly, your body will stand a great risk of developing health problems such as diabetes, heart diseases, stroke, high blood pressure, various types of cancer, metabolic degeneration and more.
Furthermore, recent stats have shown that about 300,000 adult deaths in the US is attributed to poor dietary habits and physical inactivity. So, don't take your fat belly as just a conscious image of ugliness. Fat belly is both UGLY and DANGEROUS and you should start to consider to lose fat belly to improve your quality of life for yourself and perhaps even your loved ones.
How do You Know if You Are At Risk?
To evaluate your risk, lie down and wrap a soft measuring tape around your natural waistline. Your natural waistline is above your hip bone and right under your belly button. Take the measurement in a relax position. Do not hold your breath or suck your stomach in.
For men, if your waist is larger than 40 inches and for women 35 inches, then you have too much fat in your belly area and you ought to start to lose fat belly immediately. Your health is at risk for heart disease and other threatening conditions.
If you care enough for yourself and your loved ones, one of the best thing do is to lose weight. Start to have a balanced, calorie-counted diet and be physically active throughout the day. This way you will lose fat belly in no time and have a better quality of life.

By Alexis E. Summers.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Why Losing Belly Fat Is Such a Good Idea

Everyone knows that obesity has become a major problem in modern society. Everyone knows it but it is still a growing problem and more people fit into that category every year. People know when they are gaining weight, of course, but they still eat the same things in the same amounts, while doing little to nothing in the way of physical activity. Modern conveniences have made things too easy, so that someone can go for months at a time without engaging in any meaningful physical activity whatsoever.
Weight loss is an important consideration, especially when it comes to losing belly fat, that "spare tire" that folds over the waistband of pants and makes people feel generally lumpy and out of shape. Belly fat is a little different from other kinds of fat. In fact, it just may be hazardous to your health.
There are a number of misconceptions regarding belly fat and it may be these very misconceptions that keep that belly fat in place.
What's the Problem with Belly Fat?
The danger of belly fat lies in the way it is created and its meaning to the body itself. When fat collects around the middle, especially in those who have an apple-shaped body, it can mean that there is a thick layer of internal fat around the organs. This is sometimes called the deep layer of brown fat. This fat is a big risk factor for conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Belly fat is also more difficult to lose, since it is buried so deep in the body. This brown fat is the last to be sued as energy, no matter how much one exercises.
Not only is belly fat more dangerous and more unhealthy than other types of fat, it is also more obvious than fat that collects on the thighs or the backside, making it generally more unattractive than other kinds of fat. It is much more difficult to conceal rolls of belly fat than it is to hide thick thighs. Losing belly fat can be an important step to healthy self-esteem.
Myths Regarding Belly Fat
Working on your abs, whether with machines, supplements, pills, lotions, creams, or just plain exercise, doesn't really do much to reduce belly fat, at least not in the way the advertisements claim. Spot reducing is largely a myth. You can't just lose weight from one part of your body while keeping fat in other parts. The only plans that will work are the ones where you lose weight in general, not losing fat in one place and toning that place up. When you start dropping the pounds, all the fat everywhere will decrease and toning and firming muscle means all the muscles should be toned and firmed.
Everyone has a basic body shape. Some people are just straight up and down, even if they are overweight. It's just the way they are. Others just naturally fall into the classic hourglass shape. Others can be prone to be more apple or pear-shaped. Even at their best possible weight, they will have something of that shape, so even if you should manage to lose weight, you'll still have a basic shape that will stay with you.
It is very possible to exercise too much when it comes to certain parts of the body. Hundreds of crunches per day may not reduce belly fat, but it will create heavier abdominal muscles underneath the fat. Once the fat is gone, you may still look fat, because muscle has replaced that layer of fat.
Finally, there isn't any certain food group that automatically makes one part of the body or another fat. Avoiding carbohydrates will not reduce the accumulation of belly fat or make it go away more quickly. There is no food that goes straight to your thighs or right to your hips. There are any number of factors that determine how each individual carries excess weight, most of them genetic. Basically, no one can do anything about it in that regard. Different people carry extra weight in different ways.
Ways to Lose Weight
Once the time has come to lose not just belly fat, but all the extra weight you want to drop, you'll have to do it the right way. The right way is not the fad diets that pop up every week, nor is it taking on some bland and boring diet that most people give up after a few weeks because it takes all the joy out of eating entirely. Also, be careful of any diets that have a drastic reduction in calories - calories are necessary and too few can be a great risk to your health in general.
Everyone needs protein, everyone needs carbohydrates, and yes, everyone even needs fat. Everyone also needs foods that taste good, look appealing, and are fun to eat. When a diet is bland, boring, and tasteless, no one is going to follow it. It's just easier to go back to the old ways of eating. If you want to lose belly fat, a few little changes may be enough, instead of making huge life changes in the way you eat and exercise.
Protein can be a great help when it comes to losing weight, especially when using supplements like Protein Taffy and Protein Twist, both from Protica. Both of these can serve as the perfect between-meal snacks, since protein takes longer to digest, which means it is more satisfying than many other foods for a longer period of time. When the edge is off your hunger, it's easier to eat less.
Spreading out meals is a great tactic to keep from eating too much when mealtimes do come, preventing overeating, especially at lunch or dinner. The idea is to give your metabolism exercise. The more work your metabolism has to do, burning food practically all day long, the faster and stronger it will become. Small meals, spaced about two to four hours apart, ending with a small protein-based snack at the end of the day is a good plan to follow. Start the day with protein and complex carbohydrates to get the energy you need not only to get through the day, but to lose belly fat - and any other excess fat you might be carrying.

by Protica Research.

How to Lose Belly Fat - ABC's of How to Lose Tons of Belly Fat

Now, I won't lie: you can usually find me surfing around "Yahoo! Answers," weight loss forums, and other places trying to help people meet their physical goals, but do you know how many times I hear the same question? "Can someone help my learn how to lose belly fat?" I find it sad that the waistline of the world is growing. But what I find more disappointing is that there is way too much information out there that isn't giving people the truth about losing their stomach. Instead, it hurts them...


The ABC's of How to Lose Tons of Belly Fat

The ABC's of how to lose belly fat is quick, easy, and can be started right away so that you don't have to wait on the results two, or three weeks from now (that most of the "popular" information states). So let's get down with some general "theory" of belly fat loss.


  1. Chances are that if you're looking to lose belly fat, you're more than likely not really concerned about the fat itself. However, this should not be the case because the worst fat to have is, in fact, belly fat. More on that later.
  2. Like the majority of people I talk to aren't concerned with the fat (primarily) you're probably more concerned with the physical appeal of losing your stomach. This is understandable! The abs tie the entire body together, and having a protruding stomach is really unattractive to many. (Sometimes it's not always the case.)
  3. Also like many of the people I talk to, you've probably been fed the basic "fad" information that works a little but is still not as effective as it could be. This is what the ABC's are all about: helping you effectively lose belly fat quick.


Ask anyone from the popular weight loss forums how to lose belly fat quickly, and they'll give you some promise like:


"There are a lot of ways to lose belly fat quickly (wrong) and any one of them will work (wrong). All you have to do is the following:


  1. "At Least 30 Minutes of Cardiovascular exercise a day.
  2. "Crunches, Oblique Crunches, and Use Ab Machines.
  3. "Eat 4 - 6 Low Calorie, Small meals a day.


"If you do these things, you will get the sculpted abs you want."

First, let me tell you that I have absolutely nothing against that advice. It's decent enough advice and works for thousands of people every day. However, for the majority of those people; they suffer through long, grueling hours of cardio, crunches that are only half effective, and they starve their body of much needed nutrients all for a pound every two days (maybe even that).

The following ABC's aren't for the faint of heart. They're intense, but highly effective. If you've ever wanted to know how to lose belly fat on a large scale, making your efforts exponentially easier each and every workout, then remember these ABC's. Print them out if you have to.

"A" is for: ACTIVITY

Like many people, you're probably extremely busy throughout your day. Maybe you've got kids, school, job, recreational activities, and friends who suck every minute out of your day. I understand that you cannot, at all, focus on getting a workout in. This is a big problem that I've had to think of a plan of attack for. And I found it.

In a day and age when we don't go out into our fields and plow, or we don't go down to the well and get water to haul back toward the house, we need to find ways to keep our metabolism high throughout the day. Our lives circulate around sitting at a computer, at a desk, or just standing around. To combat that, you need to remain active.

To do this, get into your head that "3 minutes of each hour, I am going to do some sort of bodyweight exercise (like pushups, lunges, body squats, dips, or any sort of full body dumbbell exercise - if you don't have dumbbells, you can use a filled water jug;) - no excuses! If you want this, you've got to be innovative and dedicated!)." You might look a little foolish, but at least within a few days you won't be fat. Let people laugh now, then let them stare later.

Write up a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday plan, and stick to it every other weekday. Write down two or three body-weight exercises that you can do every hour (different exercises every other hour, preferably). Do these every hour from 9:00AM - 6:00PM. This will do two things: a) build stamina for your entire body through muscle building, and functional strength training, and b) burn calories throughout the entire day without losing an entire half-hour at once.

"B" is for: BUILD MUSCLE

Now, if you CAN dedicate some time to the gym, or if you have a set of dumbbells at your house, what you need to do to lose belly fat is build muscle. Muscle is living tissue. Unlike your hair, finger nails, and millions of skin cells that you lose every day, your muscle actually takes calories to maintain. These calories are constantly coming in through the food you eat, but if you're not active enough throughout your day, those calories turn into fat (as storage, your body assumes you'll use it later).


If you want to make your body burn more calories faster, you're going to need to build more muscle. To do this, I recommend you do full body resistance training with higher intensity than you're use to. Exercises like, squats, lunge and press, full squats (going from squat to semi-jump), or even sprints will burn more calories than just cardio alone, and they will also build the much needed muscle in order to passively burn extra calories throughout the day.

You'd be surprised how much of a cardio workout full body exercises are, too. So don't knock them. If you want to know how to lose belly fat quickly, my suggestion is that you find some awesome full-body exercises, and start working them today.

"C" is for: CUTTING OUT GARBAGE

If there is one key element in all of your goal of getting a smaller waist, it's cleaning up your diet. If you're wondering how to lose belly fat, and yet you're still eating a lot of junk foods and stuff like that, you'll never get there. At least not as quickly as you want to.

Now sure, your friends are all thin and they eat whatever they want! Well, you're not losing weight for them, are you? Junk food (sweets, processed flours, and some super-sweet fruits) are all filled with sugars that are going to be saved as fat if not burned off immediately. I could go all day with nutrition, but you don't have the time, and neither do I. Here are the basics to a nutritious diet.


  1. Eat lean proteins like chicken, fish, beans, and egg whites. These will help your body build the muscle needed to burn off your belly fat.
  2. Eat the "good" fats found in many nuts, olives, and fish. These fats help your body mobilize the "bad" fat that's stored away in your body, and they're also great for inflammation in your heart.
  3. Eat the right carbohydrates that are found in whole grain breads and veggies. Fiber will help you stay fuller longer so that you don't get the munchies. It also keeps your colon clean, which is healthy in and of itself.


Proteins, Fats, and Carbs are called "macronutrients" that are daily essentials to keep your body going smoothly. If you're eating empty calories from candies, sodas, and other junk food, then you're depriving your body of its much needed nutrition that will ultimately keep you gaining body fat!

Now We Know our ABC's...

You're set! You now know the ABC's to how to lose belly fat quickly, safely, and starting right now. What are you going to do? Are you going to just sit there, and keep asking the same question over and over? I gave you the answer, now it's time for you to execute the plan!

 by Bryan Miller.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

The Three Top Abdominal Exercises for Women

Everyone admires beautiful abs. Women and men alike consider ab exercises to be some of the toughest exercises of all. However, this is not true. Abdominal exercise can be easier than you think. Both the upper and lower abdominal muscles need to be worked to get the best overall look and strength. There are a variety of crunch positions that will work but here are three of the best ab exercises for women who want to get great results.
Exercise ball crunches - This is a good one if you are just starting to exercise.
- Step 1 - Sit on the ball and place your hands on the back of your head and walk your legs out lowering your body on to the ball until your upper back and shoulders are all that remain on top of the ball. Legs should be shoulder width apart.
- Step 2 - Lift your pelvic to straighten your lower back and tighten your buttocks and contract the abdomen muscles.
- Steps 3 - Keeping your elbows pointing out to the side slowly raise the shoulders slightly being careful not to pull the neck. You should feel the crunch in the abdominals; the thighs and buttock muscles will be working too.
- Step 4 - Hold the position for a moment then slowly lower the shoulders to the ball and repeat for as many times as you can perform the exercise without straining.
Rest for 30 seconds or less between sets. Do 2 or 3 sets of 12 to 15 repetitions every other day.
Floor bicycle movement - This exercise does not require any equipment.
- Step 1 - Lie on your back with your hands behind your head and legs straight out.
- Step 2 - Contract your abdomen muscles and lift one leg bending your knee while raising your shoulders slightly off the floor without pulling your neck.
- Step 3 - Bring your elbow and knee together bending so that the elbow and knee just touch.
- Step 4 - Lower and then change sides so the alternate legs in a bicycle movement touching knee to elbow. Repeat.
Move through the positions slowly. You can vary this ab exercise by bringing the knee and elbow of the opposite sides together requiring the upper body to turn slightly from side to side. This maneuver is very effective and works the oblique as well as both the upper and lower abdominals.
Hanging Knee Raises - This is a most effective exercise but needs gym equipment (Captain's Chair. )
- Step 1 - The body is held upright by the arms resting on padded arm bars with the feet handing down. The lower back is straight and supported by a back rest.
- Step 2 - Contract the abdominal muscles and lift both knees slowly up toward the chest,
- Step 3 - Pause and then slowly lower the legs back down to the starting position. The muscles are constantly contracted throughout the exercise.
This abdominal workout is the most effective because it works both the upper and lower abs, back and arm muscles for an overall core strengthening exercise.
The Best Results
It's not enough to just focus on doing abdominal exercise. For women especially, - you can have rock hard abdominal muscles, but if there is body fat covering them you won't be able to see them. To make these exercises not only pay off but really show off you need to consider the following;
- Eating a well balanced diet low in saturated fats
- Doing a cardio or Aerobic warm-up before a workout
- Stretching both before and after exercise for increased flexibility
- Making regular exercise part of your lifestyle
Diet Is Important
Pay attention to what you eat and when you eat. It is as important as exercising if you want to lose weight or maintain an ideal body weight. If you want results you have to do the things that are needed to get the results. It is as simple as that. Once you get started in any exercise program it will become second nature and a part of your everyday routine. So suck in that stomach and get the beautiful abs you always wanted.

Best Ab Exercises For Men - Simple and Effective Tips to Get a Flat Toned Sexy Body!

Need I enumerate all those actors who have the best sculpted bodies in the movies? From Brad, to Gerard, to Taylor, the list will go on... But have you ever seen the pictures of women with a 6 pack? I'm sorry, but IMAO, women should look like women, and men look like men. The best Ab exercises for men are targeted for the male anatomy. I don't care about the equality of the sexes when it comes to work and politics, but physically?
Equality?
Even among men, there are differences in body types. If your genetic make-up does not allow you to have a 6 pack, the least you can do is to have a strong flat stomach. There is nothing like a good physique to attract the female species. Logically, before setting unattainable goals, go for the safety of flat stomach and strong muscles as the primary target. The exercises are not just for the attainment of a 6 pack.
Tried and Proven
Again the list. People always demand for a list of the best Ab exercises for men. This list is also works for women to attain a flat stomach. So here are the top proven exercises that are sure to give you a flat and strong belly: Bicycle, Captain's chair leg raise, Crunch ball sit ups, Vertical leg crunch, Torso track leg lifts, Long arm crunch, Reverse crunch, Vertical crunch, Ab rocker, Plank plunge, Crunch with a twist, Leg flutter, and Trunk twists.
How to use it
Okay, so the list is there. Check out the exercises first; see what works best for you. Next, you should start slowly and few reps, to prepare your muscles for the workout it is about to receive. The exercises do not start quickly. It is a gradual increase of strength that will sculpt the best Abs.
Reality Bites
Did I mention food? It is important that you should eat when you do the best Ab exercises for men. A healthy body makes for a better body. Eating small meals, 4-6 times a day with the proper foods like fruits and vegetables, lots of water and vitamin supplements are compliments to the workout. Failure to eat is failure of the workout, and the Abs.

By Jason Woody.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

To lose belly fat fast...

You need to go on one of these permanent fat loss plans here to lose fat all over your body because...
  • You can't lose weight in just ONE spot on your body and also...
  • There's no ONE special exercise or diet that only targets your belly fat and usually when you lose weight.
  • Your Belly fat is the last to go so even if you're currently losing weight and you still have belly fat...
  • That just means you still have to keep dieting & exercising until you lose your belly fat.

5 Critical Tips to Keep Up Your Weight Loss Motivation

Weight loss motivation is one of the most important parts of losing weight. However, keeping your motivation can be very difficult. The following are five important tips to stay motivated to lose weight. These aren't dieting secrets; they are just good sense.
• Stick to small goals-1 or 2 pounds a week instead of far flung goals. That way you get the sense of accomplishment fast and it's easier to keep.
• Motivate yourself to cook more healthily through cooking classes and comparing how much money you save buying groceries instead of eating out!
• Ignore the fast weight loss schemes in favor of steady progress. There is no way to lose twenty pounds in two weeks and keep it off; this is just speed dieting and you'll get it back and then some later. The best motivation to lose weight is by seeing steady progress, not progress that jumps around.
• Stay positive; don't think of a diet as something restrictive, but instead as a chance to try new foods and moderate old habits. For example, you don't have to cut out treats entirely, just bring junk food back to the realm of treats and rewards. This way, you won't got into your diet feeling as though you are going to be suffering through the whole thing-it's more of an adventure and a positive experience.
• Listen to other weight loss stories and copy their good examples while learning from their mistakes. We're all human and knowing that other success stories are riddled with mistakes will make you feel better about your own journey.
Your mindset is half the battle of weight loss motivation. However, staying positive, having a range of small healthy goals instead of one far flung goal and staying true to your course is the best way to stay motivated to lose weight and stay positive throughout.

By Edward Griss.

Lose Your Fat Belly

Nothing is more frustrating than having stubborn belly fat that will not go away, no matter what you eat or even how much weight you lose.
 It prevents you from wearing the clothes you really want and stops you from feeling comfortable, attractive and confident.
   Well, let me tell you it is not your fault!
   Belly Fat is unique in that it is designed as a quick and efficient storage site for energy (fat). It is highly sensitive to stress, exercise and starvation, and this makes it your bodies first choice when it comes to laying down fat.
   It does NOT respond to mainstream weight loss diets - pushed by the BIG food and fitness industry - that focus on long exercise and calorie restriction.
   These diets turn on what is called your "starvation protection mechanism". This raises your stress hormone Cortisol, a hormone that specifically tells the body to store belly fat.
   It is no surprise Cortisol leads you to gain belly fat as our abdominals have 4 times the Cortisol receptors than normal fat.
    Ok, so now we know that mainstream diets don't work, you would think exercise would do the trick, right?
   Unfortunately, aerobic exercise does the exact same thing. Your general weight loss exercise like walking, cycling and jogging. This type of exercises releases Cortisol that tells the body to store energy (fat), lower its metabolism in order to save energy and metabolize (destroy) muscle.
    Sounds bad right? Well, what you may not also know is that belly fat has been scientifically linked to many health problems, such as; bloating, heart burn, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer and dementia.  Scary, ha?
    So by trying to lose belly fat you are unintentionally gaining belly fat, and putting your health at risk. That's is why belly fat is so damn stubborn!