If you’re like most people, getting rid of belly fat is a tremendous struggle. In fact, you may feel as though you have tried every single technique imaginable, and yet, there it is – that bulge that simply refuses to leave you be. On the other hand, we have those dishonorable companies taking advantage of your frustration by promising you easily-achievable success without any effort on your part. All you need to do is wear an ‘ab-belt,’ or some other piece of what appears to be abstract art, and boom – the pounds will melt off!
It’s insulting, isn’t it? You may be frustrated, but you aren’t stupid! You want results, and you want to achieve those results by following the advice of someone being straightforward and honest. Is it too much to ask? Well, I’m here to help you cut through all of the gimmicks and false promises. Here are two philosophies to keep in mind that, over time, will help you end up with the health and the body shape you want.
1. Multi-joint Exercises
If you want to lose weight, you’ll obviously need to work out – but what’s truly important is how you go about structuring these exercise routines. In short, you need to avoid getting bogged down in time-wasting reps – crunches, torso twists, leg lifts, etc. For more than a decade now, respectable fitness magazines have been advising against spot-reduction as a weight-loss technique. Unfortunately, the myth of targeted workouts being useful really is a persistent one!
Don’t misunderstand, though: There really are a number of abdominal exercises that really are good for you; they can assist you in maintaining a health chest, stomach, and back. Still, it remains a fact that these sorts of exercises should be nothing more than a small part of a larger, more encompassing workout regimen that utilizes multi-joint exercises.
The best method for losing weight anywhere on your body is to work out the entire body, period. Multi-joint exercises help to burn more fat, burn more calories, and boost your metabolism for up to 48 hours after you have finished working out! Your body will also produce more fat-burning hormones, such as testosterone, if you work out the entire body instead of a small portion you hope to improve.
What are some good full-body exercises you can use? Grab a barbell, and do some squats, some lunges, some step-ups, and some chest and back work. Intensity is also key – no five-minute rest period between routines! Once your body is in workout-mode, with your heart pounding and your breathing heavy, you need to keep up the hard work! Get in as much as you can before you simply need to stop. Anyone who tells you that there’s an easier way to lose weight is simply lying to you!
2. The importance of nutrition
When I mention nutrition, I don’t mean ‘diets.’ Diets don’t work – or more accurately, they work against your body if your goal is to lose stomach fat. There are many gimmicks diets out there – the low-carb diet, the low-fat diet, the grapefruit diet, the soup diet, and so on and so forth. These diets attempt to restrict one or more macro-nutrient(s), but by cutting out protein, or carbs, or fat entirely, you’ll inevitably end up losing muscle mass while your metabolic rate sinks lower and lower. Worse yet, you’ll only end up fatter when you do give up and start eating normally again!
Without getting too technical, let me just say that these diets are messing up your normal hormonal balance by affecting all sorts of processes that pertain to that very balance! Maybe it’s the glycogen process, or insulin levels, blood-sugar – it doesn’t matter, because your fat loss will effectively be frozen until your body is once again in appropriate balance!
Fad diets are just that, and will never truly be successful for anyone outside of the companies responsible for making money from frustrated, gullible consumers. As a species, we are supposed to maintain a balanced diet – a diet that includes carbohydrates, fats, and proteins in conjunction with minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, and enzymes your body needs to run properly. Similarly, we’re supposed to continuously exercise our entire body – not simply a single part, hoping to mold it like a bit of clay!
Mike Geary, CPT, CNS, is the author of the internationally Best-Selling Abs program, The Truth About Abs, with readers in 150+ countries. Read more secrets on losing belly fat and visit his website now.
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