It can be a challenge for teen girls to lose excess weight around the waist and midsection. Being tempted with sugary, fatty and convenient snacks makes it tough to stick with a fitness routine and healthy diet, but the good news is that if teens pair a core strength training routine with regular aerobic exercise, it's likely that they'll soon see evidence of weight loss in the belly area.
Healthy Diet
It's tempting to eat too many fatty, oily, sugary or processed foods, but extra weight from them will most likely show up in the stomach and midsection. One effective way to trim down that middle area is to adopt a healthier diet that focuses on fresh, whole and unprocessed or minimally processed foods, which offer the most healthful nutrients and the least calories, fat and sugar. Teen girls should follow the United States Department of Agriculture's food pyramid recommendations for daily servings of fruits, vegetables, grains--at least half of them whole grains--along with low fat or nonfat dairy products and lean proteins. They can also bring a healthy lunch to school and snack on pieces of fruit or fresh vegetables.
Core Training
If a teen's core muscles are weak, it's unlikely that her midsection will look toned and slim. Luckily, core exercises are some of the simplest and quickest fitness maneuvers to complete, and they don't require any special equipment. Focus on movements that will define the waist and work multiple muscle groups at once, as CNN recommends. Try building a weekly routine that includes the plank pose, the quadruped, crunches, push ups, sit-ups and the bridge. Teens should start out slowly and practice each exercise, building their endurance gradually. Core training will increase muscle mass, which burns more calories at a resting heart rate than body fat does. Girls should aim to achieve a waist measurement around the belly button area of 35 inches or less.
Aerobics
Spot core exercises work well at toning muscles but are not as successful at encouraging fat loss and calorie burn, according to the Mayo Clinic. For that, teens need to add aerobics to their routines. The Cleveland Clinic recommends using elements of flexibility and stretching, strength training and cardiovascular work to lose weight most effectively. Girls should begin each aerobic workout with a brief period of dynamic stretching, such as a routine of arm circles and toe touches. Follow the warm up with a 30- to 45-minute session of cardiovascular activity, such as jogging, brisk walking, swimming, biking or dancing. The American College of Sports Medicine calls for a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate activity or 60 minutes of vigorous activity each week, but girls may need to do more to lose weight rather than just maintain it.
References
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: MyPyramid.gov - Inside the Pyramid
- Cleveland Clinic: Exercise and Weight Control
- American College of Sports Medicine: Physical Activity and Public Health Guidelines
- CNN: Core Exercises - Beyond Your Average Abs Routine; from Mayo Clinic
- Mayo Clinic: Belly Fat in Women - How to Keep It Off
Member Comments