You can monitor your weight loss success using several methods. You can step on the scale, measure your percentage of body fat or take your body's circumference measurements. The waistline is a common area for storing and carrying the majority of fat in the body. To improve your waistline, you will need to lose body fat. Each pound of body fat requires burning 3,500 calories, and you can achieve this through a combination of exercise and diet.
Step 1
Measure your starting point. Wrap the tape measure around your waist at the narrowest part above your belly button but below your sternum. Relax your muscles as you take the measurement. An additional measurement could be taken over the widest section of your stomach. Record your measurement for weekly or bi-weekly assessments.
Step 2
Cut out unnecessary beverages such as juice, soda and alcohol. Replace those drinks with plain water. These drinks carry empty calories, and eliminating them will help you lose weight.
Step 3
Eat five to six small nutritious meals per day. Cut out fast food, start eating breakfast and consume high protein snacks in between meals. Overall, to improve your waistline, eat fewer calories than you previously were eating.
Step 4
Perform aerobic exercise. Moderate to vigorous intensity exercise should be done for an average of 30 minutes at least five days per week, but even more may be required for steady weight loss. The aerobic exercise will help you burn additional calories.
Step 5
Work out with weights. Lifting weights to build muscle will increase your resting metabolic rate so that your body burns more calories even at rest. Performing core exercises, such as crunches, will help to tighten your stomach muscles and create a smaller waistline as you lose body fat.
Tips and Warnings
- Be patient. You might not see results in the first week or two, but if you stick with a program, you will succeed. Keep a food and exercise journal to monitor yourself and have proof of your efforts.
- Avoid fad diets such as the Atkins diet.
Things You'll Need
- Workout clothes
- Strength training equipment
- Measuring tape
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