Love handles cover up your oblique muscles, which are found on the sides of your stomach. To lose this fat quickly, you not only need to focus on your obliques, but you also have to look at your whole body. Weight is lost throughout the body; the love handles get included by default. The overall plan involves exercise and a different approach with your diet.
Step 1
Become more conscious of what you are eating. Give up the high-fat, high-sodium, high-sugar foods in your diet. This includes burgers, fries, pizza, wings, ribs, candy bars, cakes, cookies and sausages. Have your diet consist mainly of nutrient packed foods such as lean meats, fish, poultry, whole grains, beans, fruits and vegetables. Eat small meals every few hours to keep your hunger under control.
Step 2
Reduce your love handles and the fat on the rest of your body with cardiovascular exercise. The exercise should be moderate to high intensity. To lose weight, you need to do 60 to 90 minutes of cardio, according to the American College of Sports Medicine. Running, group indoor cycling, stair climbing, rowing, inline skating and elliptical training are examples. Work out three days a week on nonconsecutive days.
Step 3
Increase your muscle mass to also increase your resting metabolism. Do exercises that target all of your major muscle groups, such as chest presses, upright rows, bent-over rows, dips, curls and lunges. Aim for 10 to 12 reps, three to four sets and work out on three non-cardio days a week.
Step 4
Hang from a pull-up bar to do oblique knee raises. Grasp the bar with an overhand, shoulder-width grip and let your legs hang straight. Pull your knees up and toward your right shoulder. Hold for a second, lower your legs and repeat to your left side. Alternate back and forth in a steady motion until you've done 15 to 20 reps with each side.
Step 5
Execute a set of side crunches on a stability ball. Position your right hip near the top of the ball, stagger your feet on the floor and place your hands on the sides of your head. Bend laterally over the ball, bend back up by contracting your obliques and repeat. Do a set of 15 to 20 reps and switch sides. Brace your feet against a wall if you are off balance.
Step 6
Perform stability ball plank twists. Place your hands shoulders-width apart on the floor and your thighs on the ball with your knees bent and feet in the air. Your body should be in a push-up position at this point. Bend at the hips slightly and keep your upper body still as you rotate your lower body back and forth to your right and left side. Move in a steady motion and do 15 to 20 reps on each side.
Tips and Warnings
- Perform three to four sets of your oblique exercises after your weight training.
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