Losing your belly fat and love handles should be a high priority. Carrying extra abdominal fat means that you are far more likely to develop heart disease or type 2 diabetes. Moreover, it can be uncomfortable and psychologically devastating. Focus on workout techniques that directly target your trouble areas to banish fat from your belly and love handles. Support your new fat-burning workout with proper nutrition to pull it all together and get into the best shape of your life in no time.
Step 1
Start doing resistance training, which is the best way to burn fat, according to "Xtreme Lean" author Jonathan Lawson. If you are a beginner, start with three full body workouts per week. More advanced trainees can specialize their training with a five-day split. For example, do arms, shoulders, legs, chest and back on separate days. Obviously, the more workouts you get in, the more calories you can burn.
Step 2
Do squats first in your workout. Squats target the entire body, and they trigger the production of potent fat-burning hormones that directly target the midsection, says "Combat the Fat" author Jeff Anderson. Start light until you have mastered the move (see Resources for Exercise Guide) and gradually increase the weight as you progress. For an excellent fat-burning stimulus, try 20-rep sets.
Step 3
Add one NA, or negative-accentuated, set for each exercise in your workout program. Lawson calls these sets negative-accentuating because you do a slow negative or lowering stroke of the lift. By counting out six seconds while lowering the weight on any exercise, you create micro-tears in muscle tissue. For up to 72 hours, your body burns extra fat and calories to repair the damage. Do only one NA set per exercise to prevent extreme muscle soreness.
Step 4
Do an abs workout before your cardiovascular training. The "Muscle & Performance" article, "Chisel Your Middle" by Eric Velazquez, recommends doing two sets of reverse crunches, barbell rollouts, twisting v-sits and exercise ball crunches for eight to 12 reps each. Increase your sets and/or add more exercises from one workout to another. Do not be afraid to add some heavy resistance to challenge your abdominal muscles.
Step 5
Do one to three sessions of high-intensity interval training per week. "The Abs Diet" recommends this form of cardio because it has an after-burn effect, accelerating metabolism for hours after you finish. Alternate between short intervals of high- and medium-to-low intensity cardio on any machine for 20 to 30 minutes. If you want to add extra cardio sessions, use steady-state cardio, as too much high-intensity interval training can put a lot of strain on the joints.
Step 6
Decrease your caloric intake to 13 or 14 calories per pound of body weight, says the "Muscle & Fitness" article, "Your 10 Pound Diet Plan" by Joe Wuebben and Jim Stoppani. For a 180-lb. man, that equals about 2,500 calories per day. While calories are not the whole story, when it comes to weight loss, they definitely play an important role.
References
- "Xtreme Lean"; Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman; 2005.
- "Combat the Fat"; Jeff Anderson; 2008.
- "Muscle & Performance"; Chisel Your Middle; Eric Velazquez; April 2010.
- "The Abs Diet"; David Zinczenko; 2004.
- "Muscle & Fitness" Presents 2010 Edition The Ultimate Supplement Handbook; "Your 10 Pound Diet Plan"; Joe Wuebben and Jim Stoppani.
Member Comments