Combine toning exercises with a healthy diet to lose the last couple of pounds around your waist. While it is impossible to spot-reduce fat from a specific area, toning the abdominal muscles creates a flatter belly, the Mayo Clinic explains.
Dieters who lost more than 30 pounds and have kept the excess weight off for more than a year exercise an average of one hour a day, and most stick to a low-fat diet, the National Weight Control Registry reports. Keep track of your diet and exercise progress to motivate yourself to lose those last excess pounds.
Exercise
Step 1
Make exercise part of your lifestyle. Choose activities you enjoy and can stick with. A walking program, for example, gets you outdoors, allows you to unwind and helps to tone your entire body. Engage in moderate exercise most days of the week to help lose belly fat, recommends the Mayo Clinic.
Step 2
Keep an exercise journal. Track your exercise time and intensity and write notes about your progress. For example, write "9 A.M. September 28: brisk 30-minute neighborhood walk. Less winded walking up the stairs!"
Step 3
Tone your deep abdominal muscles by pulling your belly in and holding the contraction for a slow count of 10. Imagine you're trying to pull your navel toward your spine. Release the contraction, and repeat. Add more repetitions until you're able to do 10 abdominal pull-ins at a time, the Mayo Clinic instructs.
Step 4
Set times for exercise and stick to them. Treat your exercise time as an appointment, as important as going to work or showing up for any other scheduled activity in your life. If you have to miss a scheduled session, reschedule it.
Healthy Diet
Step 1
Maintain a healthy diet with plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains and a moderate amount of healthy fats, such as olive oil. Whole foods with fiber help you to feel more satisfied.
Step 2
Pay attention to how much you eat and drink. Weigh and measure your food one day a week to stay conscious of serving sizes.
Step 3
Learn to recognize portion sizes by sight. This will help you to remain conscious of how many calories, exchanges, points or food-group servings you're consuming when you eat away from home. A 3-ounce piece of chicken, fish, pork or steak is the size of a deck of cards; a half-cup of cooked vegetables is the size of a light bulb; and a half cup of cooked rice is the size of a tennis ball, according to University of Illinois' McKinley Health Center.
Step 4
Try an online food tracker, such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture's "MyPyramid Tracker" or LIVESTRONG's MyPlate. Use the food tracker to become more conscious of what you're eating. Keeping a food diary or using a food tracker will help you notice any weakness or overindulgence in your diet that might be holding you back from your goals. For example, you might be getting more fat calories from lattes, cheese or salad dressing than you realize.
Tips and Warnings
- Write down all the food and drinks you consume. Unnoticed calories from second helpings, tasting foods, nibbling between meals, cocktails, soft drinks, sweetened coffees and teas, eating while watching TV or driving, and other unconscious consumption can sabotage your efforts to lose those last couple of pounds. Limit alcohol, sweets and high-fat foods.
- Consult your doctor about health concerns and dietary or exercise changes. Avoid fasting, fad diets and extremely-low-calorie diets. These can harm your health, slow your metabolism and cause you to regain more weight than you had to start with.
Things You'll Need
- Food and exercise journal
- Online food tracker (optional)
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