The obliques are muscles that run along the sides of the stomach in a diagonal orientation. Fat that covers these muscles has acquired the "love handles" description over the years. Taking an easy approach to losing them doesn't mean you do not need discipline. You must make changes to your diet and become more active to lose weight. Since you cannot spot reduce, focus on losing weight throughout your entire body and toning your oblique area.
Step 1
Substitute your high-fat foods with low-energy density foods. Give up the bacon double-cheeseburgers, cream-filled doughnuts, french fries, ribs and chili dogs. Structure your diet around fruits, vegetables, whole grains and leafy greens, which are high in fiber, low in calories and take up a lot of volume.
Step 2
Monitor your calories for a day and make a reduction to promote weight loss. A daily reduction of 500 calories will cause you to lose about 1 lb. a week, notes the Mayo Clinic.
Step 3
Drink water instead of liquid calorie beverages. Water is free of calories, it helps hydrate the body and it also flushes toxins from the system. Opt for water over soft drinks, sweetened teas, milkshakes, slushies and alcohol.
Step 4
Begin your day with a meal and continue to eat every 3 hours for the rest of the day. Eat meals that are small and balanced with protein and complex carbs. Create a meal out of apple slices with almond butter spread across the tops, for example. This will keep your energy levels high, metabolism lifted and appetite satisfied, according to Calories Per Hour website.
Step 5
Perform aerobic exercise to burn fat and lose your love handles. The easiest form is the one you will stick with over the course of time. Brisk walking, running, elliptical training, swimming and jumping rope are all efficient types. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 60 to 90 minutes of cardio for weight loss. Work out four or five days a week to get the best results.
Step 6
Spend time pressing weights to build muscle. When you build muscle, you increase your resting metabolic rate and burn calories more efficiently when you are not moving. Use weight machines, free weights or body weight to do exercises for all of your major muscle groups. Push-ups, shoulder presses, back rows, triceps extensions, biceps curls and leg extensions are exercise examples. Perform eight to 12 reps, do three or four sets and work out two or three days a week
Step 7
Execute oblique exercises to tone up your sides as you melt away the fat. Side crunches, Russian twists and side bends are oblique exercises. Aim for 15 to 20 reps, do three or four sets and work your obliques three days a week on alternating days.
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