A slim waistline is an attractive sign of good health and physical fitness in both men and women. Fat around your midsection can make fitting into your clothing difficult, but more seriously, it can also put you at risk for disease as well. A few lifestyle changes can have you well on your way to a slimmer waistline.
Aerobic Exercise
It takes aerobic exercise to burn fat, and burning fat is the first step toward a slimmer waistline. Choose workouts that will get your heart rate up to maximize fat and calorie burn. Running, walking, swimming and indoor cycling are good aerobic activities. Consider exercise classes -- they can teach valuable information about form and exercise safety and add a bit of spice to any routine workout schedule. Aerobic exercise won't help you focus on your waist, but it will help you take inches off all over your body.
Incorporating Strength Training
Strength training is another important part of a fat burning diet, according to MayoClinic.com. You have a few different options when it comes to strength training, so do a bit of experimenting and find what works best for you. Resistance bands and tubes, free weights, hand weights, weight machines and even body weight can all help you get in the calorie-burning strength training workout you need. Like aerobic exercise, strength training can help complete your workout and help you burn more fat from around your waist and the rest of your body.
Ab Exercises
Ab exercises are a critical part of an exercise routine for a person looking to slim down the waist. The waist is made up of the abdominals and abdominal obliques, and to slim down, you have to burn fat and tone muscles in that area. Experiment with sit-ups, crunches, leg lifts, leg raises and other abdominal exercises to find the ones that interest you most and are most effective for you. Then incorporate them into your everyday fitness routine.
Oblique Exercises
Abdominal oblique exercises can help trim and tighten your waist. They focus on the abdominal muscles on the outside. While they can't burn fat off of just the waist area, oblique exercises can help tighten those muscles and make the waist appear smaller and tighter. The side plank is one of the more effective oblique exercises. Lie on a mat in the pushup position and then turn your body sideways so that one shoulder is down and the other is in the air. Your elbow should be down on the ground and your body straight from feet to shoulders. Hold that position for as long as you can and then release. Do a few sets of these on each side to work both sides of your abdominal obliques.
Diet
Exercise is only half the battle. You must pay attention to your diet as well. Incorporate fiber-filled fruits and vegetables, as they can keep you full for longer periods of time and help to prevent overeating. Incorporate more whole grains into your diet and avoid sugar to prevent excessive weight gain. Drink plenty of water, which can discourage water retention, which causes bloating and puffiness around the waist.
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