Beach bums, fitness models and athletes often sport washboard bellies with sleek, sexy abs. To develop their toned stomachs, these people do more than endless crunches. Although late-night infomercials might tell you otherwise, no single piece of home gym equipment is enough to give you calendar-worthy abs. Instead, burn more calories than you consume to lose fat from your middle, and tone your core from every angle to develop and maintain the look you want.
Step 1
Perform cardio exercise for at least 150 minutes each week. Increase the duration or intensity of your workouts to burn more calories and lose belly fat faster. Vary your workouts between walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, dancing and aerobics classes to keep yourself interested and motivated.
Step 2
Cut empty calories from your diet. Avoid sugary and salty snacks, excess fat, white bread and marbled meat. Limit the amount of soda and alcohol you drink. Reduce the amount of processed food you eat because it often contains unhealthy amounts of trans fat and sodium.
Step 3
Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. Use lean meat, fish, low-fat dairy products, legumes and tofu as protein sources. Replace processed grains with whole grains. Drink mostly water.
Step 4
Sit down to eat and pay attention to your meal. You'll feel more satisfied by your food, and you'll be less likely to overeat. Replace dinner plates with salad plates and eat with a salad fork, advises the American Dietetic Association. Smaller dishes help you control your portion size, and smaller utensils help you eat more slowly, which gives your brain time to register when you are no longer hungry.
Step 5
Do ab exercises at least two days each week, more if you can. Construct a routine for yourself that works your outer abs, transverse abs, obliques and lower back. Don't limit yourself to basic crunches; include bicycle crunches, situps over a fitness ball and planks.
Step 6
Practice Pilates one or two days each week. Pilates lengthens and tones your entire body, and it focuses particularly on the core. You burn calories while you do the workouts, too, which helps you lose weight faster.
Step 7
Continue your Pilates and ab workouts when you have achieved your desired look. You can add some healthy calories back into your diet, so you are no longer creating a caloric deficit and losing more weight, but don't stop exercising. The only way to maintain a toned stomach is to maintain your toning exercise routine.
Tips and Warnings
- Talk with your doctor before beginning a diet or exercise routine. Ask a fitness trainer to demonstrate the proper form for ab exercises to maximize their effect. Have her watch you while you try the exercises to make sure you are doing them correctly.
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