You must eat a healthy, balanced diet to lose your belly.
You must combine cardiovascular exercise that burns fat with exercises that tighten your stomach to lose your belly. Effective cardiovascular exercise include brisk walking, running, using the elliptical machine, biking and swimming. The more fat you carry on top of your stomach muscles, the more cardiovascular exercise you must do. Only doing exercises designed to tighten up your belly will not get rid of the fat. Eating a healthy, well balanced diet low in calories will also help to shrink that belly.
Instructions
1. Determine if your belly is a result of excess fat, weak stomach muscles or both before starting an exercise routine. Men should pinch the skin one inch to the right of their navel, and women the skin diagonally across their hips to estimate body fat levels. Use your thumb and index finger when grasping a skin fold. If the skin fold between your fingers feels thick, you must include considerable amounts of cardiovascular exercise in your routine and watch your diet. Aim for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. Remember that the harder you work out, the more fat and calories you will burn.
2. Work your core muscles as well as the superficial abdominal muscles. Strong core muscles work like a natural girdle, giving you the thinnest waist possible. Effective core exercises include the plank and stability ball walkouts. To do a plank, lie on the floor, face down, with your legs extended. Prop your body up on your forearms. Raise your torso and legs so that only the balls of your feet and your forearms touch the floor. Hold as long as you can, working toward a full minute. Your hips should never sag during this exercise. Lie face-down on top of a medium-sized stability ball, the ball right under your ribcage. Start walking with your hands so that the ball rolls toward your ankles and then back to the starting position, all the while keeping your body taut like a plank. Repeat 10 to 20 times.
3. Do bicycle crunches to work your superficial abdominals. To get the most out of this exercise, good form is essential. Lie face-up on the floor, put your hands at your ears and extend the elbows. Extend the left leg about 20 degrees from the floor in front of you. Bring your right leg into a 90-degree angle. Lift both shoulders off the floor and twist your torso to the right so that the left shoulder meets the right knee. Complete 15 repetitions with each leg and side.
Tags: cardiovascular exercise, your belly, balanced diet, calories will, core muscles