Sure, a flat belly looks better in a bikini, but that's not the only reason you should focus on chiseling your core area. Keeping your middle little will also boost your health by reducing your risk of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.
5 No-Exercise Tips:
Of course exercise is important because it helps tone abdominal muscles, but there is a growing body of research that says that exercise alone is not enough. In fact, about 80% of your ability to reduce your waist circumference lies in your dietary choices. Here are five good non-exercise recommendations that will help you achieve your beach body shape.
- Ease up on the alcohol. Alcohol drinkers, especially beer drinkers, have higher hip-to-waist ratios than do wine-only drinkers or people who abstain.
- Add coconut oil. Brazilian researchers found that obese women who included unrefined, virgin coconut oil in their diets lost more weight around their waist than study counterparts who did not.
- Eat berries. The University of Michigan studied blueberries, in particular, and found that they not only reduce belly fat, but also lowered cholesterol and improved blood sugar.
- Reduce stress. Excess stress spikes cortisol - a hormone that contributes to the storage of belly fat.
- Get adequate sleep. A good night's sleep is a good way to promote weight loss in general, but belly fat is especially impacted by sleep or the lack thereof. For the best results, make sure you get at least 7 hours of sleep each night.
5 Exercise Tips:
Along with diet, exercise is an important component to losing belly fat and developing beach body abs. This is not spot reducing. Instead, abdominal exercises work in conjunction with other types of exercise to tone and build the muscles in your mid-section.
- Bird dog. Kneel on all fours and raise your left arm while extending your right leg. Hold for a few seconds. Repeat with your right arm and left leg.
- Boat pose. Sit on the floor and recline slightly. Life your thighs until they form a 45-degree angle to the floor. If you a beginner, you can hold the back of the thighs to make the exercise easier. If you are a bit more advanced, hold your arms out straight.
- Leg drop. Lie flat on the floor and raise both legs toward the ceiling. With hands by your side, lower your legs until they are about 6 inches from the floor. Raise your legs to the starting position and repeat.
- Hip lift. Lie flat on the floor and raise both legs to the ceiling. Place hands under your hips. Tighten your core and lift your hips straight off the floor.
- Torso twist. Sit on the floor cross-legged. Slowly rotate your torso to the right. Return to center. Then rotate left. Repeat.
There are many reasons to shrink your middle and go for that beach body look. For one thing, muffin tops and beer bellies are out.
But beyond aesthetics, there are a lot of other reasons to work on your belly fat. The larger your waist-to-hip ratio is, the higher your risk of having heart disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. So follow these 10 tips to reduce your risk and get fit starting now.
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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stephan_Iscoe
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