You've been trying for years to rid yourself of that spare tire around your middle. Perhaps you've given up.
This article offers 5 ways to help you lose tummy fat fast, and lose it once and for all.
The secret to using these methods to lose belly fat quickly is to combine them. When you do, you create a fearsome 5-barreled weapon with which to attack your fat.
In effect, you're ganging up on your fat and letting it know you don't intend to play nice any longer. You will accept nothing less than total surrender!
Here, then, are the 5 components of your new super weapon, the fastest way to lose belly fat that I know of, aside from expensive (and potentially risky) liposuction treatments.
1. A low-carb or balanced-carb diet.
If you are overweight, make it your goal to reduce your overall body fat. Although experts argue about the best diet for losing weight, the various low-carb approaches seem to work for the majority of people.
A low-carb diet will let you see quick results, which is important for staying motivated. But for long-lasting results I urge you to adopt a "balanced-carb" diet.
A balanced-carb diet--or more properly, a balanced-nutrients diet--recognizes that we all differ in our genetic heritages, metabolisms and food preferences. Our nutritional needs therefore differ, too.
The weight-loss plans that get my top recommendation are the ones that teach you how to tailor a diet to your very specific requirements. Some excellent ones are even downloadable from the Web.
2. Cardio exercise.
To really take off fat you need to make regular workouts a part of your life. This means exercise that works up a sweat and gets your heat pumping.
No need to kill yourself doing it, though. If you have access to a gym, 15 minutes on a stairstep machine or 25 minutes on a treadmill, three times a week, will give tremendous benefits. Combined with the other components of our 5-pronged super-weapon to get rid of belly fat, the results will amaze you.
Can't get to a gym? Take brisk--and I mean really brisk--walks as often as you can get outdoors. Aim for walking at least a mile every time.
Short stretches of jogging, to get the heart rate up, are also fine. But I'm not an advocate of running for most people--there's too much risk of knee damage and other serious consequences.
3. Abdominal crunches.
There's no such thing as spot reduction of fat, short of medical intervention of some kind. Therefore, strictly speaking, you cannot exercise to lose belly fat.
But there are spot exercises for strengthening and defining muscles, including the abdominals or "abs."
Performing ab crunches at the same time that you are shedding body fat through dieting and cardio is a one-two punch for acquiring a slimmer, trim looking waist in the quickest time.
You must do the crunches correctly, though! Herewith the basic instructions:
First, lie on your back on an exercise mat or carpeted floor. Bend your knees so your feet are flat on the exercise surface and as wide apart as the width of your hips.
Now, place your hands behind your head, interlacing the fingers. Tuck your thumbs behind your ears for added support.
To perform one crunch, curl forward and up, lifting your head, neck and shoulder blades off the mat. Pause for a moment or two, squeezing your abdominal muscles as you do. Then, slowly lower your head, neck and shoulder blades back to the floor and the position you started in.
Very important: On the "lift-off" part of the crunch, avoid using your hands to pull your head forward. Using your hands for a boost will cheat your abdominals of their workout and negate most of the benefits of this exercise.
If you find you can't keep from puling your head forward with your hands, try doing crunches with your arms at your sides.
Be sure to keep your feet in the same position and your back straight throughout the entire crunch.
Do 10 crunches in a row, rest for 30 seconds, then do 10 more. Continue in this way until you can't do any more.
4. A "forbidden" Tibetan exercise.
Lie flat on an exercise mat or carpeted floor, arms along your sides, palms down. Raise your head off the floor and tuck your chin against your chest. At the same time, lift your legs straight up off the mat to a vertical position, without bending the knees.
When performed correctly, at the top of the movement your legs will be straight up, perpendicular to the floor, or even extended back over your body toward your head a bit. Just be sure to keep them straight (no bending the knees)!
Now, slowly lower both your legs and your head back to the mat. Relax your body, then repeat the exercise. Work up to doing a set of 21 repetitions every day.
This simple exercise is one of five supposedly secret Tibetan "rites" said to be able to turn back the aging clock and make a person look up to twenty years younger if performed diligently over a period of time (at least several months).
All of the "Five Tibetans," as the rites are often called, are claimed to work by speeding up energy vortexes in the body. The one I chose to describe here would seem to have a specific effect on the abdominal region as well.
One book on the Tibetan rites contains testimonials saying, among other benefits, that the exercises helped people lose abdominal flab. One woman reported trying on her sister's dress to find that "it was so tight it looked terrible on me," but after just 10 days of doing the Tibetan rites, "I tried it on again, and it fit beautifully." She found it amazing that her body shape had improved so much in such a short time.
Don't dismiss this little exercise because it sounds too simple, or because the story behind it will strike some as a little kooky. Just try it and see if it helps you to lose stomach fat.
5. A magic pill
DHEA is an amazing substance being hailed for all sorts of miracle effects, from slowing the aging process to reviving flagging libidos. It is produced naturally in our bodies but the levels drop off considerably as we age.
Some scientific studies have shown that taking DHEA as a dietary supplement can help shrink belly fat, too. The good news is, DHEA is widely available over the counter and is relatively inexpensive.
Be aware, though, that DHEA is a powerful "prohormone"--a substance that triggers the production of other hormones in the body. You should take it only in consultation with your doctor.
More research is needed, but DHEA may offer the easiest way yet to lose belly fat. If you decide to try it (again, only with your doctor's concurrence), I nevertheless urge you to do so in conjunction with exercise and dieting as recommended above.
There you have it, your five-barreled weapon to help you lose gut fat. Your success is now up to you.
Denny Waldarmo is a fitness coach who writes on exercise and diet topics. For the Solid Gold Info web site, he reviews books and other products related to these topics.
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