Lose That Belly Fat

No one has ever been lured into a relationship by a flabby pot belly. Nor has anyone extended their life with a big tummy. That belly fat doesn't enhance the fit of your clothes. With all the tempting fast foods and a busy life, what are you to do? If you want to lose belly fat, you can. With a careful diet and consistent moderate exercise, you can lose belly fat, and keep it off!

The most common mistake people make when trying to lose belly fat is thinking that starving themselves will work. If you don't eat but exercise strenuously, you'll find yourself drained, hungry and still not losing weight. Another common strategy is to eat very little but fail to exercise. This approach won't lose that belly fat either.

The body doesn't operate that way. With inadequate food, your metabolism slows to compensate for the lack of food. So fat will be burned, but much less than with a combination of diet and exercise.

The secret to losing that fat is to reduce food portions, and get daily exercise. You can eat whatever you want, as long as it's nutritious and portions are smaller. Smaller portions allow you all the tastes you already enjoy, but because you're eating less, your body will be a fat burning machine without the awful side effects and dangers of starvation.

If you're going to consume 1500 calories per day, then a half-hour of belly exercise will be enough to slowly burn weight. If you want to ramp it up, then increase the amount of exercise as you see fit (pun intended). But half an hour of belly exercises are usually hard enough for a person to do.

Why is this? Why does it seem harder to lose belly fat than anywhere else on your body? It's not that you aren't burning fat, it's just that the stomach naturally has more padding. Also, when people try to lose belly fat, they usually aren't making the most of their exercise program. They stop between sit-ups, which slows down the fat burning process. Instead, when you exercise, go all the way through the routine, stopping only when absolutely necessary. Another effective way to lose belly fat is to do twists. Standing with legs apart, twist the upper half of your body from side to side, with arms stretched out to the sides. Toe-touches are also a good exercise. These all promote a smaller waist and flatter tummy.

When you start your diet and exercise program, remember not to slack off. Missing “just” one day will lead to missing "just" two days, and soon you're eating burger after burger while breaking that couch in a little more. After you lose fat, don't stop your exercise program. Now you're fit, so keep yourself that way!