The warm weather is upon us and it’s time to work on the waistline. When it comes to exercises for the waistline, you will see a lot of different methods claiming to be the solution. While many of the exercises and techniques may have some benefit, they almost always are not enough.
To get your waistline to your body potential, you should address the three aspects of the waistline. There is the abdominal, the sides and the low back. Of these three, the abdominal is the area most focused on. Then there is the body fat. The fat will cover all three of these areas. No matter how much target exercise you do, you will not see the benefits of muscle tone with excess body fat.
Now that we have identified the aspects of the waistline, here are some tips to factor into your mission for a much-improved waistline. Remember, don’t focus on just one of the factors or you’ll drive yourself mad. Instead, try and bring all of the factors into play. You’ll get more results and it will save you time.
Body Fat
To get a firm and trim waistline, you must have relatively low body fat in that area. To achieve that, try these factors:
Nutrition: What you put into your body will greatly determine how your waistline looks. There are, of course, many different nutrition concepts out there. I like to focus on four basics:
1. Caloric Intake: If your waistline has more fat on it, then you you can help to decrease it by cutting back on your caloric intake.
2. Quality Carbohydrates: It’s no secret, excessive carbohydrates will add to any waistline, even if the carbs are fat-free. Cutting back on your carbohydrates is another good factor, but don’t cut them out entirely. The type of carbohydrates will also determine how fattening they will be. Opt for low-glycemic carbohydrates, such as whole-grain bread, whole-grain cereal, brown rice, yams, non-starch vegetables and natural grains.
I suggest the book “Sugar Busters.” It will tell you more about carbohydrates and which ones are good and which ones are bad. It has some great information, but I don’t recommend it as a diet. Use it to factor in to your routine.
3. Aerobic Activity: Another great way to get rid of body fat is aerobic activity. In order to be at an aerobic metabolism, you need to elevate your heart rate for at least 20 minutes. Once you have been exercising for 20 minutes, you are now burning fat more efficiently, so anything you do over 20 minutes is ideal for decreasing fat in the waistline. If you’re just starting an exercise program, start with 20 minutes of aerobic activity two to three times per week and work your way up to 30 to 50 minutes three to five days per week. If you work out now and want more results on your waistline, factor in an increase of aerobic activity. You can increase how often you do aerobic activity (frequency) and you can increase how long you do aerobic activity (duration).
4. Training the Waistline Muscle: Here are three exercises that will hit the three areas of the waistline:
 Basic Abdominal Crunch |
 Oblique Crunch |
| Perform each of these movements while exhaling on the up motion. Do them slowly and controlled. Do not pull on your head and neck, but contract the abdominal muscles to create movement. Do these two to five days per week. Rest in between days. Do two to four sets of 15 to 50 repetitions. | |
 Lower Back Extension |
| This is a great way to focus on the other side of the waistline, the lower back. Lying down, alternate lifting opposite arm and leg. You will use the posterior muscles to do so. Exhale as you lift and don’t lift too high, just enough to feel the muscle contract, about 3 to 4 inches. Do this exercise two to four days per week. Do two to four sets of 10 to 40 repetitions. |
Now you have some factors to work on! Bringing each of the aspects into play will greatly improve your wastline. Doing just one of these until you’re blue in the face is not the best option. For a great waistline, you should address all of the aspects.
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