Every once in a while you may meet somebody who has a big belly and is not bothered by it, but the vast majority of people with this problem consider it to be extremely unattractive. Since people would love to get rid of their big bellies, it comes as no surprise that they would like to find the quickest way to make that happen.
There is an entire multi-billion dollar business that thrives on this fantasy of "spot reduction" or losing weight in one key area. The idea they promote is that if you focus all your efforts on this one area, you will lose the weight in that area much faster. People who buy into this myth end up purchasing all kinds of gadgets, some of which tie on to your abdomen, or even give you electric shocks!
Before falling prey to these people, you need to know that there is no way to reduce in one target area! Spot reduction cannot work by using some special diet or exercise equipment either. When you gain weight your body adds fat all over the body. Sure some people get lumps and bumps in some areas quicker than others but they are adding fat everywhere.
When you lose fat, this process works in exactly the same way, only in reverse. So when you lose weight, you lose it everywhere. People have started special diets or exercise plans to lose belly fat and it may seem that they were successful, but it is only because they lost weight from their entire bodies.
For losing weight, the best exercises are the cardiovascular type that raise your heart rate and keep it raised for at least 30 minutes. You can also increase the effectiveness of these cardio exercises if you employ interval training, where the heart is worked at various rates through the workout. The best examples of this type of workout are team sports where you alternate the speed of your movements.
Basketball requires lots of rapid acceleration and stopping, turning, going back and forth. This activity works your heart at different rates and is one of the best cardio exercises. When you do this, or other cardio exercises, your body's short term supplies of carbohydrate are used up quickly. Once that happens your body goes into a state where it is burning fat for the rest of the workout. When you do these types of cardio exercises regularly, they also raise your base metabolic rate and cause you to burn more energy all day long!
You can also use a diet for an effective short term method of losing weight, including your belly. However, you must realize that to maintain a lower body weight you will need to make permanent changes in what you eat so all your food is metabolized by your daily activities. Be aware that you can start regaining weight by just eating a little too much each day. Although it may not seem like much, it will add up to many extra pounds within a year.
To be successful in getting rid of your belly and keeping it off, you will need to make a fundamental change to your lifestyle so you are permanently doing adequate exercise and also not over eating. If you do both of these things, you'll not only lose the belly, you'll feel great and look like you have a new body!
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