How to lose love handles fast

Everybody has a problem area when it comes to losing weight. For some, weight gathers in the hips and thighs, whilst others struggle to lose fat from their arms.

Here’s help to lose those love handles fast.

A. Eat right

1. Consume fewer calories

Eat somewhere between 1 200 and 1 400 calories a day to lose weight. By eating BIG plates of veggies, as well as fruit, whole grains, a little protein and very little fat, you’ll find it quite easy to stay within this range.

2. Eat a balanced diet

Your diet should be composed primarily of plants - fruits, vegetables, whole grains, pulses - a little good fat and protein from natural sources. Eliminate fried foods, junk food, processed food (including 'health' products) and refined sugar from your diet.

Cook your own meals, from scratch, in your own kitchen. Use good quality, seasonal, local and organic vegetables whenever possible.

3. Skip fad diets

Fad diets are unhealthy, not sustainable and will not keep weight off in the long run.

4. Stay hydrated

Drink a glass of water before each beverage throughout the day, and half an hour before each meal. Vegetarians and people eating a high percentage of fresh fruits and raw vegetables need to drink less water than those on a processed/fast/junk food diet.

5. Watch those snacks

Stick to raw veg for snacks and make sure that you give your digestive system a good 12-hour rest period between supper and breakfast. New research indicates that diabetics benefit from eating only two meals a day with maybe just a light snack in the evening.

B. Toning exercises

1. Do bicycle crunches

Lie flat on your back with your hands behind your head. Raise your legs so that they are half a metre above the ground. Bend your left knee and bring it toward your head and twist your body so that your right elbow meets your left knee.

Now, straighten your left leg and do the same thing on the other side, bringing the right knee and the left elbow together.

2. Do Russian twists

Sit on the ground with your back and legs straight. Bend your knees slightly and keep your feet flat on the floor. Bend backward slightly, holding one 2 to 4kg weight in both hands and twist your body toward the left, lowering the weight halfway to the floor. Repeat on the other side.

3. Do side planks

Start off in a side plank position with your right elbow supporting you, and your left arm resting on your hips. Make sure that your body is totally straight, and hold the position for 30 to 60 seconds. Repeat on the other side.

4. Try total-body toning classes

Yoga and Pilates help tone up your entire body, and produce long, lean muscles.

5. Get aerobic exercise

Getting enough cardiovascular exercise improves your overall health, burns calories, and strengthens your metabolism. Try jogging, walking, running, hiking, biking, dancing and swimming.

C. Tracking progress and staying motivated

1. Take measurements

Measure round the smallest part of your waist, the lower part of your waist (5cm below your navel) and your hips. Measurements are more helpful than weight, since muscle weighs more than fat.

2. Weigh yourself

Weigh yourself while naked, at exactly the same time once a week, on the same scale.

3. Keep a food journal

Studies have shown that people who keep track of the food they eat by writing it down, or using a nutrition tracking app to record what they eat, lose more weight than people who don't.

4. Find an exercise or diet buddy

Losing weight together with somebody else can be a major source of inspiration and makes exercising more fun.

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki building the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to lose love handles fast. Content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons License.

1. Prev:Why do we gain weight in winter?
2. Next:Will a detox diet work for you?