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How to... lose your muffin top
STRIP THE FAT
Muffin
tops are made up of excess fat around the abdominal area all the way round your
body. Stripping excess fat from your body with cardio exercise is one of the
best ways to get rid of it.
Jogging,
power walking, cycling, aerobics, swimming - anything that gets your heart rate
up and your body moving - will burn fat. Women tap into fat stores for energy
much more slowly than men, usually after 40 minutes of exercising, so aim for
at least this, but ideally building up to an hour, three times a week.
WORK OUT LATERALLY
Women
often exercise the muscles of the front of the body, backs of the legs and abs
by jogging, squats, lunges and crunches, but neglect the sides and the back.
Having conditioned muscles all the way round will greatly decrease the muffin
appearance. Try raising your legs to the side and galloping side-to-side on
your usual walk or jog.
For
the less fit, you can get a fantastic workout in water by holding on to the
side of the pool and kicking out behind you. Add twists or scissor kicks to
tone hips. For best results do a few lengths, then a couple of minutes of
exercises and repeat as much as you can.
TAKE UP POWER YOGA
This is arguably the
best way to get rid of excess bulge around the middle, with its yoga
warrior and chaturanga combinations, punch work across the body and movements
that involve twisting and moving side-to-side. The fact that it is high
intensity, and includes balancing and core work with pretty much every sort of
movement, means you really can't beat this as a muffin-top-blasting workout.
CONSUME FEWER TOXINS
As
a survival mechanism, our bodies try to protect us and keep toxins away from
our vital organs by wrapping water, fat and cholesterol around them. This is
then stored, particularly around our middle and hips. Toxins include processed
foods, caffeine, alcohol, too many animal products or acidic foods, pollution,
sugar and smoking.
Eat
a low-sugar diet rich in vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains and drink
two litres of water a day to help flush out toxins. Regular baths with Epsom
salts will also help expel them and reduce excess water retention (£2.15 per
1kg pack at www.justasoap.co.uk). This is popular with celebs who want
to keep their waists and hips as streamlined as possible.
EAT MORE ESSENTIAL FATS
Our
bodies need fat for energy, to absorb fat-soluble vitamins, to give us shiny
hair and nails, and to transport nutrients around the body. Perversely, not
eating enough fat can stop our fat cells functioning properly.
Debra
Waterhouse, author of Outsmarting Female Fat Cells, believes that including
around 70g of 'good fat' in our diets each day makes our cells work more
efficiently, releasing stored fats to burn as energy.
EAT LESS SUGAR
Excess
calories are converted and stored as fat and this includes low-fat
foods,
sugary foods and alcohol. Even though there is no fat in wine, there are the
same amount of calories in a bottle of white wine as four fishfingers. A latte
or glass of orange juice (containing around 200 calories each) a day adds up to
around 1,000 calories over a working week.
To
lose 1lb of fat, you need to burn off 2,500 calories, so cutting out excess
calories will decrease the flab. By eating slow-releasing (low GI)
carbohydrates such as sweet potatoes, oats and basmati rice with low-sugar
foods such as nuts, fish and green vegetables, you will also help stabilise
blood sugar levels.
AVOID STRESS
Cortisol,
the hormone released in response to stress, encourages the body to release
blood sugar into the bloodstream to give us energy for the 'fight or flight'
response. If we use this energy to get away from a physical danger, there is
little chance for this sugar to be stored as fat, but if it is released
repeatedly through stress, the increased blood sugar will be ultimately stored
as fat.
The
female hormone oestrogen causes fat to be stored around the pelvic region
anyway, so getting stressed makes matters worse. Try to stay calm - a few drops
of lavender oil in your bath or a cup of camomile tea should help.
IMPROVE POSTURE
Having
strong core muscles (which include the abdominal, back and hip area) will not
only help the muffin-top area look better because the muscles will be more
defined, but by having stronger, well used muscles, the circulation will
improve in this area, too. This, in turn, improves blood and oxygen supply to
the cells, which will improve rejuvenation and help expel toxins.
Yoga
and Pilates will help, but basic correct posture is even more important. This
means sitting or standing tall, and pulling inwards and upwards by tensing your
core muscles (stomach, lower back and hips) throughout the day. Over time,
using these 'core muscles' regularly will work wonders.
BRUSHING AND SCRUBBING
Brushing
and scrubbing your muffin top with a good exfoliator and gentle massage (as you
would around celluliteladen bums and legs) will also help stimulate cells and
improve circulation, getting nutrients in and toxins out. Next time you are in
the shower, scrub as vigorously as you can for at least five minutes.
Everyone seems to be doing yoga these days – from celebrities
to professional athletes and everyone in between. Kids are even getting
in on the yoga bandwagon and yoga is so very GOOD for them. Here are
five reasons (believe me, there are many more) that kiddos should do yoga.
