Diet & Fitness

Have a question about your routine or anything fitness-related? Send it Raphael's way at askraphael@ediets.com.


Hi Raphael,

I love the exercise routine to increase the butt. Now I would like to know how I can reduce the size of my belly without crunches? -- Sary

Sary,

Thanks for your comment about my article on glutes!

As far as your question, the first thing I must tell you is that even crunches won’t reduce the size of the belly. Crunches will strengthen the abdominal muscles but not shrink the area.

This is one of the biggest myths that many people believe – that abdominal machines, crunches and tortuous ab routines will somehow shrink belly fat. You must perform ab exercises, of course, but not with the goal of reducing the area -- more with the goal of strengthening the area.

So how do you reduce the size of your belly?

There will be work to do on your part, but I’ll provide the basic formula. It’s a formula that works for everyone.

The following is my eight-point plan that I’ve written about in several articles to get tight abs and a smaller belly.

1. NUTRITION: This is the most important component to achieving a flat abdominal area. Nothing is more important than food.

First, you’ll need to control blood sugar levels in order to lose body fat. This is best accomplished by consuming 4-6 meals per day. Don’t mistake the definition of a meal for a six-course extravaganza. A meal might be an egg-white omelet and oatmeal with blueberries, or chicken with one-half cup of rice and a large salad with some oil and vinegar, or cottage cheese with some fruit.

Each of the meals is comprised of protein, a little carbohydrate and a little fat. In some cases, the fat is built into the protein. In other cases, it’s added to the meal. For eDiets members, this is already accomplished in your meal plan.

2. RATIOS: It’s unlikely that you’ll get the results you desire by consuming 80 percent of your calories from carbohydrates. Ratios can vary quite a bit, but consuming more than 50 percent of your calories from carbohydrate will not be optimal for fat loss. Many people do quite well on low-carbohydrate plans and others on more moderate plans. As long as you follow the "no more than 50 percent of calories from carbohydrate" rule, you’ll be at a good starting point.

3. TIMING: I realize 4-6 meals sounds like a lot, but you must keep in mind that the body is always seeking to store body fat. It (the body) doesn’t care if you want to lose fat. In fact, your body would prefer to store fat in order to accomplish its No.1 goal of keeping you alive in case of a future famine or drought.

In order to control blood sugar, eat small meals/snacks every 2-3 hours throughout the day. When using the most effective nutrient ratios, this helps to control blood sugar, which in turn assists in body fat loss.

4. CALORIES: I've received emails from some people telling me that they do all of the above, but they still can’t lose body fat in order to flatten the belly. In every case, they are still consuming too many calories. It doesn’t matter how healthy your nutrition program is if you’re eating too much.

It’s important that you find maintenance calories first. Maintenance represents the amount of food you consume without any change in your weight. This will take some experimentation and some effort. You’ll also need to document your foods: total calories as well as grams of protein, carbohydrates and fats.

Sounds like a lot of work? Yes, it is! However, you only have to do a few weeks of this type of work. After that, you’ll have your personal formula for success.

5. SLIGHT CALORIC DEFICIT: After you have found maintenance, simply reduce your calories by 200. Our goal is to have you eating as much as possible and still losing fat and retaining muscle. I don’t want you eating as little as possible thereby slowing the metabolism and losing valuable muscle tissue.

The first week, you might lose 2-5 pounds of water weight. After the first week, you should only lose about 1-1.5 pounds of fat per week. The goal is to preserve muscle and make your body a metabolic inferno. If you’re not losing 1-1.5 pounds per week (it will fluctuate week to week), then reduce calories by another 100. Then, monitor your progress after one week. You’ll probably be right on track.

6. CONSISTENCY: You’ll need to be on this nutrition program six days a week with one day being somewhat of a cheat day. It’s not a day to consume food all day long – it’s more about taking some liberties.

So on Sunday, for example, you’re allowed to have some pizza, a bit of ice cream, etc. -- but nothing extreme. When you pig out, blood sugar levels can be elevated for seven hours or more. This will absolutely halt your body fat loss and actually backfire.

7. WEIGHT TRAIN: At this point, you should be aware of the importance of resistance training. Just three workout sessions lasting no more than 35 minutes to an hour will do the trick.

I know you don’t like crunches and ab work, but part of your program should include abdominal exercises to strengthen and build the abs. That way, when you achieve your lower body fat level, your abs will be tight.

8. CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE: Perform 3-4 days per week of moderate cardio exercise for approximately 30 minutes. During two of the days, you can exercise at a higher intensity level to accelerate fat loss -- but, only if you reach a sticking point. If you’re a beginner, then remember to increase gradually.

Is this easy? No, it’s not easy. But please keep in mind that at eDiets, we do all the preparation and planning for you. Your meals are created to make your life easier and your goals attainable. Plus, you have access to dietitians and trainers to help get you to goal while supporting you along the way.

I hope this helps, Sary, and I wish you great success in achieving your goals.

Have a fitness question you want answered? Email Raphael at askraphael@ediets.com and you could have your question picked! And if you missed a previous column, see the archive here.

Make NOW your time to do something about your weight. eDiets can help make weight loss a little easier. Let our nutritionists and fitness pros guide you! Click here to find out more and save big!

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