“JayDee, what is the best exercise I can do to lose my gut?”
“Hey man, how can I lose my beer belly?”
“You’re a trainer, tell me how can I lose weight but gain muscle?”
“Ok Mr. Master Trainer, what is the best workout to lose my gut fast?”
Great questions, Total Gym men. Why does it always seem to be a challenge to keep your stomach from turning into a gut?
Enjoying too much beer? Yep, that’ll do it. Your couch is quickly becoming your significant other? Strike two. You’re giving into an age-related drop in metabolism because you’re not working your muscles and they’re atrophying? Sure. This last one is a big one, but you can prevent and even reverse this process!
So let’s get to some solutions.
Here is a 3-prong approach to turn your gut into a presentable, taut stomach that’s ready for a shirtless summer!
1. Keep Your Ab/Core Muscles Tight
Check out the video for the following great ab/core exercise:
AbCrunch & Oblique AbCrunch
The AbCrunch is many of my clients’ absolute favorite to truly feel your core muscles at work. Using the AbCrunch accessory, you start in a modified plank position and simply bring your knees up towards your chest. A simple adjustment of your body position will change the focus to your obliques, those muscles that govern our “love handles”. We want lots of love in life, but not love handles! In the video, I’ll show you three progressive levels to fully challenge you as you get stronger.
2. Increase Your Metabolism
Yeah, it stinks but starting at about age 25 your metabolism starts to slow down. The good news is you don’t have to let this happen. This process can be summed up with the saying “If you don’t use it, you lose it”. If you continue to properly tax your muscles, you can keep your muscle mass from disappearing and prevent your metabolism from diving. Even better news, you can reverse this process by training hard and smart enough to add muscle mass and thus increase your metabolism. Intensity is the key, which I will demonstrate with a Chest Press exercise in the video.
3. Watch Your Biceps Curls & Train Your Heart
Bicep Curls
Wait what? I’m referring to the motion your arm makes when you bring your fork, or a beer or six, to your mouth. What you put in your mouth has a huge impact on your gut. The key is sensibility and balance. Getting into what and what not to eat would take an entire other blog post, so if you need help in this area, consult a dietitian or a fitness professional/coach who specializes in nutrition.
Train Your Heart
To lose your gut you have to burn more calories than you ingest. Make sure you get in your cardio exercise for the following reasons:
- – This will help you create a “caloric deficit” that is necessary for losing that gut. The fastest and best way to do this is Cardio Interval Training, also called High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) which has really taken hold in the past few years. This isn’t rocket science, so view the video and I’ll tell you how to do it.
- – Proper cardio exercise also increases your metabolism. A good session of HIIT not only burns a lot of calories while you’re doing it, but it jacks up your metabolism for the next 24 to 48 hours.
- – Cardio trains the most important muscle in your body – your heart. You want this muscle to last as long as possible so you can enjoy all those gawks you’ll be getting from having a svelte midsection for years to come!
Thanks!
jd
