secrets to a flat stomach - II

3. Stable blood sugar is the key
And most importantly, you must stabilize your blood sugar! This is by far the most important factor when it comes to burning away that excess body fat and keeping it off! To effectively stabilize your blood sugar you must feed your body frequently; like every 2-3 hours. The key is to give your body only what it needs at that time. Your body burns calories 24 hours a day, so, why would you only feed it once or twice a day? Give your body the fuel it needs: vegetables, fruits, nuts, berries, whole grains, and lean proteins (chicken, fish, lean beef, eggs, etc.).

Many people are too hung up on how much fat is in food, or how healthy of a choice it is. Calories are calories and it doesn't matter where they come from. If there's extra. where's it going? Yup, you guessed it. body fat!

This is not to say that what you eat is not important because it is, it just doesn't have that much of an affect when it comes to fat loss. Try to make healthy choices whenever possible, but don't feel like if you eat a cheeseburger it is guaranteed to be stored as fat.

4. Get the help of a professional

Unfortunately, most people don't know enough about the human body, nutrition, or effective exercise to meet their health and fitness goals. Ask yourself this one question, "Am I happy with my current progress or condition?" If you're not, you should consider getting the help of a qualified personal fitness professional. Don't depend on the information you get from magazines or from your local gym/ health club. A qualified fitness professional can help you achieve your health and fitness goals, and in less time than you would imagine. If you are serious about your health and fitness goals, and you are ready for that flat stomach, I recommend you start implementing the 4 strategies listed in this article. These 4 strategies can help you take control of your metabolism and burn off that excess body fat and having you looking and feeling great!

Secrets to a Flat Stomach - I

If your goal is to thin your waistline and have a nice flat stomach, the first thing you need to do is decrease / eliminate the layers of fat that are on top of your abs. The most effective way of flattening your stomach is a combination of strength training (with a extra focus on mid-section), cardiovascular exercise (short, hard workouts), and stable blood sugar (keeps you from adding additional fat and makes it easier for the body to use body fat for fuel).

1. You must do some form of progressive strength training
The primary function of the ab muscle is to flex your torso forward. However, there are also muscles that flex your torso to the side and muscles that rotate your torso. Often times you see people on their ab roller every day doing hundreds of crunches or sit-ups.If you want to effectively strengthen your stomach you need to incorporate the following types of exercises:1-2 forward flexion exercises (crunch, sit-up, etc.)1-2 side flexion exercises (side bends, side crunches, etc.)1-2 rotational exercises (trunk rotations, standing twists, etc.)The abs, are muscles just like any other and should be worked at most 3 times per week. You also want to make sure you are training them progressively, working them harder each time.

2. Use short, hard cardio workouts to increase metabolism
Cardio workouts are important because they CAN, if done correctly, increase your metabolism for 4-24 hours or more! This means you are less likely to store any excess calories as body fat because they are more likely to be used by your elevated metabolism. Plus, you are more likely to burn off some excess body fat.Below is a sample interval workout that can be done with just about any activity (walking, bicycling, swimming, stair climbing, etc.).Warm up at easy pace 2-5 minutes then:

• perform 30 seconds of hard work (almost as hard as possible)
• perform 1 minute of moderate work (recovery time-catch breath)
• repeat this process 6-10 times à Cool down at an easy pace for 2-5 minutes

8 pack abs exercise

This simple exercise addresses both the top and bottom of your abs.

Technically the exercise is known as the V Rais/Knee Tuck and this is how it is performed:

1. Lie face-up on the floor with your upper and lower back firmly rooted to the ground and your knees bent at 90 degrees so that your feet are flat on the floor and your arms lie beside your body.

2. Slowly extend your legs so that they are raised from the ground, locked at the knees and at approximately 45 degrees to the level surface. At the same time raise your body to mirror the action of your legs. Pull arms from the floor so they are directly in front of you.

3. Hold this position and draw your left knee to your chest and then extend fully back out. Repeat the motion with your right leg and continue the motion with alternative legs.

This exercise when done slowly and purposefully provides excellent targeting for the upper and lower abdominal muscles.

What is the perfect abs diet?

I would suggest it is one that will efficiently strip away belly fat and replace it with a firm ripped 6 pack of abs.

Would you agree?

The science behind an abs diet would be to eat the correct foods that encourage muscle growth while building in exercise which promotes fat loss and muscle growth.

An ideal abs diet would be very low in fat, quite high in protein to support the additional muscle growth, high in fiber and virtually absent of carbohydrates.

The critical element would be keeping away from the high fat that is found in so many food products. If you can stick to a low fat diet, which would certainly mean no more fast food takeaways, you can really make huge inroads into achieving those ripped abs and a stomach that is flat as a washboard. This said a moderate amount of fat is an important element of diet and is probably obtained through eating fresh fish such as Salmon which is extremely rich in a very beneficial fatty acid called Omega 3.

What about the fiber intake? Again good scientific data suggests a good level of fiber in the diet ensures food moves efficiently through the body. Adding fiber gradually would ensure your body tolerates the increase without becoming completely “congested”. Compliment this with an increase in proteins through either foods that are high in protein or through protein shakes and bars. Taking the natural protein option would include eating foods like nuts, pulses, lean meats such as turkey and chicken. Keeping your cooking options “low fat” through grilling or broiling would of course be a significant advantage.

What’s the best way to curtail your carbohydrate intake?

As with all the food types you need carbohydrates….probably just not in the volumes you’re used to eating. I would suggest you go for an oat meal cereal in the morning to set you up for the day and then try and refrain from eating any more carb’s until lunch. Maybe brown rich coupled with lean beef or grilled fish would provide the perfect mix of low fat high protein, abs diet for the ultimate 6 pack abs.