Saturday, February 21, 2009

Best Ab Workout Is Whole Body

By Robert Casewood

Getting rid of belly fat has been a frustration for models and bodybuilders since the early days of working-out. This is mainly due to the fact that our bodies have a tendency to store most of our body fat around our abdomen and this is the last place it leaves when we try to get lean.

Fitness companies have recognized this and have been quick to cash in on countless people's war against belly fat. "Fat-burning" creams which allegedly melt away belly fat, ab workouts touted to give you a six-pack "in weeks" and countless exercise gadgets that isolate the abdominal muscles have been unleashed on the desperate masses eager to get rid of their soft paunches.

Unfortunately for people who plunked down a significant amount of cash for these "breakthrough" products, there is no real way to spot-reduce belly fat. Fat reducing creams won't do it and neither can gadgets that isolate the ab muscles. Ab machines and ab workouts only serve to develop and strengthen muscle tissue, but they don't really do much to eliminate the layer of belly fat covering the abdomen.

The fastest way to address a flabby gut is to do cardio exercises that burn the highest percentage of calories from body fat and not carbohydrates or glycogen which is needed for muscle development. Total body exercises are deemed to be the most effective in keeping the heart rate at a level optimum for the most effective body fat burn.

Exercises that isolate abdominal muscles aren't useless of course- they're a great way to strengthen and develop muscle tissue paving the way for that sexy six pack once the fat around the belly is eliminated.

Consuming the right foods can also help us in our quest for elusive six pack abs. Some citrus fruits actually render fat more soluble and hence easier to burn. Timing our consumption of carbs and proteins throughout the day can also help in muscle repair and development and increase our metabolic rate.

Some dieters that don't know any better try to cut-back on calories and skip meals. This can actually prevent them from reaching their goal of a flat, contour abdomen. Our bodies slow down our metabolism whenever we start to starve and this means it uses muscle tissue instead of body fat for energy.

Weight-training to build muscles can also help fight-off excess fat as well as improve our physique. The more muscle tissue we have, the more our metabolic rate goes up. Muscle actually expends calories even while immobile so having more of it will let us fight fat even in our sleep!

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