I want to lose belly fat, but I don’t know which exercises to do and for how long. I’m not trying to build strong abs, just a flat one.
If anyone can give me a routine, it would be greatly appreciated.
Oh yeah, I’m already in a diet, I just started walking 1 hour a day and I cycle for 30 minutes everyday just in case that means anything.
Hello! Congrats on your decision to take care of your body!
In terms of exercise for your belly fat, you are most of the way there already. Often, belly fat comes from too much release of the stress hormone cortisol, secreted by the (outer cortex of the) adrenal glands.
The absolute best thing you can do for your adrenal glands to reduce cortisol and burn fat is WALKING. The first 20 minutes you burn sugar, after that you burn fat. Cycling is fine for this purpose as well, as long as you keep your pulse under 125 — 120 is better. 90 minutes is the optimum time to walk or cycle at a 110 – 120 pulse rate. After that, you will start to release cortisol again, which will work against you. The exception to this is if you have pain. Exercising over pain will also release cortisol, which is exactly what you are trying to reduce, so if your knees, hips or feet start to hurt, it is time to stop.
If you really want to step it up, add "interval training" every other day. What I’m about to say will probably sound crazy, since we Americans tend to have an idea that "more is better," but the main fat burning and muscle building hormone (of the 6 total we have in our bodies) is Growth Hormone – GH. It is also our "anti-aging" hormone. It is stimulated under very rigid, precise conditions. If you go past these conditions, your body will release cortisol, which blocks GH, and your effort will be wasted. Here goes:
Take your resting pulse rate for one full minute. Write it down.
Now work out however you choose (rowing machine, jumping jacks, running in place . . .) as hard as you possibly can for exactly ONE MINUTE, THEN STOP. Take your pulse for one minute. That is your peak pulse. Continue taking your pulse for one minute until your pulse returns to the resting rate. If it takes five minutes, that means rest for five minutes before beginning again, then work out as hard as you can for one minute again, then rest until your pulse is back to the resting pulse rate. Continue repeating this pattern until it takes more than 5 minutes for your pulse to return to the resting rate. If your pulse takes more than 5 minutes to return to resting rate after just one interval of one minute, then that is all you do — you are done.
Do this every other day. Over time, you will recover to resting rate faster, and will be able to do more intervals in a row before losing the ability to recover (resting pulse in 5 minutes).
I know this sounds crazy, and it couldn’t possibly do anything, but it does. THIS is EXACTLY how to stimulate growth hormone. If you go beyond your ability to recover in under 5 minutes, you will stimulate cortisol.
If you recover in under 2 minutes, you can increase to 90 seconds. If you still recover in under 2 minutes, increase to 2 minutes. Again, once you lose the ability to recover in under 5 minutes, you are done for the day.
The most benefit of the exercise happens during the recovery phase after the exercise, which triggers the fat burning hormones — not during the exercise itself. If you exercise past your point of recovery, the bulk of the benefit is lost.
Alternating days between this interval work out and the 90 minutes of aerobic (walking/cycling) is the most efficient way to burn fat available.
I understand that this goes against everything all of you gym rats have ever learned about working out, but the data is solid — based on how the endocrine (hormone) system works in the human body.
Also, GH peaks between 12 and 4 am, only during deep sleep cycles. A normal sleep cycle from light to deep is 90 minutes. So if you are not sleeping by 10:30 pm, until at least 5:30 am (less than 7 hours of sleep will also cause a release of cortisol because it is a stress to the body), you will not receive the maximum benefit of the hormone system in your body responding to your exercise.
The other key factor is this: it is physiologically impossible to burn fat in even the tiniest bit of sugar. 2 oz of apple juice or orange juice will shut down your body’s ability to burn fat for 8 hours, no matter how much exercise you are doing. It is not about calories, it is about hormones. We have 6 hormones that burn fat and 3 hormones that store fat. Bread (even whole wheat), pasta, cereal, rice (even brown), etc. turns into sugar as soon as the amylase enzyme in your saliva acts on it. Sugar will trigger insulin, which is a fat storing hormone.
Lots of veggies, some fruit (as many apples as you want, preferrably organic), nuts and seeds and legumes (beans), and 3 – 6 oz of animal protein per day, combined with the exercise will get you where you want to go.
Good luck!
Dr. Kim
Read More Comments posted (2) GizzledaKing says... on 28-02-2010