RX for Belly Fat: Strengthen & Tone with Exercise

Can diet and exercise really eliminate belly fat? Recent research has shown that eating fewer calories, no matter what program you sign up for, will contribute to weight loss and thus, a smaller paunch.  But what about exercise?  Will just burning calories help eliminate the “muffin top” that a lot of middle-aged women (and men!) carry around?  Or do we need to target ab muscles with 100 crunches every day to do the trick?

I asked fitness expert Joan Pagano, whose newest book, “15 Minute Abs Workout” has recently been published.  As in her earlier books, Strength Training for Women and 15 Minute Total Body Workout (+DVD), Joan lays out specific routines with excellent photos (and a CD-ROM) that show proper form and execution.  They’re well organized and very easy to follow.

Joan: You need to do strengthening exercises as well as cardio to get results.  Abs exercises flatten and tone the abdominal muscles underneath the belly, while cardio exercise reduces the size of fat cells in that area.  If your abs are toned, but you have a layer of fat over them, do at least 30 minutes of cardio most days of the week to burn calories and reduce fat.  If you do not have excess belly fat, but lack of muscle tone causes your belly to hang, concentrate on the abs routines to firm up.  If you are both lacking muscle tone and carry excess fat, step up both cardio and abs routines.

Wendy: You state in your book that the classic crunch is one of the most effect ab exercises.  Can you explain why? How many and how often do you recommend?

Joan: The crunch is a versatile exercise, suitable for beginners and adaptable to many advanced modifications.  It targets the rectus abdominis, best known as the coveted “six pack” muscle, which describes the sections that develop when this muscle is toned.  It is the most superficial abdominal muscle, running from the sternum to the pubic bone, and is easy to isolate with the crunch.   Quality is more important than quantity: do three sets of 20 crunches in perfect form every other day.

Wendy: Your book includes “core training.” Can you explain why this is so important and how it contributes to overall abdominal strength and toning?

Joan: Core training is an integrated approach to working the muscles in the anatomical center of the body – the core – and training them to function as a unit (as in a plank) instead of in isolation (as in the crunch).  The abdominals and spinal extensors are key players in core conditioning, working together as a team to provide support for the spine and maintain its proper alignment.  Core strength enhances the overall appearance of the torso, improves posture and provides a foundation for quality of movement in the whole body.

Question to readers….Are you seeing results from doing ab exercises?  What’s helped you?   Do tell!

Update 3/27/09-  If you’d like to read more about Joan’s book read “Fab abs in 15 Minutes” at the “She Knows”website.