Choosing the Right Exercise Program : How to Reduce Body Fat Through Exercise
How to reduce overall body fat?
Lately I’ve been getting a lot of pictures taken of me & occasionally there is an unflattering picture where my stomach is visible… It’s making me really think twice about how people perceive me. How can I reduce my body fat? Be specific; act as if I don’t know anything about diet and exercise.
Thanks (:
Please don’t be rude.
To reduce body fat, there are many different approaches. Three of these methods include diet, weight training, and cardio.
For dieting, it is tough to give advice in this category as everyone has different calorie needs and different metabolisms. The best advice that I can give without knowing you is to eat six small meals a day. Keep the proteins lean (chicken, fish, soy) and the carbohydrates complex (vegetables, some fruits, nuts). Eat about 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight and 2-3 grams of carbs per pound of body weight. The key is to never be hungry and to always eat so that your metabolism stays active. An active metabolism means that you are burning more calories, which is the goal.
Weight training is a key factor for the reduction of body fat as well. The more muscle mass your body has, the more calories you will burn. Muscles require calories in order to function whereas fat is simply unwanted stored energy. When lifting weights, shoot for 16-20 reps of an exercise and perform 3-4 sets of that exercise. Hit a specific muscle group with 2-4 different exercises depending on the amount of time you have for lifting weights. If you are targeting a specific area such as abs, more reps are needed and you need to work three different areas. Do lower abs, upper abs, and obliques (sides). Do 3 sets of 30 reps for each section of your abs or until failure if you can’t do 30 reps.
Cardio is the ultimate answer to losing body fat. When done after lifting weights or doing sit ups, you are more apt to losing body fat in the targeted area where exercise was done. Do 30-40 minutes of cardio every day. In defining cardio, it can be anything that gets your heart rate up to 190+ beats per minute. The idea is to get moving.
Other routes include supplements. Fat burners are the new trend. They work fairly well, but there are some drawbacks to them. Take them in moderation. Another supplement is a water pill also known as a diuretic. Essentially this will expunge extra water from your body and you will weight less and appear to have less body fat. Use caution in taking these as well as prolonged use will affect your kidneys.
