Getting Rid Of Abdominal Fat

Visceral fat, or deep-lying abdominal fat stores, are considered the most detrimental to health. Having large fat stores deep in the abdomen sets you up for insulin resistance, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The best way to reduce such fat stores is through exercise and diet. The question is, however, what is the most effective exercise to reduce this dangerous type of fat?
Researchers from Duke and East Carolina Universities devised a study to focus on this issue, reporting their findings at the 2003 American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) annual meeting in San Francisco in late May. The study subjects consisted of 111 overweight men and women, age range, 40 to 65, randomly assigned to either a control group who did no exercise,or one of three exercise groups:

- 12 miles walking each week
- 12 miles jogging each week
- 20 miles jogging each week
The study lasted 8 months. Results showed that those in the inactive control group gained 1.1 kilograms of weight, increasing their visceral fat deposits by 10%. The walking group lost 1.3 kilograms of weight, gaining 3.3% visceral fat. The 12-mile jog group lost 1.1 kilograms of bodyweight, and reduced visceral fat by 5.9%. The 20-mile jog group lost 3.5 kilograms of bodyweight, and 10% visceral fat. Only those in the 20-mile jog group showed a loss of subcutaneous fat (7.6%), or fat just under the skin.
The results of this study show that for purposes of reducing visceral fat, the more exercise, the better. In addition, the level of exercise intensity also is important, as the 12-mile jog group showed superior results to the 12-mile walk group. Another notable point of this study is that visceral fat continued to increase in the sedentary group, showing that future serious health problems are inevitable in obese people who don't exercise.

Exercise And Legs

Legs overhead
Lie down in supine position.
Raise your legs up and touch your toes on the floor near your head.
Repeat as many times as possible.
Exercised: abs, lower back, hip flexors, spine, shoulders, upper back

Wall-walking
Stand three steps away from a wall.
Lean backwards until your hands touch the wall.
Slowly move your hands down the wall (you will have to keep bending your back) until your head touches the floor. Move your hands back up the wall.
Repeat 5-10 times.
Exercised: all muscles along the spine

Lying leg scissors
Lie in supine position and lift both legs six inches off the floor.
Open your legs wide, then cross them at the knees/ankles.
Repeat 25-100 times. Try also moving legs up/down or forward/backward.
Exercised: upper and lower abs, hip flexors, inner and outer thighs

Sit-ups with knee pull-in
Lie in supine position.
Pull knees in toward your stomach as you sit up, and touch your chest to your thighs.
Return to start. Repeat as many times as possible.
Exercised: upper and lower abs, lower back, hip flexors

Bridge of chairs
Place your head on one chair, and your feet on another.
Hold for at least one minute, with your body kept straight.
Exercised: abs, back, neck

Hanging leg-raise
Hold on to a chin-up bar or rings.
Lift your knees as high as possible and round your back.
Lower knees. Repeat as many times as possible.
Exercised: abs, grip

Hindu squats
Stand up straight, feet shoulder width apart.
Bend legs at knees until your rear touches your calves.
Try to come back up as fast as possible.
Repeat 25-500 times. Try also jumping.
Exercised: thighs, calves, lower back, chest, lungs