After a weekend filled with Oktoberfest celebrations, and meeting up with friends, I had the inclination to grab my love handles for the first time in a while. I’m not sure exactly when it occurred;  probably sometime after my first pint and that bag of warm sugar coated pecans, but I swear I felt the sensation of my old love handles poking out over my jeans.  Lucky for me that was just a feeling, not a reality.  In any event, it forced me to think about the number one complaint shared by men and woman when trying to lose weight.  How do we get rid of those pesky love handles? 

[There is nothing quite like an Oktoberfest celebration, and it wouldn't be Oktoberfest without the drinks, and food, so be prepared for both!  I was so concerned about the effects of all this indulging that it made me think about my old love handles and how I got rid of them in the first place......] 

Getting the Most from Your Exercises

My diet recommendations are to eat a clean diet, free from processed foods, wheat, and sugar, but there is another way to gain a caloric advantage before your workout to maximize fat burning!

Arrive at the Gym in an Optimal Fat Burning State

Rusty at Fitness Black Book is a big supporter of fasted workouts, and has written an interesting article about the benefits of using this technique on his website.  I was skeptical at first, but exercising in a fasted state really increased my fat burning potential.  I have read countless articles about the benefits of exercising in the morning for optimal fat burning, but I don’t think the experts have identified the real reason.  It is because our body is in a fasted state!

We Can Actually Influence Our Bodies to Select Fat for Fuel

Just like a car, our body needs fuel that is required to perform any task.  When we give our cars energy we have options for fuel.  We can chose regular, regular plus, or premium gasoline.   Just like cars, our bodies have a choice of carbohydrate, fat, or protein fuel.  If all things were equal, our cars would prefer premium gasoline, just like our bodies are designed to access fuel from carbohydrates first. 

[What we forget is that our car will still run perfectly fine on regular fuel, and our body will still be able to perform when utilizing fat for fuel.]

The bonus for us is that there is a huge incentive to burn fat! That is what we ultimately want when we are trying to decrease our body fat percentage and look and feel our best.  If we rid our body of readily available carbohydrates, our bodies down regulate and select fat as its fuel source.   This is the big secret that most people will not talk about.  I was skeptical too, but I have used this strategy to get to the next level of fat loss, and it is truly amazing.  Simply do not eat for at least 6 hours before your workout. 

Pick Exercises That Work To Get Rid of Love Handles

When I think back to some of the abdominal equipment I’ve used in the past I can’t help but laugh.  When picking exercises to help get rid of  our love handles, think beyond abdominal routines alone.  Here are my top 3 exercises for getting rid of love handles.

1.  HIITS Cardio Training:

If you have never heard of high intensity interval training then look it up.  HIIT is saving people so much time and giving them the look they want.  Here are the basics

• Complete exercise using timed intervals
• The intervals include intense efforts followed by active rest
• The more fat you want to burn the more intense your effort should be, and the shorter your rest period should be
• An example of a HIITS routine for someone trying to blast fat would look like this;
• Treadmill or road sprints – 30 seconds intense sprint/30 seconds walking (repeat 10-12 times for total of 10-12 minutes)
• You can do this with almost any exercise!

*it doesn’t sound that difficult, until you try it…GOOD LUCK!*

If you have to work abdominal muscles directly, pick efficient exercises

2.  Hanging Leg Raises

This exercise forces your abs to do all the work.  When we perform sit-ups and crunches we can engage other muscles to help perform the movement.  With hanging leg raises we are leaving our abdominal muscles alone to do the work.  Just make sure to try to get your knees to touch your chest.  Even if your knees never touch your chest this is still the optimal movement when performing this exercise.  The fear is that this exercise may be difficult for the average person, but there are a few variations to help get you comfortable with the movement. 

[Hanging leg raises are great, but if you can't perform them as prescribed don't skip them all together.  Check out the variation below to get you started.]

3.  The Most Efficient Abs Exercise Is the Plank

The plank exercise is a great abdominal exercise that engages all abdominal muscles while simultaneously working the antagonistic muscles of the lower back.  This exercise effectively works what we now refer to as the “core”. 

[I'm not sure how long this guy could hold a plank for, but he gives quality instruction on how to perform them properly.  Remember to maintain that straight line!]

Proper Plank Technique

• Get into push up position
• Instead of you hands being on the floor, you will be lying on your elbows
• The key is to keep your head, neck, spine, butt, hips, and legs in a straight line
• Make sure to keep your body off the ground
• The only points of contact should be your toes, elbows, forearms and hands
• Try to work up to 1 minute in this position before trying more difficult versions of this exercises

Good luck getting rid of those love handles, it is a rewarding journey!

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