POT BELLY? THESE ARE THE FASTEST FAT BURNING AEROBIC EXERCISES!

We all could do with less body fat right? An extra incentive to lose body fat is the dreaded pot belly or beer gut, its unsightly, embarrassing and makes you wish for the days when you used to play football for your school team! Now I can’t promise to turn back the hands of time and recapture your teenage years, but I can help you get rid that extra tire you have been carrying around with you. This article is for both the guys and the ladies; we will explore the meaning of aerobic activity, the different types available and their fat burning potential. I know that at the end you will be motivated to take up the cardio exercise that suites you the most, and be rest assured, if you stick to it, you can say good bye to that pot belly forever!

Have a great day!

What the hell is aerobic exercise? Now that’s the burning question, well  basically it’s a sustained form of exercise that is repetitive, long and hard enough to challenge the heart and lungs to use oxygen as a fuel source to sustain the body over a longer period (15-20 mins or more). Aerobic activity by its very nature requires fat to be used as a primary energy source with carbohydrates and proteins being used to a lesser extent. Basically if you want to cut your gut, you have to do cardio!

Modern research has shown that to burn fat effectively you need to exercise in the now mythological “fat burning zone”. To cut the crap, what you need to do is to exercise at 75% or more of your MAXIMUM HEART RATE (MHR).

 Maximum heart rate is calculated by subtracting your age from 220. So if you are 40 years old, you need to work your heart at 75% of 220-40 = 135beats per minute!

So far so good, now what are the best aerobic exercises to achieve this?

The most effective aerobic activities include in ascending order:

Walking, running, cycling, swimming, skipping and HIIT (more about this weird one later)

1.       WALKING (BURNS 300-400 CALORIES PER HOUR):

Though it has fallen out of favour as a belly bursting, fat burning exercise, walking is still useful and hence has its place in the list of effective exercises.  It is great for beginners, those who are recovering from injury and the obese. Its major drawback is its low intensity which will hamper fat loss if you are already reasonably fit. Walking will help increase your metabolism, but for only a short time, i.e. about two hours after exercise. Other advantages of walking includes as a good build up to more intense workouts, below is a sample walking program that you can start with as a beginner:

Frequency: 3 times a week

Intensity: 50% to 70% of MHR

Duration: 30 to 45 mins per session

2.       RUNNING (BURNS AROUND 600 CALORIES PER HOUR):

This is a higher intensity method compared to walking, running (not sprinting, which is anaerobic) is an efficient way to lose belly and body fat and improve cardiorespiratory fitness. The main benefit to running for weight loss purposes is that it is sufficiently high intensity to burn a greater number of calories and to stimulate your metabolism for longer periods afterwards. Jogging is the best variant of running to burn fat; it can also be used for the following purposes:

·         To train aerobically at a higher intensity and burn more fat as a result

·         To add definition and shape to the leg muscles

·         As a means of increasing metabolic rate for up to 24 hrs

·         Can help prevent osteoporosis due to its high impact nature

Beginner’s running program:

Frequency: 3 times a week

Intensity: 65% to 85% of MHR

Duration: 30 minutes

3.       CYCLING(BURNS AROUND 600 CALORIES PER HOUR):

This involves the same muscles as running but has the added advantage of being low impact, making it ideal for almost everybody. It can also be done either on a stationary bike or on the road. Both methods are ideal for belly fat loss and the intensity can be varied, it is also useful for HIIT( more on this later!) as the resistance can be changed from lower to higher quite quickly. Cycling also has the following benefits:

·         As a low impact, high intensity way to lose belly fat

·         As a means to improve fitness and athletic performance

·         As a way of developing quadriceps(thigh muscles)

Beginners cycling program:

Frequency: 3 times a week

Intensity: 65% to 85% of MHR

Duration: 30 to 45 mins

4.       SWIMMING(BURNS AROUND 600 CALORIES PER HOUR):

Swimming provides a great total body workout while at the same time burning a high number of calories, it is also very low impact as the exercise is carried out in a weightless environment (water) and as a result, there is very little risk of injury. If you can swim and have access to a pool, I would suggest you incorporate a variety of different of swimming strokes to get the best cardio and fat burning experience. Also be sure to swim with intensity, most people I see in the pool swim at a leisurely pace, don’t do this! Swim as if you were running!

Frequency: 3 times a week

Intensity: 65% to 85% of MHR

Duration: 30 to 45 mins

5.       SKIPPING ( BURNS AROUND 1000 CALORIES PER HOUR):

We now come to my favourite aerobic belly fat burning exercise! Skipping is a great way to burn fat period! Though it is high impact, it provides a great aerobic workout if done correctly. Skipping will also add definition to your calves and shoulders, as it works these muscle groups quite intensely. Probably one of the harder aerobic methods, it requires skill, strength, focus and patience.  Due to the intense nature of the exercise, its best to do them in short burst of 3 to 5 minutes with short rests in between. Skipping has benefits that include:

Frequency: 3 times a week

Intensity: 80% to 90% of MHR

Duration: 3 to 5 minutes (4 times per session)

6.       HIIT (HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING):

HIIT is a modern method of fat burning that can be incorporated into all the belly bursting aerobics exercises listed above. Whether it is walking, running , cycling, swimming or skipping you can apply the principle of HIIT to burn more fat in every workout. All you have to do is exercise at your normal intensity for about 2 minutes, then shift into higher gear and go all out for about 1 minute and when you are fatigued, slow down till you regain your breath. For example, you might normally jog at a pace of 8km per hour, then when you are warmed up, sprint for as long and as hard as you can, then when you have reached your limit, slow down to a slow jogging pace till you recover, then repeat over and over.

Frequency: 4 times a week

Intensity: As intense as possible

Duration: 30 minutes

AND FINALLY:

Remember to take it easy at the beginning of any exercise routine, especially if you have never worked out at all or it’s been a long time, you should start light with low impact aerobics exercise like walking to avoid injury or burnout. Having unrealistic expectations of your body too soon can lead to discouragement when the results don’t come early enough, so take it easy and with gradual increases in effort and exertion.

To get the best out of your sessions, try to work out for at least 30 to 45 minutes, with at least 75% of MHR and you will be well on your way to losing that belly and keeping it off! Lastly, please stay hydrated, aerobic exercise involves water loss in sweat, leading to dizziness and fatigue, so drink enough water ok?

Thanks , and have a great weekend!