Exercises to Get Rid of Love Handles

If you have love handles (they are the flabby bits on the sides of your abs), you may be thinking that they need different treatment to your normal ab workout.

Although you can use the same exercises to get rid love handles that you use for the rest of your ab workout, there are exercises that emphasize the sides of your abs. This is the key area you are targeting. The main thing to remember though, is that love handles indicates too much body fat. You can't expect to get rid of love handles without losing some body fat.

Oh, by the way, there is a technical term for love handles. They are called "Obliques".

Body Fat

Losing body fat is the best way to get rid of love handles. Actually, it's the only way to get rid of them.

You should integrate regular aerobic fitness into your workout routine. Go for low-intensity and long duration. For example, go for a long run or bike ride every other day. Treadmills or stationary bikes are a convenient way to do this. If you prefer, instead of running, you could go for a long walk. Walking can burn just as much fat as running.

Be sure that your food intake is low in fat. Fat is the number 1 ingredient for your love handles! Eat plenty of fresh fruit and drink plenty of water. Eat food that's high in protein and fibre.

For more information about low fat food, see Foods That Burn Fat.

To find out if you need to lose weight, check out the Ideal Body Weight Chart.

Tone those Obliques!

Here are some exercises that will tone your oblique muscles. Once you start lowering your body fat, you (and others) will really notice the benefits of these exercises!

• Trunk Twists
  1 set of 100 - 150 reps
  This is a good exercise to start off with - as it will help warm your muscles and it will give you a bit of a cardio workout too.
  1. Stand with your feet at shoulder width and your knees slightly bent.
  2. Place your hands in front of you with palms facing away from you (as if you're about to push something away).
  3. Twist your torso to the left, until your face (and hands) are facing in the opposite direction. (Don't force yourself to go too far - you don't want to injure yourself.).
  4. Twist all the way around to the right.
  5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you've completed the desired number of reps.

• Oblique Crunches (or "twist" crunches)
  3 sets of 25 reps
  
  1. Lie on the floor with your legs bent at a 90 degree angle so that the bottom of your feet are vertical.
  2. Place your hands on the back of your head.
  3. Lift your shoulder blades off the ground until your right elbow touches your left knee.
  4. Squeeze your abs for a second.
  5. Slowly return to the starting position.
  6. Repeat steps 3 - 5 but this time using your left elbow to touch your right knee.
  7. Repeat steps 3 - 6 until you've completed the desired number of reps.

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