3 Key Points to Help Tighten Lower Abs

You may have worked hard…exercised regularly and eaten right. You may have even seen some encouraging signs of progress: maybe you’ve lost an inch or two from your waist. Maybe your favorite pair of jeans or dress fits a little better…but, then you notice that your lower abs are just not as tight as you expected them to be…

People just like you are looking for ways to tighten lower abs. It is probably one of the hardest (if not THE hardest) part of the abs to show. It’s that stubborn little pooch women usually complain about or that extra flab of fat that keep men from buttoning their pants effortlessly.

Did you know that the lower abs is both the last to lose belly fat when you’re exercising and eating right and the first to gain belly fat when you’re not? OUCH!

This is because of the average man and woman’s hormonal make up. Your body naturally stores fat in your lower abs first (especially men) for survival reasons.

Even worse, cortisol, a hormone released by the body when it is under stress, further contributes to the build-up of fat around the waist…That just doubled my stress right there :)

By the time you finish reading this article, you’ll will have learned 3 proven ways to both tighten lower abs and make your hormones actually help keep the fat off your belly…

Ready? Let’s get started with the most obvious…

1) Perform specific exercises to tighten lower abs…

What’s a successful ab workout program without specific exercises to tighten lower abs? There are quite a few options to choose from, but here are 3 of my favorite lower abs exercises that will give you great overall results:

Abdominal Bicycle Crunch

woman-doing-bicycle-abs-crunches-1 woman-doing-bicycle-abs-crunches-2

Reverse Abdominal Crunches

 

Hanging Leg Raises

2) Lower Your Overall Body Fat %

What good is having tight lower abs if they’re hidden behind a layer or two of belly fat? I mean, you want to tighten lower abs AND have them look great, right?

Well, the best way to get your lower abs to look like they’ve gone to abdominal boot camp is by lowering your overall body fat. That would be your primary goal here.

Targeted abs exercises won’t be enough…Have you noticed this? Once you get your total body fat to the ideal, things will get much easier, you’ll see.

If you know what your total body fat percentage is you’ll know how much fat you’ll need to burn in the process. In this case, like in many others, knowledge is power.

And the fastest way to burn off body fat is to do interval training. It allows you to burn off fat in the least amount of time. Sweet!

The other way to lower your overall body fat % is to INCREASE your muscle % through resistance training. Don’t worry ladies, you won’t look like a bodybuilder if you do this right.

Interval training is great for fat-burning in the short-term but muscle-building is BY FAR the best long-term strategy for keeping fat OFF your body…

If you’re serious about creating a healthy, lean body, there are 2 abs programs that I’ve found to give the best results: www.NoNonsense6Pack.com and www.GetHotAbs.com.

You can learn about these programs by clicking on the URL above.

Ok, Ready for tip#3?

3) Have a Good Eating Strategy (NOT Diet!)…

If you’re like me, you hate diets! I mean, if they really worked long-term, why do so many of us seem to go from one diet to another with no real long-term success. And you’ve probably heard that the diet industry is a multi-BILLION dollar industry. But where are the real results?!

…Ok, you already know diets are useless long-term but at the same time, you do need a good eating strategy. After all, what you eat is about 60-80% of having great abs.

So what’s the difference between a diet and a good eating strategy?

Here it is: a diet is short-term and many times requires starvation or the complete elimination of an entire food group (e.g. carbs, fat, etc). This just can’t work long-term and is doomed for failure at some point because it’s unrealistic.

An eating strategy on the other hand is a long-term approach because it deals with reality. No need to cut out EVERYTHING forever (impossible).

You’ll find that good eating strategy teaches you to restructure what you’re already doing in a way that tells your body to naturally release excess body fat…but you’re still eating when you’re hungry. No starvation. Yay!

The basics of a good eating strategy include eliminating excessively fatty foods from your diet, cutting down on highly processed foods, and drinking alcohol only every once and a while can do you more good than you can imagine.

Sticking to a well-rounded diet that’s loaded with whole grains, fresh fruits, colorful veggies, and lean meats will definitely set the motion toward a healthier, more fit you- without starving.

 

Do you need some more help with an effective long-term eating strategy?

After looking through a lot of programs, the diet solution is my favorite because Isabel (the program creator) uses common sense and real science to guide you through fat-burning meal plans that are for people that actually enjoy eating REAL food.

You can learn more about Isabel’s program by going to www.FatBurningMealPlans.com

I’m sure that by now you can see how these 3 tips can help you to tighten lower abs- starting today! But, as you’ve heard before, you have to take action!

Start by doing a couple of the lower abs and fat-burning exercises that we talked about in the article, then consider getting a full ab workout program and/or the diet solution

To Your Success!

4 Tips to Remember When Buying Abdominal Fitness Equipment

Buying abdominal fitness equipment is like shopping for any other item at the store. I must admit, it can be intimidating at times. But with these 4 points to ponder on, shopping could be a breeze.

1. How exactly do you fulfill your “want?”

Think about it: you’re not exactly walking into a store to buy a bag of chips. We’re talking moderately expensive, high-tech equipment over here. You have to think these things through.

You definitely would want something that would get you those six pack abs WITHOUT breaking the bank. You probably would also want something you can easily store.

Think in terms of LONG TERM USAGE. Abdominal fitness equipment may cost next to nothing, but more often than not, they don’t last too long either.

Cost will always be a factor. But keep in mind that, as with anything you buy (e.g. clothes, food), quality is of the essence. You must consider the brand of a product, extended warranty offers, and customer testimonials.

Payment plans can also help you make up your mind on a potential buy. There are so many choices out there, it can be overwhelming. But factoring in the price and available payment plans, either by the store or your credit card company, can help you decide which one you can actually go for.

2. What do you REALLY need?

Are you really going for results or the fancy brand of the equipment? Abdominal fitness equipment with off-the-roof prices don’t necessarily mean they work.

Basically, you need to balance “flash” with “function.”

What you need is a piece of equipment that works for YOU. If you’re just starting out, go for a more basic, user-friendly item. As you build abdominal muscle through time, you can eventually go up a grade higher and go for the more complicated ones.

You can always start with an exercise ball. Those hardly cost anything, but the results you can get by using them regularly can be astounding.

3. Compare, compare, compare!

Looking around before purchasing anything is always the way to go. You shouldn’t buy the first piece of abdominal fitness equipment you see because you MIGHT just find something better. Window shopping can take a while, but think about how much you can save.

Nothing is worse than buyer’s remorse, believe you me.

If you have a particular kind of equipment in mind, check with different brands. Compare prices, warranties, and product specifications to get a good deal. If you’re spending on equipment, you might as well score the best one.

4. Product Guarantees

Expect only great things from the items you purchase. Ask yourself, are you actually getting the latest model? Will the cost still be acceptable if you factor in shipping fees? What if it breaks down? Can you have it replaced or repaired at once? Is there even an option for extended warranties?

Keep these 4 tips in mind and you can’t go wrong. With just a little bit of homework and some product canvassing, you can absolutely score the best deals in abdominal fitness equipment.

Got any abdominal fitness equipment advice? Share them by adding a comment below.