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Lazy Girl Guide: 13 Easy Ways to Lose Weight

Source: http://www.youbeauty.com/fitness/easy-ways-to-lose-weight/

Long hours at the gym and restrictive diets are tough to maintain when you want to lose weight. Our budgets and busy schedules might not allow us to attend spin class every morning and nosh on organic food and green juices. Although exercise is important for good health, there are easy ways to lose weight without stepping foot into your local gym. Don’t get demoralized! Only a few slight changes to your daily routine can be enough to slim down:

1. Use Smaller Plates.
It’s natural to want to fill up your plate, but by using a smaller one, you can fill your plate and still cut down on the amount of food you end up eating. You actually trick your mind into thinking you ate more than you did since your plate looks so full.

2. Take The Stairs.
It may seem daunting, but taking the stairs instead of an elevator can tone your tush in no time. It’s strength training without actually hitting the gym, so opt for stairs the next time you need to head up a few flights!

3. Don’t Eat in Front of the TV.
When you’re distracted, you’re not paying attention to how much food you’re consuming. Researchers have found that watching TV while eating leads to higher calorie consumption since you’re eating without thinking. Be especially mindful while snacking so you can avoid packing on extra pounds.

4. Drink “Skinny Cocktails.”
Happy hours and boozy brunches are fun but they can lead to over-indulging on high-caloric cocktails. Try these calorie-cutting hacks for healthier cocktails instead!

5. Get More Sleep.
Studies have shown that lack of sleep can lead to weight gain, a slower metabolism, and an increased risk of obesity and diabetes. So, clock in an extra few hours of shut eye to ensure you keep your waistline slim and your energy up.

6. Don’t Deny Yourself Sweets.
Denying yourself your favorite snack will only make you crave it more. We always want what we can’t have!. Instead of cutting out sweets entirely, allow yourself to indulge in that fun-size bag of Doritos or two scoops of gelato once a week. That way, you won’t binge on your favorite treats if you fall off the wagon once or twice (which, by the way, you shouldn’t beat yourself up about — it happens). You can seek out low-calorie dessert options, such as this low-cal healthy cheesecake.

7. Down a Glass of Water Before Meals.
It’s easy to confuse hunger with thirst, so drink a glass of water before a big meal to ensure you’re not simply thirsty. A glass of agua will make you feel fuller so you won’t eat as much during your meal.

8. Learn to Love Green Tea.
Save those Frappuccinos for an occasional treat and learn to love the green stuff — no, not money, tea! Green tea is known to reduce belly fat, boost metabolism and help digestion, so drink up!

9. Limit Going Out to Dinner to Eat.
Unlimited breadsticks, anyone? It’s nice to treat yourself to a meal out with friends every once in awhile, but restaurant portions are always much bigger than anything you would normally make at home. Save the night’s out for special occasions so you can indulge within reason.

10. Eat Sitting Down.
Studies have found that eating while standing up is not only bad for digestion, it actually leads you to consume more calories. When standing up, you eat food more quickly, so you’re more likely not to realize how full you’ve actually become. Take a few minutes to sit down and enjoy your meal.

11. Don’t Drink Your Calories.
You might be sabotaging your own diet plan without even realizing it! Drinking high-calorie beverages might not seem like a big deal at the time, but at the end of the day it adds up. Your morning Starbucks latte has an average of 265 calories, your afternoon soda has 227, and your evening ice tea has 180. When all is said and done, you’re approaching nearly 1000 calories in drinks alone! One of the most easy ways to lose weight is to replace your sugary beverages with water.

12. Walk Everywhere.
If you just can’t seem to squeeze in a workout sesh at your gym, torch a few extra calories by choosing to walk as much as you can. Take a walk around the office at lunchtime, or skip the bus and walk to work. Walking increases cardiovascular health and strengthens muscles. Studies have even shown that it may even be just as good for you as running!

13. Ditch the Sweatpants.
News Flash: You know those glorious, ultra-comfortable, 10-year-old pair of sweatpants you love so much? They are not your friend. They’re “the leading cause of divorce” (according to Eva Mendes), and also have been sneakily playing a part in fattening you up. Sweatpants are the most forgiving piece of clothing out there — which is why we love them when we feel bloated before our periods, but not so much when we’re minding our weight. Jeans, on the other hand, will tell you right away if you’re bursting with food and help you say “no, thanks!” to seconds.

First steps towards losing belly fat

Source: http://www.youbeauty.com/nutrition/how-to-lose-belly-fat/

Anyone with belly fat knows how hard it is to lose that bit of inconvenient pooch. The good news is that you don’t have to do 50 crunches every day to lose your ‘burrito baby.” The bad news is that you can’t really target one specific trouble spot when trying to shed excess weight. If you want to lose weight in one area, you’ll have to settle for losing weight all over.

That said, there are several studies that show making certain changes to what you eat and how you work out can help reduce belly fat. Try these five science-backed ways to get a more svelte stomach:

1. Snack on almonds. This protein-packed snack is a smart choice for those late-afternoon cravings when sugar-loaded Frappuccino is calling your name A recent study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that people who ate 1.5 ounces (the average shot glass size) of almonds daily reduced their abdominal fat — and even lowered their bad cholesterol.

2. Ditch diet soda. Are you really still drinking diet soda after all we know now about how bad it is for you? This may help you finally kick the bad habit: A 2011 study from The University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio found that the waist circumferences of diet soda drinkers increased by 70% when they followed up nearly 10 years later, compared with those who didn’t drink the diet beverage. For people who downed two or more diet sodas daily, their waist circumferences were 500% greater than non-drinkers. Yipes.

3. Grab weights — not just cardio classes. We’re not suggesting ditching your beloved SoulCycle class, but if you’re looking to shrink belly fat, make sure lifting weights is part of your exercise routine (and no, it won’t bulk you up). Harvard University researchers found that 20 minutes of daily weight training slowed down the increase of age-related belly fat, compared to 20 minutes of aerobics daily. Lifting free weights and Kettlebells builds muscle mass, which increases your body’s ability to torch more calories.

4. Eat lean protein with dairy. Pairing quality protein with dairy can help you lose abdominal fat. In a 2011 study published in the Journal of Nutrition, 90 participants were put into the three diet groups with varying levels of protein and dairy: high protein with high dairy; adequate protein with medium dairy; and adequate protein with low dairy. The researchers found that the group who ate both high levels of protein and dairy lost fat all over their body, including abdominal fat and — bonus! — gained lean muscle mass.

“Fat in the abdomen is thought to be especially bad for cardiovascular and metabolic health, and it seems — according to what we found in this study — increasing calcium and protein in the diet may help to further promote loss of fat from the worst storage area in the body,” lead author of the study Andrea Josse told ScienceDaily.

5. Choose your fats wisely. Polyunsaturated fat, which is found in nuts, seeds, vegetable oils and fish (in a nutshell, the staples of the Mediterranean diet), can help fight off belly fat. In a small 2014 study published in the journal Diabetes, researchers set out to find out if foods influence where fat is stored in the body. They had two groups eat the same diet, except half of the study subjects consumed additional calories from polyunsaturated fat (sunflower oil), while the other half took in added calories from saturated fat (palm oil). Although both groups gained weight, which was the intention of the study, the researchers found that consuming too much saturated fat appears to increase the storage of fat in the abdomen, while polyunsaturated fat seems to help reduce fat storage in the body.

Tips on how to lose love handles

Source: http://www.youbeauty.com/fitness/oblique-exercises-to-get-rid-of-love-handles/

We endearingly refer to them as love handles. Or maybe you prefer to call it your muffin top. Either way, excess fat sitting on the sides of the torso is tough to lose.

“You have to cross-train your core like you cross-train the rest of your body,” says celebrity trainer Kira Stokes. Of all the waist-whittling exercises out there, ones that target your oblique muscles will zero in on this area. A general rule to keep in mind: Any move where you’re reaching to the side works your obliques.

But incorporating ones that also hit your upper and lower abs will more effectively sculpt and slim your entire middle section. “Your core works as one complete unit,” Stokes reminds us.

Here, she shares her favorite exercises for getting rid of the extra padding around your middle.

1/ Oblique Press and Reach

Kneel on your left knee with your right foot out in front of you, foot flat on the floor (leg will form a 90 degree angle). Keep the abdominal muscles tight, back straight, tailbone tucked. Hold a weight in your right hand, arm extended out to the right and bent at a 90 degree angle with your fist in the air.

Then, reach up, extending your arm straight into the air while bending your body down to the left side and touching your left fingertips to the ground. Next, use your oblique muscle pull your torso back to starting position. Do 3 sets of 12-15 on each side.

2/ Side Plank Crunch

Start on your right elbow, your right foot slightly in front of your left. Keep your core tightened throughouts. Pull the right knee in towards chest and crunch your left elbow toward it. Then bring back out to side plank position. Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps.

3/ Plank Up-Downs

Get into plank position, with arms out straight directly beneath your shoulders, squeezing your butt and pulling your abs tight into your spine. Then, starting with one arm, lower down onto your forearm, then follow with the next arm. Move back up, one arm at a time, to the fully extended plank. Make sure to avoid rocking your hips, Stokes warns, and keep the core tight the entire time.

“It also works your upper body as well,” Stokes notes, since your upper body is moving and helping to support your entire plank position. Do 8 on each side, or shoot for 30-45 seconds.

4/ Around the World Obliques

Stand with your legs wider than shoulder-width apart, toes turned out just a little bit, tailbone tucked. With a very light weight in your hands (5 pounds at most—or you can even hold a pillow—just to keep anchored so you don’t feel the move in your lower back) extend arms up straight above your head as far as you can. “It should really feel like a stretch,” says Stokes. Then, bend from the hips and reach your body as far as you can to the right, hips and shoulders square forward. At the last second when you can’t reach any more, rotate toward the floor. Twist your body back to face front, exhale and pull back up to center.

Make sure to keep your knees soft, don’t lock them. Do 8-10 slow and controlled reps in each direction, alternating sides.

5/Pass the Ball

These are basically bicycle crunches turned up a notch. Lie flat on the ground, abs pulled in tight to your spine and back flat on the floor. Pick your chest up, pulling the right knee into your chest and holding a ball in your left hand. Pass the ball underneath your right knee into your right hand and crunch up. “It’s almost like a figure-8,” says Stokes. Like dribbling a basketball, minus that bounce on the floor.

Rotate your legs after each pass, and make sure you’re crunching up every time. Keep your shoulder blades lifted off the ground throughout. Do for 30-45 seconds.

6/Knee Drop

Lie flat on the ground, abs pulled in tight to your spine, back flat on the floor. Lift legs off the floor and into a tabletop position. Squeeze the ball between legs, engaging the inner thigh muscles and lower abs the entire time. Drop your knees over to the right—slowly—keeping abs pulled in tight and lower back flat. Exhale and pull to center, then inhale as you drop them down the other way.

“You want to keep them tucked in, knees aligned over your hips,” says Stokes. You’ll also get an awesome lower back stretch. Holding the ball tight will ensure you keep your legs together throughout the movement. Do 3 sets of 8-10 reps each side.

7/Crouching Tiger Push-Up

One of Stokes’ signature moves, the only other place you’ll see this is in one of her classes. Start in a push-up position (hands wider than shoulder-width). Do a pushup. Then, bend knees off floor, and press back into your hips so your knees are directly beneath your ribs. Your arms should be straight pressing through the shoulders—you’ll feel it in your quads and shoulders.

Then lift the hips up into a downward dog position. From there, round out your back and slowly roll your spine forward in a wave motion, starting with lower spine and ending with upper spine rolling the rest of the body flat until you are back in your starting plank position.

“Pressing back forces you to engage the low abdomen; the rolling wave is active abdominal work, and it’s also stretching your back.” Do 3 sets of 10-12 slow and controlled