You know, as a personal trainer, I am constantly being asked ‘how do I get rid of my spare tyre?’, ‘what do I have to do to lose weight around my midriff?’, ‘how do you get your six pack?’ and ‘do you do a lot of sit-ups everyday?’. Well, allow me to let you in on a few secrets.

First up, why do we accumulate that spare tyre as we get older? Have you ever wondered why you could eat anything and get away with it when you were younger, but now you can’t even look at a slice of cheesecake without feeling it spreading out around your midriff immediately? Well, there are a number of reasons:

1. Metabolism. There’s that word again. I’ll discuss metabolism in greater detail in another article, but for now, be aware that it does play a part in all of this. Look at ways to increase your metabolism, like eating small meals often, and make sure you are getting the correct amount of protein, carbohydrates and fat in each meal, and daily. Weight training will also increase your metabolism, as well as building muscle.
2. Insulin resistance can build up over time with the consumption of too many simple carbohydrates, like white bread, white rice, pasta, sugar, and sugary cereals. Eating too many of these foods can cause the body to start to resist the hormone insulin when glucose is absorbed, resulting in more fat being deposited around the tummy.
3. Lack of physical exercise. Need I say any more? Get up, get moving, and get physical. You don’t have to do endless sit-ups, but work the body as a whole to increase the heart rate and and burn some calories. Weight training, and cardio and are both important here, with some high intensity interval cardio being extremely effective.
4. Get plenty of rest and sleep, at least 7 hours each night. Lack of sleep over periods of time can increase the level of the hormone cortisol in your body, which can hinder weight loss and actually increase the amount of body fat stored, around the mid section in particular.
5. The saying “abs are made in the kitchen” is actually very true. A nutrition plan that is tailor made for you is so very important. Depending on your body type, your training, and your workload, your diet should consist of around five or six small meals every day. These meals should include adequate but not excessive amounts of complex carbohydrates, enough essential fatty acids (good fat), and adequate protein according to your needs and your body weight. Excess calories consumed on a daily basis will increase your weight, where as adequate and less calories for your workload and BMR will help you lose weight. Simple!
6. Correct ab training, working not only the 6 pack, but all the core muscles as well.

So, that “6 pack” is under there somewhere right? By correcting some past issues with the hormones cortisol and insulin, eating correctly, and exercising correctly and efficiently, just let them be shredded and pop out.