Studies clearly show that simply measuring your waist size is one of the best ways to not only predict your risk for diabetes, metabolic syndrome and insulin-resistance (all blood sugar-handling disorders), but is also a good indicator of your overall fitness level.
The good news is determining your waist size is easy. With a tape measure, figure the distance around the smallest area of your abdomen below your rib cage, above your belly button.
Waist Circumferences Guidelines for Men:
- Ideal waist measurement: between 31 and 36 inches
- Overweight: between 36 and 40 inches
- Obese: over 40 inches
Waist Circumferences Guidelines for Women:
- Ideal waist measurement: between 28 and 33 inches
- Overweight: between 33 and 37 inches
- Obese: over 37 inches
Two Keys to Getting Rid of Tummy (Visceral) Fat
There is no such thing as a cure in pill form. The solution is to make certain lifestyle changes! These two are absolutely KEY for successfully eliminating excess visceral fat, and normalizing both your weight and insulin/leptin levels:
1. Strictly limit or avoid all sugars and grains from your diet (yes, even whole grains)…at least until your weight and energy and mood normalize.
Remember that “sugar” does not only refer to just refined sugar but to all forms of sugar and fructose in all its forms. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is particularly dangerous, and insidious as it can be found in soda, ketchup, sauces, salad dressings, most processed foods and sweetened drinks. All starch, in the form of grains, pasta and potatoes, also metabolize into sugar in your body and should also be eliminated from your diet if you suffer from excess weight, diabetes or high cholesterol.
2. Exercise regularly…and intensely!
Studies show regular exercise is extremely important in getting rid of visceral fat. Exercise also reduces the inflammatory properties of visceral fat that are linked to metabolic syndrome.
One of the keys to using exercise to normalize your insulin and leptin levels and eliminate visceral fat is to do enough of it, yet a simple walk around the block after dinner once or twice a week won’t cut it! To burn fat, get that heart up and make sure you break a sweat!
Research has shown that people who exercise not only lose weight faster than those who don’t, but they keep it off for longer…so just do it! 🙂
Remember these three important variables with exercise:
- Intensity (get that heart rate up!)
- Frequency (move every day and do something structured 4-6x’s/wk)
- Length of time (a 10-minute HITT workout or a 2 hour hike…mix it up for best results)
Find out more of my exercise and motivational tips on my Facebook Page here!
Source: Mercola.com 2011
