10 minute tummy tighteners

As originally seen in “Woman” magazine – June 2012 

 

Take inches off your waist in no time with these super-quick tricks…

Start the day with yoghurt for breakfast

‘Low-fat dairy products may help lower the levels of fat that get deposited around the abdomen’ reveals Charlotte Stirling-Reed, a registered public health nutritionist and founder of SR Nutrition. ‘Try a breakfast of low-fat, plain yoghurt with some oats and fruit.’

Imagine you’re in a ‘corset’

‘While standing, imagine the muscle tissue from your ribcage to pelvis as a corset,’advises Charlene Hutsebaut, a Pilates instructor and personal trainer. ‘Now, imagine the corset being pulled and tightened fiom behind, and try to move the muscles in the same way. This will help strengthen the tranwerse abdominal muscles and help give you an internal ‘corset’ making your stomach look firmer.’

Skip sugar-free foods

While loading up on refined sugars is a sure-fire way to land yourself a spare tyre, you aiso need to be aware of the dangers of some sugar-free options. Sweeteners such as
sorbitol are broken down and absorbed very slowly by the human body, meaning they can feed the gut bacteria that produce belly-bloating gas.

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Ready to take your own action?! 

Press here to start my 6 Sneaky Steps to Slim your Tummy Series 

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Try a super-powered plank

‘To work your stomach muscles, try an alternative side plank’ says Charlene. ‘Lie on one side and push yourself off the floor, while one hand reaches up and the other supports you with your fingers facing forward and pull your tummy towards your spine as you bring the top arm up and over towards the one on the floor. Go as far as you can without dipping. Hold for 10 secs.’

Lay off the leggings

While skin-ti9ht leggings and skinny jeans can hold you in, they can also make your core muscles relax and sag as they become lazy. Switch to clothes
where you have to hold your tummy in yourself to help tighten those midriff muscles back up.

Flush out fluid

To deflate a bloated belly, try adding foods with diuretic properties to your diet to help ease any fluid retention. Watermelon, celery asparagus and cucumber are all good choices, plus they taste great!

Hang up your killer heels

Yes, we know a pair of shiny stilettos can make your legs look longer and leaner, but experts say they can also turn a taut tum into a pot belly thanks to the way they encourage your pelvis to tilt, pushing your abs forward. Switch to f lats for an instant tummy trimmer, and try to go barefoot at home.

Can the cola

It’s easy to reach for caffeine when you need an energy hit, but by ditching the coffee and coke you could minimise your midriff. Studies have suggested that caffeine could cause levels of the stress hormone cortisol to spike for a shocking 18 hours after you’ve finished sipping your drink. Secreted by the adrenal gland, excess levels of the hormone can mean fat cells get dumped in your tummy.

Talk more sl-l-o-w-l-y

It might sound far-fetched, but researchers at the American College of Gastroenterology have found that nattering away can increase the amount of air you take in, making your belly balloon.

Shop yourself slim

For a no-fuss way to instantly slim your stomach, shapewear is getting better and better. Our fuvourite waist whiltler is Miraclesuit’s new lightweight Sheer Hi Waist Brief,£31.95, shapewear.co.uk.

Get minted

If cravings are stopping you from sculpting that stomach and keeping flab on your abs, try taking a sniff of peppermint. Research from the States found that people who sniffed mint or certain fruits when they had a craving lost more weight than non-inhalers.

Go wholegrain

Switch processed white bread for wholegrain. Studies show that wholegrain-rich diets are linked to a smaller waist circumference.

________________________________________________________________________________

Ready to take your own action?! 

Press here to start my 6 Sneaky Steps to Slim your Tummy Series 

________________________________________________________________________________

View the original article here (Woman, June 2012)

View the original article here (from Woman Diet Special, April 2013)

 


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