Why Crunches Do Not Help You To Lose Belly Fat- And What To Do Instead
Posted: Wednesday, April 01, 2009
by Perry Permann
Lose Weight Permanently
Are you over 40? Do you want to lose belly fat? Often you read to do crunches, reverse bicycles and similar exercises for the abdominal muscles.
At first sight, that's logical. You're working out a body part, so the fat on this body part is getting less. Unfortunately our metabolism doesn t work that way:
It is not possible to burn fat in just one part of your body. Where you will gain weight and where you lose it depends on your constitution, it s in the genes. Over 40 this genetic program is getting stronger and stronger.
If you want to make the muscles around your midsection stronger, then crunches are a great way to do it. To get a nicely formed physique, many exercises for the ab muscles will assist you reach that. I recommend to do some exercises for the lower back muscles too, to make the whole midsection strong. This will improve posture and prevent lower back pain. For many over 40 back pain is rather common- our desk-bound life style contributes to that greatly.
In comparison crunches are not the most time-efficient thing to do when you want to lose weight. The belly muscles are relatively small, so if you spend 15 minutes on crunches you burn much fewer calories as if you'd spend 15 minutes working at your leg muscles. Your leg muscles are much bigger and will burn more calories in the same time.
So: Don't do crunches to lose belly fat over 40, do crunches to tone up your core.
You can read another article from Perry at Woman Over 40? Lose Belly Fat Now - The Health and Beauty Hazard
His website is Lose Weight Permanently for Women over 40
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