How to flatten your stomach and form a six pack

A friend and I were strolling in the mall the other day and saw this cute little black dress. It’s a strapless body hugging mini dress, which is just the perfect outfit for the New Year’s Eve party. However, though black dresses conjure an image of a slim figure, it will still not help hide my friend’s 30 inches belly. So my mission is to help my BFF flatten her stomach before the party and help her understand how to get a six a pack for the coming bikini months of summer. 

Step #1 Evaluate the current diet and lifestyle

Set a three day observation noting what types of food you consume on a regular basis. Write it down on a journal along with the quantity and time of consumption. Also, take note of the daily activities with the number of hours spent on a certain activity. This may sound like a tedious work, but this will allow you to understand what causes weight gain and helps in formulating a weight loss plan.

Step #2 Know your enemy

Belly fats as well as the other fat deposits in the body are actually excess calories that failed to be converted to energy. This could be due to excess calorie intake from the food we eat or due to sedentary lifestyle. Furthermore, a person gains a pound for every 3500 calories he/she have in her body and loses a pound if she shed off the same amount of calories. That means, the only way to form a six pack is by flattening the stomach first by getting rid of the excess calories then tone the muscles to get the most coveted six pack abs. 

Step #3 Modify your diet

Everything starts with what you put inside your mouth. This implies that the easiest way to lose weight is by controlling what you eat. It is important to get all the necessary nutrients from the food we eat and it is equally important to consume foods that are low in calories. Because it is unrealistic to memorize all the calories from food, prepare a week menu for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. This way, you get to limit and monitor the caloric intake and avoid unnecessary calories.

Step #4 Burn the fat

There is no specific exercise in burning fat deposits in specific areas. Therefore, the best way to lose the belly fat is by burning the body’s fat deposits in general. Since body fats are “unconverted energy”, that means you should engage in activities that requires the body to convert those fats to energy. 

Go to the gym and do cardio exercises. Cardio exercises are those pieces of exercise equipment that gets your heart rate and respiration up. Great calorie burning machines include but are not limited to treadmills, elliptical trainers, versa climbers, stair mills, stationary bikes, rowing machines, and ski machines. 

Since my friend is the type of person who gets bored in a gym, I looked for another option that will allow her to burn good amount of calories while having fun at the same time. Since she was a cheerleader in high school, I suggested that she will continue her passion in dancing. She enrolled in Hip Hop and belly dancing, these are great activities that burn the fats and get that belly to warm up for the abdominal muscle toning exercises.

Step #5 Tone the muscles for the six pack

When a flat stomach is achieved, it is now time to move to the next step and that is to tone the abdominal muscles. How long does it take to get a six pack depends on how hard you are willing to work out. There are three major muscles in the abdomen, the rectus abdominis, transverse abdominis, and the internal and external oblique. When you’re able to shape these muscles, especially the rectus abdominis, you would surely get the six pack abs. Best workouts to form a six pack are captain chair leg raise, floor bicycle crunches, plank pose and side twists for the oblique muscles.