Belly fat. If you’re someone who easily gains and retains excess fat in your abdominal region, you know how frustrating it can be to get rid of it. One thing I know for sure about this topic…
Just doing exercises that focus on your core will NOT solve the problem, no matter how many you do!
Yes, core-focused exercises are extremely important for everyone to be doing whether you have a belly fat issue or not. Why?
Because core strength is critical to your overall health. It improves your posture and balance, helps you feel strong and confident, enhances athletic / fitness performance, and it can even relieve chronic back pain that’s caused by weakness in your midsection.
That’s why I created this super effective 21 Day Ninja Core Challenge to help you strengthen the heck out of your core! (Click HERE to sign up.)
But again, doing core-focused exercises alone will NOT get rid of unwanted belly fat.
5 Key Practices for Shedding Belly Fat
KEY #1: NUTRITION
You’ve probably heard the saying, “Abs are made in the kitchen.” It’s true! You can workout all you want, but you simply can’t exercise your way out of a poor diet. (Trust me, I tried for years!)
Plus, everything you eat and drink will either fight disease in your body or feed it.
The good news is it’s A LOT simpler to adopt a clean, balanced and healthy way of eating than the “diet” industry wants you to believe. Click HERE to get the simple blueprint.
KEY #2: COMPLETE FITNESS PROGRAM
Core-focused exercises only focus on building your core strength. To shed unwanted belly fat, it’s important that you are following a complete fitness program that helps you burn fat and build muscle throughout your entire body.
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a form of exercise that is especially helpful for burning fat around your midsection. It involves exercising at a very intense level for shorter periods of time with rests in between, so you’re consistently raising your heart rate into the fat-burning zone and then dropping it. I highly recommend incorporating HIIT into your fitness routine!
Don’t know where to start? Click HERE to check out the online gym I personally use, love and recommend to all my family, friends and clients. It’s loaded with hundreds of workouts, and new content is constantly added. It allows you to workout anytime and anywhere with any device that’s connected to the internet.
This online gym also has a healthy cooking channel to help with nutrition (key #1 above). You can try it FREE for 30 days before paying a cent!
KEY #3: MAGNESIUM
Magnesium is a very important mineral that’s used by every organ in your body. In fact, your body needs it to perform over 300 biochemical processes!
The vast majority of Americans are magnesium deficient. If you experience symptoms like unexplained weakness or fatigue, chronic stress, headaches, muscle spasms, eye twitches or abnormal heart rhythms, low levels of magnesium could be to blame.
Low levels of magnesium can also cause your blood sugar and insulin levels to spike, which can result in your body storing excess fat. Yikes!
Foods that are high in magnesium include green leafy vegetables like spinach and Swiss Chard, seaweed, brazil nuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chickpeas, bananas, avocados, quinoa and cacao.
To make sure you are not deficient in magnesium, I recommend supplementation. Below are the magnesium supplements I personally use to keep my magnesium levels in-check:
- I take a magnesium bath 2-3 times a week using epsom salt (Magnesium Sulfate).
- I drink a glass of water with a teaspoon of Natural Calm (Magnesium Citrate) each morning.
- I spray my underarms and the bottom of my feet with magnesium oil (Magnesium Chloride) every morning after bathing and every night before bed.
NOTE: When you apply magnesium topically using a bath or spray, your body will only absorb the amount it needs.
When it comes to oral supplementation, however, you can take too much and end up with “the poops.” Start by taking just 1/2 a teaspoon of Natural Calm and see how your body handles it before increasing the dose.
KEY #4: STRESS REDUCTION
Chronic stress keeps the stress hormones in your body (like cortisol) elevated. This can increase your blood pressure and cause your body to store fat.
Let’s face it, we ALL have stress in our lives. It’s unavoidable. That’s why it’s so important to engage in DAILY activities to keep your stress level in a healthy place.
Helpful tools for managing stress include deep breathing, meditation, spending time in nature, yoga and a consistent exercise routine. Magnesium supplementation (key #3 above) also helps manage stress. BONUS!
I also recommend using essential oils, Himalayan salt lamps and plants like aloe vera to create a relaxing environment in your home and office. They also help to detox the air around you!
Remember that online gym I mentioned before? Not only is it loaded with hundreds of amazing workouts, it also has a 3-week yoga retreat and an entire channel dedicated to yoga sessions that help manage stress. Click HERE to check it out!
KEY #5: SLEEP
Getting consistent quality sleep is CRITICAL to your overall health and well-being. It’s also critical for achieving a lean body.
I could write an entire book on this subject (and plan to someday), but for now you can click HERE for a quick read on the importance of sleep. Please don’t skip this information…it’s so important for your health and busting that darn belly fat!
Cheers to chiseling your core through these 5 key practices and joining my 21 Day Ninja Core Challenge!
With love and gratitude,
Kandi
DISCLOSURE: Many of the links above are affiliate links, which means I earn a small commission – at no additional cost to you – if you purchase a product through them. (Click here to view my full Disclaimer & Disclosure statement.) This helps me continue providing FREE content to help you live a fit and fabulous life without busting your bank account. Thanks for your support!