How do you get rid of your love handles?

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Weight loss options and approaches.

Getting Rid of Love Handles - (AKA Reduce body fat)

Love handles are simply fat deposits. You get rid of fat through diet and cardiovascular exercise to create a caloric deficit (you burn more calories than you take in). You can't spot reduce or anything of that nature, getting rid of love handles is just a matter of reducing your total body fat.

Try cutting down on fatty foods and eating more healthfully. You will be taking in fewer calories this way, and the added calories you burn through exercise will further create a caloric deficit.

The American Heart Association recommends 60-90 minutes of cardiovascular exercise a day, every day for those seeking to lose weight (At 50-80% of your maximum heart rate). That may seem extreme, but everyone, normal weight or not, should be exercising for at LEAST 30 minutes a day, most days of the week. And if that seems extreme...well, there might be a reason why you're here, trying to figure out how to get rid of love handles! Also know that by exercising, not only do you burn more calories while you exercise, but also that you'll be burning more calories even once you stop as your metabolism remains elevated after intensive exercise.

Some weight lifting and resistance exercise is going to be beneficial in reducing body fat. By increasing your total muscle mass, your body will require more calories in a day just to remain a constant weight. This is important, because as you burn more fat, you're caloric needs will decrease (it takes energy to maintain fat cells!) and would cause the rate of fat loss to slow, assuming all things remain constant.

In the end, it's simply a matter of having a constant caloric deficit. It's possible to lose weight through only exercise or only diet, but a balanced diet of reasonable caloric portions combined with daily exercise and a healthy lifestyle is the most effective way to safely maintain an ideal weight. You'll need to maintain these good habits for life in order to keep the weight off.

Here are some other suggestions and pieces of advice:

• I have found that using a cross trainer, also knows as an eliptical trainer always shifts mine. It is one of those machines that makes you look like your cross country skiing. It really works because you have to do a lots of twisting from the waist.

• I hate exercise videos and DVDs, but a friend of mine who looks like a model recommended to me the Callanentics video by Callan Pickney. The waist stretches, stomach exercises and the hip exercises there (who all work on the love handles) do magic. The Callanentics is from the 90's and the style is really funny, but it works better than anything I've tried. I have two children 1 & 3 years old and by doing these exercises and watching my diet, my waist is totally slim.

• I am an athlete, I play basketball and field hockey, the only way to get rid of love handles is to go on a diet combined with cardiovascular exercise. Such cardio vascular exercises would be riding the bike, treadmill, stair master, even certain dance classes. Now to tone your body as well so that you will not have any flab, you can do pilates, yoga, and crunches. Now keep in mind that any exercise you do has to be done correctly, you get what you put in to it. You can always go running or a slight jog, everyone hates it but it works.

• In my experience, I used Suzanne Sommers regimen and I noticed (and others noticed) a slimming of the waist, bottom, and thighs. I recommend this for others.

• I am a runner, long-distance cross country and for a track team. I still deal with the annoying problem of unattractive love handles. I tried exercising and came out with a toned stomach region/6-pack from all the lower waist work-outs, but my love handles were still visible. Being an not only an athlete, but a runner, it was embarrasing for me to have love handles, I was determined to get rid of them. I found out that the only way to lose them is, the last thing I wanted to do, diet. I had a hard time starting out, but enventually I swapped fatty/sweet foods for healthy, weight-smart foods. Not only did my love handles seem to vanish, but I became more self-confident and my whole body felt better after I ate. Starting out is hard, and it may seem like you fail before you even try, but stick with it and you'll get it.

• I also disagree with anyone who says that exercising is bad. I've lost 40 pounds in a matter of months. I've tried everything. There are no shortcuts. You have to eat right (get rid of the sugary junk food and eat lean meats and veggies). Exercise is also *very* key. Think about it: we are talking love handles here. How much muscle do you think you are actually going to build up under them? We are not talking biceps or quads, we're talking about abdominals and obliques. Exercise AND diet are both key elements in any fat loss program. You can't have one without the other and expect amazing (and lasting) results. Your exercise regime should consist of both aerobic and weight training programs. No, I don't think you should have to bulk up like Arnold to lose the weight. However, weight training has been proven to be effective.

• I love sports! I do lots of dance, soccer and swimming. Throughout the year and I have to say that to get rid of your love handels you don't have to diet just don't eat that extra bag of chips or that pop(take out the sugery stuff). The rest is all exersise! Over the summer I trained for swimming so much that my love handels completely disappeared and in addition I got that toned curve that happens when they dissapear. For those that say exersise builds your muscles(thats true) and thats why you should not exersise to get rid of your love handels totally untrue!!! While the muscles do build and get toned giving the area the additional bonus of looking firm and toned, they can hardly build very much muscle because there is so little muscle in the area! You can feel your hip bones straight through most of the time, see not that much there. Also the exersise burns calories/fat that resides in your body.

• Exercise does work. Lifting weights may put on muscle under the fat but last I heard cardio was included in the excercise catagory. And cardio, my friends, will take off fat like there's no tomorrow. But you can't just walk for 5 minutes, you have to get your heartrate up and that takes at leased 20 minutes. You also have to just watch what you eat. Do you think you can go the local fast food joint and when your done, go walk around the block and call it good? Wrong. Be sensible.

• When I started working-out, I decided that cardio was the best way to achieve a smaller waist, I think I achieved through years of abusive drinking and not he right diet by any means. I found that strictly cardio was not the answer for me. Even long cardio spree's before lifting were not an answer. Though, I managed to loose fat every-where else, I could not shake the handles.... damn it! The best answer I can contribute, and I've seen the most progress in is a combination of every-thing, you hear? Kick all the junk! Slurp down a protien shake instead of Taco Bell. Eat lots (lots) of veggies, and only essential fruits-not to much though. Did you forget about jumpin-jacks?

• As annoying as this may be, it's all about calories. Keep a perfect journal of EVERTHING you eat (even gum, or that one tic tac). Figure out the number of calories consumed. Then figure out how many calories you used that day (there are plenty of charts/calculators online to help determine what certain excercises burn). Subract intake from expenditure for the day. If you've got a negative number, congrats, you're losing weight and fat. Also, don't weigh yourself every day. Depending on how well hydrated (water weight) you are at any given time significantly effects your weight. I don't recall by how much thought, maybe somebody else can answer that.

• Hold a small dumb bell to start with or other weight in your left hand, stand straight up and bend sideways to the left letting the weight slide down the side of your left leg. Do 15 - 20 reps if it is comfortable. Switch sides and do the same for the right side. Start with 2 sets and work your way up to more reps more sets. dont bend sideways too far though to prevent back injury.

• Unfortunately the above answer wont help at all in getting rid of love handles as you can't spot reduce with weights. You need a healthy diet, with a good amount of cardio workout. No shortcuts I'm afraid.

• I suggest calasthetics. I have a very slim frame but put on fat around my middle like a spare tyre and around my thighs. I bought this video tape called calanetics and it is the most unbelievable thing I've ever seen. Along with eating properly I chose to do the stomach and leg exercises that appear in this tape. The exercises are very simple, and can even be done by people with bad backs. They work the muscle deep deep within and I swear you see results in a short time. Stick to them and you will have a lovely waist, slim strong legs and a peach-like bottom ;o)

• Another alternative, although drastically more costly, and potentially more dangerous - is liposuction. It can be very effective for those persons working on fat in a stubborn area. Also, of notable mention for getting rid of love handles are site targeting body wraps. As cellulite, fatty, areas are often prone to accumulating toxins.

First answer by anonymous. Last edit by LiposuctionExpert. Contributor trust: 50 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 216 [recommend question]