Top 5 best exercises to lose belly fat. How your belly?

I thought this was a nice read for those of you like me who want to help lose there belly.


Who doesn't want flat abs? People desperate to lose weight will
willingly starve themselves, take expensive supplements or do the latest
fad diet that promises to give them that flawless figure in 30 days.
Thankfully, belly fat is metabolically active and easier to lose.
However, if proper nutrition is not observed and the resort is made to
low calorie diets, weight loss may not happen within the desired time
frame. Hunger and calorie deprivation will eventually kick in and
dieters confronted with that favorite food they have been avoiding will
have the tendency to binge at the first opportunity. The likelihood of
gaining more weight than they originally lost is not far-fetched.

According to Christine Rosenbloom, a nutrition professor at Georgia State University,
eating a calorie-controlled diet and 60 minutes of daily moderate
exercise activity will result to weight loss and can even help with the
desired weight maintenance. In fact, according to Professor Michael
Jensen of the Mayo Clinic, intense aerobic exercise will result to being
leaner around the abdomen.

It is important to remember that
keeping the body's metabolism up and running so that the body
continuously burns calories prevents it from going into the fat-storing
mode that causes unnecessary weight gain.

Why exercise is necessaryMost
people involved in weight loss believe that it's all about the
calories. If you burn calories more than you take in, you lose weight.
If you take in more calories than you can burn, the body gains fat.
While this piece of logic may make sense, it is only partly true. What
burns calories nonstop is actually the lean muscle mass underneath body
fat that allows more intake of calories without weight gain.

The
body actually adapts to the changes it undergoes. Losing weight without
exercising increases the risk of losing lean body mass, slowing the
metabolism and putting the body into fat-storing mode. People who have
lost body fat and muscle mass may notice that they don't have the muscle
mass they once had. Worse yet, once they overeat even a little bit,
they start filling up on body fat once again.

Building up muscle massAn
important thing to remember when undergoing a weight loss program is to
understand what needs to be done. Realistic and achievable goals can
help in building the confidence needed to make the necessary leap for
the achievement of a desired weight.

Researchers at the Biomechanics Lab at San Diego State University
took a look at some popular abdominal exercises and ranked them.
Results of the study revealed that exercises that require constant
abdominal stabilization and body rotation resulted in the most muscle
activity in the abdomen.

Below are the top five belly exercises as ranked by the study:

1. The Bicycle Exercise
- best for targeting the six pack muscles and the obliques. To do this
exercise, get into a supine position with hands at the back of your
head. Bring knees to the chest while lifting shoulders off the floor.
Slowly bring your right elbow towards your left knee as you straighten
your right leg. Switch sides and continue in a pedaling motion. Do 1 to 3
sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

2. The Captain's Chair Leg Raise
- This exercise requires a captain's chair, a rack with padded arms
allowing for the legs to hang free that is commonly found in gyms or
health clubs. To do this exercise, stand on the chair and grip hand
holds. Press back against the pad then raise knees to the chest to
contract the abs then lower them back down. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16
repetitions.

3. Exercise Ball Crunch - For this exercise,
an exercise ball is necessary. In this routine, the abdomen does more
exerting but will still need the entire body to stabilize it throughout
the routine. To do this exercise, lie on the ball with your lower back
fully supported. Place hands behind the head. To lift the torso off the
ball, contract the abs to pull the bottom of the rib cage towards the
hips. Keep ball stable as you curl up, then lower back down to stretch
the abs. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

4. Vertical Leg Crunch
- Performing this exercise is similar to doing a leg crunch except that
the legs are straight up, forcing the abs to work and adding intensity
to the routine. To do this, lie on the floor with the legs straight up,
knees crossed, and place the hands beneath the head for support.
Contract abs lifting the shoulders off the floor and keep legs in a
fixed position to crunch. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

5. Long Arm Crunch
- This is a variant of the traditional floor crunch where the arms are
held straight behind you, adding a lever to the move and making for a
challenging exercise. To do this, lie on the floor or a mat then extend
arms straight behind, keeping them clasped and next to the ears. Slowly
contract abs and lift shoulders off the floor carefully to keep the arms
straight. Do 1 to 3 sets with 12 to 16 repetitions.

The best
strategy to weight loss is to observe a healthy diet coupled with
exercise of at least an hour a day. Although there is no sure fire way
to deal with belly fat, there are a number of activities from which to
choose and enjoy. As long as you're having fun, you can lose weight
without realizing it. It is important to look for an exercise you enjoy.
If the suggested exercises above do not suit your taste, taking a hike,
swimming or biking are just as effective in burning fat and toning
muscles.

Sources for this article include:

http://exercise.about.com/od/weightloss/u/weightlossbasics.htm
http://exercise.about.com/od/abs/ss/abexercises_10.htm
http://www.naturalnews.com/011285.html
http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/BestWorstAbExercises...