If you are like the vast majority of people then you know that midsection weight gain is something that nearly everyone experiences at some point in their life. A good many people spend a lot of time either trying to avoid it or getting rid of it because it is a standard by which a certain level of fitness is attributed to. Keeping a trim and toned belly is something of an obsession these days. This obsession with belly fat leads many people to try the latest fad diet or exercise gizmo that promises a tight and toned midsection if you use it 3 times a week for ten minutes a day. Reducing caloric intake makes sense because we have all been taught that if we eat more calories then we expend the excess gets stored as fat. The problem everyone runs into is the human body's need for a certain amount of calories for it to function properly. If you eat too few calories your body will go into starvation mode and actually slow its own metabolism in order to save what fat stores it has. If you want to avoid midsection weight gain then you need to look beyond just that part of your body. The human body is a system, and when it comes to losing weight it has to be a body wide fat reduction. Spot reducing does not work no matter how hard you try. The key to losing and keeping off the excess weight is your metabolism. If you can increase it, particularly your basal, or base, metabolic rate you will turn your body into a fat burning machine. The reason for this is simple if you understand metabolism and how it works. Your metabolism and the rate at which it runs is the most important part of any weight loss routine. As odd as this may sound your body needs energy to produce the energy required for everyday life. The food we eat contains the caloric energy our body's use. The cells of the body metabolize this energy which is then used to fuel its daily processes or in the case of to many calories is stored away as fat for future use. There is a balance when it comes to calories eaten and the ability of the body to efficiently use what it needs without adding to its existing fat stores. The way to find this metabolic balance is a by incorporating a combination of eating a healthy diet and an exercise routine into your life. 1. Diet – The nutritional value of the food you eat plays a big role in the rate at which your metabolism runs. A balanced diet that includes protein, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals, and yes even some fats is an important part of speeding up your metabolism. What many people don't realize is that the type of calories they consume play a large role in how well their metabolism functions. High fiber foods that consist of complex carbohydrates such as are found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are one of the keys to increasing your metabolic rate. The reason for this is simple, it takes more energy to digest and process these types of foods then it does for the more refined and processed foods found on most grocery store shelves today. There are even some foods that reportedly require more calories to digest then they contain. 2. Exercise- An exercise program should incorporate to main parts; aerobic exercise and some form of resistance or weight training. Aerobic training can be just about any activity that raises your heart rate. From taking daily walks, to jogging, bike riding, swimming, and aerobics classes, this type of exercise is good for burning excess calories during the activity. It also helps strengthen the cardiovascular system which has its own health benefits. Weight training is one of the best ways to get a long term metabolism increase. Muscle building requires lots of energy, not only to build the muscle, but to also maintain it. This raises your resting metabolic rate because most of this activity takes place after the workout. Avoiding midsection weight gain is something everyone wants to do. If you speed up your metabolism through a combination of a healthy diet and sensible exercise program you can easily achieve all your weight loss goals. For more information about ways to speed up your metabolism and for more information about how your metabolism works please click here.
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