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So you've taken a long look in the mirror and decided you want to pare down your pear-shaped figure. Or maybe you're determined to bring your waistline back to its pre-childbearing measurement. Okay, you've got the goal; now you need some answers. What's the best way to firm up a flabby tummy? Is there an exercise that melts fat off the hips? What will it take to look the way you want to?

You can't alter your bone structure or choose which places your body favors for fat storage. But you can take off some fat. If you're a pear-shaped woman, for example, you'll always have more padding on your hips and thighs than around your waist, but you can firm up that lower half of your body - and lose inches.

No matter how much you'd like to zero in on certain parts of your body, forget thigh wraps, massages, cellulite creams, and other gimmicks. "You cannot spot reduce," says Mike Palese, a certified personal trainer in Springfield, Virginia. "The body loses fat where it wants to. It is all part of genetics."

Knowing that, you may want to reassess your goals. If you basically have a nice figure but would love to resemble the models in fashion magazines, remember that a weight-loss plan may bring down your bustline along with everything else. And remember that you're probably a lot healthier and more energetic than those self-denying models. Try to appreciate your body's strengths and come up with a realistic plan.

If you're clearly apple shaped, though, there's one more thing you should know: Research suggests that extra fat around the middle is more risky for your well-being than extra fat on the hips and legs. The payoff for reducing your waistline isn't merely aesthetic; it can lower your odds of heart disease and other serious conditions.

That depends on how much you eat. In a nutshell, body fat is excess calories. If you consume more calories than you burn, your body stores them as fat. It doesn't matter if they come from health food or junk food, cake or cucumbers. But before you start eating mocha torte for dinner, you should know that your body uses more energy (calories) to process protein and carbohydrates than to process fat, which has twice the calories per gram. What's more, a well-balanced diet will provide you with the energy necessary for physical activity.

These facts make the equation simple, if not easy: You must exercise enough to expend more calories than you take in. The healthiest approach is to follow a low-calorie diet and to do an aerobic workout (one that challenges your cardiovascular fitness) for at least 30 minutes on most or all days of the week. To lose 1 to 2 pounds a week, the National Institutes of Health recommends reducing your daily food intake by 500 to 1,000 calories.

Regular aerobic exercise will help you slim down your hips or waist more effectively than a hundred leg lifts or sit-ups a day. An aerobic activity is one that raises your heart rate to a range that is between 60 and 80 percent of your maximum heart rate. To find your maximum heart rate in beats per minute, subtract your age from 220. For example, a 45-year-old woman would have a maximum heart rate of 175 beats per minute. Her target heart rate for aerobic workouts would be between 105 and 140 beats per minute. For peak conditioning, you need to keep your heart rate in your target range for at least 20 minutes three times a week. A heart rate monitor is an excellent way to monitor this. But if you'd rather not spend the money for one, you can pause during a workout to take your pulse (find it on your wrist or the side of your neck, then count the beats for 15 seconds and multiply by 4). Eventually your body's own signals -- sweating and breathing hard -- will clue you in on whether you're working hard enough (or too hard).

This formula, of course, is only a way to estimate your range. You should also go with how the aerobic exercise feels: the low end of the range should be comfortably stimulating, while the upper end should be on the border of discomfort or huffing and puffing.

As for which aerobic exercise to do, you have plenty of choices besides the traditional aerobics class. If the idea of donning leotards and jumping around to disco music with a bunch of strangers doesn't appeal, how about dance or hip-hop aerobics, mountain biking, in-line skating, dancing, hiking, swimming, or jumping rope? Some martial arts can even keep you in your target heart rate range. The more strenuous the exercise, the more calories you'll burn doing it. For example, a 20-minute run burns more fat than a 20-minute walk. If you love to walk, though, that's a fine choice. Just keep a brisk pace and try to put in 30 minutes a day; to fit it into your schedule, you can do it in 10-minute chunks.

Certainly. Doing moves that target your flabby areas can improve their appearance by tightening up the underlying muscles. The key is to concentrate on using the muscles you want to strengthen rather than letting supporting muscles (which may be stronger) do the work, says Christopher Drozd, a personal trainer from Los Angeles. Think about that inner thigh muscle; put your hand there to check that it's the one laboring. Also, move with control so your targeted muscles take you through the range of motion; if you swing your leg upward or jerk into your sit-ups, you're using momentum.

Drozd suggests the following area-specific exercises for getting started.

For your butt, the pelvic lift: Lie on your back with your knees bent at a 45 to 60 degree angle, arms at sides. Raise your right leg toward the sky so your foot is directly above your right hip, and lift your left toe slightly to shift your lower body weight to your left heel. Squeezing your gluteal muscles (buttocks) and hamstrings (the back of the thigh), lift your pelvis as far as you can without arching your back or pushing with your elbows, slowly counting to three. Count to three again as you lower your buttocks, with control, almost to the floor. The focus here is on your left side. Do 8 to 15 repetitions on each side. For your abdominals, the basic crunch: Lie on the floor with your knees bent and your fingertips on your stomach muscles to make sure they're getting a workout. (Try not to tense your neck and shoulders.) Curl your shoulders and chest a few inches off the floor and focus on each vertebra of your back as you slowly lift. Exhale and count to three as you come up, stopping while your abs are still tight (before you reach your knees). Pause for a beat at the top. Inhale and slowly count to three as you lower yourself. Repeat 15 to 25 times. For your thighs, squats: Stand with your feet slightly more than shoulder width apart. With your arms extended in front of you for balance, slowly count to three as you lower yourself to a sitting position where your thighs are nearly parallel with the floor. (To protect your knees, keep them in line with your ankles -- not sticking out in front of your toes.) Pause for a beat, then smoothly rise to a standing position without locking your knees. Repeat 15 to 25 times.

When a tight schedule makes you choose between an aerobic workout and a toning session, go for the former. You'll still get some toning benefits. If you belong to a gym, you can combine the two types of activity by using a treadmill. "Your best friend in the gym is the treadmill," says Drozd. The treadmill - basically a conveyor belt that you walk, jog, or run on - provides a great lower body and abdominal workout. For a more ambitious workout, raise the grade of the treadmill's incline to simulate uphill striding - great for the hamstrings!

Elliptical trainers, a type of cardio machine that's taken health clubs by storm, are another good choice. Some have vertical hand bars that you pull as you stride; concentrating on that motion will strengthen your upper body. Some let you adjust the incline to work your buttocks or different parts of your legs.

If you don't belong to a gym, choose a hilly course for your daily walk or jog. As you charge upward, make sure you're not bending forward at your waist; lean slightly forward from your ankles instead. Take it easy on the descents - they're hard on the joints.

Basically, spend your time on the activities that bring countless benefits to your whole body. And when you take your next long look in the mirror, don't glare at your imperfections. Instead, admire the subtle improvements you've brought about and commend yourself for trying.

References

Bren L. Losing weight: more than counting calories. FDA Consum 2002 Jan-Feb;36(1):18-25

Last updated October 23, 2009
Copyright © 2000 Consumer Health Interactive

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