How To Tighten The Skin On Your Thighs After Weightloss

One of the challenges many of us face after weight loss is how to tighten skin that sags. Such skin is often associated with rapid weight loss. This may be achieved by surgery, drastic lifestyle changes or the use of certain drugs to cut weight fast. Although quick results may be desirable, the satisfaction is in most cases short-lived. More often than not, the lost weight is regained just as quickly. Rapid loss of weight ultimately takes its toll on your body. One of the effects is loose skin, especially on the thighs.

What Causes Loose Skin?

Skin has to stretch to accommodate excess weight. Once the weight is shed, and especially when it's shed fast, the skin doesn't get an opportunity to tighten up effectively. When you have to contend with loose or sagging skin after weight loss, it diminishes your success. Loose skin has the potential to affect your self esteem. Certain exercises are beneficial if you want to tighten the skin on your thighs.

Exercises that Tone the Thighs

Regular presses on the inner thighs gradually tighten loose skin. Lie on your back and lift your legs up vertically. Spread your thighs apart slightly. Cross your arms so that each hand touches the opposite thigh on the inner side just above the knee. Bring your thighs together and at the same time push outwards with your palms. Count to 7 for each cycle, and aim to complete 10 cycles.

Lie on your back and rest your head on your hands. Draw up your legs so that they bend at the knees. Push your feet slightly apart. Draw in your abdominal muscles as you tilt the pelvis slightly above the ground. Squeeze your buttocks as you do the tilt. Press the knees together firmly once you get to the peak of the tilt. Count to 5, then slowly lower your body to the floor. Complete 10 sets. Also include aerobic exercises in your physical fitness activities.

Walking for just 20 to 30 minutes daily improves circulation, which helps to tighten loose skin on the thighs. Other measures to tighten skin involve diet and skin care.

Diet, Bath and Skin Care

Follow a diet plan that takes calories into account. However, it should not be so restrictive that it feels punitive. A low fat diet with minimal refined foods helps to prevent fat build-up. Cut down on consumption of fast foods. These foods generally have high fat and sugar content which results in excess weight. Fresh fruits and vegetables help to improve the elasticity of the skin. Drink lots of water daily to keep hydrated. This helps to rebuild and tone the skin on the thighs. It helps if you take a magnesium-rich food supplement to support muscle development and skin elasticity.

You can also use your daily bath time to tighten the skin on thighs. Use a loofah scrub on your legs and thighs to exfoliate loose skin. It also improves circulation and helps to tighten the skin. Apply lotions and creams onto your thighs that have proven efficacy to tighten loose skin. Some of the key ingredients in such products are vitamin E, collagen and olive oil.

Experts recommend that you lose no more than two pounds each week. A slow rate of weight loss is more kind to your body. You're more likely to maintain your ideal weight when you shed it off gradually. Slow weight loss also prevents the common aftermath of loose skin associated with rapid weight loss.

Read more at: http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/fitness/toning/how-to-tighten-the-skin-on-your-thighs-after-weight-loss-1.html

How To Lose Leg Fat Very Easy

Many people dream of a fit and healthy body with great thighs and legs. However, the question is how to get thinner thighs and legs. The best way to get those lovely legs is to combine eating in moderation and moving more. Here are some methods to achieve well sculpted legs.

Diet

Start with a healthy daily diet to lower your body fat percentage before you work on your thighs. In today’s society, sugar laden diets and highly processed foods, are the main causes of fat thighs. To start your war on the flab, try not to take foods high in refined sugar and just  plain old junk food. Learn to replace the junk food with better options. You can introduce fruits, whole grains and vegetables into the daily diet.

Food laden with fats and trans fats are the types of food to avoid, as it cause weight gain in all areas. You can use good fats to counter the bad ones. Have an intake of food that are rich in Omega 3 and monounsaturated fats, these include avocados, soybeans, walnuts and salmon. In addition, taking in foods with vitamin C like kiwi and oranges can help to reduce the cellulite. Vitamin C can help to balance their hormones that are usually released when you are stressed out. Being stressed will cause people to put on weight. Intake of Vitamin C can help your body to turn fat into fuel.

Exercise

A rotation of short bursts of maximum exercises followed by abbreviated rest, can achieve greater fat burning results compared to normal workouts. All you need to do is to pick a cardio activity and push yourself to the limits for twenty seconds. Rest for ten seconds and repeat seven more times. Doing this for four minutes can be even more effective than an hour of normal workouts. These are some of the high intensity exercises that you can perform to meet your goal on how to lose your leg fat.

High intensity exercises must be done to achieve thinner legs. Exercise on a treadmill and set it at various speed levels from brisk walk to a slow but steady run. It is an intense exercise that can help you achieve your goal. Alternate between the two paces of walking and running. Doing this can help train your legs. Set the incline at around 1.5 or 2.0. You may choose to listen to music to do this cardio exercise in a more natural and relaxing way. If you do not have access to the treadmill machine, you can walk up and down the stairs to work on your legs within the same time frame.

You can also do circuit workouts to lose leg fat effectively and fast. Circuit workouts can bring you to your maximum heart rate as well as physical effort. It is one of the best ways to make a strength and resistance training workout that is challenging for your lungs and heart. For example, you can perform four exercises for twenty seconds each and repeat the cycle three times. For maximum results, choose exercises like crunches, push ups, squats and calf raises. Remember to take a ten seconds break in between.

If you prefer the outdoors, head outside for a walk and run instead of spending half an hours in the sweaty gym. Changing the setting of your exercise venue can make your workout more interesting. Just like the treadmill exercise, alternate between walking and slow jog. This is so that you can slim down the fats around the thighs area faster. In between, you can speed walk or sprint for around thirty seconds. Repeat the same cycle for thirty minutes. This can help you to increase your endurance very quickly and you can see your thin thighs in no time if you do this consistently.

The elliptical workout make a very good cardio workout when working on your legs. As your lower part of the body move along with the machine, you get an excellent thigh and leg workout. Implement an interval workout and aim for two minutes of a 5-6/10 intensity then another minute of exertion rate of 8-9/10.

To win the flab battle, combine these high intensity workouts with a healthy diet and you will be well on your way to lovely legs.

Read more at: http://peoplelienumbersdont.com/how-to-lose-leg-fat-in-days

How To Lose Thigh Fat And Look Great In Those Shorts

How to lose thigh fat is one issue that is very relevant in today’s society. This is due to the fact that it is becoming increasingly common for people to lead sedentary lives and eat poorly. Many people are doing limited amounts of exercise and sitting down all day at work. It makes matters even worse if the diet is also poor.

Even with all of this happening in your busy life the problem of how to lose thigh fat is one that can still be solved. To tackle this issue you need to be determined and decide how you are going to do it. The best idea is usually to set aside some time in the day for exercise, diet solutions can also be very effective.

How to lose thigh fat in my busy schedule?

If you believe your life will be too busy to find some time each day for exercise then I recommend having a close look at some of the diet programs. Each of those is quite able to help you in how to lose thigh fat and many people have been very successful at full body weight loss with them.

If you are able to fit some exercise into your busy schedule then you will have the advantage of choosing a program which will not only help in how to lose thigh fat but you can also regain some strength as well. You can choose how much you focus on gaining strength after the fat is lost.

How to lose thigh fat and keep the rest of my great body?

If you find you don’t have a lot of weight to lose then it should drop off faster once you change what you are currently doing, with regard to diet or exercise levels. Generally it is true that you can’t lose weight it only one place on your body and how to lose thigh fat would be no exception. However by undertaking a weight loss program it will only help the rest body.

Weight tends to be lost from the areas on the body that have more fat stored. This means if the rest of your body is pretty good then it is likely to be taken from your thighs first. While some will be taken from all over your body at once, this is the basic secret behind how to lose thigh fat.

How to lose thigh fat and make sure it never comes back?

While how to lose thigh fat is important it is just as important to ensure that after it goes it never returns. Gaining and losing weight is one of the most unhealthy things for your body. So we want to get rid of it and then make sure it doesn’t come back.

Normally people ensure the fat on their thighs doesn’t return by entering an easier, maintenance phase in their diet or exercise plan. The way to slightly scale back is usually quite clear within the program guidelines. Once you have come this far you will truly have the key of how to lose thigh fat.

Reference: http://finewloss.com/how-to-lose-thigh-fat-and-look-great-in-those-shorts/

How To Lose Weight Between Waist And Hips

Unsightly fat between the waist and hips causes a negative impact on self-esteem -- especially when trying to look good in tight clothing. When this fat builds up in the stomach particularly, you also have to worry about your overall health. Visceral fat, which packs around the organs, raises the risk for cardiovascular disease. The best way to melt this off is by exercising discipline at the dinner table and exercising your body.

Step 1

Focus on total body weight loss by cutting your calories. To lose weight between the waist and hips, you need to lose weight throughout your entire body because spot reduction is not possible. Reduce your intake by 500 calories a day, and you should lose about 1 lb. of weight a is not possible. Reduce your intake by 500 calories a day, and you should lose about 1 lb. of weight a week.

Step 2

Start your day with a nutritious breakfast. Skipping breakfast to get a head start with weight loss can backfire right before your eyes. This often leads to hunger later in the morning and binging on unhealthy fare. Prevent this from happening by fixing a healthy meal, such as a vegetable omelet, oatmeal with low-fat milk or half a whole grain bagel with almond butter spread across the top.

Step 3

Integrate healthy snacks into your diet plan. The goal is to just eat enough to take the edge off your hunger. Whole grain crackers with hummus dip are a healthy snack option. Eat your snacks two to three hours after your meals, or as soon as you start feeling hungry.

Step 4

Burn the weight off your waist and hips. Running, biking, elliptical training, stair-climbing, rowing and water aerobics are all good forms of cardio because they burn calories and work the muscles in the waist and hips. Choose a form that you like and perform it in an interval fashion to boost your fat loss. Start with a light warm-up, then alternate back and forth between high and low intensity for the rest of your workout. Make your high-intensity bouts half as long as your low-intensity bouts. For example, run fast for 20 seconds and jog slowly for 40. Aim for 45 to 60 minutes of training and work out three days a week on nonconsecutive days.

Step 5

Perform strength training exercises to tone muscles in your waist and hip areas. This will give your midsection and hips a slender, more defined appearance as you lose weight. Do exercises such as split squats, lunges with medicine-ball twists, cable abduction, hanging knee raises, bicycle maneuvers and crunches. Aim for 12 to 15 reps, do four or five sets and work out three days a week on noncardio days.

Step 6

Execute proper form when doing your exercises. Move through a full range of motion and be conscious of your body position. For lunges with twists, stand with your feet hip width apart and hold a medicine ball straight out in front of your chest. Take a long step forward with your right foot and bend both knees to lower your body. Stop when your front thigh parallels the floor and your back knee is an inch above the floor. Twist your torso and move the ball to your right side and hold for a second. Twist back to the center, rise up and lunge ahead with your left leg. Perform another twist and continue to alternate back and forth with each lunge.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/532899-how-to-lose-weight-between-waist-and-hips/#ixzz2aQSbtjHN

The Belly Fat Burden: Reducing Your Waist Circumference

You've probably read the health news: Belly fat -- a big waistline -- can raise your risks for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

And belly fat can be a sign of something more: Metabolic syndrome, a group of health problems that include too much fat around the waist, elevated blood pressure, blood sugar, triglycerides, and low "good" HDL cholesterol -- all boosting your risks of disease.

Making matters worse, losing belly fat can sometimes seem daunting. For many people, diet and exercise don't always work. Luckily, we've got options like FDA-approved weight loss medications and even surgery.

"All fat is challenging to get off, period," says Howard J. Eisenson, MD, medical director of Duke Diet & Fitness Center at Duke University Medical Center. But "belly fat is not particularly tenacious fat to get rid of... it actually comes off fairly easily. Frankly, if you reduce calories and exercise more, you will lose weight everywhere -- including your abdomen."

While Eisenson considers diet and exercise the most effective weight loss strategies, he acknowledges that there's a role for medical treatments.

Keeping the weight off is what's most difficult, he says. "Very commonly, people start to gain the weight back. A year out, and they have regained 30% to 50% of the weight they lost. If a drug can help people keep off what they've lost, that's meaningful."

Fortunately there are a few weight loss drugs that help in that regard.

Losing Belly Fat With Weight Loss Drugs

Meridia, Phentermine, and Xenical are the most commonly used FDA-approved drugs for treating obesity. They are used for people with a BMI of 30 and above, or those who have a BMI of 27 and other obesity-related medical conditions. Both drugs are considered "moderately effective" in weight loss, with an average of 5 to 22 pounds over a one-year period.

Meridia works by increasing brain chemicals like serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine so people feel full sooner after they eat. Xenical binds to fat cells in the gastrointestinal tract to prevent them from being absorbed, so the body eliminates about 30% of fat that is consumed.

"Xenical and Meridia tend to help for about [the] first six months on average," says Eisenson. "Then their main benefit is as a weight loss maintenance aide, which is not a trivial thing. That's how Xenical and Meridia work best... helping people keep the weight off."

The drugs work best when combined with lifestyle changes, research suggests. In one study, obese men and women lost far more weight by changing eating and exercise habits -- and taking Meridia -- compared to those who relied on either lifestyle modification or medication alone.

Read more: http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/belly-fat-burden-reducing-your-waist-circumference

Flabby Arms? Here's How To Get Rid Of Upper Arm Fat

Both men and women can have a tendency to store fat on their upper arms and if that applies to you then, don’t worry, we can tackle the issue with some key exercises.  You may also feel that your upper arms are saggy if you’ve lost weight and have excess skin in this area but, again, don’t worry, my advice addresses this too.  Together, we will wave goodbye to arm jiggle and show off our toned and defined biceps and triceps.

Although you can’t command your body to lose fat from a specific area, a variety of weighted toning exercises can help you improve your muscle mass. I recommend combining bursts of general fat burning cardio vascular activity with upper arm focused strength exercises, and you will be showing off your newly sculpted guns and saying goodbye to unsightly bingo wings in no time at all.

It’s easy to add in some upper body exercises throughout the day at home or at work. You don’t even need to use heavy weights; a simple full water bottle or cans from the pantry can be a good starting point. In the workplace, you can try using using paperweights or a ream of photocopy paper.

You might also want to consider investing in small sand bags as these can be great tools to help you start toning up.  I can also recommend resistance bands as these stretchy ribbons are a light weight solution for adding resistance workouts to your day, they are inexpensive and light weight so you can take one almost anywhere and, although it’s a different feeling than weights, the resistance created is just as effective for toning your body.

Focus on toning up and building your strength:

Building strong biceps, triceps and shoulders will give you muscle definition and rid you of an arm that continues to move long after you stopped waving.

Try focusing on movements that mimic everyday tasks. Sculpting your arms can be as simple as placing books on a shelf! Try to do exercises that are consistent with your body’s needs. If your job requires you to lift objects throughout the day, then getting strong through stretching and exercise can make your day easier. Excessive direct overhead movements are often not necessary and can cause stress on your shoulder joints so keep your movements in front of you.

The benefits of gaining a little muscle:

There are several benefits of gaining additional muscle mass.  The most exciting being that your body will naturally burn extra calories all day long in order to sustain your new muscle.  You will also find that the additional strength you will gain from lifting weights can help you with your day-to-day tasks and weight-bearing exercise has been linked to considerable improvement in bone density. Resistance training is recommended by ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) as it is especially beneficial for an aging population.

Focusing on upper arm strength-building for just 10 minutes a day will soon pay off.

Dedicating a small amount of time each day to upper body resistance training, and avoiding the trap of spending hours a day in the gym, can help you reap the benefits without the severe muscle soreness that over exercising a specific body part can give you.

Try to dedicate 10 minutes a day to an arm exercise routine and remember to stretch both before and after you exercise to avoid injury and tight muscles. It’s amazing how quickly your body can respond to resistance training.

There are many effective exercises that focus on the upper arm. Try a combination of bicep curls, bent over rows, tricep kickbacks, shoulder presses and plank holds.

The tricep kickback is one of my favorites as it focuses on the back of your arms and the tricep can be overlooked in favor of the much more famous bicep.

How to do a tricep kickback correctly

  –  Choose some weights that are suitable for your fitness level and hold one in each hand. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, bend your knees and hinge your back forward slightly so that you are looking at the floor in front of you and your back is at a 45-degree angle.

-  Bend your elbows at a 90-degree angle, so that your hands are in front of you and keep you arms tightly tucked into your sides.

-  Extend your arms back behind you and slowly straighten your arms; you will start to feel your triceps working as you lift the weight behind you. Hold the lift for two seconds and return to your starting position and repeat.  If you want to intensify the work turn your palms upward.

-  Try to do 10 reps per arm but stop if you feel uncomfortable.

You can do this exercise with both arms at the same time or you can do it first with one arm and then the other.   If you prefer to work one arm at a time, be sure to place your dumbbell free hand on your thigh and use a staggered stance to help keep your back in a neutral position.

***

There are so many health benefits to be gained from a balanced combination of diet and exercise.  I believe that taking a little time each day to focus on yourself is never a bad thing and with a consistent approach, you’ll soon be waving goodbye to sagging arms with an arm wave that stops when you stop.

Read more: http://www.discovergoodnutrition.com/2012/09/fat-arms-firm-arms/

Exercise: 7 benefits of regular physical activity

Want to feel better, have more energy and perhaps even live longer? Look no further than exercise. The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore. And the benefits of exercise are yours for the taking, regardless of your age, sex or physical ability. Need more convincing to exercise? Check out these seven ways exercise can improve your life.

No. 1: Exercise controls weight

Exercise can help prevent excess weight gain or help maintain weight loss. When you engage in physical activity, you burn calories. The more intense the activity, the more calories you burn. You don't need to set aside large chunks of time for exercise to reap weight-loss benefits. If you can't do an actual workout, get more active throughout the day in simple ways — by taking the stairs instead of the elevator or revving up your household chores.

No. 2: Exercise combats health conditions and diseases

Worried about heart disease? Hoping to prevent high blood pressure? No matter what your current weight, being active boosts high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good," cholesterol and decreases unhealthy triglycerides. This one-two punch keeps your blood flowing smoothly, which decreases your risk of cardiovascular diseases. In fact, regular physical activity can help you prevent or manage a wide range of health problems and concerns, including stroke, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression, certain types of cancer, arthritis and falls.

No. 3: Exercise improves mood

Need an emotional lift? Or need to blow off some steam after a stressful day? A workout at the gym or a brisk 30-minute walk can help. Physical activity stimulates various brain chemicals that may leave you feeling happier and more relaxed. You may also feel better about your appearance and yourself when you exercise regularly, which can boost your confidence and improve your self-esteem.

No. 4: Exercise boosts energy

Winded by grocery shopping or household chores? Regular physical activity can improve your muscle strength and boost your endurance. Exercise and physical activity deliver oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and help your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. And when your heart and lungs work more efficiently, you have more energy to go about your daily chores.

No. 5: Exercise promotes better sleep

Struggling to fall asleep? Or to stay asleep? Regular physical activity can help you fall asleep faster and deepen your sleep. Just don't exercise too close to bedtime, or you may be too energized to fall asleep.

No. 6: Exercise puts the spark back into your sex life

Do you feel too tired or too out of shape to enjoy physical intimacy? Regular physical activity can leave you feeling energized and looking better, which may have a positive effect on your sex life. But there's more to it than that. Regular physical activity can lead to enhanced arousal for women. And men who exercise regularly are less likely to have problems with erectile dysfunction than are men who don't exercise.

No. 7: Exercise can be fun

Exercise and physical activity can be a fun way to spend some time. It gives you a chance to unwind, enjoy the outdoors or simply engage in activities that make you happy. Physical activity can also help you connect with family or friends in a fun social setting. So, take a dance class, hit the hiking trails or join a soccer team. Find a physical activity you enjoy, and just do it. If you get bored, try something new.

The bottom line on exercise

Exercise and physical activity are a great way to feel better, gain health benefits and have fun. As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day. If you want to lose weight or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to exercise more. Remember to check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have any health concerns.

Ref: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise/HQ01676/NSECTIONGROUP=2