Although it might be more difficult for women to achieve, they are able to attain a set of six pack abs that would make men jealous. The greater challenge for women is the removal of the subcutaneous fat layer that covers most of a woman’s body. This is a physiological necessity to supply the woman’s body with energy when she is pregnant or breast feeding. And, since her body is preparing for a possible pregnancy almost every month, getting rid of that fat can be a real challenge.
However, while challenging, it isn’t impossible.
Developing a set of six pack abs is a two-fold process. In the first place you must be doing exercises that work your core muscles – back and front for a balanced approach – and you must be following a nutritional plan that will burn fat from the body and not glucose or sugar. This fat burning nutritional plan will also help you to lose and maintain your weight.
People eating a traditional Western diet will often eat high amounts of carbohydrates which metabolize in the body to sugar. This sugar will then trigger the release of insulin from the pancreas. The insulin is responsible for moving the blood glucose across the cell wall and into the cell to be used for energy. However, insulin is also fat sparing. This means that when there is high amounts of insulin present in the body, like when you eat carbohydrates, it prevents the body from burning fat and increases the amount of fat storage.
Conversely, eating foods that are higher in fat and low in carbohydrates will increase the amount of fat that your body burns and reduce the amount of insulin that your pancreas produces. The reduced amount of insulin will also reduce your potential to develop insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes.
The nutritional program that you follow can vary, but it must include foods that are high in vitamin content, higher in fat than carbs, higher in protein than carbs and include lots of water and little alcohol and caffeine. Both alcohol and caffeine increase the production of another hormone called cortisol from the adrenal glands that sit on top of the kidneys. Cortisol is secreted during times of stress and both alcohol and caffeine reduce the ability of your body to work through stress.
Cortisol will also increase the production of belly fat or visceral fat. This type of fat is not over the top of the muscles but is found inside the abdomen, surrounding the organs. It is also metabolically active, producing hormones that increases your insulin resistance.
As you change your diet to achieve that six pack, you’ll also want to include specific exercises that will enhance the development of your core. Each of these exercises can be done at home, with little to no equipment.
Resources:
Joslin Diabetes Center: Turning up the heat on brown fat
https://www.joslin.org/diabetes-research/turning-up-the-heat-on-brown-fat.html
US News: Belly Fat May Hurt Your Heart the Hardest
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/news/articles/2012/08/28/belly-fat-may-hurt-your-heart-the-hardest
Forbes: Why Love Handles and Belly Fat are so Dangerous to your Health
http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertglatter/2012/09/03/why-love-handles-and-belly-fat-are-so-dangerous-to-your-health/
Harvard: Abdominal Fat and What to do About It
http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsweek/Abdominal-fat-and-what-to-do-about-it.htm
Fitness Mag: 5 Minute Core Workout for Strong Back
http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/abs/express/5-minute-core-workout-strong-abs-and-back/
Spine-Health: Back Exercises and Abdominal Exercise Recommendations
http://www.spine-health.com/wellness/exercise/back-exercises-and-abdominal-exercise-recommendations
Leave a Reply