How to Lose Weight on the Stomach With a Treadmill Workout

There is an erroneous belief that crunches and spot reducing exercises help you lose stomach fat. While ab exercises can strengthen and tone the targeted muscles, only cardiovascular workouts can burn that unwanted belly fat. Treadmills offer an excellent way to burn the fat and create great flat abs.

Things You'll Need

• Treadmill

Step 1:

Start walking on the treadmill. If you have never used a treadmill before, take it easy getting started. Follow the directions in the manual or given by the personal trainer at the gym. Its always best to start with a walking warm-up at a slow pace (2.5 to 3.5 on the treadmill's speed meter) to get the blood moving and get comfortable with moving on a treadmill.

Step 2:

Use your arms. Swinging your arms as you walk or run not only helps balance and movement, it works the abs, too. Swinging the arms requires tight abs to keep the body facing and moving forward. As a result you're not only burning belly fat, but toning the abs as well.

Step 3:

Pick up the pace. Even if you're not a runner, you need to walk fast enough that your heart rate reaches its target zone (65%-85% of your maximum heart rate) for burning calories. Remember, losing fat on the stomach requires burning the fat that covers it. When you work out too hard (above 85%) or not hard enough (below 65%) your body doesn't burn fat. Many treadmills have a chart to let you know what your target rate should be along with sensors that measure your heart rate. The American Heart Association also has a chart (http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4736) on target heart rate by age. Age Target Zone Max Heart Rate 20 years 100–170 beats per minute 200 beats per minute 25 years 98–166 beats per minute 195 beats per minute 30 years 95–162 beats per minute 190 beats per minute 35 years 93–157 beats per minute 185 beats per minute 40 years 90–153 beats per minute 180 beats per minute 45 years 88–149 beats per minute 175 beats per minute 50 years 85–145 beats per minute 170 beats per minute 55 years 83–140 beats per minute 165 beats per minute 60 years 80–136 beats per minute 160 beats per minute 65 years 78–132 beats per minute 155 beats per minute 70 years 75–128 beats per minute 150 beats per minute The American Heart Association chart is just a guideline. You can calculate the heart rate that is best for you by:

1. Subtract your age from 220 (220-age) (i.e. 220-30 = 190)
2. Take the the answer from 1 and subtract 65 (i.e. 190-65 = 125)
3. Multiply your answer from 2 by .65 (.65) and then 85% (.85). (i.e. 125X.65 = 81.25 + 65 = 146.25 and 125X.85 = 106.25 + 65 =171.25)
4. Add the answers from #3 to 65 to get your target heart rate range. (i.e. 125X.65 = 81.25 + 65 = 146.25 and 125X.85 = 106.25 + 65 =171.25. Target heart range is 146 to 171)

Step 4:

Don't give up. Minimum standards for how long and how frequently you need to workout varies depending on which organization you consult. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (cdc.gov) recommend 2 hours and 30 minutes a week of moderate activity or 1 hour and 15 minutes of vigorous activity a week. That equates to about 30 minutes of moderate activity 5 days a week or 20 minutes of vigorous activity 3-4 days a week. The longer and more frequently you workout, the faster you'll burn the fat and shrink your belly.

Step 5:

Eat right. People think they can eat more because they haveburned calories on the treadmill. But the key to losing belly fat is to create a deficit in calories. If you burn an extra 500 calories, but then eat an extra 500 calories, you're not going to lose weight in the stomach. You will strengthen your heart and lungs, but you won't get flat abs. Stick to eating lean proteins such as chicken and complex carbohydrates like whole grain bread, while eliminating or at least reducing sugar and refined carbs (white bread, white rice etc).