The Real Way to Melt Your Love Handles

Why Do We Get Love Handles?

Love handles are a common term for the ‘pouches’ of fat tissue people develop over their oblique muscles – the side of your belly.

These are developed through weight gain, usually down to poor nutrition, lack of meal planning, or lack of exercise.

Many people have a huge struggle when it comes to eliminating or even just reducing this area. For many, it seems to be impossible.

This is due to genetics.

Every individual person has different genetic fat storage on their body.

However, there are places which are very common for all of us. Unfortunately, love handles are one of these places.

This means that your body prefers to store fat in this area. Because of this, when you gain weight, this is likely the first – or close to the first – place it will noticeably go.

Other common areas are the lower abdominal regions, the lower back, and thighs.

As mentioned, love handles are a result of gaining fat.

Fat tissue is built when you are regularly eating in a calorie surplus – eating more calories than you’re burning per day.

The excess energy which Is not being used up in day-to-day activity gets stored within your body as fat tissue.

Why is it hard to lose?

Fat in these annoying areas is hard to lose.

Why?

As mentioned, your body has places where it genetically prefers to store this excess energy, and these places will be the first areas that fat will noticeably go.

Unfortunately, this means that it is the last place for it to leave.

When you start your weight loss process, you may see the scale going down rapidly but not notice a difference in the fat around your mid-section.

This is because your body is holding onto the fat in these areas, and instead it will be coming away from areas you may notice less such as your arms, legs, and face.

For some this isn’t a bad thing as it still improves your overall appearance.

However, some people only care about getting rid of the fat around their stomach.

So how do you do it for these people?

Reduce overall bodyfat

There is only one true way to eliminate love handles and stomach fat, and that is to reduce your overall bodyfat.

Unfortunately, there is no way to choose where fat comes off your body when losing weight – your genetics choose that for you.

So, if you are part of the group mentioned above who store their fat in these areas and it never seems to go... You have to just keep going.

If you are 20% bodyfat to begin with and get down to 15% then you have done an amazing job, well done!

However, if your stubborn areas are in the love handles, it is likely they won’t disappear until you get down even further, such as 10% bodyfat (higher for women).

This can be irritating as you are putting in a lot of work to not see any change in the places you really care about. I understand.

But you have to realise, once you do get to the point of leanness where fat is coming from these stubborn areas, you will begin to see changes daily.

It is worth sticking it out in the beginning. Be patient with your weight loss and the fat on your sides will come off – it may be sooner than you realise.

The absolute best way to ensure you are losing weight in a sustainable, enjoyable, and easy way to is follow a meal plan that is tailored to you.

The reason for this is that you are consistently eating the same things, in the same quantities.

This eliminates variables such as carbs and sodium which will manipulate your day-to-day weight through extra water storage beneath your skin.

From here, you or your fitness coach can see what is or isn’t working and make adjustments to optimise the process.

If you consistently stick to a weight loss programme then you will be able to consistently lose weight.

Improve Definition

As I said, losing overall body fat is the only way to actually, truly get rid of belly fat.

However, there are ways to make fat in these areas appear reduced.

This is to build muscle in your obliques.

Your oblique muscles are all along the side of your stomach, and have the function of twisting your body, along with crunching your torso to one side.

Part of your obliques cover where your love handle fat is.

There are many exercises you can do which will increase the muscle mass you have in this area.

By improving the development of these muscles, there will be more muscle pushing up against your skin.

This means that more definition and tone will be visible through the bodyfat you currently have. You will get a more tapered look, and appear to have reduced love handles.

If your bodyfat is high then this will not make a difference.

However, if your potential for seeing the oblique muscles to create that toned look is currently at 15% body fat, by building this muscle, you will be able to increase this so that you are able to see the oblique muscle definition at a higher body fat percentage, as high as 17-18%.

This means that you will achieve the visual results you want much faster, and will look even better once you reach the original weight loss goal.

Following these to give the appearance of reduced belly fat, in conjunction with actually losing body fat is the absolute key to getting a more toned stomach and reducing your love handles in the quickest, most sustainable way possible.

An example of an oblique building workout would be as follows:

Week 1:

Weighted Oblique Crunch – 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps
High To Low Cable Chops – 3 sets of 6 – 8 reps
Oblique Knee Raises – 1 set of AMRAP

Week 2:

Weighted Oblique Crunch – 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps
High To Low Cable Chops – 3 sets of 6 – 8 reps
Oblique Knee Raises – 2 sets of AMRAP

Week 3:

Weighted Oblique Crunch – 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps
High to Low Cable Chops – 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps
Oblique Knee Raises – 3 sets of AMRAP

Week 4:

Weighted Oblique Crunch – 4 sets of 12 – 15 reps
High to Low Cable Chops – 4 sets of 12 - 15 reps
Oblique Knee Raises – 3 sets of AMRAP

AMRAP = As Many Reps as Possible (aim to increase number from the previous week)

This should not be a workout in itself. This can be tagged onto the end of a current workout, or done in free time a few times throughout the week.

Ideally exercise your obliques in this way 3 times per week.

About the Author

Ash May is a Nutritionist and Online Fitness Coach at www.upfrontnutrition.co.uk. With a huge interest in the effects of nutrition on both long, and short term goals, his aim is to help clients build muscle and lose fat quickly, enjoyably, and sustainably.