Three Ways to Get A Flat Stomach

I apologise for being a bit blog-shy recently. As many of you know I’ve been training for ironman and as well as being really busy with PT and Bootcamps the 18-20hrs a week training has kinda left me short of time.

This morning I have a quick one for you.

I typically answer about 1000 questions a day about getting a flat stomach and when the sun comes out this number triples (ok, I might be exaggerating a little).

In my experience to achieve a flat stomach you need three things…

1. A good body composition. This is not necessarily about weight. We are talking about having a low body fat percentage. It stands to reason the leaner you are the better chance you are gonna have of getting a flat stomach. I’m also sorry to tell you this is most strongly manipulated through eating a clean and healthy diet. I’m sorry to tell you also this is nothing about weight. Just because you are light on the scales it doesn’t mean you will have a good body composition. Body fat and weight are different. Cut back on the sugar, processed foods and alcohol and you’ll be halfway there.

2. Create tonality. You cannot do this by exercising at a low intensity! Running on the treadmill for an hour or even lifting the 1kg dumbbells 50 times cannot help you here. Create tonality by working at a higher intensity. People who train at a higher intensity (i.e. get out there comfort zone) have better tonality. And I’m not talking about ‘doing ab work’. Whole body exercises such as squats, lunges, press ups, walkouts, burpees, pull ups are the way to go as they will kick start you metabolism.

3. Posture, posture, posture!!! How you stand and move is important. Anyone who has seen a glamorous celeb on the red carpet will notice it’s all about posturing and confidence. Don’t waste your time doing crunch after crunch on the living room floor, and I’m not talking about doing pilates either. The principles of pilates are good, but apply them to your everyday life by walking and moving in good alignment. To improve posture I suggest doing exercises like planks, side planks, wall angels, bridges - but do them well.

There you have it nice and simple (maybe??). Three things to consider when getting beach ready this year. Perhaps if I pull my finger out in the next week or so I will elaborate on each point separately to give you a better idea of what to do.

Less than two weeks until Ironman France!!! :-)