“How do I get rid of the belly fat? I do lots of crunches and abdominal exercises but it doesn’t seem to go away.”

First, spot reduction is not possible. You cannot do exercises that target one area only and see results. Those infomercials advertising 8 minutes to flat abs are a hoax!

Second, lots of abdominal exercises do not work for getting rid of belly fat. What you are doing is strengthening the abdominal muscles that are hiding beneath a layer of bodyfat. You may even have a beautiful six pack under that layer, but in order to see it, we’ve got to burn off the bodyfat.

I actually advise my clients not to do excessive amounts of crunches because it is hard on your spine and over time can cause disk problems. I work the abdominal muscles using compound exercises that also help burn off the body fat. Homeschool moms don’t have a lot of time to waste on exercises that don’t work. So, I like short bursts of high intensity exercise that strengthens, burns calories and keeps the burn going on into tomorrow.

The best thing that you could be doing to get rid of the mommy belly is strength training. Even better if you are doing compound exercises such as, squats, deadlifts, rows, push ups and pull-ups. Those are my favorite exercises for burning belly fat fast. Although you may think that you are only working your butt, thighs, chest and back, all of the exercises require you to use your abdominal muscles to stabilize and push you through the movement. This is what has now been termed as your core. Having a strong core will also eliminate or reduce lower back and knee pain.

In addition to strength training which will burn more calories, build metabolism boosting muscle and get rid of stubborn belly fat, add interval training. You don’t necessarily have to run either. Take a look at this video to help you understand how to properly do intervals. Once you add these into your workout program, you will see that mommy belly melting away.