How to lose love handles without exercise

For some guys, there's no greater goal than achieving an aesthetic ideal and building a body that wouldn't be out of place on the pedestal of a Grecian statue (or at least on the cover of a cheap romance novel). There are plenty of challenges to accomplishing this goal, and love handles are one of the peskiest hurdles on the path to achieving that type of physique. The stubborn region of fat just above the belt can be obstinate, and it takes more than just a few crunches and leg lifts to get rid of it.

Love handles are composed of subcutaneous fat, which sits just beneath the skin. In one sense, that's good news. That type of fat isn't an immediate problem, outside of your cosmetic concerns and general health. You don’t have as much to be worried about subcutaneous fat as the insidious visceral fat in your belly, which can cause all kinds of health issues. But if you're determined to lose those nagging love handles, you do have options.

There are a few shortcuts you can take to get rid of love handles, but they're extreme, and not something that we'd generally recommend. Liposuction is one of these options. More recently, men have turned to non-invasive treatments, the most popular of which feature either freezing or heating the stubborn fatty areas off the body. These treatments are expensive and might be a bridge too far unless you're really desperate.

Besides, by cutting corners, you'll miss out on the fitness gains you'd make along the way using other methods, which will hopefully become a reason your training in and of itself. If getting rid of love handles without special treatments is your goal, you'll have to work hard—but you'll have to work smart, too.

One method that is not smart and won't work is spot reduction. The theory is that if you focus all of your attention on one specific area in your training (for instance, doing hundreds of crunches for you midsection), you'll be able to burn off the fat in just that area. But that's not how your body works. What you can do is lose fat more generally, then build up muscle where you might not have had it before—but for that to work, you'll have to do that smart, hard work.

Here's a plan to ditch your stubborn love handles from former Men's Health fitness advisor Craig Ballantyne, C.S.C.S.

Find the Right Intervals for Exercise

Studies have shown that interval-based exercise programs, most specifically high intensity interval training (HIIT), are more effective for burning off your love handles than steady state cardio. Instead of running for miles on end without any clear goal, fine tune your work and rest periods to strip away the fat.

So what type of interval program should you use? You can use a jump rope, or apply the principles to running or weight room work. Ballantyne recommends this setup to banish that pesky midsection fat:

After a thorough warmup, alternate between 20 seconds of hard exercise and 40 seconds recovery. Repeat that pattern 6 to 8 times. Afterwards, finish with 5 to 10 minutes of cooldown exercise.

If you have extra time, do 10 minutes of regular cardio pace.

Don’t Overload on Cardio

Even though Ballantyne recommended cardio for a cool down, he's wary of its effectiveness when performed alone. Extended periods of steady state cardio, like jogging, won’t do much to cut down your spare tire. "It's not going to work as well as interval training," Ballantyne said.

This is related to another issue, according to Ballantyne: Many guys don't have enough muscle in the first place. Losing love handles, like bodybuilding, is a game of illusion. Muscle on your chest and back can essentially "hide" excess fat in your love handle area.

"So most guys are “skinny-fat,” and then try to lose love handles with cardio only, and basically become even smaller versions of themselves—but still skinny-fat," Ballantyne said. "It's better to use intervals and weight training to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time—which IS possible—and change your body's overall appearance."

Rethink Your Core Training Routine

"Ab exercises like crunches are generally a waste of time," Ballantyne said. The problem is, you’re only working the muscles around your lower spine with crunches and situps.

Instead, you should build up your core with moves that focus on spinal stability, like planks and hollow body holds. Check out this quick video about the way your core muscles function for an idea of what you should be aiming for:

Want a smarter core workout in general? Check out Epic Abs, the program from MH fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S. that inspired this video.

Build Yourself Up While Slimming Down

While you're cutting down your midsection, do yourself a solid and work on some other areas of your body that can take attention away from your ample hips. Build up your pecs, lats, deltoids, and traps to create the illusion of smaller love handles.

"Most guys don't have enough muscle to focus on just losing weight," Ballantyne said, "so every guy must build some muscle in these areas."

How can you build the muscle and lose fat at the same time? You're hoping to "culk," so you should start by training hard, eating properly, and sticking to a consistent program.

Ballantyne also recommended a plan based around two to three total body workouts per week. Use five exercises per workout (one lower body, one upper push, one lower body single leg, one upper pulling, one total body ab exercise). Do that as a circuit three times through, with eight to 12 reps per exercise. Finish with interval training.

Get Out What You Put In

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If you want advanced results, you have to do advanced things,” said Ballantyne. “Such as cutting all the processed carbohydrates from your diet. One cheat reward meal per week—that's cheat MEAL, not cheat DAY."

Replace breakfast cereals and grain carbs with fruits, vegetables, and nuts. "Losing your love handles isn't going to happen if you insist on treating yourself to a Frappuccino, Pepsi, and a slice of pizza every day," he said. "It means eating meals of lean protein, fiber-rich vegetables, and snacking on apples and nuts between meals."

"It's diet. It's just too easy for most guys to cheat, Ballantyne said. "They have to realize that they have to have more discipline if they want results."

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I received an email titled, "LOVE-HANDLES!! Help me lose them."

I have been working on a routine that incorporates exercises that will help you work your love handles (the oblique region of the torso) over time and effort. Personally, I like to work my "obliques" on days I work my legs, so I created the Legs and Love Handles workout seen below.

As with any abdominal fat-loss goal, you need to concentrate on three areas to help firm your midsection:

1. Healthy Diet (to build energy and burn fat);

2. Cardiovascular and resistance training (to burn fat and build muscle);

3. Targeted abdominal exercises (to help firm the muscles under the fatty area)

*Note: You cannot target fat loss. Fat will be used as energy for your workouts and will be reduced after time performing cardio, resistance training and eating healthy.

As with any fitness and health goal, nutrition and exercise are always the main ingredients to success. Neither can be missing, or you will not have the energy to exercise or you will be part of the yo-yo diet crowd, buying a new diet book every year. Here is how I would break it down to get rid of those "love handles":

Related Video:

1. Healthy diet

The most important factor in acquiring washboard abs is eating a healthy diet. Here is a list of recommended healthy ways to help you lose a few inches:

• Drink at least three liters of water per day (100 ounces)
• Eat five servings of vegetables and fruits per day
• Limit fried foods and cheese
• Limit processed sugar (for example: sodas, cookies, candy)
• Eliminate fatty red meat; only lean red meats (1-2 times weekly)

For a food plan that was developed by a nutritionist, see "Lean Down Meal Options" (PDF).

2. Cardiovascular exercises

Losing love handles (stored fat) and increasing the metabolism so you can lose weight more effectively are all tied into a consistent cardiovascular/resistance training program. The stored fat around your midsection (for men) is typically the last to leave your body, even after months or years of an exercise plan. It is difficult to lose those last few pounds. For women, the last few pounds of fat is typically stored in the hips, buttocks and thigh region.

Whether you are a man or woman, you should do 20-45 minutes of activities like walking, running, biking or swimming daily 4-5 times per week. Also mix in basic calisthenics like push-ups, bench dips, squats and lunges 2-3 times a week. It takes a few weeks before you start to see the physical benefits or your diet and exercise program. You will see almost immediate results in your energy level and overall mental alertness when exercising daily. The sample routine below will help you better organize exercise into your week:

Monday & Thursday: Upper-Body Program

Repeat 5-10 times

• Push-ups 10-20
• Regular crunches 20
• Bench dips 10-20
• Reverse crunches 20
• Pullups: max reps or pulldowns, 10
• Hanging kneeup
• Stretch abs/lower back

Cardio option 20-30 minutes: Run, bike, walk, swim, etc.

Tuesday & Friday: Legs and Love Handles

Repeat 4-5 times 

• Walk, bike or jog 5:00
• Stretch legs
• Squats 20
• Lunges 10/leg
• Left crunches 25
• Right crunches 25
• Hip rollers 10/side
• Stretch abs/lower back

Cooldown walk or bike
5:00/stretch

Wednesday: Long Cardio Day

• 45-60 minutes of walking, running or combination of the two
• Or biking, swimming, elliptical gliding machines

The workout above is just a basic guide to getting started with a calisthenics or resistance training plan or adding cardio to your workout. For a free starter's guide to fitness, check out the "45-Day Beginner Program," which also will help you with motivation, basic nutrition and pictures of the exercises listed above.

Below are some abdominal exercises taken from every eBook sold on the Military.com Fitness eBook Store. Sample exercises to help build muscles of the core (stomach and lower back) are the following:

Hanging knee-ups

Bring your knees as high as you can as shown.

Advanced crunch (Legs up)

Lie on your back with your feet straight in the air. Keep your legs straight up in the air for the advanced crunches. Cross your hands over your chest and bring your elbows to your knees by flexing your stomach. (Do not do if you have a previous lower-back injury; place feet on the floor.) Check out "Achieve Washboard Abs" for more information.

Reverse crunch

In the same position as the regular crunch, lift your knees and butt toward your elbows. Leave your head and upper body flat on the ground. Only move your legs and butt. (Do not do if you have a previous lower-back injury.)

Right elbow to left knee

Cross your left leg over your right leg. Flex your stomach and twist to bring your right elbow to your left knee.

Left elbow to right knee

Same as above, just switch sides. Cross your right leg over your leg. Flex your stomach and twist to bring your left elbow to your right knee.

Hip rollers

This exercise will help you build your abs, back and hips to help with long ocean swims and balance out the hip flexor exercises. Twist to both sides, keeping your shoulders on the floor and stay in the bent knee position when rotating left and right.

*Note: Any time you work your abs, you also should exercise your lower back to build balance in your torso.

Lower-back exercise: Swimmers

Lie on your stomach and lift your feet and knees off the floor by flutter-kicking repeatedly as if you were swimming freestyle.

Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL and fitness author certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Visit his Fitness eBook store if you’re looking to start a workout program to create a healthy lifestyle. Send your fitness questions to .

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