Belly busters

The bulge and the brain may not go well together.

Not all of us have a flat tummy and frankly, it's not an easy destination. A bit of flab around the waist would not have bothered me till yesterday, but now, unfortunately, it's apparently not enough to have normal body weight.

A study published last week in the journal Neurology suggests that a bulging waist is significantly unhealthy for the brain, giving a higher chance of acquiring Alzheimer's disease and dementia in later years.

While previous studies have shown that obesity in middle age increases the risk of diabetes and heart ailments, now for the first time it has also been linked to dementia.

New research highlights that otherwise healthy individuals with a spare tyre run an 89 per cent higher risk of the disease, compared to those with a low belly measurement.

Though it is still not clear how abdominal fat increases this risk, researchers say it may be because it pumps out substances harmful for the brain. So while you need to be careful about how much weight you're carrying, what's also important is where you're carrying it.

As with most things, better late than never. Evidently, weight loss through a combination of exercise and diet is often not a sure-shot way of getting rid of the spare tyre. One also needs to do belly-specific exercises to burn the seemingly stubborn fat there "" and regularly.

Contrary to popular ideas, crunches are not the only option; they concentrate only on one "" and the strongest "" part of the belly. Crunches can also prove to be inefficient, especially if you don't like doing them and therefore end up doing them wrongly in some way.

The key is to tone all four abdominal muscles: the upper rectus abdominus, the lower rectus abdominus, the obliques and the transverse abdominus. Try a few belly rotation exercises while seated on a chair. Have a look at https://bsmedia.business-standard.comhealth.yahoo.com/fitness-overview/4-ways-to-flatten-your-belly/prevention--21862.html

Meanwhile, posture, quite often, gets lost in a fitness regime. One must try to flatten the lower back as much as possible, because the more it curves inward, the more the abdomen bulges. Along with belly-specific stretches, cardiovascular exercises and aerobics work well in fighting the bulge.

Says Delhi-based fitness consultant and trainer Priya Sharma, "Even if you're doing crunches, don't forget cardio and diet control. Floor exercises are the most feasible for everyone. Using a gym ball for belly-flops is highly effective," she says.

Remember, excessive dieting is a big no-no as it will result in loss of muscle which are required to hold up the abdominal organs. Well, maybe it isn't so hard after all.