43YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT

1 inch at a timeIt’s time to starting fighting back against

the inches that have crept on around your waist over the years. We’ve turned

traditional diet advice on its head (no counting calories for us) and have developed an exclusive and sustainable healthy eating and exercise plan specifically for you.

Gaining weight around your middle is so common – especially post-menopause – but it’s not inevitable and you can lose it again with a little effort, some great food and a fun exercise plan that will rev-up your energy levels and help you to stay strong. What’s more, losing inches around your tummy could help protect you from a whole list of age-related health problems. You have nothing to lose but inches – so join us today!

ReclaimYOUR

Make 2017 the year you get your waist back! Join us and we’ll get stronger, healthier and happier together

WAISTLOSE INCHES AND…✓ Beat heart disease✓ Lower your risk of diabetes✓ Ease back pain✓ Strengthen your bones✓ Lower your blood pressure✓ Reduce cholesterol✓ Soothe joint pain✓ Prevent falls✓ Get more energy✓ Sleep better

Join our brand

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YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT44

How much you weigh doesn’t tell you an awful lot about your

health – unless you have some fancy scales they can only tell you how much your fat, muscle, bones, water and organs weigh altogether. They can’t tell you anything about your body composition or whether your weight is made up of healthy muscle or unhealthy fat. The humble tape measure can tell you a lot more.

“There’s a common myth that muscle weighs more than fat,” says nutritionist Fiona Kirk. “But a pound of muscle weighs exactly the same as a pound of fat – 1lb. However muscle is much denser than fat and takes up less space. So if you weigh 10 stone and have plenty of muscle and little body fat you will look a great deal leaner and wear at least one or two trouser sizes less than if you weigh 10 stone and have less muscle and more body fat.”

If you lose body fat, but gain muscle through a healthy diet and exercise plan the number on the scale won’t budge, but your shape will change, your clothes will fit better and you’ll be fitter and healthier.

FOCUS ON YOUR WAISTIf you only want to take one measurement, make it your waist measurement. “Tummy fat, the stuff that gives you the apple shape that most of us know as ‘middle-age spread’ can be really harmful,” says Yours doctor Dr Trisha McNair. “It’s made up of extra fat cells deep in your abdomen called visceral fat which releases adipose hormones – chemical troublemakers that travel to your blood vessels and organs where they cause inflammation that can affect how your body controls your blood sugar, insulin levels, cholesterol, your metabolism and even your appetite.

“This abdominal fat hugely increases your risk of diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke and it can even make arthritis more painful,” says Dr Trisha. “But the good news is that you can reduce your risk of all these things by losing inches from your waist through a healthy diet and regular exercise plan like this one.”

HOW DO YOU MEASURE UP?Measure your waist by wrapping the tape measure around your middle in line with your belly button. Make sure the tape is level all the way round (you might need someone to help you with this), breathe in then breathe out naturally before taking the measurement. Regardless of your weight and height, if your waist is 31.5 inches (80cm) or more if you’re a woman, or 37 inches (94cm) or more if you’re a man, you should try to lose some fat from around your middle.

FIGHT FAT – FORGET CALORIESLosing body fat and slimming your waist is 80 per cent down to food and 20 per cent down to how much exercise you do.

“Successful fat loss is only sustainable if it’s healthy fat loss,” says Fiona. “It’s important you don’t eat your way through more calories than you need for your daily energy requirements (about 2000-2500 kcals a day) but it’s better to focus on getting a healthy balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat than to count calories.” We’ve included calorie counts on our recipes as a guide but the quality of the calories should be more important than quantity. You could eat 750 calories of apple crumble and custard, or 750 calories of grilled salmon and stir-fried veg, but only the salmon and stir fry

would nourish your body, boost your energy and shrink your fat cells.

BE CARB-CONSCIOUSThere’s a lot of confusion about carbohydrates and some diet plans recommend cutting them out entirely, which isn’t realistic long term. Your body needs carbohydrates for energy but if you eat too many too often, or don’t eat enough, your blood sugar could be affected, which hits your energy levels and encourages your body to store fat instead of burning it.

“Vegetables should be your main source of carbohydrates and fibre because they won’t pack on the pounds,” says Fiona. “Make vegetables the major part of every meal and snack. Fruits are also great but because of their relatively

high fructose (sugar) content, limit them to 2-3 portions per day. Wholegrains such as brown rice, plus beans, lentils and legumes are filling and fibre-rich and should feature regularly in your diet – but go for a small portion (two tbsp of cooked rice, for example) because they should always be a back-up to vegetables and not form the major part of every meal and snack.” Any foods made with refined white flour and sugar such as biscuits, cakes, pastries, pies and tarts should be a rare treat and not

part of your daily diet.

MeasureForget the scales – get your tape measure out to kick-start a whole new way to lose weight

not lbs

Women with

healthy waist

measurements are

three times less

likely to develop

dementia

Losing just two inches from your waist could reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease by

10 per cent

INCHESTRACK YOUR PROGRESS

STA

RTW

EEK

2W

EEK

4W

EEK

6

NAME

AGE HEIGHT

Waist ins

Hips ins

Thighs ins

Chest ins

Upper arms ins

Weight lb

Waist ins

Hips ins

Thighs ins

Chest ins

Upper arms ins

Weight lb

Waist ins

Hips ins

Thighs ins

Chest ins

Upper arms ins

Weight lb

Waist ins

Hips ins

Thighs ins

Chest ins

Upper arms ins

Weight lb

This handy checklist will encourage you to measure yourself then keep tabs on how you are progressing each week

We’ve included

weight just in case you want

to keep track

n You can download new blank charts from www.yours.co.uk/1inch

✗

47YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT

WHAT ABOUT SUGAR?Sugar is addictive, the more we have the more we want. It’s everywhere these days – even in many savoury foods – so it’s easy to have too much. Your body turns sugar into energy but if you don’t burn it off it gets stored as fat (usually around your middle). If you eat too much sugar on a regular basis and over a long period of time your body finds it harder and harder to process the sugar from your bloodstream. “This not only makes you gain weight, it also increases your risk of Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke,” says Fiona.

Cutting down on your sugar intake will make the inches come off faster, but a sweet tooth can be hard to fight. If you feel you need something sweet, Fiona recommends one of these options instead.n A small pot of natural Greek yogurt with a generous swirl of runny honeyn A very sweet piece of fresh fruit such as mango, peach, grapes, banana,

EAT FAT TO LOSE FATLow-fat diets have been touted as the key to weight loss for many years, but now experts are turning that advice on its head. “Both saturated and unsaturated fats are important for our health and for weight loss,” says Fiona. “In moderation, naturally occurring fats such as olive oil, butter and oily fish are essential for brain, nerve and bone health – as well as the key to long-lasting fat loss.” Fats help you feel satisfied, lift your mood and raise your metabolic rate, helping you burn off stored body fat, slow down the absorption of your food and fight off cravings, so you’re not tempted to reach for sugary foods.

Each of these sweet snacks is combined with some protein or fat to keep your blood sugar and energy levels

stablekiwi or strawberries with a handful of nutsn An oatcake or rye cracker with no-added-sugar peanut or almond buttern A mini bar of very dark chocolate (85 per cent cocoa solids) and a handful of mixed seeds

n A couple of nut-stuffed dates with a mug of green tea

n A fruit and yogurt smoothie

FATS TO EAT REGULARLY (1-2 portions per day)

Extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil

Avocado

Nut butters

Nuts and seeds

Omega-3 rich eggs

FATS TO EAT OCCASIONALLY (2-3 portions per week)

Meat, poultry and game

Oily fish

Yogurt

Butter

Cream

Cheese

Milk

FATS TO AVOID

Fake oils – those that are refined and heavily processed such as sunflower oil

Fake butters, margarines and spreads – such as olive oil or sunflower spreads.

Ready-made processed cakes and biscuits

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brand new

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Turn to p56 to fill in your pledge card

YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT48 49YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT

PACK IN PROTEIN“Protein helps you to feel satisfed faster, so packing it into every meal and snack will help you to eat less overall,” says Fiona. It also helps to increase your energy levels, lifts your mood and helps you build and maintain muscle mass – which means your body looks leaner and burns more calories, even when you’re resting.

“Protein is vital for your overall health too,” says Dr Trisha. “You need a good supply of protein every day to fuel your muscles, keep your skin healthy, improve your immunity and keep your brain, heart, liver and other organs in great shape.” Protein is stored in your muscles as amino acids, which your body needs to heal wounds, repair itself when you’re ill or to

charge up your immune system against infection.

Over time though, our bodies become less efficient at absorbing protein from food and, as our muscle mass naturally declines with age, we start to lose our stores of these precious amino acids, making it harder to bounce back from illness. Losing just 10 per cent of lean muscle mass is enough to affect your immunity and increase your risk of falling foul to infection.

But you can avoid all of this and speed up your inch-loss by increasing the amount of protein you eat and exercising regularly (turn to p58 to find out more). Most of us don’t eat enough protein to get the benefits according to Fiona.

n Fast and Fabulous Fat Loss, by Fiona Kirk, is available to download from iTunes for iPhone, iPad and Mac at £6.99

HOW MUCH PROTEIN?We’ve worked out how much protein is in 100g (3oz) of these common foods. Remember to scale up or scale down the quantities, depending on your recipe or portion size.100g Chicken = 27g protein100g Pork = 27g protein100g Steak = 25g protein100g Lamb = 25g protein100g Cheddar cheese = 25g protein100g Oily fish such as salmon = 20g protein100g Chickpeas = 19g protein100g White fish such as cod = 18g protein100g Cottage cheese = 11g protein100g 0% Greek yogurt = 10g protein100g Lentils = 9g protein100g Natural yogurt = 6g protein100g 1 large egg = 6g protein100ml Semi-skimmed milk = 3g protein

HEALTHY SNACK IDEAS

PROTEIN POINTERTo work out how much protein you need every day, use this simple sum...

“You will need to measure out your foods based on their protein content and not the weight of the food itself,” says Dr Trisha. “Eating 30g of chicken won’t give you 30g of protein, for example.”

Your weight in pounds x 0.5.

For example if you weigh 140lb (10st) x 0.5 =

70g (2½oz) protein per day

Breakfast Aim for a mix of protein, fats, vegetables or

fruit and a little starchTry poached eggs and avocado on toast or an English muffin (see recipe p52), a small pot of natural cottage

cheese or Greek yogurt with mixed fresh fruit and some nuts, or a bowl of porridge or bircher muesli (see recipe p52) topped with sliced apple and a good sprinkling of

ground cinnamon.

Lunch Aim for a mix of protein, fats, vegetables and starch Homemade vegetable and white bean soup (see recipe p54), an open sandwich topped with avocado, prawns,

tomato and toasted nuts, grilled chicken and salad on a flat bread or wrap, or a vegetable-packed frittata

(see recipe p52).

Dinner Aim for a mix of protein, fats, vegetables and no starch

Grilled steak with Mediterranean vegetables (see recipe p52), baked fish and a bean salad, chicken casserole with

lots of vegetables served with a big pile of greens with butter or a hearty fish curry (see recipe p54).

CAN I SNACK?“A great snack is, in essence, just a small version of a great meal so the same rules apply,” says Fiona.

“A snack with a good balance of fat, protein and carbohydrate will fill you up and keep you going for a few hours, while a snack that’s all out of balance such as a cup of tea and some biscuits is merely a stop-gap that will leave you satisfied for a little while.”

If you want to lose inches, base your snacks around vegetables, healthy fats and protein and only have one or two a day.

Your

MENUdaily

✓ Yogurt, oats and berries✓ Rice cake with smoked salmon and cucumber✓ Nut and seed bars (choose carefully, many are loaded with sugars and syrups)✓ Houmous and raw vegetable sticks✓ Cheese with fresh apple slices✓ Cold boiled eggs✓ Nut and seed butters on oatcakes✓ Half an avocado stuffed with tuna

✁✁

1-inch recipe cards

Cinnamon bircher muesli

Kale, sweet potato and feta frittata

Mexican poached eggs

Marinated steak with Mediterranean vegetables

CUT OUT & KEEP

51

✁✁

Cinnamon bircher muesliServes: 4 Preparation time: 15 mins

Kale, sweet potato and feta frittataServes: 6 Preparation time: 10 minsCooking time: 55 mins

Mexican poached eggsServes 4: Preparation time: 15 mins Cooking time: 5 mins

n 2 tomatoes, finely choppedn 100g (3½ oz) roasted peppers, chopped n 50g (2oz) feta cheesen Small bunch coriander, choppedn 1 spring onion, finely slicedn 1 tbsp lime juicen 4 eggsn 4 English muffins, split and toastedn 1 avocado, peeled and slicedn Tabasco sauce, to serve

1. Combine the tomatoes, pepper, feta, coriander, spring onion and lime juice. Season to taste. 2. Poach the eggs in simmering water for 2-3 mins until the whites are set and the yolks are still soft. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. 3. Top the toasted muffins with the avocado slices and poached eggs, spoon over the salsa and add a dash of Tabasco sauce.n Per serving: 367 cals, 17g fat (sat fat 5g), sugar 5g

TOP TIP: Use soft-boiled eggs in place of poached, or a slice of wholegrain toast instead of an English muffin. Pic: Rob Shaw for Woman’s Day

Marinated steak with Mediterranean vegetablesServes: 4 Preparation time: 10 mins, plus 1 hour marinatingCooking time: 25 mins

n 200g (7oz) sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1cm pieces

n 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oiln 2-3 bunch of kale, trimmed

and choppedn 1 medium carrot, gratedn 2 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes,

choppedn 60g (2½ oz) grated

cheddar cheese n 40g (1½ oz) toasted pine nutsn 1 tbsp parsley, choppedn 1 tbsp basil, choppedn 100g feta cheese, crumbledn 4 eggsn 1 tbsp tomato pureen Cherry tomatoes, quartered

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6 and grease and line a 28x18cm

(11x7in) pan. 2. Toss the sweet potato in the oil and bake in the oven for about 30 mins. Reduce the oven to 170°C/ 325°F/Gas Mark 3. 3. Blanch the kale for 2 mins, drain and blot to remove water. 4. Combine the carrot, sun-dried tomatoes, cheddar, pine nuts, herbs, feta, kale and sweet potato. 5. Whisk together the eggs and tomato purée and stir through the vegetables. Pour into the prepared tray and scatter cherry tomatoes on top. Bake for 15-20 mins until set. 6. Cool and cut into squares. Serve at room temperature with a green salad.

n 125g (4½ oz) rolled oats n 240ml (8 fl oz) fresh apple juice (not from

concentrate)n 120ml (4 fl oz) skimmed milkn 120ml (4 fl oz) fat-free natural yogurt, plus an

extra 120ml (4 fl oz) to serven ½ tsp ground cinnamon, plus extra to serven 1 apple, cored and gratedn 125g (4½ oz) blueberriesn 1 medium banana, sliced n 1 tbsp flaked almonds

1. Combine the oats, juice, milk, yogurt and cinnamon and mix well. Cover with clingfilm and chill overnight.2. Stir the apple through the muesli and spoon into bowls. Top with extra yogurt, berries, banana and almonds and sprinkle with extra cinnamon.n Per serving: 307 cals, 6g fat (sat fat 1.5g), sugar 23g

TOP TIP: Try topping your muesli with other fresh fruits such as kiwi, strawberries, mango or raspberries.Pic: Brett Stevens for Good Medicine

n Per serving: 247 cals, 17g fat (sat fat 6g), sugar 4g

Pic: Ben Dearnley for Australian Women’s Weekly

n 4 x 175g (6oz) steaksn 4 tbsp olive oiln 1 tbsp Italian seasoningn 2 red onions, cut into wedgesn 3 courettes, slicedn 2 aubergines, cut into wedgesn 2 yellow peppers, deseeded

and cut into wedgesn 4 large tomatoes, quarteredn Juice and zest of 1 lemonn 1 garlic clove, crushedn Small bunch of parsley,

chopped

1. Toss the steak in half the oil and the Italian seasoning, leave to marinate in the fridge for 1 hour. Toss the vegetables in the remaining oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic and seasoning and leave to

marinate 1 hour. 2. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6. Preheat a griddle or frying pan over a high heat and cook the onion, courgette, aubergine and peppers in several batches for 1-2 mins each side until tender. Grill the tomatoes for 30 secs each side. Transfer the veg to lined baking trays and bake for 8-10 mins. 3. Grill the steak until cooked to your liking and leave to rest covered with foil for 3 mins. 4. Thinly slice the steak and toss with the juices and the vegetables. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

n Per serving: 401 cals, 19g fat (sat fat 5g), sugar 11g

Pic: Rodney Macuja for Woman’s Day

Simple roasted fish curryRoast salmon withpine nut crumb

Vegetable and white bean soupTandoori chicken wrap

1-inch recipe cardsCUT

OUT & KEEP

53

Vegetable and white bean soupServes 6: Preparation time: 15 minsCooking time: 45 mins

Simple roasted fish curryServes: 4 Preparation time: 15 minsCooking time: 40 mins

Roast salmon with pine nut crumbServes: 6 Preparation time: 10 minsCooking time: 20 mins

Tandoori chicken wrapServes: 4 Preparation time: 10 minsCooking time: 10 mins

n 1kg (2lb 4oz) butternut squash, peeled and cut into 3cm (1¼ in)

n 2 onions, slicedn 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and

cut into wedgesn 250g (9oz) punnet cherry

tomatoesn 75g (3oz) mild or medium

Indian curry pasten 1 tbsp groundnut oiln 1 tbsp finely chopped gingern 2 garlic cloves, crushedn 1 tsp mustard seedsn 400ml (14 fl oz) can

coconut milkn 750g (1lb 10 oz) firm white fish

such as cod or monkfish, cut into large chunks

n Coriander leaves, lemon wedges and sliced chilli to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F/Gas Mark 4. 2. In an oven-proof dish combine the squash, onion, fennel, tomatoes, curry paste, oil, ginger, garlic and mustard seeds. Season and bake for 30 mins until vegetables are golden and tender. 3 In a small saucepan bring the coconut milk to a simmer. Pour into the pan with veg and swirl to combine. 4. Add the fish to the pan, pushing it gently into the sauce. Bake for 8-10 mins until fish is cooked through. Sprinkle with coriander and chilli with lemon wedges on the side. Serve with a big pile of steamed greens.

n 1 tbsp olive oiln 1 leek, thinly slicedn 2 carrots, finely chopped n 2 stalks celery, trimmed

and slicedn 1 swede, peeled and finely

choppedn 1 litre (1¾ pt) vegetable

stock n 400g (14oz) tin chopped

tomatoesn 75g (3oz) soup mix, rinsed

(see tip)n 400g (14oz) tin cannellini

beans, drainedn 100g (3½ oz) green beans,

choppedn Grated parmesan and

chopped parsley to serve

1. Fry the leek, carrots, celery and swede in the olive oil

for 4-5 mins until the leek is tender. 2. Add the stock, tomatoes and soup mix and bring to the boil. Simmer covered until the lentils and grains in the soup mix are tender. 3. Stir in the beans and simmer for a further 4-5 mins. Season to taste and serve with parsley and parmesan.

n 12 cherry tomatoes, halvedn 1 small cucumber, dicedn 1 small red onion, thinly slicedn 4 tbsp lemon juice n 150ml Greek yogurtn Small bunch of mint,

finely choppedn 2 tsp cumin seeds, toastedn 2 tbsp tandoori curry pasten 500g (1lb 2oz) chicken thigh

fillets, halvedn 1 tbsp vegetable oiln 4 tortilla wraps or small

flatbreadsn Coriander and mint leaves

to serve

1. Combine the tomatoes, cucumber and onion with 2 tbsp lemon juice, season to taste and set aside.2. Mix together the yogurt, mint and cumin seeds. Season to taste.

3. Toss the chicken in the curry paste, 2 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tbsp water. 4. Preheat a griddle or frying pan over a medium heat, brush with oil and cook the chicken for 3-4 mins on each side until cooked through. 5. Wipe the pan with kitchen paper then heat your wraps or flatbreads. Top each wrap with chicken, salad and yogurt sauce and scatter with coriander and mint.

TOP TIP: Use chickpeas instead of chicken for a vegetarian version. Toss chickpeas in spice paste, lemon juice and water and heat through in frying pan.

n 75g (3oz) fresh breadcrumbsn 75g (3oz) pine nutsn 40g (1½ oz) butter, choppedn 1 tbsp thyme, chopped,

plus extra to serven 2 garlic cloves, choppedn 1 lemon, sliced into roundsn 750g (1lb 10oz) skinless,

boneless salmon filletn 2 tbsp olive oiln 1 tbsp lemon juicen 2 tsp Dijon mustardn 350g (12oz) podded frozen

broad beans, blanched n 175g (6oz) frozen peas,

blanchedn 1 cucumber, sliced

into ribbons with a potato peeler

n 60g (2½ oz) baby spinach leaves

1. Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6 and line an oven tray with baking paper. 2. Whizz the bread, pine nuts, butter, garlic and thyme in a food processor until the mixture begins to bind. 3. Arrange the lemon slices over the tray and place the salmon on top. Press the crumb mixture evenly over the salmon. Bake for 15-20 mins until the fish is just cooked through. 4. Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice and mustard and toss through the broad beans, peas, cucumber ribbons and spinach. Season and serve alongside salmon.

n Per serving: 574cals, 38g fat (sat fat 8g), sugar 4g

Pic: Rob Shaw for Woman’s Day

n Per serving: 308 cals, 10g fat (sat fat 3g), sugar 7g

Pic: Scott Hawkins for Woman’s Day

n Per serving: 533 cals, 25g fat (sat fat 15g), sugar 20g

Pic: Scott Hawkins for Woman’s Day

TOP TIP: Soup mix is a mixture of dried legumes and grains such as split peas, pearl barley and lentils and can be found in most supermarkets.

n Per serving: 202 cals, fat 5.6g (1g sat fat) sugar 10g

Pic: Rob Shaw for Good Medicine

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YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT56

My name is ……………………………………………………………

Current waist size ………………… inches

I want to lose ……………………… inches this year with Yours

Address………………………………………………………………

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SUCCESSJoin our friendly inch-loss community today and increase your chances of reclaiming your waist

When it comes to losing inches, the more help and support you have, the better. A nationwide survey revealed that

40 per cent of women who tried to get their waistlines back alone gave up after just seven days. But 71 per cent of women said that they would be more likely to stick to healthy lifestyle changes if they had the support of their friends and other women like them. They even admitted that slimming as part of a group felt easier than going it alone.

We’re all pledging to reclaim our waists 1 inch at a time this year, so why not increase your chances and join us?

Just fill in your pledge cards, telling us how many inches you’d like to lose this year and send it to 1 inch at a time, Yours Magazine, Media House,

Lynchwood Business Park, Peterborough PE2 6EA or sign up online at www.

yours.co.uk/1inch. The first 500 people to

send in their pledge will receive an exclusive free Yours pedometer!

GET SUPPORT EVERY DAYFor daily support and encouragement, join our friendly

Facebook community – visit

www.yours.co.uk/1inch to discover how to connect with

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*Please enter this information so that Bauer Media Group (the publisher of Yours) can keep you up-to-date by email and free mobile messaging with fantastic offers and promotions. We promise that you can unsubscribe at any time if you don’t find them interesting and you’ll only get messages about things that we’ve chosen especially for you from ourselves and our network of great partners whose products and services we think you’ll enjoy. We have really special offers and promotions that we think you’ll enjoy but if you’d rather not hear from us please tick for post q or phone q and if you would prefer not to hear from our partners tick here for post q or phone q . For our Privacy Policy visit www.bauerdatapromise.co.uk Bauer Media Group consists of Bauer Consumer Media Ltd, Bauer Radio Ltd and H Bauer Publishing Ltd.For Bauer Media terms and conditions visit: http://www.bauerlegal.co.uk/competition-terms.html

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YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT58 59YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT

Exercise is essential for slimming your tummy – but not for the reasons you might think

toLOSE ITMove it

While diet alone can go a long way to helping you reduce belly fat and get your waist back, if you want to see results faster, regular exercise is

the answer. There isn’t one magic exercise to shrink your waistline. “Spot-reducing isn’t realistic and simply doesn’t work, so forget doing sit-ups galore,” says Yours fitness expert Julie Robinson, CEO of Move it or Lose it. “But exercise does play a huge part in keeping abdominal fat at bay – not just through calorie-burning but by reducing the inflammation this type of fat causes within our bodies. Regular exercise increases your metabolism, so your body is using more calories all the time, even when at rest.”

What sort of exercise should I do?Try to build exercise into your daily routine and spend less time sitting down. “Start off slowly and build up gradually at first,” says Julie. “But it’s important to progress as you get fitter and stronger, so always try to do just a little bit more each time.”

Aim for 20-30 minutes of aerobic exercise, three times a week, such as walking, dancing or swimming – you should notice a rise in your heart rate. If 20-30 minutes seems too much, break it down into three 10-minute sessions over the day.

Building your muscle strength with regular

resistance exercises is important too.

The more muscle you have, the more calories your body burns at rest, and the

leaner and more toned you’ll look.

“We start losing

muscle from the age of 30 onwards. After 60, it speeds up considerably, so by the time we reach 80 we can have lost up to half of our muscle mass.” says Julie. This makes you weak and means you burn fewer calories so you either need to eat less or move more to stop pounds creeping on.

One study found that people (average age 87) who lifted weights three times a week for 10 weeks saw their muscle strength increase by 113 per cent on average, which led to them walking 12 per cent faster than before, made stair-climbing easier and helped them lose excess body fat.

Aim to do resistance exercises twice a week. Do up to 12 repetitions of each exercise and when this feels easy, try to do another set of 12, then ultimately a third set. Alternate them so you work on different muscle groups for both the upper and lower body.

Exclusive Yours offer!

Get 10 per cent off in the Move it or Lose it shop throughout January.

Call 0800 612 0450 or visit www.moveitorloseit.co.uk and quote JAN10 to get the discount on a whole range of exercise DVDs,

resistance bands and dumbbells

DAILY CHALLENGE

Every day, try to go up and down stairs

ten times – it will get you breathing harder and make

your legs stronger

PUSH-UPS (works your arms and chest)1 Start on your hands and knees with your knees hip-width apart and your hands beneath your shoulders. Pull in your stomach muscles and keep your back flat.

2 Bend your arms and lower your chest towards the mat slowly. Then slowly push back up to the start position. Repeat 12 times.

DUMBBELL SQUAT (tones and strengthens your thighs and bottom)1 Stand with your feet hip-width apart, shoulders back and down, core tight and with a dumbbell or water bottle in each hand. 2 Bend your knees and lower your bottom back and down towards the floor, keeping your hands at your sides. Keep your weight on your heels, ensure your knees don’t bend further forward than your toes. Pause at the bottom then slowly stand back up. Repeat 12 times.

TRICEP DIPS (tightens the backs of your arms)1 Sit on the edge of the bottom step of your stairs or sturdy chair placed against the wall, with your feet flat on the floor and your hands by your sides gripping the front of the step or chair. 2 Move your bottom forward off the step, bend your elbows and lower your bottom towards the floor. Pause at the bottom then use your arms to push yourself back up until your arms are straight again. Repeat 12 times.

This resistance training circuit will help you build strength, tone up and burn calories. Do each exercise in turn, one after the other. Rest for two minutes and then repeat the circuit again. Try to build up to doing the whole circuit three times.

CONSULT YOUR GP BEFORE STARTING ANY NEW EXERCISE REGIME

TUMMY TRIMMERS

YOURS n EVERY FORTNIGHT60

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LEG AND ARM RAISES (strengthens your core)1 Start on all fours with your knees hip-width apart and your hands beneath your shoulders. Pull in your stomach muscles and keep your back flat.

BICEP CURLS (works your upper arms)1 Stand with your feet hip-width apart, shoulders back and down, core tight and with a dumbbell or water bottle in each hand, your palms facing upwards.

2 Keeping elbows tucked in, bring your hands up towards your shoulders. Pause then lower back down slowly. Repeat 12 times.

STOMACH CRUNCHES (flatten your tummy and strengthen your core)1 Lie on your back with your knees bent, your feet flat on the floor and your hands at your temples, or if you’re just starting out, cross your arms over your chest.

2 Slowly extend your right leg straight out behind you and your left arm out in front of you, keeping your core and back still and strong. Slowly lower back to the start position and repeat with the left leg and right arm. Repeat 12 times on each side.

2 Tighten your stomach muscles and use them to lift your head and shoulders off the floor. Pause at the top then lower back down to the ground. Repeat 12 times.

Join our brand

new FREE

diet club!

So with the right combination of diet and exercise – and the support of the Yours community - you can join us in losing one inch at a time and feel fitter, healthier and happier. It’s easy to sign up, there’ll be tips and tasty recipes to try and, best of all, it’s FREE!