Have you ever met those people with deposits of fats just above their waist? You might enjoy holding onto them as you hug them, but most people would do anything to have these fat deposits disappear.
Not only do they look unsightly, especially on a woman, but when in combination with a tummy, they can be a source of low self-esteem. That is why you will see many people with love handles scouring the internet looking for ways to get rid of them.
If you wonder about the causes of these fat deposits or have them and are looking for ways to get rid of them, you are at the right place.
We have a comprehensive list of the possible causes of love handles and how you will eliminate them.
What Are Love Handles?
Love handles are excess fat deposits around the waist and hip regions. Ironically, they are not that loved, as their name would suggest. They are usually visible as unsightly rolls of fats, especially when one wears tight-fitting clothing.
What Are the Causes of Love Handles?
1. Hormones
Hormones such as cortisol can affect fat retention, causing you to have love handles. Most of the fats will tend to concentrate around the thighs and the waist.
2. Age
As you age, fats will tend to accumulate on the lower torso. And what better place for the fats to rest than the waist and the thighs. That leads to love handles.
3. High Sugar of High Fat Diet
Whenever you eat excess sugar or fat, your body will only use a portion that it needs and store the rest for use at later times. Most of these fats will go and concentrate around the waist, on the belly, and in the thighs.
A poor diet can be a significant cause of love handles. That is because you will not be burning the calories at the same rate you are consuming them. Therefore, your body will have little choice but to deposit them somewhere.
4. Lack of Sleep
Are you getting enough sleep? How deep do you sleep, or are you the kind that only sleeps for a few hours every night? If that is your mode of operation, it is most likely the cause of your struggles with love handles.
When you sleep, the body burns calories that would otherwise be stored as fats. Therefore, depriving yourself of sleep denies your body the chance to burn these calories effectively.
5. Physical Inactivity
It is common knowledge to most people: if you do not work out, you will get fat. A combination of poor eating habits and physical inactivity will most certainly lead to love handles.
By being physically inactive, you give your body lesser chances to break down fats or calories. That will make the body deposit them at the waist on in your belly and thighs leading to love handles.
Why Are Love Handles So Hard to Eliminate?
Your body deliberately makes it hard for you to get rid of love handles. As you already know, love handles will be around your mid-section, which is the belly and waist. Your body classes fats stored there as essential and will only use them as a last resort.
That means your body will use up fats in the face or anywhere else before getting to the fat on your waist. Therefore, the parts of your body with the largest concentration of fat will be the hardest to make lean.
Therefore, it would serve you better if you made sure the love handles never appear in the first place. That, however, should not dim out the lights for those already with love handles.
You can get rid of love handles. It will, however, require a lifestyle shift and the ultimate dedication to eliminating them.
How Do You Get Rid of Love Handles?
1. Hit the Gym- Exercise
We cannot promise you that they will be easy to get rid of. If you ruthlessly embrace an efficient workout plan, it should not be that hard. This will mean cardio training and full-body exercises such as squats and pushups becoming a significant part of your daily routine.
If you want to remove them, you will have to be dedicated and consistent with your workouts. You could even try out the HIIT workout routine that offers you a full-body workout that is intense enough to burn down fat fast.
You can also try out cycling a few times a week. The goal here is to make your body more physically active and burn down the fats you have stored in your midsection.
Bicycle crunches, Russian twists, and mountain climber exercises will help you cut the belly and remove the love handles.
2. Eat a Balanced Diet
It will be pointless to work out if you are not eating well enough. Eating well does not mean overeating food. Instead, it means cutting out foods that you are sure will make you fat.
What would such foods be? You can start with cutting out sugar for a start. Then reduce saturated fats that will include reducing animal fats and vegetable fats.
3. Avoid Stress
Stress is a double-edged sword that will deprive you of a lack of sleep and rack on the weight. If you cannot sleep better, your body would not metabolize fats correctly or efficiently. Thus, it leads to love handles.
That is why you need to avoid stress at all costs. No matter what you go through, don’t worry, be happy!
4. Sleep Better
Remember, we mentioned that, sleep might be a cause of love handles. Why not close off the door to love handles by getting better sleep? Get a fixed sleep routine, comfortable ambience and sleeping pillows to get started!
5. Reduce Your Alcohol Intake
Most alcohol is sugar-based. That means consuming a lot of it will lead to weight gain. You will thus expose yourself to the risk of developing love handles in addition to the other health risks.
If you cannot stop drinking, at least cut down on the amounts you imbibe.
Final Thoughts
Love handles will be challenging to eliminate, but that does not mean you cannot get rid of them. Follow some of the guidelines we have outlined here will help you get rid of them.
Remember, it will require your utmost dedication to get rid of them. Keep it up!
