Is Belly Fat Killing Your Sex Life?
Fat is like real estate: It's all about location, location, location. You need fat in some places -- like your hips (which store good fat) and your brain (which is 60% fat). But in other locations, like your belly, fat is not a healthy addition to your real estate portfolio. And as far as your sex life is concerned, that spare tire around your middle is like a "Go Directly to Jail, Do Not Pass Go" card in Monopoly, the ultimate real estate game.
What does that spare tire have to do with your love life? Yep, it's also about location. Deep abdominal fat, technically known as omentum fat, builds up near your liver and other vital organs. That's a dangerous location. When fat is released from the omentum, some of it goes straight to your liver, and from there it goes to your arteries, damaging blood vessels.
Here's the sex connection: Clogged arteries and blood vessels reduce blood flow to critical organs -- including your genitals. Without free blood flow there, men can have trouble getting and holding erections. And both men and women need that increased blood flow to the right sensitive spots to experience the full pleasure of sex.
Related: Find out about a no-pill solution to erectile dysfunction.
The bad news for lovers: Toting around as little as 9 extra pounds can increase your risk for blood vessel damage (not to mention heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers).
Related: Lose weight without dieting.
But there's good news. It doesn't take much to send that belly fat packing and get your energy, self-esteem, and sex life back on track. Here are four easy steps to melt fat now:
1. Take a walk. Just a brisk 30-minute walk each day will keep your fat cells from expanding. Add 10 minutes of weight training twice a week and you'll increase muscle and decrease your middle even faster.
Related: See how exercise can curb your hunger.
2. Replace your scale with a tape measure. Your waist size should be a little less than half your height. Expanding beyond 37 inches for women and 40 for men threatens your sex life and your health.
3. Munch whole grains. If you simply replace processed foods with three daily servings of 100% whole-grain cereals, breads, and pasta, you'll lose inches off your waist and melt belly fat. Plus, vitamin- and fiber-rich whole grains will make your RealAge several years younger.
Related: Here's why whole grains are a belly blaster.
4. Get a good night's sleep. When researchers compared dieters who slept 8½ hours a night to those who snoozed 5½, the longer sleepers lost twice as much fat, retained more muscle, and burned an extra 114 calories per day. That's 10 pounds a year!
How's that for a "Get Out of Jail Free" card!
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