The Best Exercises to Lose Inches Around the Waist

Overview

When setting out to trim the waist, many people go on a diet. While losing weight is a factor, to reduce your waist size requires exercise. Losing pounds and inches is a challenge that takes hard work and dedication, but is not an unachievable goal. To target the waist and get the maximum benefits, it’s important to know what exercises are most effective at helping you lose inches.

A young woman is doing core exercises. Photo Credit XiXinXing/XiXinXing/Getty Images.

Aerobic Exercise

Aerobic exercise is a key element when working on losing inches from the waist. Twists, bends, crunches and other core exercises are great at tightening and toning the waist, but nothing takes the inches off like aerobics. When the human body burns fat, it pulls from all your fat cells. It’s impossible to “spot reduce” a particular problem area. Running, bicycling, rowing and swimming are great aerobic workouts, but anything that brings your heart rate up to the target rate for at least 20 minutes will do the trick.

Side Bends

In addition to aerobic workouts, a regime of waist slimming exercises tighten and tone the waist as you lose pounds and inches. One of the best exercises to slim the waist is a side bend. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and your knees slightly bent. Place one hand on your hip, and hold a dumbbell or free weight in the other. Bend at the side, letting your hand with the weight reach toward the floor. Be careful not to move the hips so that your waist is getting the workout. Do 20 to 30 repetitions and then switch sides.

Bicycle Crunches

Bicycle crunches simultaneously crunch the stomach while you extend your legs. Lie on the floor with your hands behind your head and your knees bent, as if preparing for a regular crunch. Raise your legs into a “table-top” position, with your knees bent and your shins parallel to the floor. As you raise your upper body to complete a crunch, twist at the waist and bring your elbow in toward the opposite knee. Extend the other leg out straight as you touch the opposite elbow and knee to each other. Twist back to center and bring the leg back to its original position; then repeat on the other side. Do 20 to 30 repetitions.

Waist Crunches

Waist crunches work your abdominal muscles and the side muscles, or obliques. Start out lying on the floor as if prepared for a regular crunch, with your hands behind your head and the knees bent. Bend at the waist, keeping your shoulders flat on the floor. Allow your legs to fall to one side, with one leg resting on the ground and the other leg on top. To work the muscles, keep your upper body straight, and perform a crunch. After 20 to 30 repetitions, move your legs back to center, then to the other side of your body and repeat the exercise.

Waist Twists

Another exercise used to strengthen the abdominal and oblique muscles is the waist twist. Lie on the floor with your knees in table-top position and your palms flat against the floor. Keeping your upper body straight, slowly lower your legs to one side, maintaining the bent-knee position. Lower your legs far as possible without actually touching the floor or twisting your the waist. Pause for a moment, then slowly raise the legs back to a table-top position. Pause for a moment, and repeat on the other side. Do 20 to 30 repetitions.

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Bookcases

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Format: eBook 

There is something special about the look of a full bookcase; the unread volumes promise adventure ahead, while those already read are often lifelong companions and comfort. 

Little wonder that bookcases are among the most popular woodworking projects. The five articles collected here will show you how to build an array of bookcases, from small stylish homes for your books to large showpieces.

A bookcase is basically a box but like most things in woodworking, the details make all the difference. Robert W. Lang shows you how wood choice and mouldings can take a basic box contemporary in maple, Shaker in cherry, Arts & Crafts in oak and formal in mahogany.

From our “I Can Do That” series, Megan Fitzpatrick and Glen D. Huey offer a set of Shaker shelves that can be built in a few hours and even an expert can use the tips on drawing arcs without a compass.

Robert also takes a deeper dive into the Arts & Crafts style with a Stickley book rack that will show off your joinery skills.

Barrister bookcases, with their glass doors, are an elegant addition to any room and Glen shows you how you can simplify their construction. And Robert rounds things out with a return to the well of Stickley, teaching you how to build a bookcase with stunning details and a secret drawer.

And you’ll find many more articles, books and videos on making bookcases at ShopWoodworking.com.

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Building Cabinets, Bookcases and Shelves

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29 Step-by-Step Projects to Beautify Your Home

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A Place for Everything...

Whether you need storage for books, DVDs, games or clothes, you'll find attractive, custom options in this book. Open shelving? An enclosed cabinet? A classic bookcase? They're all here. Building Bookcases, Cabinets and Shelves offers 29 storage solutions in a variety of styles and sizes with both open and enclosed storage. Each project includes cutting lists, step-by-step instructions and tips and advice from professional woodworkers who have made each piece. Best of all, you can build them just as they are, or customize further to make each piece uniquely yours.

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Healthy Meats to Eat for Breakfast

While you might love the taste of greasy sausage and bacon in the morning, your body probably doesn't. Most breakfast meats are full of saturated fat, calories and salt. Instead, create a healthy breakfast that will give you energy and help you feel good throughout the day. For a healthy breakfast that will keep you going, the Mayo Clinic suggests combining whole grains, low-fat dairy, fruits and vegetables, and low-fat protein, which could include "lean slices of meat and poultry."

Traditional breakfasts are full of saturated fat and cholesterol.Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images.

Ham

Choose natural ham over the processed kind and you can include it in a healthy breakfast. The American Dietetic Association recommends a simple breakfast of a whole-grain English muffin with a slice of lean ham and some low-fat cheese. The American Council on Exercise provides a healthier version of a strata in its Ham and Cheese Breakfast Casserole recipe, which makes a well-balanced breakfast. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and oil a large baking dish with cooking spray. Whisk 4 eggs, 4 egg whites and 1 cup nonfat milk. Add 2 tbsp. Dijon mustard, 1 tsp. rosemary, ¼ tsp. pepper, 5 cups spinach, 4 cups cubed whole-grain bread, 1 cup diced ham steak, ½ cup chopped roasted red peppers and ¾ cup shredded Gruyere or Swiss cheese to the egg mixture. Mix everything together and put the mixture into the baking dish, pressing to make the mixture flat. Cover and cook for 40 to 45 minutes. Uncover the casserole, add a little more cheese to the top and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes.

Poultry

Poultry is generally low in fat if grilled or baked, and you can add pieces of it to omelets. The American Dietetic Association suggests wrapping one to two slices of turkey and some low-fat cheese into a tortilla. Turkey sausage and bacon are other options to incorporate poultry into breakfast.

Homemade Sausage

Control what goes into your breakfast meat by making the Mayo Clinic's recipe for homemade sausage. Combine ½ lb. lean ground pork loin and ½ lb. ground turkey breast. Add 1 tsp. each of sugar, dry mustard, sage, black pepper and onion powder. If you like a spicy flavor, the Mayo Clinic notes you can add ½ tsp. red pepper flakes. Mix the spices into the meat and make 12 flat sausage patties. Oil a pan with cooking spray and heat it over medium heat. Put the sausage patties in the pan, cover and cook them for about 5 minutes for each side until they are brown and cooked all the way through. Two of these patties contain 102 calories, 3 g fat and 1 g saturated fat, according to the Mayo Clinic.

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Practical Woodshop Projects 24 No-Nonsense Projects to Improve Your Shop

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By Danny Proulx

Format: Paperback 

Woodworkers spend a lot of time in their shops, so why not make that space the best it can be? The 24 projects in Practical Woodshop Projects will allow you to have the best working space possible.

In this dynamic shop project book you'll be able to:

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The Importance of Sleep Routines for Young Children

Lack of sleep isn't just a problem for busy adults. Kids of all ages are not getting an adequate amount of sleep, affecting both their development and behavior. The National Sleep Foundation reports that 25 percent of infants, toddlers and preschoolers are sleepy during the day, and 30 percent of school-aged kids have trouble getting up in the morning. Establishing soothing bedtime routines helps keep young children from becoming part of these statistics.

A young girl is sleeping. Photo Credit Andersen Ross/Blend Images/Getty Images.

Importance of Sleep

It's clear sleep is essential, but why it is so vital isn't fully understood. Multiple theories point to why sleep is necessary for survival. Certain physiological processes occur primarily -- if not completely -- during sleep, including muscle growth, the release of growth hormone and tissue repair, according to Harvard Medical School's Division of Sleep Medicine. Another theory, involving a concept known as brain plasticity, points to certain changes in the brain that occur during sleep. These changes, affecting both the organization and structure of the brain, play a key role in the development of young children. Inadequate sleep not only affects kids' growth and development but also behavior, contributing to daytime hyperactivity and misbehavior.

Routines for Young Children

Bedtime routines play an important role in young kids. These nightly rituals help ease separation anxiety that sometimes occurs in little ones. Certain activities, such as a soothing bath or nightly story, also help children relax for bed. Stimulating activities -- including watching television or playing video games -- aren't effective or wise bedtime routines. In fact, they are detrimental to sleep. Kids with televisions in their rooms go to bed each night about 20 minutes later, according to Laurie Weinreb-Welch, MPH, CHES, a Pennsylvania State University Extension educator. This adds up to more than two hours of lost sleep a week, which is unlikely to be made up.

Infant and Toddler Routines

Babies also benefit from bedtime routines. One study, published in May 2009 in the journal "Sleep," found that nightly rituals have multiple positive impacts on the sleeping habits of infants and toddlers. Mothers participating in the research gave their babies a bath and massage. They also cut out the lights 30 minutes after the bath. Cuddling and singing lullabies were incorporated into the routine as well. The study's findings suggest that these rituals help infants fall asleep quicker and wake up less often. These bedtime routines benefit toddlers in the same way and also improve their moods in the morning.

Encouraging Sleep

If you're having trouble getting your young child to sleep at night, there are things you can do to encourage him to settle down. Don't give your child caffeinated products or large amounts of food before bed as this can disrupt sleep. Keep activities before bedtime quiet and calm; don't let him play games, watch television or participate in other activities that stimulate his senses. Stick to a consistent bedtime. Ensure your child's bedroom is conducive to sleep. It should be dark and have a comfortable room temperature. A small nightlight is okay to use in the bedroom.

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INCENSE IN CHINA

Incense in China is traditionally used in a wide range of Chinese cultural activities including, religious ceremonies, ancestor veneration, traditional medicine, and in daily life. Known as xiang (Chinese: 香; pinyin: xiāng; Wade–Giles: hsiang; literally: "fragrance"), incense was used by the Chinese cultures starting from Neolithic times with it coming to greater prominence starting from the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties.

One study shows that during the Han Dynasty (206 BC – AD 220 ), there was increased trade and acquisitions of more fragrant foreign incense materials when local incense materials were considered "poor man's incense".  It reached its height during the Song Dynasty with its nobility enjoying incense as a popular cultural pastime, to the extent of building rooms specifically for the use of incense ceremonies.

Besides meaning "incense", the Chinese word xiang (香) also means "fragrance; scent; aroma; perfume; spice". The sinologist and historian Edward H. Schafer said that in medieval China:

“	there was little clear-cut distinction among drugs, spices, perfumes, and incenses – that is, among substances which nourish the body and those which nourish the spirit, those which attract a lover and those which attract a divinity.	”
— The Golden Peaches of Samarkand, a Study of T'ang Exotics, Edward H. Schafer.

Chinese censers

Words meaning "censer; incense burner" are compounds of lu (爐 or 炉) "brazier; stove; furnace", which was a category of ancient Chinese bronzes. Xianglu (香爐,  with "incense") means "incense burner; censer" in general. Xunlu (熏爐, with "smoke; fumigate; cure (food) with smoke", or 薰爐, with "fragrance (of plants); an aromatic grass, Eupatorium fortunei"), means "small censer, esp. for fumigating or scenting clothing". Shoulu (手爐, with "hand") means "hand-held censer; handwarmer; portable charcoal stove".

An Eastern Han, ceramic mountain-censer

The boshanlu (博山爐 "universal mountain censer"), which became popular during the era of Emperor Wu of Han (r. 141 - 87 BC), displayed a microcosmic sacred mountain) esp. Mount Kunlun or Mount Penglai). These elaborate censers were designed with apertures that made rising incense smoke appear like clouds or mist swirling around a mountain peak.

Uses
Medicine

Similar ingredients and processing techniques are involved in production of both incense and Traditional Chinese medicines. For example, take jiu (灸 "moxibustion"). Incense is believed to have physiological and psychological benefits. For instance, according to the Bencao Gangmu pharmacopoeia, "camphor cured evil vapors in heart and belly, and was especially recommended for eye troubles, including cataract."

Time keeping

Along with the introduction of Buddhism in China came calibrated incense sticks and incense clocks (xiangzhong 香鐘 "incense clock" or xiangyin 香印 "incense seal"). The poet Yu Jianwu (庾肩吾, 487-551) first recorded them: "By burning incense we know the o'clock of the night, With graduated candles we confirm the tally of the watches." The use of these incense timekeeping devices spread from Buddhist monasteries into secular society.

Religion

Xiangbang (香棒, with "stick; club") means "incense stick; joss stick". Two "incense" synonyms specifying religious offerings to ancestors or deities are gāoxiāng (高香, "high incense") and gōngxiāng (供香, "offering incense").

Burning incense at a Chinese temple.

The Sunni Muslim Hui Gedimu and the Yihewani burned incense during worship. This was viewed as Daoist or Buddhist influence. The Hui, also known as "White-capped HuiHui", used incense during worship, while the Salar, also known as "black-capped HuiHui" considered this to be a heathen ritual and denounced it.

As and art form

The Chinese developed a sophisticated art form with incense burning like with tea and calligraphy called xiangdao (稥道). It involves various paraphernalia and utensils in various ceramic containers utilised to burn incense. Examples include tongs, spatulas, special moulds to create ideograms with incense powder, etc. all placed on a special small table. It is most often used as an enhancement to a personal space to accompany other arts such as tea drinking and guqin playing.

Production
Bamboo processing

Bamboo species with good burning characteristics are harvested and dried. The most common type of bamboo used for producing the sticks is Phyllostachys heterocycla cv. pubescens (茅竹,江南竹) since this species produces thick wood and easily burns to ashes in the incense stick. Other types of bamboos such as Phyllostachys edulis (毛竹) may be used, however due to their fiberous surfaces or relatively thin wood producing good bamboo sticks is more difficult. Longer incense stick are produced using cao bamboo(草竹).

The dried bamboo poles of around 10 cm in diameter are first manually trimmed to length, soak, peeled, and then continuously split in halves until thin sticks of bamboo with square cross sections of less than 3mm width have been produced. This process has largely been replaced by machines in modern incense production

Incense materials

Chinese incense is made from diverse ingredients with much overlap into the traditional Chinese herbal pharmacopoeia. Of all the incense ingredients some of the most commonly used include:

• Chenxiang (沈香, "Agarwood, aloeswood")
• Tanxiang (檀香 "Sandalwood")
• Anxixiang (安息香 "Benzoin resin and wood, gum guggul")
• Cuibai (翠柏 "Calocedrus macrolepis, Chinese incense-cedar")
• Zhangnao (樟腦 "Camphor")
• Ruxiang (乳香, "Frankincense")
• Dingxiang (丁香, "Cloves")
• Bajiao (八角, "Star anise")
• Guipi (桂皮, "Cinnamomum cassia")
• Dahuixiang (大回香, "Foeniculum vulgare")
• Dahuang (大黃, "Rheum officinale")
• Hupo (琥珀, Fossil Amber)
• Gansong (甘松 Spikenard)
• Chuanxiong (川芎 Ligusticum wallichii
• Wujia (五加 Eleutherococcus senticosus (Acanthopanax senticosus))
• Beijiaxiang (貝甲香 East African marine snails) [1].

The dried powdered bark of Persea nanmu (楠木皮) is used extensively for its mucilaginous qualities, which helps to bind the other powdered ingredients together

Process

Incense powder is formed into the final product through various methods.

Lin-Xiang

Incense powder is tossed over wet sticks.

Nuo-Xiang

Incense paste is kneaded around sticks.

Sculpting

For large incense pillars, incense paste is piled around a single bamboo stick and sculpted to shape.

Winding

Incense paste is extruded and wound to produce spiral incense.

References

1. ^ ^a b 劉良佑，《香學會典》，臺北：東方香學研究會, 2003
2. ^ Needham, Joseph and Lu Gwei-Djen (1974). Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 5, Chemistry and Chemical Technology; Part 2, Spagyrical Discovery and Invention: Magisteries of Gold and Immortality. Cambridge University Press. p. 132.
3. ^ Schafer, Edward H. (1963). The Golden Peaches of Samarkand, a Study of T'ang Exotics. University of California Press.
4. ^ Schafer, Edward H. (1963). The Golden Peaches of Samarkand, a Study of T'ang Exotics. University of California Press. p. 155.
5. ^ Erickson, Susan N. (1992). "Boshanlu: Mountain Censers of the Western Han Period: A Typological and Iconological Analysis",  Archives of Asian Art 45:6-28.
6. ^ Schafer (1963), p. 167.
7. ^ Bedini, Silvio A. (1963). "The Scent of Time. A Study of the Use of Fire and Incense for Time Measurement in Oriental Countries". Transactions of the American Philosophical Society (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: American Philosophical Society)  53 (5). doi:10.2307/1005923. JSTOR 1005923.
8. ^ Tr. Schafer (1963), p. 160.
9. ^ BARRY RUBIN (2000). Guide to Islamist Movements. M.E. Sharpe. p. 80. ISBN 0-7656-1747-1. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
10. ^ Michael Dillon (1999). China's Muslim Hui community: migration, settlement and sects. Richmond: Curzon Press. p. 77. ISBN 0-7007-1026-4. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
11. ^ Knights of Columbus. Catholic Truth Committee (1913). The Catholic encyclopedia: an international work of reference on the constitution, doctrine, discipline, and history of the Catholic Church, Volume 3. Encyclopedia Press,. p. 680. Retrieved 2011-01-23.
12. ^ ^a b Chen(陳), Ka-Yan(家恩), Joss Stick Manufacturing: A Study of a Traditional Industry in Hong Kong (PDF), sunzi1.lib.hku.hk
13. ^ 陳, 永順 (2010-03-07), "失落百年 「剖香腳」技藝重現", 聯合報 (聯合新聞網)
14. ^ 葉, 月珠, 香腳.

External Links

• Fragrant Pouches, Global Chinese Language and Culture Center Online Folklore
• Frangant Pouches in Taiwan
• Divine Fragrances, Taiwan Review, 06/01-2008, Oscar Chung
• 中国香文化网, Chinese Incense Culture Website (Chinese)
• 中国人为何要烧香?, China Central Television (Chinese)
• 中華東方香學研究會 Chinese Incense Art Association, A government-certified non-profit organization promoting the study and practice of incense arts (Chinese)

Wikipedia