BY CHRIS CANDER

THE NEXT TIME  you push away from the table and give your full belly a satisfied rub, press down. Know what’s in there? No, we’re not talking about the pint of beer and three-quarters of an extra-cheese pepperoni pizza you just ate; we mean the group of muscles that make up what’s referred to as your abs. If you haven’t seen them since you were a Little League starter—even though you may desperately want to—it’s probably not for a lack of muscle development but rather for a lack of dietary discipline.

“Oh no, not a diet diet,” you’re thinking. “I’m a guy—I gotta eat!” Don’t worry: This isn’t your mother’s yo-yo slim-down. It’s not about severely slashing calories or eliminating whole food groups—doing that will cause you to actually gain weight, as you’ll read later. This plan is about eating smarter by: 

• managing the size and frequency of your meals

• creating calorie confusion to prevent your body from adapting

• taking advantage of the thermogenic effect of food

• choosing unprocessed, natural foods

• balancing your macronutrient ratios

If the idea of giving up your allegiance to the deep fryer feels like a punch in the gut, then you might as well give up your dream of having a midsection that will garner second glances. But if you have fallen out of love with your love handles and are willing to make a few changes, we have a four-week eating plan that will help you lose at least 10 pounds—whether they’re the first 10 of the 50 you want to strip off or the last 10 that stand between you and a set of washboard abs.

HOT TIP FOR GUT-BUSTING SUCCESS 

Choose high-quality protein that’s as close to nature as possible (for example, lean chicken breasts instead of packed deli cuts).

Check out more tips in the May/June issue of Maximum Fitness—on newsstands April 21, 2009.

10 ABOVE-THE-BELT PITFALLS TO AVOID

Eating high-fat protein, such as ribs and lamb, adds unnecessary calories to your daily intake. 


For the other pitfalls to avoid, check out our May/June issue of Maximum Fitness—on newsstands April 21, 2009.