Can you rub your tummy away?
I always had a flat stomach. Yes, my butt is big, my arms are flabby and my basic shape is round. But, my stomach has always been flat.
Till I touched the golden age of 50. That’s when I realised that my stomach too was getting round – just like the rest of my body.
This didn’t really bother me as I hardly see my stomach. I don’t wear a bikini as I hardly ever swim these days. In any case, I never wore one. My sari blouses don’t fit after the first wash so I hardly ever wear my saris. And since my shirts flow down my hips, my stomach is neatly covered.
So all was well till Sunday last when Anna Shetty gifted me a blood test for Mother’s Day.
“Enough”, she said when she saw the report. “This will have to go” pinching my Muffin top which is one handle I don’t love.
I had to do something drastic to lose that tummy fat and improve those numbers. But with more weight to deal with, I had to find a simpler way of stimulating my metabolism. I suddenly remembered one technique that I’d read about: the Chinese Tummy Rub
Dr. Chang’s Tummy Rubbing Technique
Image via Wikipedia
What to do
According to Dr. Chang, exercises like stomach crunches only strengthen the core. They don’t really melt away the fat. So while you crunch away, you may improve your muscle tone ( and possibly ruin your lower back). But what you really need to do is
increase the efficiency of your digestion.
And for this, you need to practice the tummy rub. By gently massaging your tummy gently. Twice a day for just up to two minutes each time.
This gentle tummy rub stimulates your digestive system and helps in the elimination of toxic waste by flushing them out through blood, sweat, urine, and faeces.
1) Lie flat on your back on your bed or on the floor. Make sure your abdominal area is bare.
2) Warm up your hands by rubbing your hands together vigorously for about 15 seconds.
3) with your warmed up hands, begin the abdominal rub by placing one hand on your belly button rubbing in small circles. Gradually increasing the size of the circle. Rub in one direction and with gentle pressure only at a slow even pace.
4) Focus on building up the heat in and around your stomach. Do about 40-50 circles. This should take you two minutes.
Note : Ensure that the abdominal area is kept warm. In the winter months, you could cover yourself with a light sheet while you do the exercise underneath.
Additional benefits of the Tummy rub
The ancient Indian tradition laid great emphasis on food and the digestive system. Yoga prescribes several exercises ( asanas) to improve digestion and promote better health.
So it is not surprising that the ancient Chinese also believed in this mantra.
Massaging the tummy also has other benefits
♥ stimulates abdominal organs
♥ helps relieve constipation
♥ increases blood circulation in the abdominal area
♥ relieves indigestion and discomfort caused by overeating.
Twenty- five Seven 
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