According to Dictionary.com, a paunch is simply described as "a large and protruding belly; a potbelly."
The shape of our country's humans has been significantly expanding. In case you haven't noticed: two-thirds of our population has become overweight and obese. Everywhere I go, I see.people wearing large and baggy shirts in efforts to conceal their paunches. Both males and females appear as if they are in varying stages of pregnancy.
DIET and EXERCISE
There's no question that the Numero Uno reason for a paunch is DIET! The SAD (Standard American Diet) consisting of sugar loaded, processed fast foods, results in storage of visceral fat in the area of the abdomen and beyond.
EXERCISE experts recommend cardio fat burning activities and core strengthening activities such as sit-ups, crunches, and planks, which may be beneficial if practiced diligently, but does not appear to be the answer to paunch prevention in my experience and observation.
MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE and SOLUTION
Recently, I have spent a lot of time pondering why, at the age of 78, unlike most of my senior contemporaries, I have maintained a flat stomach. Suddenly, a mental bulb in my mind lit up. It was like a punch to my abdomen.
EXPERIENCE THE PAUNCH PUNCH
Ask a friend to deliver a vicious punch to your stomach, stopping short of contact of course; or if you don't have a friend, fake a punch to yourself. You will experience your Transverse Abdominis in action as it braces for the punch.
The Transverse Abdominis (TVA) is the innermost core muscle that attaches at the spine encircling the abdominal region. The TVA is central to all physical movement and acts as a corset or girdle, providing a natural back brace that delivers stability, strength, and power throughout the body.
You can activate this muscle by sucking your navel back and up toward your spine, or by expelling all of your air from your lungs. This muscle should be activated in every deep breath we take and every move we make and step we take.
This muscle is also increasingly important as we age since this muscle keeps our bodies in a vertical posture and prevents falling, which is the number one reason for seniors' visits to hospitals, frequently resulting in serious orthopedic issues and shortened lives.
TVA and PRIMAL POSTURE
The TVA muscle is the centerpiece of PRIMAL POSTURE. This mighty muscle is key and essential to children as they transition from creeping creatures to erect animals walking and moving about proficiently and athletically balanced on two feet.
Innate posture develops within the first three years and is very well defined during childhood.
The following photos of Bela at the beach demonstrate the chief elements of an innate, natural Primal Posture
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| Bela at the beach! |
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| Hi! Check out my posture. |
BASIC ELEMENTS OF PRIMAL POSTURE
1. Standing tall and looking straight ahead, envision a string attached to the top of your head held by a puppeteer from above. Your chest is projected like Superman or Wonder Woman and your chin is tucked back into your chest.
2. Your shoulders are pulled up and back and relaxed down.
3. The above actions will pull your torso up and taut, which encourages you to suck in your navel, which engages the mighty TVA muscle encircling your abdomen.
4. A profile should show a vertical alignment of your ear, the tip of your shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle.
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| Balancing on one leg strengthens the TVA |
Primal posture, which occurs naturally with children, is frequently sabotaged in our society. As children begin school, their highly active lives are replaced by a basically sedentary lifestyle of sitting at desks in classrooms.
(Unfortunately, most public schools have cut costs by eliminating physical education programs.)
A mostly sedentary life often results in a loss of posture integrity, and by the time many Americans reach their teens and early adulthood, a shoulder slump and/or a forward lean have already adversely altered their natural posture.
Especially common with people spending many hours hunched over a computer, the SHOULDER SLUMP leads to imbalances and pain in the neck, shoulders and upper back. This slump tilts the head and upper body forward and violates the vertical alignment of the spine.
This forward lean can also partially squash the lungs and reduce the area used for the vital exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide.
Males, in particular, can benefit by correcting a shoulder slump. “Recent studies show that maintaining an elongated spine with your shoulders rolled back allows more testosterone to flow through your body, which might just be the boost you need to not only appear but also feel and be unfettered and focused.” (gokhalemethod.com).
ENLIGHTENMENT AT AGE 70
Eight years ago, around the time of my 70th birthday, I experienced two life-changing epiphanies that also happened to be paunch preventive.
The first was reading the best selling book, "The China Study," by T. Colin Campbell, which taught me that the SAD (Standard American Diet) diet of animals and their products, mixed with processed and fast foods, could lead to diabetes, heart disease, and cancer, the three major diseases killing aging humans. My decision was to eliminate possible precursors to those diseases by becoming a vegan plus seafood.
My second epiphany resulted from a crippling sciatica condition which failed to respond to high doses of Ibuprofen and cortisone injections, so I requested Physical Therapy intervention.
The Physical Therapist introduced me to the significance of my Transverse Abdominis muscle which was new information for me, even though I was a certified Personal Fitness Trainer.
As I focused on using my TVA every time I sat, stood and moved, my sciatica disappeared (forever), and I was more steady on my feet and no longer tripping and falling as I was doing during my sixties.
For the past 8 years, I have focused on my posture and have constantly engaged my TVA every time I sat,
