Flat Toomies! Rosie Huntington-Whiteley's fitness guru James Duigan teaches how to flatten flabby abs

 

British model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is a staunch supporter of James Duigan's Clean & Lean diet plan

His internationally renowned 'Clean & Lean' diet has picked up a host of celebrity fans, from supermodels Elle Macpherson and David Gandy, to actor Hugh Grant and Victoria's Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

And now fitness guru-to-the-stars James Duigan has updated and re-released his healthy living plan for everyone on Kindle this month, promising to banish yo-yo dieting forever and give you the streamline body of which you've always dreamed.
And for Femail readers, Duigan has filmed a series of exclusive exercise videos, each targeting a specific problem area, just for us. Last week Duigan revealed how to get the bottom you really want, and this week tummies are under the spotlight.




In today's short video, Duigan reveals three exercises which he promises will give you a flat tummy.
The wood chop is one of his favourite exercises, a 'big bang' exercise that uses pretty much every muscle in your body. It involves swiping your clenched hands in outstretched arms from left to right, down to up.
The plank helps improve posture and strengthen core muscles by working and switching on abdominals.
The tummy vacuum is 'a great way of connecting your brain to your tummy muscles', by teaching them to work properly. It helps you engage muscles in the stomach properly.
The three exercises are easy-to-do and can be carried out anywhere at any time.

 

Bodyism, the Clean & Lean Diet by James Duigan - Tummy

And although it's loved by supermodels, Victoria's Secret girls and film stars, Duigan says that the real magic is that is can work for anyone, from housewives to office workers and everyone in between.
Huntington-Whiteley met James several years ago and is such a fan that she penned the introduction to his book Clean & Lean: Flat Tummy Fast.

Rosie said: 'James knows exactly how I want my body to look: lean, taut and strong, yet soft, curvy and feminine.
'What I've learned through working with James is that by focusing on creating a healthy body you can really achieve all of these things, faster than I ever thought possible. Oh, and by the way, nobody can get a stomach as flat as James can!'

Rosie said: 'James knows exactly how I want my body to look: lean, taut and strong, yet soft, curvy and feminine'

Common sense: James Duigan's Clean & Lean plan is loved by supermodels and anyone who wants to detox and tone up

The diet has never been advertised, but those who follow it (and who follow Duigan's workouts, which he teaches from his London gym Bodyism, recently voted as best in the business by Tatler) become enthusiastic to the point of fanaticism, making the Clean & Lean plan popular through word of mouth alone.

Rely on natural, nutritious foods to give you energy rather than a roller coaster of unnatural highs provided by sugar and caffeine
 

It recommends fresh food, as close to its natural state as possible. No refined sugar, which Duigan describes as like a 'toxic fat bomb' for your waistline.
Cut back caffeine to one cup of coffee in the morning. Rely on natural, nutritious foods to give you energy rather than a roller coaster of unnatural highs provided by sugar and caffeine that invariably end in a crash that will have you reaching for the next stimulant, whether that be coffee, carbs, sweets or wine.
And yes, ditch the booze.

Fans: Left, supermodel Rosie Huntington-Whiteley has been following the Clean & Lean plan for some years now, while right, British model David Gandy is also a fan

In his new book, Duigan explains that he came up with the term 'clean and lean' to describe the 'ultimate approach to achieving the perfect body.
The word 'clean' here means a body that can deal  effectively with toxins - one that can deal with few that sneak in (via a glass of wine or a chocolate bar) and flush them out successfully.'

Instead, Duigan says we should enjoy our food, but make sure that rather than processed foods, we eat healthy, natural foods and avoid ones laden with sugar
 

In his years of studying nutrition, says Duigan, he has discovered that while you can live off processed low-fat food and diet colas for a while your body will be so toxic that you'll find it hard to keep the weight off.
'People come to me who have tried every single diet out there, yet they can't stay slim for long.
'They cut carbs, they count calories, they ban whole food groups and they spend their lives weighing and measuring out food,' he says.
'But this type of dieting is a complete waste of time: it might help you to drop a dress size or tighten your belt for a while, but you'll gain it back eventually because your body will still be toxic and it's unsustainable - who wants to live like this?
'And so the cycle of dieting, feeling miserable and deprived, losing and gaining weight continues.'
Instead, Duigan says we should enjoy our food, but make sure that rather than processed foods, we eat healthy, natural foods and avoid ones laden with sugar.

Download The Clean & Lean Diet on amazon.co.uk for £5.99. Or for U.S. readers at $9.56 on amazon.com

WHAT MAKES FOODS CLEAN?

Clean foods are those that:

• Haven't changed much from their natural state - an apple in a bowl still resembles the apple on the tree, whereas a crisp (having been heavily processed) looks nothing like a potato.
• Don't need any added artificial flavour.
• Don't last for months and months; they go off in the fridge or cupboard after a short while.
• Generally contain fewer than five or six ingredients.
• Have no ingredients you can't pronounce or recognise.
• Don't list sugar as their main ingredient (or as one of the first three).
• Don't make you feel bloated, gassy or uncomfortably full.
• Satisfy you, so you're not hungry after eating them.

Is SUGAR making you fat? James Duigan believes so...

It's not just the wrong type of food that piles on the pounds. The relentless, low-level stress of everyday life can also add inches to your waist.
When we're frightened, angry, tense or worried our bodies become flooded with adrenalin and a stress hormone called cortisol.
The adrenalin keeps us alert and focused, while the cortisol prepares our muscles for a 'fight-or-flight' response.

Does stress leave you feeling fat?

It also helps the body to release sugar into the bloodstream for instant energy.
It's all part of a defence mechanism that allows the body to respond appropriately when faced with danger.
While this stress mechanism worked well for us when we were cavemen, modern-day stress, caused by a relentlessly busy lifestyle, is really bad for you.
It makes you fat, it wears out your immune system and it increases your risk of serious illness. This is because many of the situations that cause stress nowadays don't present the sort of physical danger that you need to run away from.
The result is that fat-storing hormones - and the sugar they help to release into the bloodstream - float around your system, eventually ending up as fat on your tummy and around your waist.
They also make you crave more sugar because your body thinks it needs more to keep going.
As stress levels subside, your adrenalin levels fall, but cortisol (and the resulting blood sugar) stays in the system much longer.
Research shows that fat cells around the stomach attract cortisol, giving you a layer of toxic fat just below your abdominal muscles that's really hard to shift, so doing regular sit-ups is pointless if you always feel stressed.
And stomach fat is the most dangerous type because it raises your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and certain cancers.
Constant stress also shuts down the digestive system because your body redirects blood from there to your muscles.
So stress can leave you constipated, bloated and toxic. Beating stress is the only way to better health and a better body.

From The Clean & Lean Diet by James Duigan

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