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How To Reduce Belly Fat: It’s Worth It In The End

Belly fat is appealing when you are a chubby kid with big cheeks and a huge smile. When you’re grown up, you’d expect the belly fat to melt away with the baby fat. Some people are lucky and seem to have it all cut out for them, their bellies are effortlessly flat regardless of how much food they eat. Other people are not so lucky and are faced with the problem of trying to reduce belly fat.

What is belly fat?

Belly fat is also known as visceral fat and is the layer of fat below the subcutaneous fatty layer of the skin. It surrounds the body’s organs especially the organs found around the belly and waist area. That is, the kidneys, the liver, the spleen, and all of the others. This is not a biology class. Belly fat is not only found in fat people, but it is also found in thin people, so disabuse your mind of the notion that thin people do not have belly fat. Belly fat or visceral fat can put an individual at risk for type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease, heart disease, and a host of other disease conditions.

Where Does It Come From?

Visceral fat builds up in response to the diet. And it builds up very quickly. How do you know your body is accumulating visceral fat? It’s very easy; your waistline begins to expand or increase. If you aren’t handy with a tape measure, you’ll notice your clothes are getting tighter around the waist. But not to worry, you can control it.

Wait a Sec…

There are numerous ‘magic pills’ and ‘slimming teas’ and ‘slimming coffees’ and body cleansers and weight loss diets and exercise regimes on the internet. And while it is easy to get caught up in them, you should know that weight loss doesn’t happen in the blink of an eye. It requires commitment and toughness. Most of the time, weight loss can be achieved by a few simple changes to the diet and one’s lifestyle. Following these few instructions will help you reduce or get rid of belly fat. What’s more, they’re scientifically backed.

How To Reduce Belly Fat

Eat More Protein Every Day

Foods high in protein keep you full and you won’t get hungry very quickly. Eat lean meat, fish, eggs, milk, cheese, and beans every day. Switch things up in your diet. Be sure to include a healthy serving of any of these protein-rich foods in your daily meals. For instance, you could include eggs in your breakfast, meat or fish in your lunch and dinner, you could munch on cheese if you want a snack during the day.

Say No To Trans Fat

If you are a fan of margarine, be sure to purchase margarine that does not have ‘partially hydrogenated fats’ among the list of ingredients. The same goes for foods and food products that have oils and fat in them. Trans fats are not good in any form at all for the body.

Seriously Consider Alcohol

While alcohol in small amounts has a number of health benefits, excess alcohol doesn’t do the body any good. Some people drink alcohol on particular days and end up with nasty hangovers, but then abstain for other days. That is somewhat incredible, but it doesn’t stop the build-up of belly fat, as the total amount of alcohol consumed in that one binge is enough to cause the fatty hormones to release more fat. So, consider limiting alcohol to a glass on special occasions or better still, abstain completely.

Solid Sugars Are Bad, Run From Them

Processed foods, refined sugars are not good for you. Not only do they cause an expansion of the waistline, but they also could put you at risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and fatty liver disease. And those conditions are not something you want to have.

Cardio Is Good For You

Not everyone likes to do serious exercise. Most people aren’t committed to their exercise routines, and sometimes the stress of working every day, makes most people feel like that’s enough exercise. It is not. Doing intense exercises once a week is not nearly as effective as doing it every day for an hour. Frequency and duration are what matters and are much more important than intensity. Walking, running, using an exercise bike, and swimming are all a part of cardio, so pick your poison…how to reduce belly fat

Eat Healthy Carbs

Yes, carbs can be healthy. Most people quickly throw out carbs when they are trying to reduce belly fat because they feel like all that starchy goodness is what caused this big belly. Well, that is not quite true. Other factors come into play too, so do not throw out the carbs just yet. Healthy carbs include legumes, whole grains, and vegetables. Pair these with proteins daily and see the difference!

Try Periodic Fasts

Research has shown that periods of intermittent fasts work wonders for the body. Fasting should not be done in an attempt to starve oneself. There are various fasting programs available online. And remember, you do not gorge on food after a fast.

Try Strength Training

Weight lifting builds body muscle mass and in the process turns all of that flabby fat into well defined, toned muscles. However, before you start strength training or weight lifting, be sure to consult a fitness coach or trainer. And remember to build it up as you go, start small and go from there.

Do All You Can To Minimize Stress

As impossible as this may seem, it is really important. Changing up your diet won’t work if your stress factors are a mile and a half long. Do all you can to minimize stress. Do not bring work back home, stop toxic relationships, ignore bitchy and arrogant co-workers, listen to music more often, do what it is that you love, and do it often.

Sleep Well, Sleep Long

This is really important. Sleep is very important and grabbing three to four hours every night doesn’t cut it. Good sleep is important for wellbeing, and all of the annoying perks that come with not getting enough sleep will be avoided….how to reduce belly fat

So, change up your diet, make a few modifications to your lifestyle, and see your belly and waistline get tucked in. there are a couple of foods you should include in your daily meals. They will work wonders for you.

Foods That Help Burn Belly Fat

Coconut oil ( it is the healthiest oil you can eat, but go easy with it)
Palm oil ( who knew)
Fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, herring)
Eggs (3 eggs a day should do the trick)
Green Tea (do not add milk)
Greek yogurt (full fat and plain)
Chilli peppers (turns out capsaicin helps you feel fuller and that way you don’t eat more than you should)
Oolong tea
Apple cider vinegar ( 1 tbsp diluted in water should do it daily)

One last thing, stay away from liquid sugar. That includes sweet tea, soda, and fruit juice.

There you have it! Burn, reduce and conquer belly fat. Simple, not so quick and not so easy but it is worth it in the end.

Image Credit: Bebo Lively