Best Methods to Eliminate Pesky Belly Fat
7 min
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Losing belly fat is more difficult than you think. That’s why it can take a while for you to see any progress. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to lose belly fat! Just how can you do it? In this article we’ll let you in on some secrets to finally flatten your front section.
Why is it so hard to lose belly fat?
Lots of people have belly fat. How can I lose my belly fat? That’s a question that comes up all the time. It can be disappointing when you don’t see results right away. You might keep at it for a few weeks, not see any progress, then decide nothing’s going to come of it and give up.
Unfortunately there’s a bitter truth behind this pattern. Losing weight from a specific place on your body isn’t possible. Looking for how to lose fat? Belly fat also fits that pattern – you can’t target abdominal fat specifically. Overall weight loss is the only thing that will change it. But we also have good news for you: We’ve gathered all our top tips right here. And here’s a first freebie: Our Shape Shake 2.0 is designed to support your weight maintenance or weight loss goals. Tasty and healthy, replace one to two meals with Shape Shake 2.0 daily, depending if you’re trying to maintain or lose weight.
Belly fat can be especially dangerous
Flattening your belly fat is a great goal, because a flat stomach not only feels good, it’s also just a lot healthier. While the fat on other parts of your body is stored just under your skin (subcutaneous fat), the fat deposits on your abdomen can also accumulate below your muscles and therefore around your organs (visceral fat).
It’s this organ fat that’s especially dangerous. Visceral fat increases your risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. But we also have good news for you. Organ fat is something your body can break down relatively quickly. Unfortunately, this is also the reason you see so little success at the beginning: your body’s working on the deep-down visceral fat before it gets to the subcutaneous stuff you can actually see.
By the way: If you have ambitious goals and want to get a six-pack in the future, measuring your body fat can tell you how close you are to your goal. In cis men, a six-pack is visible at a body fat percentage of about 13-16%. In cis women, this range is somewhat higher at around 19-22%.
How to lose belly fat: 3 important nutrition tips
A crucial factor in shedding your abdominal fat is the right diet. But what does the right diet look like exactly? Here’s 3 nutrition tips to help you reach your goal.
1. Keep a Calorie Deficit
If you want to get rid of belly fat, you need to consume fewer calories than you use. And keep doing that over a longer period of time. Once you’re in a regular calorie deficit, your body will begin to make up for the deficit by consuming carbohydrates first, and then stored fats. And you’ll lose weight – abdominal fat as well as fat around your body – slowly but steadily.
Now it’s time to find out how much of which foods you should eat so you can get into a calorie deficit for weight loss. It’s easy to download a calorie counter app on your smartphone and start using it right away. Unfortunately simply believing that you won’t consume too many calories does not work. It’s just not accurate enough.
Do you want to shrink your abdominal fat, and fat all around your body? Great! Then we have just the thing for you: our free Body Check. Define your goals, calculate your BMI and receive individually tailored nutrition and training tips.
2. Don’t Drink Your Calories
Unnecessary calories are often hidden in drinks. You probably already knew that soda isn’t good for you, but you might not know that a small cola already has nearly 80 calories in just 200ml. Juices, sweetened iced tea, and other soft drinks often contain just as many calories. Usually these calories are from sugar, spiking your insulin levels and then dropping them just as fast. The result: Cravings! Besides, how often do you just drink one small glass? Cutting out these sweet drinks can help reduce your calories a lot, which will make a dent on your abdominal fat!
An even better choice: If you are serious about losing weight around your waist, give up unnecessary calories from drinks entirely. Tea and black coffee are still allowed because they contain just 2 calories per 100ml. Cutting sugar from your beverage may help reduce your overall calorie intake and kickstart your fat loss!
Our Tip: For an energy punch in the morning, crack open a can of our Sparkling Aminos. Featuring plant-based caffeine from guaraná and an energy-popping mix of aminos, mixed with the refreshing flavors of peach or berries, it’s the perfect way to get your day off on the right foot.
3. Eat Things That Give Your Body Fuel for Longer
When you think about losing weight, do you automatically think about being hungry? You don’t have to be, if you get it right. Because with the right foods, you can eat enough to not be hungry and still lose weight. First and foremost, you need 2 types of foods that are both healthy and very filling.
On the one hand, you’ve got protein-rich foods. Although proteins have as much energy per gram as carbs, the body has to painstakingly convert them before they can be used as an energy source. This process consumes more energy on protein than it does for carbs and fats. They keep you full longer and don’t lead to hunger pangs as quickly as simple sugar does. Plus, they support muscle maintenance.
Eat vegetables every day. Yep, just like Dad always told you to. Vegetables deliver not only vitamins, minerals, and fiber that’ll keep your body working on it for longer; it’s also low in calories and generally has a high volume – giving you a bigger serving for the same calorie count.
Trim Your Waist with 3 Types of Exercise
The second important factor in weight loss around your belly is the right fitness plan. This doesn’t limit you to a specific form of exercise. Physical activity in general, combined with the nutrition tips described above, will help you get rid of chub on your hips and belly fat. But there’s 3 types of exercise that work extra well – and we’ll tell you all about them below.
By the way: You can’t trim your waist just by strengthening your abdominal muscles. Fat isn’t converted into muscle mass. It’s gradually broken down instead. Muscles can only be built up through exercise and by getting enough protein.
1. Cardio Exercise
A tried and tested method for steady weight loss is classic aerobic exercise such as running, swimming, and cycling. Running and cycling, in particular, are easy to get started with because you probably already have a bike or running shoes at home. You don’t need much more than that to get going.
The advantage of swimming and cycling is that these two sports are very easy on your joints. This is great for anyone who needs a low-impact workout. Running and jogging, on the other hand, are also movements that the human body was made for, so they’re the most effective form of exercise out of these 3 options.
The pros: For those just beginning to exercise, the low level of intensity of moderate cardio exercise means it’s pretty easy to get started with a fitness plan.
The cons: Due to its low intensity at the beginning, the amount of calories modern cardio burns is also low. But if you keep going and increase your intensity, you’ll quickly get into the window where you’re effectively encouraging your body to burn fat. Then you’re well on your way to losing weight around your middle. And we’ve got tips on how to get started with jogging.
2. HIIT Workouts
HIIT stands for high-intensity interval training. These workouts are made up of different exercises, mostly using your own bodyweight or relatively light weights. Over a short period of time you do as many reps as possible and bring up your pulse to your maximum heart rate. Then you take a short break and continue on with the next exercise.
Depending on the workout, this kind of training might not take more than 15 minutes and is still super effective. That’s because your heart rate is much higher in these workouts than during normal cardio training. Your heart rate takes a lot longer to return to your resting heart rate and you continue to burn calories long after you’ve finished your workout. This is also called the afterburn effect.
The pros: This kind of workout doesn’t require much time or space.
The cons: It can be very hard for beginners to get through these high-intensity workouts. Make sure you choose one that’s suited for your level. We may be able to help!
Does this sound like just the thing for your own weight loss? Try one of our free HIIT workouts now. Created by experts, tailored to your fitness level, and with loads of different varieties to choose from!
3. Weight Training
Another very effective form of exercise for losing weight is weight training. Yes, you heard us right. The reason for this is simple: Muscles burn calories. If you increase your muscle growth through weight training, that larger muscle mass will also consume more calories than before.
The pros: Weight training is perfect for beginners because you can adjust the weight to your individual training level.
The cons: Because you’re adding muscle, the number on the scale won’t change much at all at first. This can be frustrating for lots of people. So to monitor your progress in losing weight off your abdomen, it’s much better to measure your waist circumference instead.
Don’t want to work out? You can trim your waist anyway
Regular workouts and exercise in general are very helpful for losing weight on your belly. But if you don’t feel like doing that at all, you can also burn a few additional calories in other ways.
It won’t be as quick, but if you can work more physical activity into your daily life, you’ll also burn more calories that way. How can you best go about it? Run your errands on foot or by bike. Always take the stairs instead of the escalator or the elevator. Ride your bike to work and when you’re on the train, stay standing instead of sitting down.
Conclusion
- Trimming your waist takes patience.
- The most effective, you might say the best, way to lose weight from your belly is a combination of healthy eating, regular workouts, and lots of exercise.
- Foods rich in protein and fiber keep you fuller longer.
- Cardio exercise, HIIT, and weight training are particularly suited to trimming your waist.
- Trimming your waist requires a calorie deficit.
- If you’re looking for something easy to do to reduce calories, then drink only water, tea, and occasionally coffee.
More body knowledge from foodspring:
- Intuitive Eating: What It Is and How You Can Do It
- Sleep, weight loss, and muscle gain: How are they connected?
- Healthy Weight Loss: Reach Your Goals Without Making Sacrifices
- Weight Loss Workout Plan: What you need to know
Sources for this article
We at foodspring use only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial policy to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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