How To Cut Belly Fat

I had been working out for a while to attack my belly fat and just wasn’t getting the results I wanted. At the time, I was doing a cardio class three times a week. While I lost about 10 pounds and could feel my muscles getting toned, I still wasn’t satisfied with the layer of flab on my stomach. Then, I started doing some research into the science of belly fat to learn more about what causes it and how I could work out smarter. Here’s what I learned.

Visceral vs. Subcutaneous Fat

I’m studying to be a nutritionist. As part of a course on medical nutrition we studied the two types of abdominal fat, visceral and subcutaneous. Check out Online Classes if you’re interested in learning in the science of nutrition or heading back to school.

The fat you’re likely having the most trouble losing is subcutaneous fat. This is the fat that is located just below the waist and at the top of your buttocks; you can pinch this fat with your fingers. This is compared to visceral fat, which is located deeper, between your abdominal organs.

Studies have shown that excess visceral fat is easier to lose through sensible diet and exercise. The good news is that losing visceral fat has important health benefits, such as lowered blood pressure and cholesterol. Subcutaneous fat, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to be as big of a health predictor, even though it can be more difficult to lose.

The Science of Cutting Belly Fat

Scientists have measured the ways in which different types of lifestyle changes affect subcutaneous fat. Here’s what they found:

• Exercise Regularly and For Extended Periods – The first key is to exercise regularly and for extended periods (30 to 60 minutes every day). Pick medium intensity activities, such as biking or jogging. In a Duke University study, participants who jogged 20 miles per week lost both types of fat; those who did 12 miles a week lost visceral fat, but none of that annoying subcutaneous fat.
• Incorporate Weights – If cardio exercise is what burns fat, then why do you need to worry about lifting weights? Strength training increases your total muscle mass; muscle burns up more calories day-in, day-out than other types of tissue. Check out online universities if you’re interested in learning about personal training or taking physiology courses.
• Can Sit-Ups Help? – While sit-ups can increase the strength and definition of your abdominal muscles, they won’t make fat magically dissolve. Sit-ups can help make your fat less of an aesthetic issue, but they won’t make it go away.
• Avoid Excess Sodium – Give your belly a tug. If the jiggles in your belly make ripples, you might just have excess fluid around your stomach, and not as much fat as you think. Cutting excess salt from your diet can help decrease water retention and flatten out your stomach. Beware of processed snacks and other foods that are packed with salt.
• Drink Water – Drinking more water can actually help decrease fluid retention in the midsection. This is because adding water to your digestive system will allow it to excrete more water as well; adding water decreases the amount retained around your waist.

Sources

Harvard Medical School: Harvard Health Productions (2006)

University of Massachusetts Amherst (2012)

Let’s admit it, you have been trying too hard but somehow don’t seem to get rid of that belly fat. Yes, it is the hardest part and you need to know the right exercise and diet regime in order to let go of that belly fat for good.

We shall discuss some of the major reasons that actually stop you from losing belly fat, how to avoid them with simple but effective exercises.

It should no longer be a fuss anymore. Additionally, there is certain stuff you must know that shall also help you remain healthy. Having a good body shape isn’t only about looking good anymore; it is also a matter of health and physical well-being.

Eat Right

You must lose something to gain something. Let go of all that high calorie food and for that you have to deprive yourself to some extent. You must also know the nutrition content of what you consume. Apart from rare occasions like social gatherings, you must totally avoid food containing refined carbohydrates. Instead, try out calorie burning food stuff or food with high protein content. Refined and processed carbohydrate containing food have been said to be the greatest source and cause of weight gain.

Another important part of diet, most commonly mentioned is having plenty of fluids. Cold drinks, sodas should not replace water in your fluid intake. Try fruit juices instead but water for most part of it.

Eat slowly, there’s no hurry!

We’re all taught to chew our food and not gobble it up. Chewing and taking your time actually helps your stomach to gauge how much food it can accumulate. This takes up to 20 minutes. So if you take second helpings or pile up your plate beforehand, you end up stuffing yourself too quickly. After that you feel too full, and if this manner continues over a considerable period, the intake capacity of your stomach increases. Consequently your appetite and body fat increases giving you that stubborn belly fat you can’t get rid of.

Skipping meals will not help

Yes, by now we all know it; however there are people who still try this way thinking it might actually work. No matter how busy you may be spare some time to have a healthy diet that comprises of fruits, juice or nuts. If you skip meals, you will end up feeling hungrier later in the day and tend to overeat. Even if you starve yourself, it can lead to other health ailments like gastritis, or low blood sugar reducing energy levels, and even diabetes. Second most important to not skipping meals is to eat on time! Not eating on time is almost equivalent to skipping meals as the later it gets, you either lose appetite becoming unhealthy or so hungry that you overeat.

No emotional cravings

Don’t ever let yourself be tempted to emotional cravings. It is the most damaging cause and it’s never easy to lose that fat once you have gained it. So whenever you feel the impulse to indulge in that fattening food stuff, check yourself. Remind yourself the effort you have been putting in to shed those kilos rather than what you are depriving yourself of. Once you think of it in this perspective, it is not that difficult.

Dieting is not enough

You follow a healthy diet regime and have shed a few pounds except for that belly fat. Exercise is necessary, you can’t avoid it. Cardio and aerobic exercises is one of the most effective forms for losing belly fat. It also helps you lose overall body weight, tone your body and keep it healthy. Cardio exercises are easy and could range from brisk walking, jogging, running the treadmill and even aerobics in the form of dancing. Crunches are effective too but as long as you make sure you’re also watching your diet.

To conclude with, take up your regime as a challenge, as a gift you would give to yourself. Start with exercises that you enjoy. Exercise should be something that helps you loosen up and make you enjoy it. Don’t let yourself indulge in overeating even on occasions. Maintain a healthy diet and keep a calorie check. Keep up your regular exercise regime and don’t lose hope. Combination of the right diet comprising of low carbohydrate and fat burning food, and regular cardio workouts shall be give positive results. If you perform consistently keeping all factors in mind, you will definitely see results in the first 2 months itself.

About The Author: Kate is a blogger by profession. She is fond of reading, writing and travelling. Recently an article on beyonce biography attracted her attention. These days she is busy doing a research on symptoms of menopause for her blog.

It is safe to say that not all body fat is created equal and there is fat that is unhealthy we should understand better.

What we must also remember is that fat is not a bad thing. It is a very necessary part of the human “energy management system”. Your body needs to draw upon stored fat for energy in between meals, and that fat is stored in numerous places all over your body.

That said, we all know you should not have too much fat serving that purpose.

Well here’s something you may not know about fat storage. There are two kinds of fat in your abdominal area, subcutaneous fat and visceral fat.

Subcutaneous fat is found right beneath the skin (and in front of your abdominal muscles). It keeps you warm during the winter, but too much of it is not that great. For lack of a better word, it is the “normal” type of fat.

Visceral fat however, accumulates deep in the belly, all around your internal organs. This is not good at all.

One of my favorite sources on the subject is the team of doctors, Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades. This from their most recent book:

“Visceral fat is not just a passive repository of extra calories as was once believed; it’s a metabolically active organ that responds to neurotransmitters and hormones and sends out chemical messages of its own to the brain and other tissues. When its accumulation reaches a critical mass, it begins to behave more like a tumor than a storage reservoir, infiltrating the organs and muscles–most importantly the liver–and, at least to some degree, wresting metabolic control from them.“

Drs. Eades go on to discuss the many serious ramifications of visceral fat, one of the most serious of which is fat in the liver. Fatty livers become inflamed, inflammation leads to liver fibrosis, which can lead to cirrhosis and, finally, liver cancer. A healthy tip is to do a liver cleanse or detox in order to flush up the bad fats in the liver. By doing this you will do your body a huge favor and will see nice weight loss because of flushing the bad elements from you liver.

A great program that discusses more on liver cleansing is Fat Loss Factor by Dr. Michael Allen.

This does not mean that everyone with huge stomachs and fa filled livers is going to get liver cancer, but it does mean there is an increased risk of getting it.

Add to that the other ramifications we more typically discuss here, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, triglycerides, not to mention a fat belly isn’t very attractive  and it adds up to a pretty decent reason to get rid of it once and for all!