Easy Ways to Lose Belly Fat
Many people find that the abdominal area is one of the big problem areas. Not only does fat often accumulate in this area, but this fat is also difficult to lose. Since belly fat is not only unattractive but also dangerous to your health, it’s important to work on eliminating this fat. Belly fat can increase your risk for health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and stroke. The good news is that if you’re ready to eliminate that fat, you can do it fairly easily. Here are some easy ways to lose belly fat. Start using them and finally eliminate that spare tire around your middle.
1 – Start Your Day with Breakfast
First, start your day with breakfast every day. Many people skip out on breakfast, and in the long run, skipping breakfast is bad for your belly. If you’re looking for easy ways to lose belly fat, simply start eating a healthy, high protein breakfast each day.
When you eat a high protein breakfast, you feel satisfied and cravings throughout the day are reduced. Fiber and complex carbs also help to keep you full and prevent cravings.2 – Increase Your Water Intake
You may be surprised to find that increasing your water intake is a simple way to eliminate belly fat. It’s an excellent weight loss tool and is important for the regulation of your metabolism. When you drink plenty of water, your body performs more efficiently and can easily eliminate toxins and other harmful substances from the body. Drinking plenty of water can reduce bloat and increases the body’s ability to burn fat. Many people at when they are actually thirsty, so consuming more water can help you cut calories and keep your stomach feeling full.
3 – Make Sure You Walk as Much as Possible
Another of the easy ways to lose belly fat is to make sure you walk as much as possible each day. One of the reasons so many people are overweight in our society is because we just aren’t as active today. Aim for 10,000 steps each day, but don’t count this as your workout. Find little ways to walk more. Take the stairs when you are at work instead of going up on the elevator. Park further away from stores and your office, which will make you walk more. Take walks during your lunch break. All those steps you take add up and help you lose belly fat.
4 – Lower the Amount of Calories You Eat Daily
One of the most essential steps you must take if you want to lose belly fat is to lower the amount of calories you eat daily. While exercise has a big impact on your weight loss, what you eat is just as important. To lose fat, you need to reduce the calories you consume. Learn how to count calories effectively so you know how many calories you are eating each day. Come up with a good calorie goal that supports your activity level while supporting your weight loss goals. Stick to it and you’ll find it easier to eliminate that stomach fat.
5 – Start Eating Foods that Fight Belly Fat
Eating the right foods is just as important as counting calories. One of the easy ways to lose belly fat is to start eating foods that fight belly fat. For example, foods and spices that contain capsaicin can help boost your metabolism. High protein foods fight belly fat by keeping you full longer. Foods high in fiber also keep you full longer and make you feel satisfied. Studies also show that individuals who consume more fiber have less visceral fat.
You don’t have to accept that belly fat. Start following these easy ways to lose belly fat and you’ll be on your way to a slimmer middle.
Best Exercises to Lose Belly Fat
What are the best exercises to lose belly fat? The answers to that question are varied, meaning there are several methods you can employ to burn fat and trim your midsection. There are two reasons this is true. Number one, you need a selection of exercises targeted at burning fat cells and number two, you want to strengthen the underlying abdominal muscles so your progress will actually be visible. Let’s get started!
Torch those Calories
Calories equal fat when you consume more than you burn. Your first job is to determine what your baseline caloric requirements are. This is the number of calories you need to sustain a healthy life and they are based on age, body structure, activity level, current weight and height. Once you have your baseline caloric needs assessed, you can determine how many calories you currently consume and how many you need to burn daily to begin seeing results.
Burning 3500 calories is the equivalent of one pound of body fat and while that may seem like an extreme number, it is not that difficult to rid yourself of 3500 per day or every few days, depending on how fast you need to lose the weight. Cutting out one carbonated beverage per day can trim up to 3500 calories every 10 days and that is just one drink!
On to exercise! Here are a few of the best exercises for torching calories and belly fat:
Bicycle- if you want the most bang for your buck, seriously consider biking. An average woman can burn nearly 850 calories in an hour of intense cycling and men push the 1,000-calorie mark.
Jump Rope- are you looking for something you can do at home? Jumping rope is an intense calorie busting exercise, 750 an hour for women and 850 for men.
Swim- need less impact? Swimming is a great cardiovascular exercise that is easy on the joints and the body as a whole. 720 calories per hour for women, 840 for men.
Tone those Muscles
As you begin to burn calories with the best exercises to lose belly fat, you may be a little disappointed because you cannot really see a difference. You see, losing belly fat is fantastic, but to really see results, you will have to tone those muscles. Here are a few of the best exercises to lose belly fat and tone those abdominals:
Side Plank- this is a very challenging position that forces you to work your core harder than say a traditional plank or crunches. Lie on your side, place the elbow directly beneath your shoulder and keep your legs stacked. Put your other hand on your hip and lift your body from the floor until you are balanced on your feet and forearm. Hold up to 45 seconds- 30 seconds minimum.
Air Bike- somewhat easier, but still a great abdominal workout. Lay on the floor in crunch position, hands behind head and knees raised perpendicular to the floor, make cycle pedaling motions bringing opposite elbow to knee.
Push up walk out- get into push up position with hands two inches wider than your shoulders. Slowly walk your hands out and back in again. Change it up and increase intensity by lifting one leg before doing the walk out. 10-15 reps.
Final Thoughts
The best exercises to lose belly fat will combine a good cardiovascular workout aimed at burning fat and core strengthening exercises. These are merely a guide to get you started and you may find you prefer a step cardio routine or even dance classes to burn calories. Whatever you choose, remember to take a twofold approach for the best results.
Foods that Burn Belly Fat
Getting rid of stubborn belly fat is very hard to do. It seems like no matter how many nutritious foods you eat and the number of exercises that you do, it seems like you still have a tire around your waist. You have rolls of ugly belly fat that hangs over your belt. You look horrible in your clothes, and it makes you feel unattractive.
The only way to lose belly fat permanently is to exercise and eat foods that burn belly fat. Remember that the more muscular you are, it will help to shed your belly fat. Also, it doesn’t make sense to consume more fat if you are trying to eliminate the stubborn fat that you already have. Processed foods such as pizza and French fries that are loaded with saturated fats should no longer be a part of your regular diet.
When choosing foods that burn belly fat, there are things that you should take into consideration. The more effort that the body makes to break down the food that you eat, the higher your metabolism rate will be. A high rate of metabolism burns more fat. So, when you are looking for foods that will get rid of belly fat, look for the ones that are known to increase your rate of metabolism.
So what are the foods that burn belly fat? There are certain foods that you should include in your diet more often in order to get rid of this kind of stubborn fat. The following are just a few of them.
Protein. Overall, the body works harder to break down proteins more than it does carbohydrates. Make sure that your diet contains plenty of lean proteins along with other nutritious foods that will speed up your rate of metabolism. Proteins such as eggs, nuts, fish, non-fat cheese, tofu, yogurt, seeds, peanut butter and lean meats will increase the production of muscle tissue and raise your rate of metabolism. Protein also does a good job of quenching your hunger by making you feel full. As a result, you won’t be compelled to eat as much. Stabbing pangs of hunger are often caused by diets filled with carbs, and this is something that you want to avoid.
Berries. Fresh berries are available in different varieties, and they are an excellent source of fiber and antioxidants. Not only can they help rid your body of belly fat, but they are also known to help prevent heart disease and sharpen your mind as well. Berries are great as snacks because they give you enough sweetness to satisfy your cravings and make you full at the same time, which helps you to shed more fat in the long run.
Fiber. Foods that are high in fiber help to quench your appetite. Instead of craving foods that are high in fat, sugar or carbs, it is best to eat foods that are high in fiber such as cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, celery, leafy greens, oranges, mushrooms, avocados and kidney beans. Foods that have a lot of fiber make you feel full and satisfied for a lot longer, which means that you will eat less throughout the day.
Healthy Fats. Foods that contain healthy fats can actually help you to shed fat. This is because it is better to eat a larger amount of healthy fat than it is to load up on carbs. Also eating a healthy amount of fats can help to improve your metabolism. So, eating foods such as almonds, salmon, olives, eggs, meat and butter in moderation, can help shed belly fat.
What is the Best Way to Lose Belly Fat?
Who doesn’t want to trim that extra layer of fat from around the midsection? Whether you have been unable to exercise for some time, need to lose some post-pregnancy weight or just cannot seem to lose the belly fat, there are answers. Here are a few of the top belly fat busting tips available to date.
Know Fat
Your first order of business is to understand belly fat. Most importantly, what causes it in the first place. You may think your growing waistline is merely a matter of overeating and while that may true in part, it is not the only thing at work. Studies show there is a definite link between increased belly fat and cortisol, which is a stress produced hormone.
Cortisol is a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands. Specifically, it is created in the adrenal cortex. This is a natural function of the body but when stress enters the picture, it increases the release of specific hormones from the pituitary gland that stimulate more production of cortisol and other glucocorticoid hormones. In the scientific community, cortisol is good health enemy number one! Not only does it increase weight gain (particularly in the midsection) it also can lower immune response and cause high blood pressure and heart disease.
De-Stress to Lose Belly Fat
Losing the stress in your life is much easier said than done! It is simple to tell someone to relax but the reality of crying children, mounting bills and strained personal relationships can make that all seem so out of reach. What is the first step in lowering your stress and thereby bust belly fat? How about getting a little more sleep?
Sleep- When you lose sleep every night, it does much more to your body than just make you feel tired. Lack of sleep throws off your body’s biorhythms, which can result in overeating and altered hormone production. You need to get about 7 hours of sound sleep, especially if you are trying to trim belly fat. Tips:
No TV- turnoff or better yet, remove the television from the bedroom. This instantly removes the temptation to stare at late night infomercials!
Soft Music- If you have become accustomed to noise while you sleep, try changing it up and using soft soothing music or nature sounds to replace the jarring noise of your television.
Prepare- do you have a nighttime ritual? Create new habits by starting a bedtime routine, shower, read, brush your teeth etc… whatever puts you in bedtime mode.
Exercise
Do you really want to bust belly fat and more importantly, the stress that is ruining your health? You already know exercise is the best way to burn calories. Getting your heart rate up, even just a little, goes a long way toward lowering stress and decreasing depression. Walking is a fantastic way to start, but the results are not instant so it makes it difficult to get motivated. If you are finding it difficult to get started, just keep in mind walking is just a start. The more you walk the sooner you can run, jog or start a gym.
Final Thoughts
A lot of people are under the mistaken impression that the best way to lose belly fat is to punish the body mercilessly. The problem with this approach is that most of the time, it does not make you feel good about yourself or your body. After all, you are punishing yourself! Start by rewarding yourself instead! De-stress, get more sleep and pick up a favorite exercise and you will see the belly fat begin to melt away.