Individuals can come in a variety of different shapes and forms, and not having a flat stomach does not automatically signify that you are not in good health. You might find it endearing to have some additional bulk on your body, however an overabundance of fat around your waistline can signal potential health issues. Eating healthy and staying active are great ways to stay fit and healthy, not to mention keeping track of calorie intake with a calorie calculator.
Facts About Belly Fat
Excess calories are converted to fat by the body when more are consumed than are utilized. For every 3,500 additional calories that are taken in, one pound of fat is created. This isn't merely a situation where your body is trying to bother you. Accumulating fat has been a means of endurance since prehistoric times. In the same way that storing water in a camel's hump originally developed to ensure its survival when water is scarce, your body fat acts as a reserve to keep you alive if you don't have any food, as well as feeding any infants (for mothers).
Your body tends to keep the majority of its fat reserves in the abdominal area as it is the most practical spot to store it. Placing excess fat around your arms and legs initially would render it more difficult to utilize those body parts. The hard work involved in moving them would lead to a greater calorie expenditure, which would work against the intention of preserving the fat. Because your belly is positioned near your body's center of gravity, and it does not move independently like your arms and legs, it is suitable for storing items.
Types of Belly Fat
The fat accumulating in the abdomen is composed of two different types: subcutaneous and visceral. Subcutaneous fat is the fat stored under your skin. This is the adipose tissue that results in love handles and gives off a squishy muffin top when the jeans are too snug. Having a layer of fat just beneath the skin can be beneficial both in providing insulation against cold temperatures and to store energy in the event of an unexpected illness like a high fever.
This type of fat is located between and around the organs of your body inside. Visceral fat is not as visible as subcutaneous fat, but it is far denser and firmer. Having high insulin resistance can make you more prone to suffering a heart attack, stroke, or developing type 2 diabetes.
You can reduce your abdominal fat by eating healthily and being physically active. It is typical to burn fat in other parts of your body prior to when the belly fat begins to decrease.
Causes of Belly Fat
Many people misconstrue that only those with an excessive BMI are at risk for health issues, but in actuality, even those with a standard BMI and excessive fat in the abdomen area could suffer from such medical issues. Here are a few potential reasons for the accumulation of excessive belly fat:
- Sugary food and beverages: Studies have shown a link between high sugar intake and excess belly fat. This is mainly due to the extra refined sugar added during processing. While excess sugar in any form can be harmful, sugar-sweetened beverages are especially problematic.
- Alcohol: Another possible cause for sudden belly fat gain is alcohol. Studies have linked the excessive consumption of alcohol to an increase in belly fat, with one study finding that men who consumed more than 3 drinks a day were 80% more likely to have excess body fat.
- Sedentary lifestyle: One’s activity levels also play a major role in the accumulation of belly fat. A study showed that people who performed resistance training or aerobic exercise for a year after losing weight were able to prevent abdominal fat gain, while those who did not exercise faced a 25-38% increase in belly fat.
- Stress: Cortisol, commonly called the ‘stress hormone, is produced by the adrenal glands in stressful situations. While stress drives overeating, cortisol causes the excess calories to be stored as fat in the belly.
- Genetics: Similar to genes playing a major role in increased obesity risk, genetics may be partly responsible for the tendency of the body to store fat in the abdomen area.
Exercises to Get Rid of Belly Fat
Regardless of whether one is a man or a woman, it is important to remember there is no definitive strategy to get rid of fat from the stomach area. There is no magical way to reduce the size of your abdomen in an exact amount of time. However, it is possible to diminish the overall amount of fat in your body and also strengthen your abdominal muscles. There are several ways to develop a strong and lean core, including:
- Aerobic exercises
- Weight training
- High-intensity interval training
- Crunches
- Planks
Any form of physical activity which involves sustained increasing of the heart rate, usually resulting in the individual being only slightly breathless while still able to converse, is known as aerobic or cardio exercise. Physical activities that rely on increased oxygen intake to help the body use oxygen more effectively to generate energy are known as aerobic exercise. This may include running, jogging, walking, swimming, taking an aerobics class or following instruction on DVD or other media, swimming, and biking. You don't need to sign up for a structured physical activity program. Taking a stroll for an hour a day has the potential to reduce visceral abdomen fat, providing positive physical outcomes in no time.
Vertical Leg Crunch
- Lie flat on the floor with legs extended upwards and then one knee is crossed over the other.
- Breathe in and then lift the upper body towards the pelvis. Breathe out slowly.
- Do 12-16 crunches in two or three sets.
Bicycle exercise
- Lie on the mat, or the floor and keep your hands either behind your head or by your side just like you would for crunches.
- Lift both your legs off the ground and bend them at the knees.
- Bring the right knee close to the chest while keeping the left leg down.
- Take the right leg down and bring the left leg towards the chest.
- Alternate bending the knees as if you are using a bicycle.
Crunches
- Start by lying down flat with your knees bent and your feet on the ground.
- Lift your hands and then place them behind the head or keep them crossed on the chest. Inhale deeply.
- As you lift the upper torso off the floor, you should exhale. Again inhale when you get back down and then exhale as you come up.
- If you are a beginner, start by doing 10 crunches in every set. Each day, aim to complete two to three sets of crunches.
Facts About Weight Training
Bolstering your strength through weight lifting not only makes you more powerful, but constructing lean muscles accelerates the metabolic rate and encourages burning calories in a stationary state. Working out with weights for half an hour to 45 minutes three or more times a week will assist in increasing the strength of your muscles and raise your metabolic rate, which will aid in losing excess fat.
High-intensity interval training involves doing periods of vigorous physical activity interspersed with brief rests or pauses of moderate or low intensity. This type of exercise helps maintain an elevated heart rate, aiding with calorie burning while providing strength building and endurance boosting benefits; however, it may not be suitable for everyone. If you are not already in shape, it is essential that your place to start be at the starting point.
Targeting Your Core
Doing crunches is a very well-known method of toning the abdominal muscles. Lie on the ground and draw your tummy inwards while bringing your knees closer to your chest; this is known as a reverse crunch. You can firm and shape your waist by practicing bicycle crunches or any activities that involve a twist of your body. These exercises work your oblique muscles.
Planks are a great exercise to tone up your core, and they are a very straightforward form of exercise, especially for those who are just starting to get into fitness. Bearing the weight of your body, put your hands and toes on the floor like you are doing a push-up, or alternatively use your forearms and feet if it is simpler. Maintain a level back and tense your abdominal muscles by drawing your navel toward your spine. Maintain the posture while taking breaths in a usual manner for as long as you can.
In the beginning, you should be able to keep it for a mere 10 seconds. That's OK. Gradually increase the duration of the pose as time goes by. Every few days, increase the time you spend in the position by 5 to 10 seconds until you become comfortable enough to stay in it for no less than one minute. Once you accomplish your target, you can increase diversity by doing different types of planks that concentrate more on your side abdominal muscles.
Doing these exercises will help to tone and enhance your core muscles but won't necessarily target fat loss from the midsection. The only way to achieve results is to incorporate physical activity with a nutritious diet.
Best Diet for Losing Belly Fat
In combination with your exercise routine designed to lose belly fat, it is important to create an adequate diet as part of your overall strategy to lose weight. Crash diets and severely restricted diets will not work. They won't give you the necessary energy to keep up your well-being while you are training, and they don't offer a comprehensive variety of essential vitamins and minerals. It is also hard to take care of oneself because it is impossible to make smart choices about nutrition if you are always feeling famished.
Nutrition experts at Tufts University recommend that the key to a successful belly fat reducing exercise regime is to eliminate sugar from your diet. However, not all sugars are created equal. Cakes, cookies, and other sweets made with processed sugar, as well as starchy grains like potatoes, rice, and bread, are detrimental to the stomach.
Tips to Reduce Belly Fat
In order to reduce abdominal fat, one must adhere to a carefully mapped out program. Here are a few tips that can help one reduce the accumulation of fat in the abdominal region:
Getting Enough Sleep
A lack of sleep can impact multiple areas of one's well-being, such as causing an increase in abdominal fat. Research has clearly established that inadequate amounts of sleep are associated with increased risk of putting on extra pounds.
Insufficient sleep causes an increase in ghrelin production, resulting in an appetite-stimulating effect, and a decrease in leptin, the hormone associated with feeling full.
Insufficient sleep is a culprit in changes to both the metabolism and hormones, in addition to a lower ability to process sugar. When feeling depleted, one's reward neural pathways become more active, as the brain searches for experiences to provide a sensation of pleasure.
When you are well-rested, you can exercise a bit of control over your cravings for comfort food. Conversely, if you haven't had enough sleep, you may not be able to hold back from indulging in temptation. An imbalance of hormones in the body can be brought about by this, and could lead to gaining weight.
It is essential to get a good amount of sleep (at least 7 hours) each night to prevent gaining excessive weight. The quantity of sleep is just as important as the quality of sleep you get when you go to bed. Investigate the link between inadequate sleep and excessive weight gain here.
Drink Enough Water
A direct relationship exists between drinking water and losing weight. Investigations have shown that drinking water assists the body to break down stored fat in a more effective way.
Consuming liquids regularly over the course of the day will give you a sensation of being satisfied and help to keep your hunger in check. Often, our body confuses being thirsty with being hungry, therefore it's suggested to drink a bit of water before eating something to decide what your body really needs.
Water is the best ‘beverage’ to quench your thirst. Rather than opting for a juice or carbonated beverage, it is recommended to select water due to the amount of sugar that is present in these beverages, which can add needless calories to your diet.
Drinking a couple of glasses of hot H2O first thing every day may assist with weight loss, reduction of belly fat, and purify your body.
Workout Regularly
Working out every day has been demonstrated to be beneficial in terms of controlling weight. It is undeniable that daily exercise routines are essential, yet opinions vary on how rigorous they should be.
The amount of exercise you do should be based on your gender, age, and body mass index.
It is recommended to speak with a personal fitness instructor prior to commencing high-intensity resistance training.
Track Your Calories
No matter the source, any additional calories will be kept in the body in the form of fat. It is beneficial to monitor how many calories are taken in and burned off every day. This can help avoid fat accumulation in the body.
Calorie Deficit is a great way to burn calories. Consuming 500 fewer calories per day can result in a weight decrease of 0.4 kg or 1 lb in a period of 7 days. The HealthifyMe app offers a calorie tracker that can be used.
Never Skip Breakfast
Eating breakfast is often considered to be the top priority as it provides the energy needed to kickstart your day. Failing to eat breakfast hinders your metabolism, causing the fat-burning process to occur more slowly.
On the days when you don't eat breakfast, you are more apt to select unhealthy foods during the remainder of the day. Start the day with a nutritiously balanced breakfast to curb cravings and quench hunger until mealtime. It is important to have a nutritious and beneficial breakfast, which may consist of egg, grains, fruit, and nuts.
