Getting Rid Of Belly Fat - How To Remove Stomach Fat & Get Great Abs
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Although getting rid of belly fat can seem challenging, it's actually a simple process. This is true for both men and women, although losing belly fat may be a little more challenging for men, who are genetically predisposed to store fat in the abdominal area. But whether you're female or male, to remove stomach fat and keep if off, you do need to be committed to a good diet and exercise plan - and it's worth making the effort, as excess belly fat collects around the abdominal organs, and is associated with disorders such as heart disease. So if you want to shrink that belly fat and get an attractive lean profile, here's what you should do:
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Diet Tips To Eliminate Belly Fat
Junk the Junk Food
If you live on highly processed, high calorie, high sugar foods, you're likely to gain weight, especially if you overeat and/or are sedentary. So to remove belly fat, the first step is to cut all that trashy food and drink out of your diet - or at least cut right back on it. This means eating less of anything with added sugar, artificial flavourings and other additives, hydrogenated fats, white flour and refined grains, takeaways and most ready meals - the list goes on, but you know junk food when you see it.
Fill Up On Natural Foods
So what should you eat? Replace the junk with whole foods that are as unprocessed as possible. Stock up on fruits, vegetables, salad ingredients, nuts, seeds, dairy, eggs, beans, pulses and whole grains. Use coconut oil for cooking - unlike most other vegetable oils, it is high in medium chain triglycerides, which are burned by the body for fuel (rather than being stored as fat), and also help to increase your metabolic rate, so you can burn belly fat faster.
Choose High Quality Carbs
This means reducing refined sugar and refined grains, and eating whole grains instead. Refined sugar and starches enter the bloodstream quickly, giving you a quick 'rush' of energy, which is generally followed by a sharp drop as your body over-compensates with insulin. Many people react to this drop by reaching for yet more sugary food to regain their energy, and so the cycle continues - and the pounds pile on. Fibre-rich whole grains, fruits and vegetables, in contrast, will fill you up and help to keep your energy levels constant, so you'll be less tempted to overeat.
One grain that you might wish to avoid completely is wheat, which many people are sensitive to without realising it. One of the symptoms of wheat sensitivity (or more specifically, sensitivity to the gluten contained in wheat), is abdominal bloating, and cutting out wheat (and possibly oats, barley and rye too, all of which contain gluten, albeit in lesser amounts), can help to slim your belly even without losing fat.
Cut Out Alcohol & Soft Drinks
They're not called beer bellies for nothing - alcohol consumption is a prime cause of belly fat, since alcohol is high in calories, and since it's a liquid, it's very easy to take in more than your body can use at one time, and so the excess gets stored as fat. Excess alcohol consumption is also linked with inflammation of the liver and pancreas, leading to a bloated appearance.
Soft drinks are also high in sugar and provide little in the way of nutrition. To really blast that belly fat, cut out or cut right back on alcohol and soft drinks, and replace them with water or pure herbal teas.
Time Your Meals
For best results, eat smaller meals four or five times a day, rather than just three large meals. Eating more often helps to raise your metabolism, so you'll burn belly fat more quickly. You'll also have more stable energy levels and will be less likely to get so hungry that you overeat. It's also best to have your largest meals earlier in the day - avoid having very rich meals late in the evening, as you won't have the chance to burn it off before you go to sleep.
Getting Rid Of Belly Fat With Exercise
Take Some Cardio Exercise
Eating a good diet is a must, but to reduce stomach fat more quickly, do at least three sessions of cardiovascular exercise each week for 20 minutes or more each week (30-45 minutes, four or five times a week is better). Choose something you enjoy and will stick with, but for best results, mix up your activities so you're not always doing the same thing. Good types of exercise for burning belly fat include brisk walking, running, swimming, aerobics, dancing, skipping, rebounding and using Stairmasters and other cardio machines. Note that you can't really spot reduce fat just in one area, so exercising will burn excess fat from all parts of the body, not just your stomach.
Do Abdominal Exercises
Stomach crunches, sit ups and other types of abdominal exercise are a must if you want a six-pack (or even just a toned abdomen), but doing them alone won't remove belly fat - if you don't change your diet and your cardio exercise regime so you're eating less than you burn, you'll just end up with strong abs that are still covered by a layer of fat. However, building lean muscle in this area is still a good idea, as strong abdominals are good for back health, and the more lean muscle tissue you have, the more calories you'll burn even while at rest (since muscle is more metabolically active than fat) - so don't neglect your ab exercises, even if you don't care about getting a six-pack. Find out more about some of the best ab exercises here.
Check Your Posture
Here's a tip for getting a flatter stomach instantly - stand up straight! Many people habitually slouch without realising it, which causes their stomachs to protrude, making them look fatter than they really are. Making an effort to stand and sit properly means keeping your hips forward, stomach in, and shoulders back. Holding your abdominal muscles in the right position throughout the day will even help to strengthen them over time, giving your stomach a more toned appearance even without any other special efforts.
How Far Do You Want To Go?
Some people just want to slim down their guts, whereas others want to go further and create chiselled six-pack abs. For those who want a fuss-free, low maintenance eating and exercise plan that will reduce belly fat (and excess weight generally), without too much time and effort, we recommend Strip That Fat (see our detailed Strip That Fat review here). This is a healthy, enjoyable general-purpose fat loss plan that incorporates all the suggestions in this article.
For those who want a six-pack or super-toned abs, the suggestions here make a good starting point, but it obviously takes more effort and commitment to get a washboard stomach, both in terms of diet and exercise. If you're committed to doing what it takes, we recommend The Truth About Six Pack Abs, a great complete guide to everything you need to do to get the abs of your dreams!
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