Belly fat is stubborn, and unfortunately, it seems as though some of us are more predisposed to having fat accumulate around the tummy area.
It’s difficult to get rid of and it looks unsightly in almost every outfit – especially a swimsuit. Being self-conscious of your belly (and your body) is no fun! Many people would like to know how to reduce belly fat – but it’s not a one-step trick or a special formula.
Getting rid of it takes time, effort and determination. Here are some methods you can adopt in your own life to help rid yourself of unwanted fat over time.
Forget About The Crunches
It is impossible to spot reduce fat. You can’t lose fat around your midsection but not in your arms, legs, butt or bust.
While doing hundreds of crunches every day will no doubt burn plenty of calories, it’s not going to blast your unwanted belly fat like you think it will. You’ll have nicely defined abdominal muscles, but unfortunately, they will remain underneath the layer of surface fat you have until you banish it for good.
So unless doing tons of crunches is totally your thing, forget about them and focus on the real ways to reduce belly fat.
Get Your Beauty Sleep
Yes, sleep helps weight loss. A lot! You may not think you’re doing any good when you’re getting your shut eye, and you’re not – while you’re sleeping anyways. The real problems come from when you don’t get enough sleep. Not getting the rest you need will raise certain hormones in your body that make you hungrier and will make you burn fat slower.
So in reality, an early bedtime can help you reduce fat faster than if you are only getting 5 hours of sleep. Experts recommend between 7-8 hours of sleep a night.
Get More Vitamin C In Your Diet
Vitamin C is not just for boosting your immune system and fighting the cold and flu viruses very winter. When you are aiming to lose weight, vitamin C can really be your best friend! Vitamin C will boost your body’s ability to make carnitine, which is an essential compound that your body uses for burning fat. If you don’t have enough carnitine, your body could burn more muscle than fat – which is definitely what you don’t want.
Up your Vitamin C intake and your body will have the fuel it needs to liquefy fat all over your body, especially your midsection.
Employ High Intensity Interval Training
Not all exercise was created equally when it comes to blasting belly fat. Your typical 30 minute walk or run isn’t going to be as effective at reducing the flab around your midsection as high intensity interval training is. Instead, take that 30 minutes and divide it up equally into 5 minutes of high intensity cardio (the max you can possibly do) and 5 more minutes of lower intensity cardio.
Repeat three times or more, depending on what your typical workout time is. Doing high intensity interval training is significantly more effective at raising the metabolism than other types of workouts and is associated with a higher post-workout metabolism rate!
Kick The Alcohol (And The Stress)
Cortisol is the hormone responsible for the majority of your belly fat. Alcohol and stress both will raise your cortisol levels, causing you to store more of the calories you eat as fat around your mid section. Keeping your stress levels down and avoiding alcohol in excess (or at all) are crucial elements of maintaining overall health. Reduce your stress by breathing deeply when you feel the tension mounting, and taking a break every now and then.
Don’t push yourself to do too much. Delegate your responsibilities as much as possible and rest assured that if you’re doing your best, you’re doing enough. Next time you’re tempted to pour yourself a glass of wine when you’re stressed, remember that you are doubling up against your efforts to nix your belly fat!
Drink Your Water
Your body can’t burn fat as efficiently when you are dehydrated, plain and simple. Not only that, but not drinking enough water during the day will cause your body to hold on to the salt you ate throughout the day, turning it into water weight. Water weight isn’t technically belly fat, however it can make your this area appear chunkier than if you didn’t have excess water weight. While many people think that drinking water will add to their water weight, nothing could be further from the truth.
In reality, drinking enough water helps flush out the salt and sodium from the body, which prevents water weight from accumulating.
Experts recommend between 6-8 eight ounce glasses of water each day. Add a few lemon slices or mint leaves to make your water look and taste more interesting without adding calories.
Getting rid of body fat takes time and effort. It’s not going to happen overnight. However, if you adopt some or all of these belly fat blasting techniques as part of your lifestyle, you’ll not only notice that your waistine will start to reduce, you’ll also notice that it stays gone!