Both men and women may notice an increase in waist size as they age. Known as visceral fat, belly fat tends to accumulate around the organs in your abdomen, while subcutaneous fat forms closer to your skin. Reducing your amount of belly fat helps to guard against certain health risks.
Risks
Individuals with large amounts of belly fat have an increased risk of developing many serious illnesses. Excess weight around your middle can raise your chances of developing heart disease, stroke, diabetes, metabolic syndrome and sleep apnea. Excess weight can also place extra stress on your joints, increasing your risk of developing arthritis in your knees, hips and spine. Arthritis commonly causes pain and swelling in the affected joints.
Diet
While you can't spot reduce to eliminate just your belly fat, dieting can help you lose excess fat, including your visceral fat. Restricting your caloric intake will help you burn fat. Weight loss relies on burning more calories than you consume. Cutting back on 500 calories a day for a week can result in an average weight loss of about 1 lb. Eat a well-rounded diet that includes low-calorie foods, a variety of fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy products, whole grain breads and cereals, and lean cuts of meat.
Aerobic Exercise
While all physical activities help to burn calories, aerobic exercises incorporate your large muscle groups in sustained, continuous movements that promote weight loss by increasing the amount of calories you burn. Aerobic exercise includes activities like brisk walking, jogging, bicycling, swimming and kickboxing. Perform at least 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise most days of the week. If you aren't used to physical exercise, you may need to start slow and gradually increase the length and intensity of your exercise sessions.
Resistance Training
Increasing your amount of lean tissue can help raise your resting metabolic rate, helping to eliminate belly fat. Select exercises that challenge your muscles, such as weightlifting and resistance training. Incorporate exercises that focus on toning your abdominal muscles, such as sit-ups, curl-ups and twists. Although abdominal exercises may not remove additional fat from your waist, they can help tone your core muscles, creating a trimmer appearance around your middle.
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