Along with exercise, certain foods and lifestyle changes will help you lose fat around the belly. Excess belly fat is a risk factor for a number of chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer. Take immediate action to improve your health profile and overall body image, especially if you are a man with a waist size over 40 inches or a woman with one over 35 inches.
Step 1
Get out and exercise at least 45 minutes a day, five days per week. Burn calories through cardiovascular exercise to encourage overall weight loss. Belly fat tends to be metabolically active, and responds well to exercise, as shown by lead author Cris A. Slentz in a study published in a 2005 edition of the "Journal of Applied Physiology." Participants who exercised the equivalent of jogging 20 miles per week experienced greater fat loss -- a significant amount from the belly -- than those exercising less or not at all.
Step 2
Follow a reduced-calorie diet that includes dairy and whole grains. Eat five servings of low-fat dairy daily as this encourages a greater total percentage of abdominal fat loss over 12 weeks, as demonstrated in a study conducted by Dr Wendy Chan She Ping Delfos, from Curtin University of Technology's School of Public Health. Replace refined grains such as white bread, baked goods and white pasta with varieties that list a whole grain as the first ingredient. Researcher Heather I. Katcher reported in a 2008 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" that this switch results in a greater decrease in the percentage of body fat in the abdominal region.
Step 3
Replace saturated and trans fats with monounsaturated fats. Cut back on red meat, butter and palm oils to reduce your intake of saturated fats, and eat more olive oil, canola oil, nuts and avocados instead. Australian researchers reported observations of a greater body weight and fat loss among men following a diet high in monounsaturated fat as opposed to one high in saturated fat, in the "Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health" in 2003. Stay away from trans fats, the man-made fat that helps increase the shelf life of processed baked goods and fast food, because it actually contributes to belly fat accumulation -- even when following a low-calorie diet, as suggested by an animal study reported in the journal "Obesity" in 2007.
Step 4
Add crunches and other abdominal exercises to your weekly routine. Perform abdominal exercises such as the plank, hanging leg raises, stability ball roll-ins and the crunch, every other day. Although these exercises alone will not cause you to lose belly fat, they will tighten the underlying muscles and improve the appearance of your abs.
Step 5
Commit to healthy habits. Sleep at least seven hours a night to discourage the production of stress hormones that encourage the storage of body fat. Moderate your intake of alcohol because your liver stops burning fat and instead uses acetate when you drink. Stop smoking; even though smokers tend to be of normal body weight, they have a disproportionate amount of fat stored at the belly, as reported in a British study of over 21,000 men and women published in "Obesity Research" in 2005.
Tips and Warnings
- Be patient. Fat loss should occur at the rate of 1 to 2 lb. per week. Any faster, and you are likely losing lean muscle instead of belly fat alone.
Things You'll Need
- Low-fat dairy
- Whole grains
- Nuts
- Avocados
- Olive and canola oil
- Exercise mat
References
- Journal of Applied Physiology: Inactivity, exercise, and visceral fat
- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: The effects of a whole grain-enriched hypocaloric diet on cardiovascular disease risk factors in men and women with metabolic syndrome
- Obesity: Trans fat diet induces abdominal obesity and changes in insulin sensitivity in monkeys
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