Say “Bye-Bye” to Belly Fat
Some call it a “Beer Belly”, a “Pooch”, or a “Muffin Top”. Whatever it’s called, stubborn belly fat is one of the biggest complaints our fitness camp guests have, specifically men. How do you get rid it? We all know you can’t “spot treat” fat, you can’t do hundreds of sit-ups a day and expect the problem to solve itself.
Instead, here are 6 easy to adopt tips to help reduce and/or eliminate belly fat, like the men below. Say goodbye to those love handles, that beer belly, and say hello to your abs, they’ve missed you! Here are a few tips to help you ditch the belly fat that you can start right now! All of the before and afters are from our Unite guests that stayed with us between one and four weeks.
1. Limit Alcohol Consumption
To lose your belly fat, what you drink is as important as what you eat. Alcohol from time to time is fine, but forget about losing belly fat if you drink beer & alcohol every day. Beer drinkers always have a pear shape– especially as they get older. Alcohol also stresses your liver which has to overwork to clear the toxins, this gets in the way of building muscle.
2. Limit Sugar
Studies show that sugar has harmful effects on metabolic health. When you eat refined sugar, the liver gets overloaded with fructose, and is forced to turn it all into fat. Numerous studies have shown that excess sugar, mostly due to the large amounts of fructose, can lead to increased accumulation of fat in the belly.
SAY NO TO SODA! Liquid calories don’t get “registered” by the brain in the same way as solid calories, so when you drink sugar-sweetened beverages, you end up eating more total calories.
3. Eat More Protein
Protein is the most important macro nutrient when it comes to losing weight. It has been shown to reduce cravings by 60%, boost metabolism by 80-100 calories per day and help you eat up to 441 fewer calories per day. If losing belly fat is your goal, then adding protein is perhaps the single most effective change you can do to your diet.
4. Eat Fiber Rich Foods
Eating plenty of fiber can help with weight loss. Soluble and viscous fibers that have an effect on your weight. Soluble fiber may be particularly effective at reducing harmful belly fat. The best way to get more fiber is to eat a lot of plant foods like vegetables and fruit. Legumes are also a good source, as well as some cereals like oats.
5. Increase Cardio
Spot reduction (losing fat in one spot) is not possible, and doing endless amounts of crunches will not make you lose fat from the belly. Instead aim for short intense bursts of cardio aerobic exercise (like walking, running, swimming, etc) has been shown to cause major reductions in belly fat. Try interval training for the best possible results.
6. Weight Train
While cardio is the most effective form of exercise for burning fat, weight training works well, too. It also keeps your metabolism running high long after your workout, which means you’re burning fat even after you’re done exercising. Stick to targeted strength-training exercises for the abs such as weighted crunches, dumbbell push sit-ups, barbell push crunches, barbell push sit-ups and lever lying crunches to get big results. The more you tone your muscle, the tighter and more sculpted your body becomes.
