How to Lose Belly Fat: Lifestyle Medicine Is The Key
Overweight does not necessarily equal unhealthy.There are actually plenty of overweight people who are in excellent health.Conversely, many normal weight people have the metabolic problems associated with obesity.
Thats because the fat under the skin is actually not that big of a problem (at least not from a health standpoint its more of a cosmetic problem).Its the fat in the abdominal cavity, the belly fat, that causes the biggest issues. It’s that deeper fat — called “visceral” fat — that may be the bigger problem, even for thin people.
Deep Belly Fat:
You need some visceral fat. It provides cushioning around your organs. But if you have too much of it, you may be more likely to gethigh blood pressure,type 2 diabetes,heart disease,dementia, and certain cancers, includingbreast cancerandcolon cancer.The fat doesn’t just sit there. It’s an active part of your body, making “lots of nasty substances,” says Kristen Hairston, MD, assistant professor of endocrinology and metabolismat Wake Forest School of Medicine.
If you gain too muchweight, your body starts to store your fat in unusual places.With increasingobesity, you have people whose regular areas to store fat are so full that the fat is deposited into the organs and around the heart, says Carol Shively, PhD, professor of pathology-comparative medicine at Wake Forest School of Medicine.
How Much Belly Fat Do You Have?
The most precise way to determine how much visceral fat you have is to get aCT scanorMRI. But there’s a much simpler, low-cost way to check.Get a measuring tape, wrap it around your waist at your belly button, and check your girth. Do it while you’re standing up, and make sure the tape measure is level.For your health’s sake, you want your waist size to be less than 35 inches if you’re a woman and less than 40 inches if you’re a man.Having a “pear shape” — bigger hips and thighs — is considered safer than an “apple shape,” which describes a wider waistline.
What were really pointing to with the apple versus pear, Hairston says, “is that, if you have more abdominal fat, its probably an indicator that you have more visceral fat.”
Thin People Have It, Too: Even if you’re thin, you can still have too much visceral fat.How much you have is partly about your genes, and partly about your lifestyle, especially how active you are.Visceral fat likes inactivity. In one study, thin people who watched their diets but didn’t exercisewere more likely to have too much visceral fat.The key is to be active, no matter what size you are.
Steps for Beating Belly Fat
1. Avoid Sugar & Sweetened Beverages Like The Plague:
Excess sugar consumption may be the primary driver of belly fat accumulation, especially sugary beverages like soft drinks and fruit juices. Studies show that it has uniquely harmful effects on metabolic health. Sugar is half glucose, half fructose and fructose can only be metabolized by the liver in any significant amount.
When you eat a lot of refined sugar, the liver gets flooded with fructose, and is forced to turn it all into fat. Studies show that sugar-sweetened beverages are linked to a 60% increased risk of obesity in children pereachdaily serving. Make a decision to minimize the amount of sugar in your diet, and consider completely eliminating sugary drinks.
2. Cut Carbs From Your Diet:
Carb restriction is a very effective way to lose fat.This is supported by numerous studies when people cut carbs, their appetite goes down and they lose weight. Over20 randomized controlled trialshave now shown that low-carb diets lead to 2-3 times more weight loss than low-fat diets.
This is true even when the low-carb groups are allowed to eat as much as they want, while the low-fat groups are calorie restricted and hungry.Low-carb diets also lead to quick reductions in water weight, which gives people near instant results a major difference on the scale is often seen within a few days.
There are also studies comparing low-carb and low-fat diets, showing that low-carb diets specifically target the fat in the belly, and around the organs and liver.What this means is that a particularly high proportion of the fat lost ona low-carb dietis the dangerous and disease promoting abdominal fat.
Just avoiding the refined carbs (white breads, pastas, etc) should be sufficient, especially if you keep your protein high.However if you need tolose weight fast, then consider dropping your carbs down to 50grams per day.
This will put your body into ketosis, killing your appetite and making your body start burning primarily fats for fuel. However, in that low carb diet, you must have to drink plenty of water i.e more than conventional 2 liter water. I recommend 3-4 liter water/day.
Of course, low-carb diets have many otherhealth benefitsbesides just weight loss. They can havelife-saving effectsin type 2 diabetics, for example
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3. Low Calorie Protein Dense Diet:The Best Long-Term Strategy to Reduce Belly Fat
Eating enough protein is a very effective way to lose weight. Some studies suggest that protein is particularly effective against belly fat accumulation.
Protein is the most important macro nutrient when it comes to losing weight.It has been shown to reducecravingsby 60%, boost metabolism by 80-100 calories per day and help you eat up to 441 fewer calories per day.
If weight loss is your goal, then adding protein to your diet is perhaps thesinglemost effective change you can do.Not only will it help you lose it can also help you avoid re-gaining weight if you ever decide to abandon your weight loss efforts. There is also some evidence that protein is particularly effective against belly fat.
One study showed that the amount and quality of protein consumed was inversely related to fat in the belly. That is, people who ate more and better protein had much less belly fat.Another study in Denmark showed that protein, especially animal protein, was linked to significantly reduced risk of belly fat gain over a period of 5 years.This study also showed that refined carbs andvegetable oilswere linked to increased amounts of belly fat, but fruits and vegetables linked to reduced amounts.Many of the studies showing protein to be effective had protein at 25-30% of calories. Thats what you should aim for.
So make an effort to increase your intake ofunprocessedeggs, fish, seafood,meats, poultry anddairyproducts. These are the best protein sources in the diet.If you struggle with getting enough protein in your diet, then a quality protein supplement (likewhey protein) is a healthy and convenient way to boost your total intake.
Consider cooking your foods incoconut oil some studieshave shownthat 30 mL (about 2 tablespoons) of coconut oil per day reduces belly fat slightly.
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4. Eat Foods Rich in Fiber:
There is some evidence that soluble dietary fiber may lead to reduced amounts of belly fat, which should cause major improvements in metabolic health.
Dietary fiber is mostly indigestible plant matter.It is often claimed that eating plenty of fiber can help with weight loss.This is true but its important to keep in mind that not all fiber is created equal.
It seems to be mostly the viscous fibers that can have an effect on your weight.These are fibers that bind water and form a thick gel that sits in the gut.This gel can dramatically slow the movement of food through your stomach and small bowel, and slow down the digestion and absorption of nutrients. The end result is a prolonged feeling of fullness and reduced appetite.
Some fibres examples in a every day food
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