Can I Lose My Belly Fat? Yes, You Can!

Posted 18 February, 2008 in Fitness Workout

Here are a few weight loss tips on how to get rid of ab or belly fat. Abdominal fat, or the belly fat as is commonly called, not only looks unsightly, it also increases health risks associated with many serious illnesses, such as insulin resistance syndrome, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases, and even some types of cancers. If you have excess belly fat, you would almost invariably be overweight/obese too. So, healthy weight loss is the best solution to losing belly fat.

But if you have ever been on a Weight Loss plan, you would have soon realized that one area that seems the most resistant to fat loss is the midsection. Despite religiously doing countless sit-ups and hours of aerobic activity, your belly fat just refuses to budge. Perhaps it’s time to pause, review your exercise-cum-diet plan, and understand what wrong you could be doing. Here are some facts relating to losing belly fat:

· You cannot spot-reduce fat selectively from belly, or for that matter from any specific part of the body – fat loss occurs systemically, i.e., from all over the body, when you create calorie deficit by burning calories through proper exercise and reducing calorie intake through diet. But your genes dictate your fat distribution pattern and decide where you lose fat first; so do not compare your fat loss chart with others.

· To achieve weight loss and lose belly fat successfully, it helps to get professional help to strategize your exercise/diet plan for your individual case. Because unplanned aerobic activity or doing hundreds of sit-ups alone is not going to help you lose belly fat effectively. In fact, it can do more harm than good. For example, too much of aerobics can cause muscle loss and make fat loss even more difficult due to reduced basal metabolic rate.

· What you need is a sensible combination of cardiovascular activity, abdominal strengthening exercises, weight training to increase muscle mass, along with a balanced and nutritive diet. Cardio helps to burn fat, weight training helps to increase muscle mass and hence increase the basal metabolic rate, abdominal exercises help to tighten the abdominal muscles and give definition to your reducing belly, and diet control helps reduce calorie intake and create calorie deficit.

Here are five additional steps you can take to help you lose body fat:

1. Eat Regularly
You need to eat regular meals. If you don’t eat regularly, your metabolism will slow down and it will become very difficult to lose belly fat.

2. Carefully Choose Foods and Drinks
At least half of the food you eat should be natural foods such as fruits, vegetables, seeds, legumes, and nuts. The rest should be made up mostly of whole grain products such as whole wheat bread. Don’t drink any sodas, diet or otherwise. Water is really the only thing you should drink regularly.

3. Don’t Eat Close to Bedtime
You need at least four hours to digest your food before you lay down at night. Let your body rest while you sleep.

4. Exercise Regularly
Do whatever kind of exercise you think you can keep to consistently over the rest of your life. You should aim for at least 30 minutes of exercise at least 4 days per week.

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