There are lots of good reasons to try and lose your belly fat. Sure, you’d love to have a svelte waist and look terrific in belted trousers, but having too much fat around your middle actually is harmful to your health.
A wide waistline raises risk of diabetes, inflammation, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, hardening of the arteries, and certain cancers, such as colon cancer. Also, scientists recently discovered that women with excess belly fat have an increased risk of osteoporosis.
While it can be difficult to trim your tummy, it’s not impossible. Consider some ways of narrowing your apple shape.
1. Measure your risk
Even people of normal weight can be at risk if they have too much belly fat. Among the dangerous things belly fat does, it boosts the production of “bad” LDL cholesterol, which forms plaque in arteries, then becomes inflamed and swells, causing blockages.
To determine whether you are at risk, wrap a tape measure around the thinnest part of your waist, just above your hip bone. Keep the tape snug and level, but not tight. Exhale and don’t suck in your belly; measure your waist. Experts say that if you’re a man with a waist measuring more than 40 inches around or a woman with a measurement of 35 inches, you are at risk.
2. Cut the cola
Fructose is a sugar used in processed foods and soft drinks, and is frequently cited as a culprit in the obesity epidemic. A study at the United Kingdom's University of Bristol found that when a child's fat cells mature, if fructose is present, more of the cells mature into fat cells in belly fat. In addition, the cells are less able to respond to insulin in both belly fat and in subcutaneous fat located below the skin.
“Our results suggest that high levels of fructose, which may result from eating a diet high in fructose, throughout childhood may lead to an increase in visceral [abdominal] obesity, which is associated with increased cardiometabolic risk,” lead author Georgina Coade said in a statement in June.
3. Get physical
Getting 60 minutes a day of moderate exercise, like brisk walking, helps shrink belly or visceral fat, which lies deep inside the abdomen and surrounds the organs there. Visceral fat is easier to lose than subcutaneous fat — the kind you can grab with your hand — because it is more metabolically active. Health experts say that the more weight you have to lose, the quicker you start to lose your belly fat.
4. Sip green tea
Work out and sip green tea. The combination of green tea and exercise may shrink belly fat better than physical activity alone, according to a study published in the Journal of Nutrition. The research looked at overweight adults who exercised for 12 weeks. Those who exercised and drank green tea daily lost more belly fat. Green tea also seemed to enhance triglyceride control and increase overall weight loss.
Researchers believe the tea’s antioxidant compounds catechins eliminate belly fat by affecting enzymes related to the body’s functions for burning fat and calories, according to realage.com. About seven cups daily should get you the necessary 625 mg of catechins and a little caffeine. (Study participants drank 625 mg of catechins with 39 mg of caffeine.)
5. Skip the sit-ups
Experts say that traditional sit-ups are not the most effective way to tone your stomach. What does help are exercises that work the lower and deeper abdominal muscles. Mayoclinic.com recommends exercises that focus on breathing in and drawing in the bellybutton to firm up your deeper abs and doing pelvic lifts and pelvic tilts to tone the lower abs.
6. Eliminate refined foods
Watch your portions and eat more complex carbohydrates like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, as well as lean protein, rather than refined, sugary foods. And while the Flat Belly Diet and its emphasis on eating “good fats” or MUFAs (monounsaturated fats like nuts, avocados, and seeds) has received a lot of attention lately, some health experts say it’s the diet’s overall regimen, which includes regular exercise and a nutritious and healthy Mediterranean-style eating plan, that is helping people lose weight, including belly fat.
7. Focus on whole grains
Participants in a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition who ate all whole grains as well as two servings of lean meat, fish or poultry, five servings of fruits and vegetables, and three servings of low-fat dairy lost more weight from their abdominal area than study participants who ate the same diet — minus the whole grains. Instead, they ate refined grains. Researchers noted that eating high-fiber whole grains boosts insulin sensitivity, helping the body more efficiently use blood glucose, lowering blood glucose levels, and decreasing fat deposits, nutrition experts say.
8. Drop 10 pounds
Gaining even a little extra weight around your middle can hinder the function of the cells that line blood vessels, increasing your risk for high blood pressure and blood vessel disease, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. These cells, known as endothelial cells, control the vessels’ ability to contract and dilate, which controls blood flow. The good news is that the function of the vessels of participants studied returned to normal after they lost nine pounds.
9. Remain calm
When the body is stressed it releases hormones, including cortisol, which is associated with increased appetite and fat production, typically around the belly. So consider ways of heading off the stress-inducing scenarios that occur in your life. If you’re overworked at the office, ask your supervisor to help you prioritize tasks, advises That’sFit.com. When the actions of someone frustrate you, take a brisk walk and breathe deeply.
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