10 tips to lose belly fat And Keep It Off
Belly fat can be eliminated or reduced by the same means that other fat can. It just takes the right combination of diet and exercise. There are other factors that can hinder weight loss and cause you to not lose belly fat but retain it. Below are 10 tips that can help you reduce that belly fat and have those abs you’ve always dreamed of:
1. Avoid stress—Research has found that our bodies produce hormones in response to stress. One of these is cortisol. It will cause your body to look for high-calorie food because it thinks it used a lot of energy handling something that was stressful. This will make it extremely difficult to lose belly fat. It’s kind of like tricking your body into thinking it’s had a big workout, when in fact, it’s done nothing but become anxious and upset. Years ago, eating that type of high-calorie food was fine when you were stressed because you used more energy every day working in the fields or on farms. Our ancestors remained thin during stressful times because of their hard work. Now, many of us live more sedentary lives. We simply can’t burn that type of fat intake any longer. When you’re under a large amount of chronic stress, it tells your body to keep on making cortisol. It becomes a vicious cycle. Gaining weight makes you even more stressed, so you produce more cortisol and eat more fattening foods.
You can reduce stress by doing several things. You can get more sleep. The average adult should get at least seven hours of sleep a night. You should keep things that are stressful away from the area you use for sleeping. Don’t do work in bed if you can help it. That area should be for relaxation and rest instead of work.
Simply work at leaving your worries outside the bedroom door. You should also set aside some time to relax each day. By closing your eyes, breathing deeply, and forgetting your worries for a brief period, even if it’s only 15 minutes a day, you can help reduce stress. Exercise will also help by giving you an outlet for the stress. Keeping your blood sugar level will also help.
2. Diet with a friend—Having a “buddy” system when you diet is a great way to lose weight. It helps to have someone keep you in check, but you also have someone you can eat out with that you won’t have to explain you’re dieting to or someone that will be eating fattening foods in front of you. You can help and encourage each other along the way. You can celebrate each success you make as well as the success of your friends.
3. Tell friends/family that you’re dieting—By telling others that you’re dieting, you have them to help keep you in check. Of course, you’ll hear things like, “You’re dieting aren’t you” or “Are you supposed to be eating that,” but it will help you stick to your diet. You’ll also hear things like, “How much have you lost” or “You’re looking so good.” Those things can be very encouraging. Once you’ve made the proclamation that you’re dieting, you’ll feel like you have to prove you can do it, so you’re more apt to stick with it and achieve success.
4. Eat – I know it may seem like a counterproductive measure, but it isn’t. Eating is important when you’re trying to reduce your weight, including trying to lose your stubborn belly fat. Breakfast is extremely important when you’re dieting. Many people will skip breakfast in an effort to lose weight, but that’s one of the worst things you can do. It has been proven that eating about an hour after you wake up can keep your insulin levels steadier and aid in keeping your weight steadier. You don’t want to eat a whole pig and a dozen eggs, but eating a breakfast that is high in fiber and protein can really boost your body metabolism and help you burn fat. Foods like eggs, fresh fruits/vegetables, or peanut butter are better for you than the more sugary things such as breakfast cereals, pancakes, or pastries.
It is also better to eat four to five small meals a day than eat one or two large ones. This way you keep the signal to your body that is going to get fuel. If you don’t, or if you eat at irregular times and in irregular amounts, your body won’t know it is going to constantly get fuel. It thinks it has to store that fat for future energy use. Usually, it will store it right around the midsection. You defeat the purpose of trying to lose belly fat if you don’t eat breakfast.
5. Camouflage your portions—Sometimes, it isn’t how much you eat that makes you full, it’s how much you “think” you’ve eaten. When you have a flat small piece of meat on your plate it seems like you’ve been deprived. If you slice the meat thinly and stack it on your plate, it appears to be a bigger portion, so you think you’ve eaten more. This works for vegetables as well. A small potato sliced up will look larger. You’ll think you’re eating more than you really are.
6. Marinade without oil—If you marinade in oil, the oil is soaked into the food, so naturally, it will be eaten. One recipe for the oil-free marinade is to combine apple juice (about 3 cups) pressed garlic (2 cloves) and soy sauce that is reduced sodium (about 1 cup). Marinating in a healthy manner can greatly reduce the amount of fat you intake.
7. Stir-fry don’t deep fry—Often, people think they’re “stir-frying,” but use so much oil that they might as well be deep frying their vegetables. Instead of using a lot of oil, just use a drop of oil to start. Then, gradually add water and let the vegetables stir-fry in their own moisture. This not only reduces your fat intake, it actually makes the vegetables taste better.
8. Stuff food—If you fill the centers of your food with wholesome ingredients, you’ll be eating as much food, but reducing your caloric intake which will help you lose belly fat. Here are a few examples of this:
• Take your hamburger and scoop a hole in the middle of the meat before you cook it. Fill it with some type of vegetables such as mushrooms, olives, or whatever else you like. Then, if you’ve used the recommended serving size of three ounces, you’ve made it look much bigger, made it be more filling, and made it much leaner. If you would have added more ounces of hamburger to make it that size, it would have been much less healthy.
Stuff your meatballs with grated carrots, zucchini, or squash. This will add vitamins and moisture as well as size to your meatballs without changing the flavor. You’ll be able to make your meatballs bigger, and not add calories and fat.
9. Change the toppings on your pizza—If you must have pepperoni on your pizza, consider adding at least two vegetable toppings. If you do this for every meat ordered as a topping, you’ll have a healthier pizza. You can never eat too many vegetables to help you lose belly fat. The carcinogens in meats that are processed have been found to increase your risk of cancer, so you’ll not only be reducing your belly fat, you’ll be improving your health.
10. Use a healthier, low-fat recipe to replace your “fish-n-chips” recipe—Use white fish such as cod or haddock and cut it into strips. Use sparkling water and self-rising flour for a light batter mix. Fry the strips in a small amount of canola oil. Instead of deep-fried french fries, cut potatoes and bake at 450 degrees in canola oil that you season with things like herbs, salt, garlic, etc.
How many of these tips to lose belly fat have you implied into your everyday life? Please comment below.
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