To banish stubborn belly fat, you have to ramp up your workouts. A study published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise found that people who completed a high-intensity workout regimen lost more belly fat than those who followed a low-intensity plan. In fact, the low-intensity exercises experienced no significant changes at all. Subsequent studies have substantiated the benefits of brief bouts of hard training. High intensity workouts mean you're going all out for as long as you can. If this sounds intimidating, think of it this way: you'll burn more calories in less time.
Doing crunches every morning and every night? It's time to switch it up! When you're down to your final inches of belly fat, countless crunches won't necessarily help you reveal a six-pack. In other words, you can't tell your body where to lose fat—even if you exercise your abs every day, that doesn't always make 'em flatter. Instead, Jill suggests doing functional exercises that use the muscles of your entire core—abdominals, back, pelvic, obliques—as well as other body parts.
Planks are her favorite functional exercise—they activate not just your core muscles but also your arm, leg, and butt muscles. Add some movement to the plank, with shoulder taps or leg lifts, and you up the ante even more. Tight deadlines, bills, your kids—whatever your source of stress, having too much of it may make it harder for you to drop unwanted pounds, especially from your middle. And it's not just because you tend to reach for high-fat, high-calorie fare when you're stressed, though that's part of it. It's also due to the stress hormone cortisol , which may increase the amount of fat your body clings to and enlarge your fat cells.
Higher levels of cortisol have been linked to more visceral fat. The National Institutes of Health suggest adults sleep seven to eight hours a night.
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A smaller study also found that those who slept 4. That means they ate more food between meals and were drawn to junk options. If you tend to pack the pounds around your middle rather than your hips and thighs, then you're known as apple-shaped. This genetic predisposition means ridding yourself of belly fat will be harder, Dr. Kashyap says, but not impossible. Again, you can't lose fat only on a certain part of your body. So if your genetics have you carrying it around your middle, focus on losing weight all over, says Dr.
If your testosterone levels are high—something that can occur with polycystic ovary syndrome PCOS —you might have difficulty losing weight. Kashyap says, since there may also be a chance that you are prediabetic or diabetic. Cheskin also says men tend to carry more fat in their bellies than women, who typically find more weight around their lower half. Are you committed to the work needed to lose belly fat? Kashyap says. Save Pin ellipsis More. Start Slideshow.
Image zoom. Credit: GettyImages. Credit: Getty Images. Replay gallery. Start with a beginner strength workout , work your way up to an intermediate program , and possibly even advanced supersets as you progress further. Consider the first 6 weeks of strength training the time when you adjust to your new exercise regimen.
How to Get Rid of Belly Fat | www.nurseryhills.com
That includes everything from learning how to maintain proper form to conditioning your muscles. There's no doubt that any amount of exercise is good for you, but the more you do, the more belly fat you can lose. In one study , researchers measured abdominal fat in people who did different amounts of exercise.
The group who worked out the most about minutes a week and at the highest intensity 80 percent to 95 percent of max heart rate lost the most abdominal fat. However, many people struggle to get even the minimum amount of exercise suggested by experts about 30 minutes of moderate activity a day. In addition, not everyone is equipped, either physically or mentally, for intense, high-impact exercise. If you want to reduce belly fat, but you're not ready for hours of intense exercise, start where you are and build from there.
It takes time to build the strength, conditioning, and endurance to handle high-intensity exercise. Start with what you can do and add more as you can.
11 Ways to Get Rid of Belly Fat—and Not One of Them is 'Doing More Sit-Ups'
In one study , researchers compared interval workouts with steady-state exercise and found that exercisers lost more abdominal fat when doing interval training. That doesn't mean that steady-state exercise isn't important or that you have to do interval training all the time. However, adding intervals to your routine will not only give you better results but help you push your limits and keep your workouts a little more exciting.
Try these ideas for adding intervals to your routine:.
As you build endurance and strength, you may be able to add more interval training to your workout routine. Since cardio exercises and strength training can help, it makes sense that including both in your weekly routine would reduce belly fat even more.
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There are a variety of ways to set up a cardio and strength routine, including:. When setting up your routine, you may need to experiment to find a schedule that works for you. Just remember, you don't want to work the same muscles two days in a row, although you can do cardio on consecutive days. A sample routine may look like this:. Ab exercises may be the least important thing you do to lose weight from your midsection, although strengthening your abs is just as important as working on the other muscles in your body.
The key to losing belly fat, however, is more about creating a calorie deficit. Overall, your body will lose weight in the belly area and elsewhere when you consume fewer calories than you burn through energy expenditure—daily activities including exercise and non-exercise movement. When you do work your abs, treat them like any other muscle group. Don't forget, some whole-body exercises work your abs while targeting other muscles, which saves time and makes your workouts more functional. Whole grains are a great source of fiber and are proven to help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
What makes them even better is they may actually help reduce fat around the belly. In one study , researchers followed a group of obese men and women.
8 Ways to Get Rid of Belly Fat
The men and women were randomly assigned to two groups: One group was told to get all of their grain servings from whole grains , and the other to avoid whole-grain foods. The whole-grain group lost more body fat around the abs than the other group. The U. Below are some examples of single whole-grain servings:. You can also try some of the more unusual whole grains, such as quinoa or wheat berries. Moderate wine consumption may provide some health benefits.
One possible benefit is a smaller waist circumference. In one study , researchers found that moderate wine drinkers show the lowest accumulation of ab fat among drinkers. Liquor drinkers and people who drink infrequently, but heavily, have the most abdominal fat. If you don't drink, that doesn't mean you should start. Alcohol adds extra calories to your diet, so cutting it out can help with weight loss.
If you do drink, however, this is a good time to assess your habits. Drinking wine, in moderation, may serve you better than hard liquor, especially if you're watching your weight. Remember to always drink responsibly. Looking to lose weight? Our nutrition guide can help you get on the right track.
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Sign up for our newsletter and get it free! The effects of a whole grain-enriched hypocaloric diet on cardiovascular disease risk factors in men and women with metabolic syndrome. Am J Clin Nutr. Inactivity, exercise, and visceral fat.