It’s fair to say belly fat can be stubborn and difficult to lose. This isn’t very convenient for most people because it has a way of interfering with their fashion choices.
Jumia Travel shares 6 truths about how to lose belly fat that can help make your attempt to lose your belly fat easier and more successful.
You Need The Weight To Come Off
It’s popular for those peddling belly fat loss tips to emphasize the importance of repeated crunches, reverse crunches, planks, bicycle crunches and ab rollers. Their belief is that to lose belly fat you should work on your stomach muscles more, and honestly one can’t deny that their belief seems pretty logical. But the truth is, all those exercises are going to do is tone the muscles under your belly fat without actually helping you lose it. Think of it this way, these exercises can make your flabby belly firmer but are not likely to reduce its size.
High intensity interval training (vigorous exercises) at least once or twice a week, alongside core exercises, will help you lose fat all over your body which will better help you lose belly fat and get that trim belly you desire. There’s no way to get fat to disappear from only your belly through exercise.
Eat Healthier
Eating healthily involves paying attention to what you eat, when you eat what you eat and how much of what you eat is appropriate. To lose belly fat, you should make peace with the fact that you have to change your eating habits. You aren’t just changing your eating habits for the period you are trying to lose your belly fat, you are changing it for the long haul. This is to ensure that even after the belly fat is gone, it wouldn’t return.
You should watch your portions, avoid junk foods as much as you can (with very occasional indulgences so you don’t lose control), eat more of foods rich in whole grains, eat more vegetables and fruits, eat nuts, seeds, beans, low-fat dairy and lean proteins like poultry, eggs and fish. Be smart about the foods you choose to eat and limit your intake.
Be Physically Active
For some people, simply being more physically active and moving around can help shed weight and trim their bellies without much exercise. Being active is one of the best ways to speed up your belly fat loss, especially if you are able to combine it with exercises.
Try walking around more, move about more at work. Walk instead of taking a bus or bike to your destination if it’s a walkable distance. Go for walks with friends or on your own. Join a dance group if you’re into dance, or register for a training or activity that gets you moving.
The bottom line is you should increase your functional movements and become more physically active to help you trim your belly fat more easily. If you do this right, you can even alleviate those after-exercise pains and cramps. You can also improve your cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, and promote good digestion and regular bowel movements by being physically active.
Get Enough Sleep
Studies have shown that people who don’t get enough sleep tend to gain more weight, which includes belly fat. This is because sleep deprivation increases the levels of the stress hormone ‘cortisol’ in your body which increases your appetite. Unfortunately, when this happens you won’t exactly be hungry for cabbages and spinach. You should thus try to get enough sleep to avoid eating to stay awake or keep yourself active.
Drink More Water
Drink water before meals to help you eat less because most times you aren’t really that hungry, you’re just thirsty. So when you drink some water before your meal, you tend to eat less.
Also you tend to shed weight and lose some of your belly fat when you drink water instead of other beverages that are high in calories and sugar. Learn to replace those drinks with water instead.
For the amount of water you should drink in a day, there’s really no specific amount. Never mind those that advise you to take 8 glasses a day. The amount of water to take depends more on the individual and what your body is comfortable with. Drinking too much water can lead to water toxicity which is bad for your body. For example those who sweat a lot or exercise regularly may need more water than those who don’t. We also get water from many foods and beverages like fruits, tea etc.
In addition, learn to drink water when you are thirsty and drink enough to quench your thirst.
Drink Green Tea
This tea is known to be very good for body, with some referring to it as an ‘exceptionally healthy beverage’.
Green tea contains caffeine and the antioxidant epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) which, from studies, appear to boost metabolism. Some studies suggest EGCG which is catechin may be effective for losing belly fat, and the effect is strengthened when its (green tea) consumption is combined with exercise.
Nevertheless, some studies have also shown that green tea has no effect on the loss of the belly fat. However, it is eventually a very healthy swap for sugary drinks. Consequently, it will lower your sugar and calorie intake and in the end help you shed weight and lose belly fat, especially when you combine it with increased physical activity and exercise. Only be sure not to pack sugar or honey into your cup of green tea.
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