5 Tips for a Flatter and Attractive Stomach
Take a good look at your stomach. How is it? Is it as bloated as a pumped balloon or flat as a 4-inch plank? If your answer is the latter, you have nothing to worry about. You can wear a crop top or a singlet (while showing off your sexy tummy) and walk around the streets feeling as proud as a celebrity. You can also care less about belly-fat-related conditions, as you are deemed to be in the safe circle. But, if your answer is the former, that is, you have lots of skin hanging on your tummy pleading to be shed, then you need to act fast..
But how do you act? How do you shed that stomach fat that keeps nudging your shirt and poses harm to your health? Of course, the internet holds lots of information on how to go about it, some of which are fake or unachievable. If you really want to lose belly fat, you need to try out tips that experts recommend. And that is what we have in store for you. Below are five surefire tips to help your flatten bulging tummy for good.
What is belly fat?
It is a very common term. But, regardless of how common it is, we discovered that not everyone understands what belly fat really is. Considering this, we have decided to provide you with a terse and on-point definition of belly fat.
Belly fat isn’t the loosed skin you see around an individual’s tummy. Instead, belly fat is regarded as the surplus abdominal fat around the organs in your stomach. There are about three categories of fat: visceral fat (dangerous), triglycerides (the fat that transports your blood), and subcutaneous fat (the layer directly underneath the skin’s surface).
Worthy of note is that visceral fat can be found underneath the muscle in your stomach and poses several dangers to your health when in excess.
Causes of belly fat
Now that you have a little understanding of what it is, you may be anxious to know its cause. If that is the case, here are a few causes of fat stomach.
Poor diet: Poor diet is the number one cause of fat stomach. Wrong food choices like cakes, candy, and sugary drinks all contribute to a bulging tummy.
Excess alcohol intake: Alcohol has some benefits. However, as it stands, it seems its disadvantages outweigh its benefits. As perceived, one of the disadvantages of excessive alcohol intake is belly fat.
Lack of exercise: When you exercise, you burn calories. The result of this is reduced belly fat. If you don’t exercise, the reverse is the case.
Stress: Stress is associated with several conditions, and belly fat is one of them. The hormone released post-stress affects individuals’ metabolism, causing excess calories to remain around the belly region and other areas for later use.
How do you shed belly fat?
1) Consume a lot of soluble fiber
Soluble fiber acts like foam. It sucks up water and forms a gel that helps delay food as it moves through your digestive system.
Research proved that soluble fiber aids weight loss by helping you feel full, so you end up eating less. It may also reduce the number of calories your body takes in from food. But that’s not all. Soluble fiber may help tackle belly fat. Considering this, you should incorporate food that contains high fiber in your diet.
Good sources of soluble fiber are:
- Legumes
- Blackberries
- Brussels sprouts
- Flax seeds
2) Exercise
I bet you saw this one coming. In fact, this article wouldn’t be complete if we had omitted “exercise”. Exercise, as we all know, boasts of several therapeutic properties. It can help reduce your risk of heart disease, improve your mental health and mood, reduce your risk of some cancers, and of course, help you shed stomach fat.
Exercises like walking, crunches, vertical leg exercise, cycling, including Chloe Ting Workout, can help you melt belly fat. Aside from that, these exercises can also promote your health and wellbeing.
3) Cut down on alcohol
If you want to live long, you should consider reducing your alcohol intake. In addition, if you want to reduce belly fat, you might want to limit your alcohol intake. Mind you, this doesn’t mean having a sip of alcohol is bad; no, it isn’t. Alcohol is only dangerous for your health when consumed excessively.
In fact, based on studies, it is known that excessive alcohol can make you gain belly fat, aside from other severe illnesses (high blood pressure, heart disease, etc.). Also, too much alcohol can increase your risk of developing central obesity, which is waist fat. So make up your mind now and cut down your alcohol intake.
4) Consume high protein diet
Weight management and protein go hand in hand. High protein consumption raises the release of the fullness hormone PYY, which reduces appetite and aids fullness. Aside from that, protein also increases your metabolic rate and helps you keep muscle mass during weight loss.
Based on several observational research, individuals who consumed more protein tend to have less stomach fat than their counterparts ( those who consumed lower protein).
Ensure you include one of the following proteins in your daily meal:
- Fish
- Whey protein
- Eggs
- Meat
- Beans
5) Don’t overstress yourself.
Stress is associated with several health conditions, including high blood pressure, heart issues, skin conditions, diabetes, asthma, depression, and even belly fat. When you subject your body to so much stress, you gain belly fat by activating the adrenal gland to produce cortisol, synonymous with stress hormone.
And as we mentioned earlier, high cortisol levels raise appetite. When your appetite is at its apogee, you tend to eat more, resulting in abdominal fat storage. If you are a woman with a large waist, you may be more prone to belly fat associated with stress. To help get rid of fat stomach, take part in pleasurable activities that mitigate stress. Engaging in yoga or meditation should do the trick.
Conclusion
Belly fat is associated with several health conditions, thus making it dangerous. Also, you would agree that a bulging tummy does nothing to compliment your overall appearance. There are several ways to get rid of belly fat. But they’ll only work if you put in the work and follow through the tips mentioned above.