- There is a need for people to know the healthy approach to reduce belly fat
- TheRadar provides 10 healthy ways to reduce belly fat
- The healthy ways to reduce belly fat include eating soluble fibre, eating proteins, reducing the intake of sugary foods, reducing stress, and getting good quality sleep.
Also, having too much belly fat can be chronic to a person's health. Therefore, it is important to know healthy ways to reduce belly fat in ways that will not deteriorate the current state of your health.
If you have been looking for ways to reduce belly fat, relax! Your goal is attainable. Here are some 10 healthy ways to reduce belly fat, these approaches can be used by both men and women for notable results.
10 healthy ways to reduce belly fat
1. Engage in plenty intake of soluble fibre
Soluble fibre helps in slowing digestion by forming a gummy gel. It also helps to lower cholesterol and blood sugar level in the body. Generally, Fibres are obtained from plant foods. Examples of food that contain fibres include: oats, peas, beans, apples, citrus fruits, carrots, barley, broccoli, lentils, blackberries and psyllium. You can check the Nutrition Facts label on packaged foods to see the quantity of fibre you will get from the food.
Medical experts recommend getting 14 grams of fibre per 1,000 calories. That is about 28 grams of fibre per day, if you get 2,000 calories daily. According to Dr David Creel, “If you’re eating foods that are more fibrous, you’re typically eating fewer processed foods in general,”
2. Eat plenty of proteinous meal
Protein is one of the classes of food that helps you feel satiated and lower hunger hormone levels. They help you eat less at your next meal. According to Dr Creel, “Protein is also important to building lean muscle, which is important to losing weight, including belly fat.”
He added that protein should be included when munching between meals. “Snacks are where we tend to overeat. Try having a Greek yogurt or string cheese, which can make you feel more satisfied.”
Examples of foods that are highly proteinous include: Turkey, fish, eggs, dairy products (like low-fat versions of yogurt, cheese and milk), tofu, and beans.
3. Avoid plenty intake of sugary foods
Consuming too much added sugar contributes to adding excess weight that is likely to accumulate around the waist line and increase belly fat. Therefore, reducing sugar intake helps in reducing belly fat.
Fun fact, it is not only popular snacks like candies, cookies, beverages and cakes that contain sugar; some other foods have sneaky sources of sugar such as: cereals, Protein bars, barbeque sauces, pasta sauce, and Salad dressings.
4. Engage in regular exercise
In the words of Leanna Ross, a medical expert, “The target goal is the amount of exercise, as in minutes per week. Within that, crunches and core strengthening activities are absolutely crucial for us to do for our health, strength, and balance, but a crunch is not going to burn the same number of calories as a brisk walk or body weight resistance exercises.”
He added that “To achieve clinically meaningful weight loss of 5% of your current body weight with exercise alone, you would need to aim for at least 225 minutes [3.75 hours] and sometimes up to 420 minutes [7 hours] of weekly exercise.
Also, Medical experts have added that aerobic exercise (cardio) is an effective way to improve your health and burn calories especially in the belly.
Aerobic exercise is a physical activity that uses large muscle groups in your body, it is usually rhythmic and repetitive. Examples of aerobic exercises include walking, cycling and swimming. Aerobic exercise reduces your risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
5. Reduce stress rate
Stress can affect your whole body, including increasing fats in the waistline. The body releases a hormone called cortisol as a result of stress. Cortisol helps the body do what it needs to in order to survive a stressful situation. Constant stress with no outlet can lead to excess levels of cortisol in the body. According to Dr Khadanga, “The cortisol in and of itself contributes to weight.” Stress also contributes to people reaching for comfort foods rather than more healthy foods.
6. Avoid late-night eating
Eating before bed is one of the unhealthy habits that increases belly fat. Avoiding late-night eating helps in reducing belly fat. According to Dr David Creel, a medical practitioner, “Some people find it helpful to have a cutoff time for eating, especially at night.”
He added that: “Some people will stop eating after 6 or 7 p.m. because they know nighttime is when they overconsume and engage in mindless eating.” Eating during the day helps to burn calories as extra calories at the end of the day get stored as fat while you sleep and contribute to weight gain.
7. Have a good consistent sleep
According to Sherrie Khadanga, MD, an expert and experienced cardiologist and assistant professor of Medicine at the University of Vermont Medical Center in South Burlington, “Not getting the appropriate amount of sleep, which is 7 to 8 hours a night, is associated with greater visceral fat mass,” He added that: “If you lack sufficient sleep, you have a much higher risk of having visceral abdominal fat, compared to those who have normal sleep patterns.”
In a study of 5,151 men and women ages 18 to 59, those who got more sleep (up to 8 hours a night) had less visceral belly fat. However, more than 8 hours a night did not bring more benefits to those who did.
Another small study looked at why too little sleep expands the waistline. Researchers observed 12 healthy adults who did not have obesity.
“They stayed in a clinic for 3 weeks. During that time, they could eat what they wanted and move around the clinic as they pleased, but their sleep was limited. When they were only allowed to sleep for 4 hours a night, compared to 9 hours, they ate more (specifically, fat and protein) and they did not move around more than when they had gotten more sleep. That added up to weight gain during the sleep deprivation part of the study. And while their overall body fat percentage did not rise during sleep deprivation, they did have measurable increases in both subcutaneous and visceral belly fat.”
8. Avoid drinking alcohol and smoking
This is why it is called a “beer belly”. Alcohol contains lots of sugars that can lead to visceral fat and can slow the metabolism in the body. Specifically, for people above 50 years, the effect is even more pronounced. To reduce belly fat, you have to reduce or preferably avoid drinking alcohol intentionally.
9. Drink water
Drinking water does not directly help reduce belly fat but helps in weight loss, which eventually helps to reduce belly fat. Water helps to reduce belly fat because hydration makes you more able to do exercise. You need water to burn fat. Dehydration interferes with the body's ability to break down fat and turn it into fuel. On the other hand, water acts as a zero-calorie substitute for high-calorie beverages, carbonated and soda drinks.
10. Eat frequent but smaller meals
Having smaller meals more often helps train the metabolism to work faster and more efficiently, which helps you burn excess weight. The end result will help in reducing belly fat.
9 tips for a healthy digestive tract
Meanwhile, TheRadar previously wrote on tips that can help you achieve a healthy digestive tract.
The digestive system could be why you are exceptionally focused and feel great on some days and uncomfortable and bloated on others. It is important to look after the health of the gut and maintain the right balance of these microorganisms, as this is vital for physical and mental health and helps build immunity.
