How To Lose Belly Fat And Keep It Off

You take out those pants, you know the ones. Your 'goal' pants. They are the pants you use to wear, but swear up and down you will again. Soon. Yet, you put them on and you can't zip them up because your stomach is spilling out over them! Ugh! Everything you've tried isn't helping get rid of it either! It is enough to frustrate you and make you feel hopeless.

Rest assured, however, that you are not alone in this endeavor. Many women experience the same thing. The internet has a vast amount of information, but you often find it contradicting itself. Your first thought might be, why is that? Well, that is because many people have various opinions on how to lose belly fat. There isn't just one right way to do it either. There are, however, a few staples that should stay the same across the board in order to achieve your goal of losing that unsightly belly fat.

The first and most important fact that should remain a staple across the boards when it comes to losing belly fat, is diet. If you have ever heard that saying 'abs are made in the kitchen' then you understand what I mean. That is such a true statement.

You definitely want to keep your calories in a certain range, which depends upon your current weight and body specifications. A huge myth is that saturated fat is bad for you. Research has shown the exact opposite. In a 2010 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, it was discovered that there was not enough proof to link saturated fat to strokes or heart disease. This study was very thorough. It involve 350,000 people and 21 studies. Everyone prior to this analysis just assumed that the evidence against saturated fat was strong. This goes to show why you shouldn't assume things, because it was dead wrong.

As a matter of fact, when people started substituting saturated fat in their diets, they often put something far worse in its place. People who have reduced their fat intake, eat more carbs, which is definitely not a good thing. Your body will crave the nutrients it is not getting, especially if you eat a lot of hollow substances that doesn't give your body that 'full' feeling. Saturated fats do just that. They give you a 'full' feeling. When you have a higher intake of carbohydrates, such as pasta, grains, starchy vegetables and fruit, those carbs break down into glucose. This causes your body to release insulin, which is great at helping your body store fat!

Unrefined carbs seem to slip past most people's radar because they are often labeled as healthy for you. Unrefined carbs like whole-grain and pasta, however, are worse than fatty foods for your heart. Think about this. It has been proven that a diet in whole grains is less healthy than a diet that is higher in meat and cheese. A high fat and low carb diet is better all around for obesity and heart disease.

Stress. Stress. STRESS! Did you know you can have high levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, without actually being stressed. If you have ingested something, such as sugar or caffeine, that elevates your heart rate you may have also elevated your levels of cortisol. People with higher levels of cortisol tend to carry excess belly fat or visceral fat. Foods that are high on the glycemic index causes a rapid spike in your blood sugar, which triggers cortisol when your blood sugar crashes. In order to help keep your cortisol levels stable, choose foods that are low on the GI index, preferably with a rating of 55 or less.

Calcium is very important to weight loss. If your body is low in calcium, it will produce a hormone that triggers the storage of fat. The recommended daily dose of calcium, for an adult, is 1000milligrams. You can attain calcium from various food sources, such as collard greens, broccoli, sardines with the bones, and almond/soy/rice milk.

It is no secret that green tea is great for weight loss as well. A 2012 study in the Journal of Functional Foods stated that people who drank one and a half cups of green tea that had 609 mg. of catechins everyday for 12 weeks lost almost 16 times as much visceral fat as those who drank green tea without the added antioxidants. Catechins are a group of antioxidants that have been shown to aid in the burning of fat cells.

Now we talk about the exercises. You didn't think abs were only made in the kitchen did you? They only start in the kitchen. Exercises will help burn that fat off as well. Core exercises will help to strengthen your abs, chest and back, which essentially is your core. Keep in mind, however, that core exercises will not banish the fat that lies underneath them. That fat will only diminish with cardio. You need to make sure you get in at least some moderate cardio every week, roughly 30 minutes six days a week. That will ensure you do not gain anymore belly fat. If you want better results, then up your intensity for the same amount of time. Interval training is a great way to maximize your workout. Interval training is when you alternate between high intensity and low intensity.

Upon establishing a good cardio routine, you can start implementing a strength training regime. Gradually build up your weight over time, but remember to space out your workouts. You will need to skip a day in between your strength training workouts so that your muscles can heal. This time allows your muscle fibers to heal and prepare for your next workout session. Muscles help burn fat, even when you are resting. So it is essential to your belly blasting goal to attain them and also keep them.

I am a firm believer in squats. I love squats! When I do weighted squats, I can feel it in my entire core, my legs, and my glutes. It is a great way to hit multiple areas in one workout. If you follow all these steps then you are sure to banish that belly fat and fit into those 'goal jeans' once again.