9 Best Ways To Reduce Belly Fat

Belly fat is medically known as visceral fat. It refers to the excess fat stored by your body, especially in the abdominal area. If this fat increases excessively it may accumulate around your organs and can cause hindrance in natural bodily functions. In addition, it also increases the chance of some severe illnesses like diabetes and heart issues. To learn about the best methods to lose belly fat, keep reading the details below.

How Do You Accumulate Belly Fat?

It is important to balance your body fat with your body weight. Too much or too little are both harmful to your body. Therefore, to maintain a healthy ratio, it is first important to understand how you gain body fat. A few common ways of gaining body fat are:

1. Consuming Sugary Food

Most of the packaged foods and beverages have high sugar content. These added sugar in food products, and beverages are primary sources of excess fat in the body. Consuming such products in high quantities adds to the level of visceral fat in your body. It also spikes the blood sugar level in your body, making you feel hungry frequently. 

2. Low Protein Consumption

Proteins are very helpful macronutrients that promote muscle growth and weight loss in the human body. As protein takes longer to digest, it also helps you stay full for a longer period. Low protein consumption slows down metabolism, thus allowing more fat to be stored in and around the belly. 

3. Inadequate Sleep

Sleeping at regular times and having adequate sleep is very important for a healthy weight and fat balance. Adequate sleep helps your body to rest and perform high energy-consuming functions including digestion. Lack of sleep slows down your metabolism and makes you feel low on energy throughout the day, thus, making you crave more food. 

4. Low Fibre Diet

Vegetables provide a major source of fibre to your body. Lack of enough fibrous foods in your daily diet can result in digestive issues like constipation and hinder the nutrient breakdown process of the body.  A study including 1114 individuals showed a 3.7% decrease in belly fat accumulation with each 10-gram increase in soluble fibre in their diet.

Another study showed that high-fibre whole grains were associated with reduced abdominal fat. On the other hand, refined grains were associated with increased abdominal fat. 

5. Trans Fat

Trans fat is an artificial form of solid fat that is created by adding hydrogen to unsaturated fat. This is a cheap alternative to expensive fat sources like butter. Trans fat is difficult to digest and is usually collected in our body in the form of abdominal fat. 

The natural form of trans fat is very scarce, and most of the trans fat we consume is created artificially. It is the unhealthiest form of fat and is one of the risk factors for illnesses like heart attack & diabetes.

How to Reduce Belly Fat?

Now that you know the effects and risks of belly fat, here is a list of the best ways to reduce belly fat scientifically. However, it is important to understand that there is no magic formula to reduce belly fat instantly. It is a biological process that can be achieved gradually with a well-planned approach. Tips 

1. Lowering Alcohol Consumption

Alcohol consumption is one of the major contributors to belly fat in adults. Unhealthy levels of alcohol consumption can increase your belly fat. Hence it is important to keep your alcohol consumption to not more than 1 drink a day for women and 2 drinks for men. 

2. Eating a High-Protein Diet

High protein consumption is a definitive way to reduce belly fat and stop excess fat from being stored in your body. Proteins help you to retain your muscle mass and release the fullness hormone peptide YY in your body, thus keeping you full for longer. 

Having lower fat content and higher protein content in your meal also allows your body to utilise most of the protein for proper body functions and fats for energy. A few foods that are high in protein are meat, eggs, cottage cheese, soy and peanuts.

3. Avoiding Trans Fat

It is best to avoid all food that has trans-fat as an ingredient. Many packaged products, like bakery items, contain trans-fat. You should check the ingredients of such products before consuming them. 

4. Including Soluble Fibre in Your Diet

Soluble fibre help reduce belly fat in your body by maintaining regular bowel movements and avoiding constipation. These fibres make you feel full and thus help you to eat less, which in turn promotes fat loss. Foods rich in soluble fibre include:

• Black beans

• Lima beans

• Sweet potatoes

• Broccoli

• Turnips

• Pears

• Chickpeas 

5. Exercising

Exercising regularly helps you to meet your daily physical activity requirements and promotes muscle growth and good metabolism. You burn more calories if you exercise regularly, which helps to lose fat gradually. 

Regular cardio and weight training, along with a balanced meal, can effectively help you lose excess fat. Consult with a certified professional to know how to reduce belly fat by exercise.

6. Cutting Down on Sugar

Most products in the market contain added sugar, especially carbonated beverages. Hence it is best to check your daily sugar intake and keep it to a minimum. You can switch to artificial sweeteners or eat whole fruits whenever you crave sweet foods. 

You can also talk to your doctor and add fat burners to your regime.

7. Maintaining a Healthy Sleep Cycle

Having a healthy sleep cycle and resting well contributes significantly to your fat loss journey. Good sleep relaxes your body, keeps you energised, improves digestion, and promotes proper nutrient breakdown.

8. Including Healthy Fat in Diet

Replacing your unhealthy fat intake with healthier options like monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, can help you lose excess fat by making you feel fuller after meals. However, it is important to consume it in moderate amounts and cut down on unhealthy fat simultaneously. Food sources of unsaturated fats include:

• Olive oil
• Canola oil
• Peanuts
• Almonds 
• Pumpkin seeds
• Sunflower seeds

9. Staying Away from Stress

Excessive stress triggers the release of a hormone in your body known as cortisol. Research says high cortisol (stress hormone) levels in your body promote abdominal fat storage in your body and increase appetite. Therefore, it is important to avoid stress as much as possible and engage in stress-releasing activities such as yoga, tai chi, meditation and mindfulness.

Conclusion

Belly fat in excess quantity can be concerning for your health as it wraps around abdominal organs and can cause serious health issues. Therefore, if you want to lose abdominal fat, it is important to understand why fat is accumulated in your body and how to reduce it. Instead of applying quick hacks or blindly following potentially dangerous advice, it is always better to change your overall lifestyle with science-backed methods, as mentioned above.

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Medically reviewed by Dr Sonia Bhatt.