What's the best exercise to lose fat around your belly?
Laura Cartwright, cardiac rehabilitation specialist and exercise physiologist at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, shares the best exercise to lose belly fat along with other helpful weight loss tips.
Studies have shown that people who carry excess belly fatcan face higher risks of heart diseaseand type 2 diabetes. If this applies to you, it’s natural that you’d want to reduce the amount of fatty tissue in this area.
But scientific evidence shows that it’s impossible to reduce fat in one specific area by exercising that body part alone. The body stores fat as triglycerides, which can be used for fuel anywhere in your body, not just in the exercised area.
Doing aerobic exercise while eating a healthy dietis the best way to lose belly fat and overall body fat. This will help to create a calorie deficit (where you use more calories than you consume), which promotes fat loss over time.
Aerobic exercise includes any activity that raises your heart rate such as walking, dancing, running or swimming. This can also include doing housework, gardening and playing with your children. Other types of exercise such as strength training, Pilatesand yogacan also help you lose belly fat.Seated exercisecan be an effective way to burn calories and increase your aerobic fitness levels if you find walking or standing difficult.
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NHS guidelines suggest aiming for at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity per week. Aim to exercise at a level where you become a little out of breath but can still speak in full sentences. Take time to warm up before and to cool down after exercise. If you begin to feel more breathless, slow down and rest.
If you are new to exercise, start slowly and build up gradually. You don’t need to exercise at a high intensity to burn calories. Stressand lack of sleep can also affect fat loss,because they can lead to increases in the stress hormone cortisol, affecting appetite.
Stress-relieving and good sleep-promoting activities can include mindfulness, breathing techniques, and gentle exercise like tai chi and yoga.
Meet the expert
Laura Cartwright is a cardiac rehabilitation specialist and exercise physiologist at Wrexham Maelor Hospital, Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, where she delivers exercise assessment and exercise classes alongside an education programme for cardiac patients.
Aerobic exercise includes any activity that raises your heart rate such as walking, dancing, running or swimming. This can also include doing housework, gardening and playing with your children. Other types of exercise such as strength training, Pilates and yoga can also help you lose belly fat.
Still, to help reduce excess belly fat, moderate your intake and enjoy other beverages with lower sugar content, such as water, unsweetened iced tea, or sparkling water with a wedge of lemon or lime. Fruit juice often contains as much sugar as soda and may contribute to weight gain if consumed in high amounts.
To lose belly fat in one week, you can employ strategies such as running for 25 minutes every day and following a healthy diet. A diet that is low in calories, fats, and sugars will allow the body to burn fat more easily.
A research study states that regular walking helps reduce belly fat, which improves the body's response to insulin. Walking for at least 30 minutes every day allows you to prevent weight gain. It can also strengthen the muscles in your legs and tone your legs.
Unsweetened coffee and green tea are both highly nutritious beverages that can help you reach or maintain a moderate weight. In fact, multiple studies have also shown that drinking coffee and tea may be associated with decreased belly fat and body weight.
Although it's a popular belief, there's no evidence that supports lemon water use for burning belly fat. Drinking lemon water may help with your weight management goals by adding a different way to increase water intake, which may help boost your metabolism.
One reason belly fat is so hard to lose is that it's considered an “active fat.” Unlike some fatty tissue that simply sits “dormant,” belly fat releases hormones that can have an impact on your health — and your ability to lose weight, especially in the waist and abdomen areas.
When regularly consumed, the two substances zingerone and shogaols found in ginger help to burn stubborn belly fat. To achieve lasting results, you must also maintain a balanced diet rich in healthy foods and a regular exercise schedule.
The 30-30-30 rule involves eating 30 grams of protein within 30 minutes of waking up, followed by 30 minutes of low-intensity, steady state cardiovascular exercise. Beyond these steps, the 30-30-30 method doesn't require any changes to other meals or behaviors, restrictions or counting calories.
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Meet the expert
Meet the expert
