Burn Stomach Fat

Burn Stomach Fat

Fat that settles in the stomach and midsection seems to upset dieters more than any other kind of fat. Few outcomes are more frustrating than reaching your final goal only to find a stubborn little pot of flesh still clings to your belly, resisting all efforts to dislodge it.

How can you burn stomach fat after you’ve reached your weight goal and get that flat belly everyone craves?

The only way to burn stomach fat is to exercise, but not every kind of exercise is equally effective. Sit ups, crunches, leg lifts, and yoga poses that focus on the abdominal muscles can all help, but many people neglect the obvious considerations, such as:

• Have you reached your goal weight? Stomach fat is just fat; it doesn’t have any magical properties. Often it is the last fat to go because the stomach is where your body needs the most protection and where it stores extra calories when it is stressed. If you have lost weight but still have more of a belly than you want, you may need to lose another five or ten pounds. You can’t ‘spot reduce’ your tummy alone while the rest of you stays overweight. To lose your stomach fat you have to be very slim.
• Is your goal realistic? Do you really look the Pillsbury Dough Boy or are you being a bit of a perfectionist? Body types vary. Not everyone is built to have six-pack abs or a belly flat enough to balance a wine glass on. Ask yourself if your expectations of your body are realistic. You might just need to give yourself more credit.
• Do you get enough cardio? Most people think of crunches and weight training to burn belly fat, but consciously holding in your stomach while you walk, bike, or run will burn belly fat quickly if you do it for at least 30 minutes per day, at least five days per week. Cardio burns calories and revs up your metabolism even when your body is at rest so it doesn’t store fat around your stomach as quickly or as easily.
• Are you bloated? Sometimes what looks and feels like stomach fat is just gas or water retention. If you become easily bloated, try drinking more water (actually dehydration is what causes a body to hold onto water), and increase your intake of fiber. You can also add a cup of pro-biotic yogurt (like Greek unflavored yogurt) to your daily diet and drink a cup of hot tea or water with the juice of one lemon squeezed into it when you first wake up. This will help you to move your bowels before leaving the house and prevent bloat.
• Are you stressed? If you live with lots of stress in your work life and don’t sleep well, your body will naturally react by storing extra fat around your stomach area. The body does this because stress tells it that food might be in short supply and/or a burst of energy may be needed for survival. It stores fat in the belly to provide that energy. If you think this is happening to you, increase your sleep to at least 7 to 8 hours per night and reduce your stress level as much as you can. Meditation and exercise can help, and so can cutting out nonessential obligations that overbook your life.
• Try yoga. Yoga is a discipline that stresses gentle stretching and deep breathing from the belly that leads to better body awareness and better posture (among other benefits). Most people breath much too shallowly, from high in their chests. Correct breathing starts in the belly and is measured and slow. Simply learning to breath correctly and learning where your muscles are located and how you should stretch and hold them can reduce your belly fat. You rarely see a yoga instructor with belly fat problems.

Learning to burn stomach fat isn’t a big mystery and it doesn’t have to be a major project. Usually a combination of stress reduction, increased activity, better posture and breathing, and more regular bathroom habits will make a noticeable change in only a few weeks. Learning to love the body you have also often has the paradoxical effect of allowing your body to release protective stomach fat without any major effort on your part.

When all else fails, sit-ups and crunches do work. Do lots of repetitions of each exercise, keep your weight lean, and before you know it you’ll have the flat belly of your dreams.