Dr. Ahmed Mostaque
Sometimes it takes more than dieting to get rid of your belly fat. It is not that difficult to burn your excess belly fat and shed some weight. Sometimes all it takes for your chubby belly to shrink is a perfect diet and some easy to follow exercise. There are seven types of belly fat and the fastest way to get rid of them is by improving your lifestyle.
Giving up on food and doing intense workout exercise might not work for you. Maybe you need a different approach than simply reducing your food intake and exercising more.
There are a lot of other reasons for your belly to bloat. Belly fat is very dangerous as it is often linked to heart disease. Cardiologists suggest that it is better if you can quickly burn your body fat and get rid of excess fat from your belly.
Not only belly fat is bad for your overall body health but it drains a lot of energy. Let alone it makes your look chubby and unappealing.
Studies have shown that people carrying extra weight and fat in their stomach area have a greater risk of heart attacks and heart-related diseases. So it is better to take precautions and get rid of your belly fat before it is too late.
Types of Belly Fat
There are seven types of common belly fat that are not related to obesity.
- Lower belly fat
- Love handles
- Hormonal Belly
- Stress belly
- Bloated belly
- Beer or Alcohol Belly
- Pregnancy belly
So let’s see how can we get rid of each belly fat faster.
1. Lower Belly Fat
The lower belly fat is very common among skinny people. It is very easy to get rid of this type of fat. If you are skinny with fat layers on your lower belly you probably have lower belly fat. This is often caused by a lower back curve and recent pregnancy. Sometimes can also happen due to heavy eating. But it is quite easy to shed your lower belly fat without even exercising. You just have to maintain a balanced diet for 3 weeks and you can see visible changes in your lower belly fat.
How to lose lower belly fat?
- Have a balanced diet.
- Eat high fiber foods like apples, green vegetables, whole grain bread.
- Drink more water and intake more fluid in general (not sodas).
- Try planking.
- The classic plank and forearms plank are the best exercises to get rid of lower belly fat.
2. Love handles
Love handles or commonly known as muffin tops, is one of the most common types of belly fat. Mostly it happens with men due to sedentary jobs.
Sitting all day in a static position can cause your belly to bloat by storing fat around your torso. Also, heavy drinking can cause you love handles. You can easily prevent it by keep moving and stretching once in a while.
How to lose love handles?
- Stop drinking beer and alcohol generally.
- Eat high protein foods, nuts, avocado, fish.
- Maintain low-carb diet
- Start walking more, use the stairs rather than the elevator
- Also, don’t eat sweets, white bread, and pasta.
3. Hormonal Belly
If your belly feels like a cushion on each side, this means that you have a hormonal failure. It is not common among men. Mostly this happens when there are massive hormonal changes in your body.
How to lose hormonal belly?
- Limit low-fat food
- Increase water intake
- Avoid supplements for a while
- Eat more avocados
- Try eating more fish, nuts and eggs.
4. Stressed Belly
When your stomach is bloated and hard and your upper belly (right below your ribs) spills over your shorts or protrudes when you sit, you may have Stressed-Out Belly Fat.
This stress belly is caused by chronic stress. This is not very common in young people and is a bit difficult to get rid of the stress belly. You might feel uncomfortable or out of breath because of stress belly. Just like the name suggest stressed-out belly fat is caused by stress and lack of sleep.
Sleep deprivation can slow down your metabolism which causes fat to settle in your upper abdomen.
How to lose stressed-out belly?
- Get enough sleep
- Limit your caffeine intake
- Change eating habit
- Eat early dinner
- Try simple stretching 2 hours prior to your meal
5. Bloated Belly
Your stomach might be flat in the morning but at the end of the day, your stomach is bloated.
A bloated belly is caused by dairy, gluten, wheat, fructose, and similar foods consumed during the day. Gas and fluid cause abdominal bloating as these types of foods are digested.
Also, food allergies, slow metabolism, and problems with your gut can cause your stomach to bloat.
How to get rid of a bloated belly?
- A probiotic supplement
- Eat more vegetables and fish
- Limit carb intake
- Drink more water
6. Alcohol Belly
Everyone loves a beer and a glass of wine now and then. Well, except for the Muslims (it is haram, haram, haram). It is okay if you have a glass or two every now and then. But regular drinking can cause your belly to bloat and you will be able to see the changes.
Not only alcohol makes your belly swell, but it also makes you chubby and increases your body weight.
The alcohol will lead to the production of visceral fat, which is the worst type of fat because it sits against the abdominal wall and traps stored fat. Visceral fat is also dangerous because it resides near your important organs.
How to get rid of alcohol belly?
- Limit your alcohol consumption
- Try a keto diet plan
- Detox your body
7. Pregnancy Belly
Your belly looks as if you are still pregnant even though you are not. This is a common one among new mothers. During pregnancy, your body builds up fat to protect the fetus.
After your baby is born, you might have some loose skin and extra fat beneath your waistline from muscles that stretched during pregnancy.
How to get rid of a pregnancy belly?
- Begin belly exercises after 2 months of childbirth
- Add more fish oil to your diet
- Try Breastfeeding
- Increase water intake
- Walk with your baby
- Get more sleep
Bottomline
As you can see, your belly fat can originate from several different health issues. Once you determine what’s causing your belly fat, you can change your approach to successfully get rid of the belly fat and excess fat from your body. It will keep you healthy and make you more active.
