How to lose stubborn belly fat fast?

This is the number one question I get asked every single day! From men and women. And before I get into my personal recommendations, let me just say this – there is NO fast way to lose belly fat. Unless you undergo liposuction (which I’m not even going to get into!) you have to be patient and consistent with the points below! Please trust me, consistency really is key!

You cannot spot reduce fat. There is no magic ingredient that helps you burn fat. There is no magic exercise that will help you burn belly fat. There are no diets to spot reduce fat. The body doesn’t work like that. You can’t decide you want to lose fat from your belly, and then your body magically loses it from that area. I wish it worked like that! But it just doesn’t!

So, it’s important before you read on, that I make that really clear. I’ve tried everything over the years and done a ton of research, and nothing will change the fact that we cannot spot reduce fat!

Often where people go wrong is, they start the process of trying to lose weight, and if they don’t see changes in 4-6 weeks they quit. They think it doesn’t work, they get bored or frustrated and so they stop. I want you to remember, that if you just keep going with it consistently, it’s at this exact point you will start to see changes.

I’ve been through my own core transformation. For years I couldn’t shift my own belly fat. Whatever I did, it was always there. I thought I was doing the right things but in reality, I had it wrong. I tried so many different methods and quick fixes and diets and hours of cardio and millions of sit ups. Finally, just this year, it finally clicked for me! So now I want to share what I’ve learnt with you, with my personal recommendations to help you achieve the same:

Calorie Deficit:

Do - You cannot lose belly fat (or body fat) without being in a calorie deficit. This simply means, you eat less, and burn more. For example, the general recommended daily intake for a female adult is 2,000 calories. This obviously varies depending on your age, lifestyle and size. A calorie deficit would mean dropping this slightly, to say 1500-1600 calories, and increasing overall daily activity. Over the period of a week, a month etc, this additional energy expenditure, and slight reduction in calories adds up. So, if you want to lose belly fat – be in a calorie deficit.

Don’t – Calorie deficit does not mean you need to cut out any food group. You are simply reducing calories. For example, instead of 2 tablespoons of peanut butter, have 1. Instead of eating the whole pack of almonds, have 1/3 less.

Nutrition:

I coach many clients on nutrition, and it never fails to surprise me how varied people’s understanding is of what to eat and when to eat. There are so many inaccurate diet myths and fad diets being marketed or sponsored by celebrities which are harmful and confusing. Firstly, I don’t believe in fad diets, or fad shakes or any of that. They are completely pointless, a waste of time, and not sustainable long term. It disappoints me when people say they don’t have money for a gym membership or to eat healthily. Yet they are willing to spend money on fad diets and shakes which are not necessary.

Do - To help you lose belly fat and uncover your hidden abs, you have to consistently eat a balanced healthy diet. This doesn’t mean live on salad, and no carbs and none of the foods you enjoy eating. This means balance! So, 80% of what you consume is healthy, and 20% is a little more of what you fancy.

Do – Reduce saturated fats, refined foods, avoid high calorie processed ingredients.

Do - Replace all of this with a healthy amount of protein, fat and carbs. YES, CARBS ladies! I see it all too often. People cutting out food groups because they fear it will make them fat. Carbs don’t make you fat. Fats don’t make you fat. Protein doesn’t make you fat. Eating too much (exceeding your calorie intake) makes you fat. Simple as that. What matters is how much you eat. And of course what you eat matters too. The quality of what you eat, has a direct impact on your overall health and immunity. So, eating carbs is NOT going to make you fat.

Do - Aim for a healthy balanced diet. Include protein, carbs and fats in every meal. I also recommend increasing your overall protein intake. Protein will make you feel fuller for longer, and also helps with overall growth and recovery in the body. This doesn’t have to just be sourced from meat, it can be plant based.

Digestion:

Do - What you eat can play a huge role in overall gut health. For example, I’ve worked with people who were not consuming sufficient fibre in their diet, and through no fault of their own (not everybody knows how much is required!) were suffering from constipation, so include fibre rich foods (dark green veggies, chia seeds, sweet potatoes etc) in your diet.

Do - Salt (sodium) is another culprit of excess bloating. Salt can make the body retain water, which can make us feel heavy and bloated around the belly. Reduce salty foods, and season food just lightly with salt.

Do - To help support overall digestion health, drink plenty of water (aim for 2-2.5 litres per day, more if active) which will help keep you hydrated and reduce any bloat. Also, consider taking a probiotic each day (healthy bacteria) which may help reduce unnecessary bloating, and support overall healthy digestion. I start every single day with a lemon (fresh) and ginger tea. It contains powerful antioxidants and just gives the metabolism a boost. Ginger is also an anti-inflammatory, so if I feel bloated it helps to ease it.

Don’t - I also get asked a lot about for my opinion on keto, paleo and vegan diets, and also intermittent fasting. I’ll address these in a separate blog. But in a nutshell, you do not need to put yourself on a restrictive diet in order to lose fat. No diet is superior to another. Obviously if you have medical conditions (diabetes) then yes, there are benefits to keto in terms of controlling blood sugar as an example.  

If you are interested to conduct a nutrition assessment, to compare where you stand in terms of recommended daily intakes, or want to lose overall body fat, share your details on my website and I’ll be touch!

Alcohol:

Don’t - YES! There are calories in alcohol! And they add up over a week. There can be up to 228 calories in just 1 large glass of red wine. So, if you’re having “just a couple of glasses” (I find people often undercount the amount they are actually consuming, and that a couple is likely 4-5!) this all adds up.

Do - If you’re looking to reduce belly fat, cut out the alcohol or opt for lower calorie options (a gin and slimline tonic contains just 88 calories for example.) Alcohol affects your metabolism, therefore shifting your hormonal balance. So, if you’re looking to lose belly fat, lose the booze!

Stress:

I cannot stress (pun intended!) this point enough. High stress levels can be a negative trigger for overall physical (and mental) health and result in weight gain. I call this ‘stress fat.’

Here’s what happens – when you are stressed out, the brain sends a signal to the adrenal glands (found in the kidneys) which then release cortisol (stress hormone) and adrenaline into the body. Think of ‘fight or flight mode.’ The cortisol then goes on to prepare the body for whatever stressful event it thinks is coming, by producing a load of glucose (sugar) into the blood. Obviously, this is helpful in instances when you might need to run away from something, but in most cases, our stress is not life threatening, but the body reacts in the same way as if it was.

If you are always stressed, your body is going to experience high levels of cortisol. This will result in the fat around the body being redistributed to around your abdomen. ‘Visceral fat.’  So, to be clear, visceral fat is not the fat outside of the abs which is stopping them from being visible. This is the fat inside the body pushing out your abdomen, often resulting in a tummy ‘bulge’ or ‘pouch.’

Do - Lack of sleep is also stress on the body. It’s advisable to get 7/8 hours per night, so I’d recommend prioritising your sleep, and doing what you can to make it good quality sleep.

Don’t - High stress or chronic stress also increases your hunger, and most of the time we’ll reach for ‘comfort’ food which is highly processed and calorific. I use to do this all the time. When I finally made a conscious decision to lead a less stressful lifestyle and prioritise my health, I managed to reduce my visceral fat and also improved my overall physical health.

Do - You can clean up your nutrition all you want, and be in a calorie deficit, but if you are not managing your stress levels, you’ll likely experience slow to no weight loss.  Consider meditation, or going for walks, listening to music etc.

Exercise & Activity:

There is no magical exercise that will help you reduce belly fat. Doing 1000s of sit-ups a day also won’t work (I’ve tried!) If you have a layer of fat around the belly, sit-ups won’t make your abs pop unfortunately.

Do - Exercise is integral to overall health and wellbeing and if you want to burn calories, you need to move. This doesn’t mean you need to kill yourself doing hours of cardio on the treadmill or the cross trainer. Going for a walk burns calories! Choose a form of exercise you like and work it into your day.

Do - My personal recommendation, is that you incorporate different exercise techniques to help you burn fat and help work towards uncovering your abs. Start incorporating circuit training in to your workouts. High intensity internal training (HIIT) is also incredibly effective for overall fat loss as it burns more calories.

Do - Start lifting weights or doing resistance training. A lot of women I meet, or start working with for the first time, are sometimes apprehensive to do any form of weight training for fear of ‘looking bulky’ and gaining weight. This is NOT the case ladies. It takes a LONG time to build muscle. And us females do not have the same level of testosterone as males, meaning lifting weights alone is not going to make you fat, or look ‘bulky.’ It’s going to help you build lean muscle, which will actually HELP you lose fat!

Do - Another tip, is to increase your overall daily ‘NEAT’ (non exercise activity thermogenesis.) This is basically all activity that isn’t exercise. For example, walking up the stairs, walking instead of getting the lift, popping to the shops (NOT to buy snacks!) carrying shopping, doing housework, cleaning your car etc. Just moving around and increasing your heart rate and the amount of energy you burn.

Do - Most people have fitness trackers these days which can track daily steps. Aim to hit between 8000-10,000 daily, or more if you enjoy walking! So, get off your SEAT and increase your NEAT!  

To summarise, there is no secret ingredient to help you lose belly fat. There is no diet to help you lose belly fat. There is no special exercise to lose belly fat. It’s about being healthy overall, and taking a holistic view (considering all above) and being consistent. Just stick with it, and reap the benefits that come!

If you are interested to learn more, or looking for a health & fitness coach to help you, get in touch on my website www.flexwithfatz.com. I’d love to help you achieve your goals!