Do carbs cause belly fat?
Nothing is more intimidating than trying to lose belly fat. For everyone, it is a long, painful, and arduous operation. And there’s a fair chance you’ve done all under the sun to get rid of belly fat and feel completely safe in your life.
Losing belly fat is a common weight-loss target for many people. This is due to the fact that while the rest of the body may appear to be in good condition, many people feel that their larger bellies are a source of contention.
Can you lose belly fat alone?
Belly fat is thought to be the most harmful form of fat. People with larger bellies are more susceptible to a variety of diseases. According to Harvard Medical School, this involves asthma, heart disease, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and dementia. However, losing weight in your stomach region is not as easy as it might seem.
In reality, the principle of “spot reduction,” or weight loss in a single body part, is pseudoscientific. As weight is lost, it is lost from the entire body, not just from one part of it. Granted, as you lose weight, certain parts of the body may appear smaller than others (for example, many women may experience weight loss in their breasts before noticing any significant changes elsewhere, but this still depends on the person).
You’re not alone in that journey—so many other people struggling with losing belly fat and keeping it off.
So if you are not able to lose weight in just your stomach, are there some tricks that you can do to make it at least look like you have?
These are the things that we think have the most impact on healthy weight loss that keeps the weight off.
Cut down on your carbs, not fats.
Keeping track of your calories rather than thinking about how much fat is in your food will help you lose weight in a healthy way. The effects of losing weight through a low-carb diet versus a low-fat diet on the heart were studied by Johns Hopkins researchers, who discovered that those on low-carb diets lost an average of 10 pounds more than those on low-fat diets over the course of six months, despite the fact that both diets contained the same number of calories.
Change your thinking
One of the hardest parts of any weight loss journey is your mindset. Mindset can be a potent tool in your toolbox. Believe that you’re doing something you love because you are. Don’t approach a diet as something that feels like a chore, but rather something that is merely working toward building a better you. One that looks after you because you love yourself to do just that.
Know your calories
Knowing how many calories you’re putting into your body can be crucial to your weight loss journey. If you take the approach of just eating low-carb foods and gorge on snacks that fit that profile, you could end up eating over 2,500 calories in a day. Many apps out there can help track how many calories you should be eating based on your weight, body type, and height. Work to keep track of your calories, and if you’re eating under what you should be – in a healthy manner – then you’ll discover that you’ll naturally shed weight. It’s a long process, but worth it in the end.
Stay active
Even 20 minutes of exercise three times a week will make a significant difference in your weight loss. Take a mile-long stroll three days a week and keep doing it. To get rid of belly fat, you don’t have to sprint until your legs fall off. Keep going and trusting in the end product.
Stay away from processed foods.
Your body will thank you for eating more organic and natural foods on a regular basis. It will also love you by helping you lose weight. Trans fats, sugar, and extra salt and sodium in processed foods are all things you don’t want in your body.
Trying to lose weight is no easy feat. You’ve most likely tried about every option. There is every fad diet, every lifestyle change you could learn about.
How to look slimmer
Although there is no way to slim the midsection on its own, there are a few things you can do to give yourself a slimmer overall appearance. The first step, if at all necessary, would be to lose weight. This decreases fat in your body, including your abdomen, making it seem less prominent. Drinking plenty of water on a daily basis will help you eat less and lose weight in the long run.
Exercising, and especially toning, will help a lot as well. Building muscles around the core will give a more muscular appearance, thus hiding some of the fat from view. These exercises can also help with other issues you might be facing, such as back pain, or fatigue.
There are some small studies that suggest that the consumption of simple carbs, trans fats, and saturated fats increase the potential for belly fat. Harvard and other nutrition experts believe that the reduction of these in your diet and replacing them with whole plant foods and lean proteins, can help to reduce abdominal fat specifically.
However, there is no support for this, and most of the studies are animal studies or observational studies. Often, before beginning any exercise or diet program, consult with a registered dietitian. Being safe is important, and we should all do whatever we can to be as healthy as we can, but it’s also important not to get too worked up over some belly fat. In fact, stress may actually just make it worse.
You may even try weight loss pills to add a little extra to your dieting. They sound great when you hear about them, a tablet you can take to cut the fat away without having to do the hard work?
Thinking about using a weight loss pill? Let me stop you right now.
The truth about weight loss pills is that no pill makes you directly burn fat. While there are supplements out there that you can take to help increase your metabolism, instant and magical fat burning isn’t something that exists in “fat-burning” weight loss pills. Read more about weight loss pills here.
So overall keeping track of these details during your weight loss journey will help you lose the stubborn belly fat you’ve been trying to get rid of for years. And keep on, aware that it won’t happen immediately, but you’re doing it because you want to. Try these suggestions, and you’ll be well on your way to losing weight.
