Are you struggling to lose that unattractive belly pouch? Chances are you are doing something wrong. Here, you will find 7 reasons why many people fail to see a chiseled midriff despite working very hard at getting a flat belly. Make sure you are not making any of the following mistakes.
Read more ¿Qué más?: 5 Foods you should NEVER eat
This post was originally published on August 7, 2014.
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1. You are trying to spot reduce
Doing crunches till the morning won't help you lose belly fat; instead do workouts that engage your core muscles. The more you strengthen the muscles on your back, abdomen and obliques, the higher amount of calories you will burn. Holding yourself in a plank position for as long as possible is a great strengthening exercise for your entire body.
2. You are getting older
As you leave your 20's behind, it becomes harder for your body to lose weight. The body chemistry alterations, along with the hormonal fluctuations, make it very difficult to melt that unattractive fat. For example, as you enter your 30's, the amount of human growth hormone that helps in lipid metabolism and muscle building, decreases. To counteract this problem, it is very important to lead an active lifestyle especially as you get older.
3. You are too focused on cardio
Running on a treadmill for hours is the least effective way of losing weight. Traditional cardio just doesn't have a strong enough impact on your waist size. For the best results, it is very important to engage in high intensity interval training (HIIT). This means you alternate between short bursts of high intensity workouts followed by rests periods. This not only burns more calories while you work out, but it also burns calories hours after your workout is complete.
4. You are eating processed foods
No matter how gruesome your workout process is, if you are still eating processed foods, all your weight loss efforts is basically worth nothing. Refined products are designed to cause inflammation in our body. Processed foods loves to live in the form of visceral fat surrounding our major organs. It increases our belly fat, makes us crave more food, increases fat storage, and makes you a prime candidate for heart attack, diabetes, atherosclerosis and other dangerous diseases.
5. You are not sleeping enough
Not sleeping enough increases the level of the hunger hormone in our body, which makes us prone to snacking on unhealthy foods. It also increases our stress levels which causes the level of cortisol to increase in our body. This promotes fat storage and even increases the size of our fat cells.
6. You are eating too much sodium
Too much salt causes bloating. Salt attracts water from your blood to your skin, causing it to puff up. Processed foods such as those in cans and boxes contain loads of sodium. Even salad dressings, meats, and other dairy products such as cottage cheese are filled with it. If you want a flat belly, eliminate foods that might give your belly a bloated appearance.
7. You are drinking too much alcohol
Beer belly is all too common among alcohol drinkers. If you are struggling to get rid of that gut, then alcohol needs to go. Alcohol has no nutritional value but is still very high in calories. When ingested, our liver prioritizes the metabolism of alcohol more than fat oxidation, which means our body burns alcohol while storing fat. Along with that, alcohol also increases our appetite, which means that the chances of finding yourself binging on greasy foods after a booze fueled night is very high.
