You’ve
tried everything – fasting, deliberate starvation, water therapy and
beans-only diet – but that potbelly does not seem to budge.
You have invested in some weight loss
pills and herbs, but that waistline seems to be growing wider each day.
Indeed, no matter what diet you follow and what exercise you do, you
can’t seem to get rid of your paunch.
You are not the only one. The battle of
the bulge is one of the biggest dietary challenges of the 21st century,
according to experts.
The belly is the part from which most
people would want to lose fat; but, sadly, it is often the last area to
give way in the race to reduce body weight.
Beating the belly bulge as you grow
older almost seems impossible and frustrating. However, Chief
Cardiologist with Memphis Heart Centre, United States of America, Dr.
James Arthur, says you must not give up for the sake of your health and
longevity.
Arthur states that excess belly fat is more dangerous than excess fat around the hips and thighs.
He says, “Belly fat can lead to serious
health problems. Studies and research have proven that excess fat in the
abdominal area could result in a constellation of killer diseases such
as heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.”
The physician adds that though being
overweight is hereditary, poor lifestyle choices is the major reason why
many could not fight accumulating fat in their abdominal area.
As impossible as it seems, though, you
can shed that bulging belly without breaking the bank. Health and
Fitness Instructor, Jo Mattew, in her book, Bust the Belly, gives some
stress-free lifestyle changes that can help you achieve your goal of
possessing a flat tummy. Here are some:
Get more sleep
Getting enough sleep is very important
if one is looking to beat the bulge. Studies have shown that people who
don’t get the recommended eight hours of sleep eat more than those who
do get the recommended eight hours sleep.
Mattew says, “This happens because of
the impact of sleep on your hormones, in particular your hunger hormone,
ghrelin. The higher your ghrelin levels are, the hungrier you become.
Sleep works as a reset for your hormones; so, if you don’t get enough
sleep, then your hormones will be out of balance.”
Relax
Relaxation is essential if you want to
slim down your mid-section. Most people lead extremely stressful lives,
which have a negative impact on hormones, and in turn, their weight.
The fitness expert notes that the
hormone, cortisol, which increases with stress levels, could increase
accumulation of belly fat.
She states, “Just behind the abdominal
wall, you have an organ called the greater omentum. One of its jobs is
to soak up cortisol. When you are stressed, you produce more cortisol
and the organ soaks the hormone and it keeps getting bigger and your
tummy keeps bulging.”
Ditch processed foods
Processed foods are full of toxins that
are harmful to the body. The liver’s job is to detoxify them from your
body, but ingesting toxins on a regular basis won’t help the liver to do
its job effectively.
Mattew adds, “It means that there will
be more toxins that the liver cannot work on. When this happens, they
need to be stored in the body. Unfortunately, the toxins are stored in
your fat cells and, in particular, an organ behind your abdomen called
the greater omentum. This is the reason people have a hard pot belly
rather than it being soft and flabby.
“If you are losing weight but struggling
to lose the hard bulging belly, then you need to clean up your diet and
eat organic foods.”
Cut out alcohol
Alcohol is a toxin, experts warn. Just
as eating toxic foods will lead to your greater omentum enlarging and
your pot belly growing, so will drinking alcohol.
Alcohol dehydrates the body, which again
slows down fat loss. It contains a massive amount of calories; and
while alcohol is in your system, you will struggle to burn fat, as your
liver is busy detoxifying alcohol rather than burning fat.
Drink more water
Water is essential in the battle to beat
the belly bulge. For a start, 75 per cent of your body is made up of
water. That fact alone should make one realise the need to keep drinking
more water. If you are not drinking enough water, it will greatly
affect your body.
Water is also used to clear toxins from
the body and it helps fats to pass through your system before they can
be stored. If you are dehydrated or not drinking enough water on a
regular basis, toxins will build up in your body, affecting your ability
to burn fat. Worse still, the fats will more likely be stored in your
body.
According to Mattew, most people who
overeat and struggle to control their hunger are, in fact, chronically
dehydrated; and no matter how much they try to fight off hunger or how
much they eat, the feeling doesn’t go away. She adds that with more
water intake, however, the hunger will disappear.
Limit carbohydrate
You will probably have heard people say
that carbohydrates make people fat, and not just fatty foods. This is
true, experts say, as carbohydrates do lead to weight gain due to the
effect they have on the hormones. However, you still need carbs in your
diet; so, don’t cut them out completely.
Improve your posture
There are plenty of reasons why
improving your posture will help you beat the belly bulge. Improved
posture will help speed up metabolism through increased muscle tone,
while it also helps the body to burn more calories and fat around the
waistline.
Culled from Punch
