25 Simple Tips & Tricks To Reduce Belly Fat

Everybody has belly fat, even people with flat abs. Yup, that's true. It's just that some of us have too much of it. Belly fat does'nt let you get into your favourite dress or old denims.Besides, it also adversely affects your body organs.

So it’s not just for good looks but for good health, that the “toxic tyre” around your waist should go. Well, one must note that spot reduction of fat is not practical. Fat is lost uniformly from body, hence keep patience and practical, healthy eating habits as your prime goal to banish belly fat. As you would break down a large task into smaller ones for ease of doing, here we breakdown the task of losing belly fat in 25 simple tasks.

Pump up on Proteins: Having good amount of protein along with high fibre foods for breakfast  is the key to keep you going on till mid-day without craving a sugary snack. Include eggs,whole grains, milk, soybean, sprouts, legumes, chickpeas to make a protein rich start.

Eat fat: Yes, fat burns fat. Include good fats like MUFA found in avocado, olives, almonds, peanuts, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds. Coconut oil, rich in medium chain triglycerides, is also a good fat burner. ( 2 tsp of coconut oil/day)

Say NO to refined/ sugary foods: More sugar means more fat around the belly. Avoid refined foods like donuts, pastries, noodles, sweetened drinks, marmalades, syrups, white bread etc. These foods are high on calories and low on satiety.

Pee like a racehorse: Sounds gross! But water retention is one reason for a bloated belly and this is because of high sodium (salt) intake. So replace those salt shakers with pepper, drink more water to flush out sodium and other toxins from body. Plus water is another fat burning food! Don’t go gulping down sugary beverages! If you are not comfortable with just plain water, try steeping some herbs and lime juice but no sugar and sip this “spa water” throughout the day.

Go green: No not of jealousy of course! Have green tea, at least 3-4 cups a day to give your body the benefits of catechin (antioxidant) that helps burn fat.

Feed on fat burners: There are plenty of fat burning foods, so you don’t have to literally hunt for them! These are spices like red chillies, peppers, dark chocolate (2 small pieces) and the list goes on. Aren't they appelaing to your taste buds ?

Beauty sleep is beneficial: Sleeping for less than 5 hours or more than 8 is a weight gain factor. When you are tired (due to lack of sleep/rest) you produce more ghrelin (a hormone) , which in turn makes you crave for sugary and fatty foods, and cortisol (stress hormone) rises causing that belly fat to become a little bigger. So get into and out of bed at regular times and aim for atleast 6 - 7 hours of 'undisturbed' sleep. 

Become an activity geek: Jogging and walking (aerobic exercise) helps maintain good health, people of all age need it, but what you need to do to burn belly fat is short bursts of high intensity exercises like circuit training, strength training and other core exercises not just mindless running. Try bicycling, skipping, lunges, heavy weight lifting, crunches (of different types), pilates, running, anything that gets your heart beating fast. /?

Walk weird: Do back walking and side shuffling in one- minute bursts. This burns more calories than normal walking. When on phone, walk while you talk. Also, add some dancing to your schedule to burn off more calories. So head out with friends or do the solo dance to trim yourself down.

Try some morning water: This is nothing but lime juice with warm water which helps in kickstarting your body’s metabolism and helps in getting the fat burning.

Chill out: For the caveman, stress meant preparing the body to run away from danger, but in present times, stress does not really bring out the same reaction! So the glucose released into blood as a stress trigger does not do it’s job of being used up, instead turns into fat and sits on your waist. Bottom line, de-stress!

Measure your plate: Just eating right foods is not enough, but how much you eat also matters. A tip to control food wuantity eaten is to eat in small, blue coloured round plates. Why blue? Because this colour is associated with satiety/fullness.

Be food punctual: Maintain food timings like your meeting/work timings, punctual and not flexible. Have dinner at least 2 hours before going to bed and avoid late night snacking. Having 5-6 small meals throughout the day will keep your hunger pang in check. And what will you snack on?? Not snack bars! A handful of nuts, a whole fruit, a small cup of yogurt, sprouted lentil salad are all good options.

Laugh aloud, laugh a lot: A good laugh helps strengthen your ab muscles. A good 15 minute laugh can burn approximately 40 kcals, gets your mood well and some memories to last.

Fix your gut: 'You are what you absorb' i.e. your body's digestive system has to be in good working condition to ensure you benefit from what you eat. The bacteria in gut play an important role in deciding your overall health. Probiotic foods like curd help to improve gut health.

Get involved: Eating out of boredom or just because a pack of biscuits is sitting on table does not mean you HAVE to eat it! Have a hobby and pursue it. It could be anything that gets your hands involved like painting, doing a manicure/pedicure or home facial, solving puzzle pieces, doing some woodwork or just straightening up things around house. This will not just keep you away from eating but also burn some calories while you are at the job.

Cook smartly: Cutting up your food into more slices or pieces gives you the visual cue of a lot is on your plate. Eg. Instead of having two normal rotis, one can roll out three thinner rotis from the same amount of dough. This gives the perception of eating more. 

Chew your food thoroughly: When you chew slowly and thoroughly, your stomach gets enough time to signal the brain - 'I am full'. You will then eat less.   

Eat weird: Try eating with your non-dominant hand, this will slow your eating down. Doing so, you also take in lesser calories

End your dinner with toothpaste and brush: Treating yourself late at night makes you FAT. So, what's the trick for that. Brush your teeth soon after dinner and you will not crave for those late night treats. The fresh minty taste will put you OFF food cravings. 

Make your own salad dressing and spread: Instead of using high fat dressings in markets, make your own salad dressing. Take two parts lemon juice and one part oil with extra herbs and chilli and add to your salad. For spread, try hummus, made from chickpeas, this will not only cut down on the extra calories that you get from the mayo but also add more protein to your sandwich.

Measure all you eat: Using measuring cups helps you control the portion size of food, so you know how much you are ACTUALLY taking and where you can cut down.

Take a sniff (of food!): It has been found that sniffing on a banana, vanilla, apple or peppermint reduces those hunger pangs, as sniffing gets your brain thinking that the food has been eaten and so the hunger waives off. Also, lighting vanilla scented candle post dinner may help suppress dessert cravings.

Tone up while sitting: If you are a desk-job person, then contracting your abs while sitting at desk or watching TV adds to a bit of toning while on job. Deep breathing, stretching exercise while seated is a good habit. Also fidgeting is not that bad! It will help in shedding more calories.

Eat in front of mirror: Watching yourself eat in mirror makes you aware of your body, your goals of healthy eating and hence restrain from overeating.

These tips are small habits that can change the way you see and eat food. Mindful eating along with activities that get you moving is the way to get that flat belly you dream of. So get off the system, start some music on your smartphone and get grooving, just to celebrate this little piece of information you read, it’s a step to a healthy you!