Belly fat isn't just an annoyance; it has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease [1] and diabetes [2]. But don't worry — there are ways to improve your health and simultaneously reduce the weight around your stomach. We asked celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels [3], creator of the award-winning My Fitness by Jillian Michaels app [4], to share her tops tips for reducing belly fat [5].
Reduce Your Overall Body Fat Percentage
While doing ab exercises like crunches will strengthen your abs, they won't reduce belly fat because you can't spot-reduce fat [6] from certain areas of your body. "Reducing overall body fat [7] will help you decrease belly fat [8]" in order to see your abs pop, Jillian said. Do this through a combination of diet and exercise. For more tips on how to lose body fat, check out these nine tips from experts [9].
Eat Clean and Limit These 4 Ingredients
One piece of the puzzle that's necessary to reduce overall body fat (in order to lose belly fat) is to focus on your diet. Jillian said a clean, calorie-controlled diet [10] is important for reducing belly fat, and be careful not to overeat.
Make sure your diet is low in processed sugars and flours [11]. "Don't drink too much alcohol [12]," she advised. "Really try to bring this to four drinks a week, tops." Jillian also said to keep sodium intake down [13] in order to avoid water retention, and make sure to drink plenty of water [14] to help reduce water weight.
Do This Kind of Exercise
We asked Jillian what type of exercise is the most effective for reducing overall body fat, and she said the exercises that burn more calories, and therefore burn more stored fat, are HIIT [15], resistance training, functional fitness (exercises that incorporate multiple muscle groups), and circuit training.
Jillian went on to explain that while you're working hard to burn overall body fat [16], you'll want to condition the muscles underneath the fat so when you lose that top layer, your tummy will be toned. She recommended doing "functional exercises like push-ups, mountain climbers, planks, lunges with chop (torso rotation), etc." These moves all "burn calories and condition your core."
Prioritise Sleep
"I also recommend prioritising sleep," Jillian said. Sleep and weight gain [17] are closely linked since a lack of sleep will raise cortisol levels (your stress hormone), as well as grehlin (the hunger hormone), and increase cravings, which will prompt you to eat more.
A lack of sleep will also make you too tired to get up for that early morning workout [18] or have the energy to push hard if you do make it to the gym. Plus, a lack of sleep makes you want to eat more [19] and is more likely to give into you junk food cravings [20]. Jillian said to aim to get between seven and nine hours nightly, or whatever you feel your body needs.