Lower belly fat is the most stubborn fat there is for many. You could therefore describe it as the problem zone. How will I break the nerve and stubborn bottom fat? Can I train it away? And how should I eat? We answer all these questions for you in this article. It’s time to end lower belly fat!
Lower belly fat: the problem zone for many
If you do better and lose several pounds according to the scale, it cannot be enjoyable, but other places also make little difference. You may notice that your legs are already getting slimmer and that the back fat is already starting to decrease.
Yet that lower belly remains fat. And you feel it just won’t go away. You may be wondering if it is even possible to get rid of this fat; after all, it takes so long. For you, we’ve got good and bad news.
The excellent thing is that you will use the best training and diet to burn your gut fat. The less good news is that you cannot control where you store fat first, nor where you lose it first. Later in this article, we will discuss this further. First, though, let’s examine the potential reasons.
What Causes Lower Abdominal Fat?
Gut fat does not necessarily have to be dangerous. Normally, there can be a little fatter here than the rest of your body. For example, it may be genetically determined that you store more fat here than, for example, on your legs.
Most people will also have more fat on the lower abdomen than on the top of the abdomen. Gender also plays a significant role. In general, women are more likely to suffer from stubborn lower abdominal fat.
Women develop a layer of fat here to protect the uterus. This will, in many cases, also make it more difficult for women to lose lower abdomen fat.
Below you will find the factors that influence the fat storage of your lower abdomen:
- genetics
- diet
- lifestyle
- movement
- sex
How do I lose my gut fat?
Meanwhile, it should be clear that fat on your lower abdomen is a standard “issue” and that various factors can cause it.
Whether you’d like to get rid of the fat layer to save your belly from getting bigger, there are a few things you can think about first.
As we mentioned earlier, it is therefore not possible to determine where you lose the fat.
So you will not train your lower abdomen fat by doing lower abdominal exercises.
The same applies to every other place in the body.
Where your fat disappears first and last will differ per person. This is mainly genetic.
So let go of the idea of burning belly fat through abdominal exercises.
Although several factors can influence lower belly fat, the same principles apply to anyone who wants to get rid of it.
Of course, it will go a bit faster with one person than with another, but it is possible to reduce fat in the lower abdomen for every person.
In the rest of this article, I’ll tell you how you too can do this.
Nutrition
Let’s start with the essential thing, nutrition.
A good diet is a basis for effective fat loss. So even if you want to lose belly fat, it starts here.
The most important thing is that you have a calorie deficit, about which more later.
For the rest, there are several points for attention regarding your eating pattern.
Below are several tips that will help you in the fight against the stubborn fat on the lower abdomen:
- avoid sugars
- limit your carbohydrate intake
- eat high-fiber foods
- increase your protein intake
- try to eat more slowly and more consciously
- drink lots of water
- avoid liquid calories
The above points of attention are the most important in addition to creating a calorie deficit.
If you take this into account and start training, you will most likely already lose weight.
If you want to take a more accurate approach, you can, of course, also start dieting or lose weight with intermittent fasting.
Most importantly: it creates a calorie deficit.
But even without a diet, you can lose belly fat as long as you keep track of what you eat.
Also, it would help if you used a calorie deficit. That means you eat fewer calories than you eat.
For example, if you consume 2000 kcal and burn 2500 kcal per day, then you have a shortage of 500 kcal.
Because your body cannot get energy from the calories, it will get energy from your fat reserves.
If you maintain this consistently, you will lose weight, and eventually, your lower abdomen will also lose fat.
Workout lower belly fat
Nutrition is the most important, but training is also of great importance. With exercise, you burn calories and stimulate fat burning. You can also build muscle mass through muscle-strengthening exercises, which increases your metabolism even higher.
There are several forms of movement that can contribute to the training of lower abdominal fat:
- interval training
- weight training
- aerobic training
We will explain these 3 forms of movement to you below
Interval training
I am starting with interval training. Recent years have seen a rise in popularity.
This is partly due to the various studies that show that high-intensity cardio has a positive effect on fat burning.
For example, a study in which people who did interval training 3 times a week had just as good results as people who did moderate cardio for 30 minutes a day.
HIIT, in particular, seems to be doing well. HIIT stands for high-intensity interval training.
You alternate explosive exercises with short periods of rest. For example, you do an exercise for 45 seconds, after which you rest for 30 seconds.
On this page, you can find some interval workouts you can do.
Weight training
Strength training is also a very effective form of training to lose weight on your stomach.
Strength training also comes in different forms. You can train with machines, with free weights, or with your body weight.
They are all effective for fat burning. Incidentally, indeed, training with heavy resistance generally consumes more energy.
This is also more effective for building muscle mass. And the more muscle mass you have, the higher your resting calorie expenditure will be.
Abdominal exercises are also part of strength training and can also be a nice addition.
Although training your abdominal muscles does not specifically burn belly fat, it can make your (lower) abdomen a bit stronger and tighter.
Aerobic training
By aerobic training, we mean cardio training at moderate intensity.
We call the opposite of this anaerobic, which is a high-intensity exercise.
Your heart rate during exercise ultimately determines whether your training is aerobic or not.
Examples of this type of training are:
- to walk
- bicycles
- running
- rowing
Exercises to burn lower belly fat
Below we give you some examples of exercises that burn many calories and therefore effectively train your lower abdomen fat.
The great thing is that you don’t necessarily have to go to the gym for these exercises.
There are more than enough exercises at home to burn belly fat.
Below are three good exercises.
Mountain climbers
Mountain climber is an intensive exercise that engages your entire body.
- Place your hands on the floor shoulder-width apart
- Lift your foot and move your knee towards your elbow
- Put your foot down again and switch legs
Burpees
The Burpee is an exercise that burns a lot of calories and also strengthens various muscle groups.
- Sit in the push-up starting position
- Jump with your feet towards your hands and then push yourself all the way up with your legs, dismounting. Stretch your arms in the air.
- Returns to the push-up position
High knees
High knees, or lifting knees, are done on the spot. You mainly train your trunk and stamina.
- Place your feet hip-width apart
- Raise your right knee and raise your right arm at the same time
- Then do this with your left knee and arm
How soon will I get rid of it?
Now that you have a good idea of burning gut fat, we come to the next question.
You are probably curious how long this will take.
How long will it take before I start seeing results? When can I finally say goodbye to the fat on my gut?
Since several factors influence this, we, unfortunately, cannot say this.
Although diet and workout programs would be unique, they should adhere exclusively to the eating and exercise program.
When you follow a good diet and combine this with good training, you should start to see a difference relatively quickly.
Remember that patience is extremely important in weight loss. And especially when losing your gut fat.
It could just be that the fat on your lower abdomen is the very last to go away.
The conclusion about lower belly fat
Ultimately, the same principles of weight loss generally apply when burning fat in your gut.
It is and remains a matter of maintaining a good diet and dealing with a calorie deficit.
When you do this right and stick with it consistently, it is only a matter of time before you start to see results.
Remember that burning fat locally is not possible. So stop doing hundreds of sit-ups a day and focus more on your nutrition and practical training.
Do you want to discover the basics of effective and sustainable fat loss? In the Fat Loss Kick-start, I will go into this a little deeper.
You will also discover the 8 most common mistakes that cause weight loss to stagnate.
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