How to Best Lose Fat to be Healthy
Amazingly, according to the Centers for Disease Control nearly 49.1 percent of people aged 20 and over try to lose weight. Furthermore, 56.4 percent of these are women while 41.7 percent are men. Most of all, these people are trying to lose fat. Meanwhile, nearly 62.9 percent of these people exercise to lose weight, while 62.9 percent were eating less, followed by 50.4 percent who ate more fruits, vegetables, and salads. Now, exercising, eating less, eating more fruits, vegetables, and salads are all necessary to lose fat and weight. However, more specific ways to help you lose fat, and especially healthy ways to lose belly fat, are described below.
While the list below is long, it’s best not to jump right in and start using them all at once. Rather, it is better to first start with an easy one until you have made it part of your daily ritual. Next, gradually, add the others in time. Most of all, don’t rush because your body and mind need time to change.
Oatmeal for Breakfast to Lose Fat
First, a cup of oats contains 11 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber. Also, oatmeal has both the bulky insoluble fiber and the gel-like soluble fiber. Moreover, studies show that this dietary fiber lowers your body weight and regulates your body’s sugar use. Furthermore, the soluble fiber absorbs water in your stomach and becomes like gel. Consequently, it swells up. As a result, it takes the body longer to digest oatmeal. Consequently, eating oatmeal helps you keep satisfied and reduce hunger.
Complex Carbs
Also, one of the healthy ways to lose belly fat is to avoid eating refined carbs. For example, avoid eating white bead, pasta, or sugary baked foods like donuts, cakes, cookies, and others. And, that includes sugary drinks like soda and fruit juices. By the way, sugar increases belly fat while fiber reduces it. In fact, drinking water instead of sugary drinks will drastically reduce your sugar intake.
Furthermore, if you have a sweet tooth, try eating an apple, melon, or fresh berries. Or, you can drink fresh homemade juices using centrifugal juicers, masticating juicers, or smoothie makers from fresh fruits like apples, melons, fresh berries, oranges, pears, and many other fruits.
Meanwhile, eat complex carbs like whole grains such as quinoa or sweet potatoes. And, because they have high fiber content, the body doesn’t store as much water.
Low-Carb Diet
Next, researchers, at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, reported that a low-carb diet resulted in much greater fat loss than a low-fat diet. In fact, over a period of six months, those on a low-carb diet lost ten more pounds than those on a low-fat diet.
Mediterranean Diet to Lose Fat
Now, the Mediterranean diet contains foods rich in monosaturated fatty acids. As a result, this diet may help you lose fat. For example, this diet consists of olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocados, fish, and Greek yogurt.
Furthermore, first start eating your meal with seasoned vegetables. On the other hand, you could also start with vegetable soup. By the way, vegetables should always be at least half of your meal.
Eat Foods Rich in Potassium
Next, one of the healthy ways to lose belly fat is to eat foods rich in potassium. In fact, potassium helps your body remove excess water, especially around the belly. Consequently, potassium helps you lose fat. Also, potassium is an essential dietary mineral that helps in the following ways.
- First, it helps build muscles.
- Second, it prevents excess fluid retention and maintain a healthy electrolyte balance.
- Third, potassium optimize nerve functions.
- Next, it releases energy from protein, fat, and carbohydrates during metabolism.
- Also, potassium helps regulate blood pressure.
- Finally, potassium helps the heart and kidneys to function properly.
Therefore, eat potassium rich fruits like bananas, oranges, cantaloupe, honeydew, apricots, and grapefruit.
Also, eat some dried fruits like prunes, raisins, and dates.
In addition, eat potassium rich vegetables like cooked spinach, cooked broccoli, potatoes, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, peas, lentils, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, pumpkins, and leafy greens such as spinach.
Furthermore, drink potassium-rich fruit juices like, orange juice, tomato juice, prune juice, apricot juice, and grapefruit juice. However, because they contain sugar, drink these juices in moderation. On the other hand, drinking home made juices directly from the fruits is good for you.
Finally, dairy products like milk and yogurt are also high in potassium.
Cut back on Salt
Meanwhile, salt makes you retain water. So, to lose fat, cut back on salt, fast foods, processed, and packaged foods which is overloaded with salt.
Peppermint Tea
Next, drinking three, eight ounce, cups of peppermint tea while exercising helps you lose fat. Indeed, drinking peppermint tea with catechins enhances exercise-induced loss of abdominal fat. Meanwhile, other ways, peppermint tea helps lose weight, include the following.
- First, peppermint tea has a strong scent that reduces appetite and suppresses craving.
- Second, scientific studies have shown that peppermint tea helps settle the gastrointestinal tract and promotes healthy bowel movement. Also, the active component of mint, menthol, has antibacterial and antiseptic properties. Consequently, peppermint tea improves digestion.
- Third, NASA researchers found that the soothing aroma and calming effect of peppermint helps you relax and reduce stress. As a result, the tea helps reduce fat.
- In addition, the caffeine and cathechins, in peppermint tea, increase body temperature. As a result, the tea speeds up metabolism.
- Furthermore, a study in the Journal of International Society of Sports Nutrition, concluded that peppermint oil facilitated enhanced air ventilation. Also, the tea increased brain oxygen concentration. And, these effects helped increase strength and endurance.
- Next, peppermint relaxes your abdominal muscles and increases flow of bile. Consequently, peppermint tea improved fat digestion. And, improving your digestive health helps you burn calories.
- Finally, peppermint leaves provide sustenance to digestion and intestinal health, which helps with weight loss.
Apple Cider Vinegar Helps Lose Fat
Now, a 2009 Japanese study had 144 obese Japanese consume one or two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar daily for 12 weeks. As a result, those who consumed one tablespoon:
- First, lost 2.6 pounds.
- Second, their body fat percentage dropped by 0.7%.
- Finally, their waist circumference decreased by 0.5 inches.
On the other hand, those who consumed two tablespoons:
- First, lost 3.7 pounds.
- Second, their body fat percentage dropped by 0.9%.
- Finally, their waist circumference decreased by 0.75 inches.
By the way, the acetic acid in vinegar produced proteins that, in turn, help you lose fat.
Aerobics
Next, aerobic exercise is one of the healthy ways to lose belly fat. In fact, aerobic exercise burns up belly fat because it reduces levels on insulin. Which, in turn, tells your body to get rid of the fat. Also, aerobics causes the liver to use up fatty acids, especially those in the nearby visceral fat deposits. Moreover, for most people, this means 30 to 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobics almost every day.
Indeed, a study in the American Journal of Physiology found that jogging 12 miles a week helps you lose fat. By the way, aerobic exercises burned 67 percent more calories than strength training.
Strength Training
Meanwhile, strength trainingbuilds lean muscle mass, which, in turn, burns more calories over 24 hours and helps you lose fat. However, to allow your muscles to grow, strength training must be done gradually over time. On the other hand, over doing it can result in sore muscles. By the way, sore back muscles can be back massagers, while deep tissue muscles can be treated with deep tissue massagers. As a result, you can get back to resuming with your strength training program.
Get up if You Sit Too Much
Next, studies show that, on average, people spend an inordinate amount of time sitting. Regrettably, too much sitting negates all the effort you put into aerobic and strength training. So, if you need to sit, make it a habit to get up as often as you can. Moreover, if you are working, use the lunch hour to go for a brisk walk.
Intermittent Fasting to Lose Fat
Also, a recent study in the New England Journal of medicine reported that intermittent fasting, in which you starve for 16 hours each day helps you in the following ways.
- First, intermittent fasting helps you lose fat.
- Second, intermittent fasting helps you lose weight.
- Third, intermittent fasting improves blood sugar regulation.
- Fourth, intermittent fasting suppresses inflammation.
- Next, intermittent fasting helps reduce blood pressure.
- Also, intermittent fasting helps lower the resting heart rate.
- In addition, intermittent fasting reduces blood lipid levels.
- Furthermore, intermittent fasting limits tissue damage.
- Also, intermittent fasting improves risk factors associated with obesity and diabetes.
- Finally, intermittent fasting improves cognitive performance.
Track Your Progress
Next, regularly track your progress by weighing yourself.
Support
Finally, studies show that you are more likely to lose fat, if the people around you also have healthy eating and exercising habits.