3 Exercises Trainers Recommend for Burning Belly Fat

Excess belly fat can increase your risk of certain chronic diseases; However, targeting fat loss around your midsection isn’t always easy. That said, with a strategic approach to exercise, you may be able to reduce weight in the abdominal region alongside overall weight loss. Here are three expert-backed exercises to burn belly fat.

Aerobic exercise and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) are effective for reducing visceral (deep abdominal) and subcutaneous (under the skin) abdominal fat, said Josh Schlottman, CPT, CSCS, certified personal trainer and strength coach at Trainer Josh Fitness. Health. However, spot reduction exercises are not effective and your abdominal fat loss will be proportional to your total body fat loss, he added.

“Putting your body in a calorie deficit is essential for losing fat,” Schlottman said. “You need to burn more calories than you consume to truly lose fat. So exercise and calorie restriction are effective for burning belly fat.”

The more calories you burn while exercising, the more visceral fat loss you will see. “Genetic [also] play an important role in the amount of belly fat you’ll burn through exercise and diet. Your body decides where to extract fat first based on your hormones and genes,” he added.

In fact, a team of researchers found that your genes may impact how easily you lose belly fat. “Some people are genetically programmed to lose weight faster than others through diet and exercise,” Schlottman said.

Exercise helps reduce visceral and subcutaneous fat, said Andreas Abelsson, certified nutrition coach, personal trainer and strength training specialist from StrengthLog. Health. However, no exercise will burn significant fat without a calorie deficit.

Exercise can increase the number of calories you burn and help you create that calorie deficit, but your diet is more important, according to Abelsson. “It’s easy to eat or drink 500 calories, but burning them off with exercise takes an hour or more of effort,” he said.

Here are the best types of exercises to help you get into a calorie deficit.

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

HIIT burns belly fat by burning huge amounts of calories in less time, Schlottman said. Short bursts of maximum effort combined with brief rest will increase your calorie burn.

“HIIT also triggers excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), which keeps your metabolism elevated for hours after the workout. This afterburn effect is what causes your body to continue burning calories after the workout is over,” Schlottman said.

Schlottman recommends the following HIIT exercises:

• Kettlebell swings
• Push ups
• Jump squats
• Mountaineers
• Burpees

Perform each exercise for 30 seconds with 30 seconds of rest. Repeat each set for three to four rounds.

Strength training

Although strength training burns calories while you lift weights, it’s not as much as HIIT. “Muscle is a metabolically active tissue, which means it burns calories even when resting. The more muscle you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate (RMR) will be.”

The effect is not spectacular: only about 6 calories per kilo of muscle per day. “But as the months or year go by, those extra calories can mean pounds of fat lost just by existing.”

One way to increase calories burned during strength training is to focus on compound movements, that engage multiple muscle groups and joints simultaneously, such as deadlifts, squats or bench presses.

You can also try reducing rest periods or using supersets, said Mike Poirier, CSCS, vice president of fitness at The Edge Fitness Clubs. Health. This will maintain an increased heart rate, allowing you to double-burn calories through resistance training while keeping your heart rate in a fat-burning zone.

Moderate-intensity cardio

Moderate-intensity cardio primarily uses fat as fuel, Nina Kopaeva, MD, tells Health. This is especially true when performed after resistance training or on an empty stomach. Try pairing it with HIIT or strength training sessions to increase total calorie burn and optimize hormonal response, she said.

Only moderate-to-high-intensity aerobic training reduces visceral fat without dieting, Abelsson said. “Do cardio at an intensity of at least 60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate,” he said.

Ab exercises alone won’t directly target belly fat, but they will build the muscles underneath, so once the fat is gone, you’ll have some definition. “Fat loss in this area comes from an overall reduction in body fat due to a calorie deficit and not from a one-time workout,” Schlottman said.

Abdominal exercises are best for improving your core function, posture and strength. “For some, intensive abdominal training can lead to extra, unwanted muscle growth and thicken the appearance of the waist,” Schlottman said. “If your core muscles are growing faster than you are losing fat, then your waist may appear thicker, not thinner.”

That said, you still need some abdominal work during the fat loss phase. This will help you build and preserve muscle mass. Once your body fat decreases, strengthening your abs with exercises like planks and sit-ups will make your body look more defined.

If you’re looking to lose weight and maximize fat loss, our experts recommend the following tips to support your efforts:

• Eat plenty of protein: Abelsson suggests 0.7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day. “It’s safe, keeps you full, reduces cravings, and helps you maintain muscle mass when you’re in a calorie deficit.”
• Get quality sleep: Aim for about seven to nine hours a night, Abelsson said. “Poor sleep increases the stress hormone cortisol, which is linked to increased abdominal fat storage. It also makes it harder to lose fat and build muscle, and can increase cravings for unhealthy foods.”
• Drink plenty of water: Drinking water, without overdoing it, will help you manage your appetite. “Sometimes our brain confuses thirst with hunger,” Abelsson said.
• Staying in a calorie deficit: Kopaeva suggests sticking to a 10 to 25 percent calorie deficit without severe restrictions to help with weight loss.
• Develop a plan that can be sustained: Schlottman recommends making lifestyle changes rather than drastic ones, so they last long term.