Straightforward Steps To Stop Being Skinny With Belly Fat
Having used to the relaxed lifestyle, and taking care of an energetic baby which stresses the life out of me change is not going to be easy.
However, thinking about my daughters future, I needed to stop my downward spiral to obesity.
Looking back, losing my Dad at an early age had a significant impact on my life. I didnt want the same thing to happen to my daughter.
You see, my father had a belly fat too. He wasnt obese, but he had a significant amount of belly fat.
Research has shown there is a direct correlation to belly fat and sudden natural death. In a study by Obesity Science and Practice, 241 subjects were measured for visceral and subcutaneous fat.
The subjects were divided into two groups, 174 who suddenly died from natural causes and 67 who died from different causes.
The study showed, there was a significant amount of abdominal fat in the natural death group compared to the random group.
In summary, having a high amount of belly fat has a direct correlation to sudden natural death.
If you want to know more about belly fat and why its crucial to get rid of it, read this article: What causes belly fat and why you should not ignore it.
Can Supplements Help Skinny
There are a few supplements that can help people build muscle while losing fat. They arent necessary, and they arent nearly as important as lifting weights, eating enough protein, and getting enough sleep, but they can still help. Those supplements are:
- Protein powders, such as whey, by making it easier to eat more protein. Whey protein is great for building muscle, but even so, its not really all that much better than whole foods. Its main benefit is that its convenient.
- Creatine, by improving our workout performance, increasing our lean mass, and improving our ability to build muscle. Its the most powerful muscle-building supplements, and one of the only ones I consider worth taking.
- Caffeine, by improving energy, reducing fatigue, and making lifting a little bit less painful. This can help us push ourselves harder, which is a key part of stimulating muscle growth.
- Melatonin, by improving sleep. However your body can produce it naturally if you get into a good bedtime routine. Id recommend starting there, only supplementing if you really need to.
For more, we have a full article on supplements that help with body recomposition.
Why Do I Have Love Handles If Im Skinny
Belly and love handles are 2 different things as some of you may be shocked to find out. Essentially they are formed from having too much fat.
Depending on your genes, body type, disease, you are likely to form a significant amount of love handles.
So, it comes down to what body type youve been graciously given and your healths condition.
Being skinny doesnt mean you dont have fat. In most cases, this belief that a skinny person does not have an ounce of fat can have a detrimental effect on a persons health. More on this later.
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Why Are They Called Love Handles
I do not know, but a quick search around the web reveals Debbie Reynolds was the culprit on popularizing the term.
According to Barry Popik, author, and founder of barrypopik.com, the term love handles came from Debbie Reynolds dad, referring to her mothers fat around her midsection.
Whether that is true or not, I leave it up to you.
A Merriam Webster dictionary search reveals that its the fatty bulges along the sides of the body. However, there is nothing about its source.
A wiki search didnt lead to anything either, leaving me stumped and have to rely on Barry Popiks words.
Concentrate On Protein And Vegetables At Night
When cutting season arrives, my meal plan includes focusing on protein and veggies at night time.
However, during the day, I take in as much as carbohydrates as my calorie count would allow.
For example: if I had a limit of 2000 kcal per day, I would make sure I leave enough calorie room for my steak and spinach later that day.
How much carbs you eat during the day is mostly dependant on your carb to fat to protein ratio.
Since we are talking about being skinny fat, we mustnt be putting in more calories than we need.
The following is my ratio of carbs, fats, and proteins:
- 35% carbs
- 45% protein
- 20% fat
Now, dont treat these numbers religiously. Calories and ratios will differ depending on your goal, body type, and health. Moreover, sometimes, these numbers will change due to unplanned things calledlife.
Look, I am not the type to be fussy on numbers but being skinny fat means we dont have the ideal body type.
We dont develop muscle well, hard for us to lose fat, and a piece of potato chips will ruin our diet.
Accept the fact that we have to work harder compared to the Mesomorph types who touch dumbbells and get jacked.
Hence when a skinny fat person gets jacked, ripped, swole, I have the utmost respect for. It takes dedication, motivation, willpower, and hard work to achieve their almost impossible feat.
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Understanding When You Should Start Looking For Weak Points
Dont stress about this. If youre a beginner, theres no need to worry about weak points until at least 3 to 6 months of solid training on this program and gaining a nice amount of strength and muscle.
Right or left side bigger Problem?
If this is the case for you opt for dumbbell variations of the key exercises.
Your body will even out over time. This is also another reason to practice good form. Most muscular imbalances are due to improper form.
Trying to add more reps on your smaller side will not do anything.
Although, you can start all dumbbell exercises with your weaker side to ensure you keep reps balanced with your stronger side.
How To Bring Up A Stubborn Muscle Group
Many make the mistake of trying to bring up too many stubborn muscle groups at a time. Or saying that all my muscles are stubborn and add way too much volume or training and end up getting no where.
After at least a few months of solid training youll being to realize muscles groups that are stubborn.
Even though the workouts are structured to build the ideal body ratios, some muscle groups may need more attention.
The method to bring up stubborn parts is simple, add more volume to that particular muscle group.
But again, we can do too much and run the risk of over training.
You should only focus on 1 to 2 muscle group specialization at a time.
And ideally, they should be opposing muscle groups if you want to focus on two.
For example, this would be specializing on chest and back.
Pump It Up To Slim It Down
Resistance training, aka weightlifting or body weight exercise, is super helpful for anyone hoping to drop some excess lbs.
First, youll start developing abs of steel under your shrinking belly. Second, youll start burning more calories in your sleep! Yep, for real.
A 2012 research review showed that resistance training can boost the number of calories you burn while resting by up to 7 percent. Talk about revving up your weight loss potential!
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Skinny Fat And Anabolic Steroids
Since our body type makes it almost impossible to get ripped or jacked. You might think that the answer comes with anabolic steroids.
Just look at these people who are jacked, ripped, swole, and cut before the age of steroids at Coach Nine.
Okay so they could be the mesomorph types, granted. However, is taking drugs with known detrimental side effects worth it?
The following table details just some side effects Anabolic steroids may give you.
Switch To Sprouted Bread
While it’s often assumed that bread is off-limits when you’re trying to lose belly fat, the right bread may actually expedite the process. Switching to sprouted bread can help out carb-lovers eager to get their fix without going up a belt size, thanks to the inulin content of sprouted grains. The results of a study published in Nutrition & Metabolism reveal that found that pre-diabetic study subjects whose diets were supplemented with inulin shaved off more belly fat and total weight than those whose meal plans didn’t pack this healthy prebiotic fiber.
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Chapter 7 Benefits Of A Great Workout Partner
After going through my fitness journey all by myself. I would suggest this as a last resort. The power of a great workout partner can make all the difference.
- You will push each other
- Keep each other committed
- And you will keep each other motivated
So on from there.
And of course, its always safe to lift with a spotter. Please take my word on that one. Failing on incline bench by yourself is a lesson learned!
Although, having a bad workout partner is worse than having none at all.
Choosing the right training partner may be a very difficult task, but very worth it in the long run.
How to find the right workout partner?
First, whether it is your friend, or family member, make sure they have similar goals as you.
This may be the time where you need to politely educate a friend properly.
Better yet, you can share TRAIN EAT LIVE with them! How cool would it be if your friend learned our training approach, got on the same mindset, set similar goals, and now you two are hitting the same workouts!
Thats truly how you get rid of skinny fat, with that extra accountability.
So it simply comes down to finding someone you enjoy being around and can work well with. If they desire similar goals, such as building muscle and strength. Then educate them on the proper training principles. Dont force it on them though. It just may not be their time yet.
If they arent on a similar path as you, or even worse, they are uncommitted, or unmotivateddrop them.
Increase The Consumption Of Healthy Fats
Healthy fats, such as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are not only a great option for your health improvement but are also highly recommended by dietitians as a substitution for saturated and trans fats. The problem is that saturated fats are more likely to stick to the sides of your arteries, gradually clogging them up, which leads to higher blood pressure and higher risk of heart disease. Trans fats in their turn are considered the most harmful fats out there. Found mostly in packaged processed foods, they increase your bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol, leading to huge risk of heart disease.
If your stomach sticks out because of nutrition, you absolutely need to reduce the consumption of saturated fats and eliminate trans fats altogether if possible. There are various good fats, which, when consumed in moderation, can help trim your waist and flatten your belly. Olive oil is especially effective in the process of weight loss, which decreases lipotoxicity, which leads to the reduction of saturated fatty acids that attach to the internal organs . Other sources of healthy fats include avocados, eggs, fatty fish, nuts and nut butters, chia seeds, and others.
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Eat More Whole Grains
Whole grains are a great source of fiber and are proven to help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. What makes them even better is they may actually help reduce fat around the belly.
One study of 50 people found that those who consumed whole grain wheat bread for 12 weeks lost belly fat, but this was not the case for those who consumed refined wheat bread for the same amount of time.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that most adults get between 5 and 10 ounces of grains per day, half of which should be whole grains. Below are some examples of healthy whole-grains:
- Brown or wild rice
Add More Protein To Your Diet
Studies have shown that protein has positive effects on your appetite, which plays a role in weight loss. The macronutrient affects several hormones, ghrelin and GLP-1, that play a role in hunger and fullness. Eating protein can increase the feeling of fullness, reducing hunger and making you consume fewer calories. For instance, one study found that participants who increased their protein intake from 15 per cent to 30 per cent of calories ate 441 fewer calories per day. They also experienced significant weight loss by shedding 11 pounds over 12 weeks, on average, without conscious calorie restriction. So, eating protein-rich foods could be an effective way to lose weight fast without exercise or restricting taking any foods. Try adding lean protein such as fish, chicken breasts, Greek yogurt, lentils, quinoa and almonds to your diet for quick weight loss.
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How To Put The Skinny Belly
There are many other reasons for someone to struggle with stubborn belly fat. One reason could be not getting enough sleep or watching a bright LED TV late at night, which will negatively impact your hormones like melatonin.
And there are countless other tricks to try, that arent as powerful but can still help a bit when doing enough of them. One example is to drink whole milk instead of skim milk. There are compounds like CLA that are only found in the fats of dairy, that are not in the skim versions. CLA is a fat-burning, fat-prevention, and anti-cancerous compound.
But focusing on the fundamentals will get you the bulk of the results.
But I do exercise
And if you walk, jog, or bike but dont lift weightsits time to add lifting in.
If you lift weights but dont walk or move enoughstart walking outside.
Theyre different types of exercise, and both walking and lifting are needed for a truly healthy, muscular, and lean body.
How To Start Trimming The Fat
Two words: Calorie deficit. Losing body fat is best accomplished through a combo of diet cutting excess calories and exercise burning more calories.
Start with a few meal and snack time tweaks. Well get to the belly-busting moves in a sec.
Looking for a place to start? Heres a calorie calculator to help estimate your deficit goals.
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You May Have A Beer Belly
Drinking a lot of alcohol doesnt just increase calorie intake, it can actually make your belly bigger.
Research shows that people who drink a lot of alcohol gain more belly fat.
Whats more alarming is that people who are skinny but have belly fat have a high risk of diseases, according to research.
How to fix it: Reduce beer intake or drink low-calorie alcoholic drinks.
Level : Skinny Fat Appetite Manipulation
With Appetite Manipulation, we have a few things going on here.
1) Actual satiety levels of common foods.
2) Understanding what foods fill you up the most.
3) Then working with the best foods to fit into your meal plan to easily hit your daily calorie surplus.
What is Satiety?
This simply means how much a food is going to make you feel full.
Typically, what makes a food more filling than others is the fiber content, the water content, and the protein content.
So what does this mean for us?
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Eat More Fibre Especiallysoluble Fibre
Subcutaneous fat, located right under your skin, isnt a great look but its visceral fat, the kind that wraps around the organs in your abdomen, thats linked to a higher risk of disease and early death. Research from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center indicates that one way to target belly fat is to eat more fibre particularly a kind called soluble fibre, found in the fleshy parts of fruit and vegetables, oat bran, barley, seed husks, flaxseed, dried beans, lentils and soy products.
Crush Your Fat Loss Diet
Sticking to a diet and fitness plan can feel overwhelming as it is, and life tends to always get in the way of our willpower and good intentions. If you’re finding it difficult to plan, cook, portion, and track all of your food for fat loss, consider trying something a little easier with this free guide to meal prep for fat loss. Perfect your macros and finally lose those last five pounds with evidenced-based nutrition plans.
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The Skinny Fat Workout Plan
The same way your diet depends on which type of skinny fat you are, so does your workout plan.
If youre more skinny than fat: You should lift weights in the gym 4-5 days per week and limit your cardio.
This is because studies show you need more sets per week if you want to pack on muscle as fast as possible. Also, you should avoid too much cardio because it burns calories your body needs to build new muscle tissue.
Heres a simple 4 day per week full-body routine you can use:
| Day |
|---|
| A | B |
In terms of cardio, I recommend 30 minutes per day of low intensity steady state cardio . For example: a light jog, brisk walk, or bike ride. This will help you burn some extra calories without putting any additional stress on your body.