Reasons for a tummy
How to reduce your tummy?
Push-up T-shirt
You can’t see your abs, primarily because they’re hidden beneath a layer of subcutaneous fat or stretched visceral fat.
Six-pack abs formula
Fat burning + Hypertrophy of muscles = Visible abs
- In Figure B the abs are visible because the body has a lower percentage of fat, water and hypertrophy of the muscles, in Figure A the amount of subcutaneous fat and water is greater
- Your abs are visible in Figure B because the percentage of fat, water and hypertrophy of the muscle is smaller, while the amount of subcutaneous fat and water is greater.
Visceral fat:
- The fat that surrounds internal organs;
- Causes “beer belly”;
- Requires effort to reduce it;
- Associated with cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.
- Visceral adipose tissue produces fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2), which is associated with the development of cancerous tumours[1]
Subcutaneous fat:
- Fat that is found under the skin;
- We can see it when the skin is gripped in a fold;
- Has less negative effects on the heart;
- Easier to reduce than visceral fat.
There are only a few ways to effectively lose belly fat:
- Fat burning
- Exercising the abdominal muscles
- Hormonal normalisation
- Liposuction
- Sports pharmacology
- The main causes of abdominal obesity:
Abdominal obesity
- Creation of excessive subcutaneous fat;
- Creation of fat around internal organs behind a layer of muscle.
- Weakening and stretching of the abdominal muscles;
- Enlargement of abdominal organs (splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, megacolon);
- Diseases (increased cortisol levels[2], kwashiorkor, rickets, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes[3])
- Alcohol consumption[4][5]
- Nutritional disorders (lack of complete protein[6], excessive simple sugars, especially fructose[7][8][9])
- According to the WHO classification, a waist circumference greater than 94 cm for men and greater than 80 cm for women increases the risk of obesity-related diseases.
The owner of the largest abdomen
There are different ways to measure abdominal obesity, including:
- Absolute waist circumference (OT> 102 cm in men and> 88 cm in women)
- Waist-to-hip ratio (waist circumference to hip circumference> 0.9 for men and> 0.85 for women)
- An indicator for overweight is the Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI = body weight/height2 (kg/m2).
- The Borngardt index is also used, in contrast to BMI, which takes into account a person’s physique.
- MRI is considered to be the most accurate method of determining the amount of body fat.
- At home, the amount of fat tissue in the human body is usually determined by home scales with a body composition analyser using bioimpedance.
How to lose belly fat?
Abdominal Muscle Exercises
Without eliminating the causes, it is impossible to remove a large belly and get relief abs with cubes. Sometimes only one causal factor is important (in the case of a disease), but often several subclinical factors are superimposed at once.
A holistic approach must be taken to address the interrelated problems. A study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism[10] suggests that combining aerobic exercise with weight training is more effective than aerobic exercise alone. An additional benefit of this workout is an increase in stress tolerance and insulin levels, which in turn reduces cortisol, which contributes to fat accumulation.
When you perform various physical exercises, you not only strengthen your abs, but you also expend energy, which results in effective fat burning. By increasing the endurance and strength of your abs, you also help improve blood circulation and normalise bowel function, which is where the movements during abs training act as a gentle massage.
Studies by the San Diego Institute of Biomechanics (USA) have shown that among abs exercises there are those in which the electrical activity of the muscles is higher than in others. The results of the study gave such a list of the best exercises for abs in general and for each department in particular.
How can I reduce my tummy?
Exercising your abs
Without eliminating the causes, it is impossible to remove a large belly and get a firm abs with cubes. Sometimes only one causal factor is important (in the case of a disease), but often several subclinical factors overlap.
A holistic approach must be taken to address the interrelated problems. A study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism[10] suggests that combining aerobic exercise with weight training is more effective than aerobic exercise alone. An additional benefit of this workout is an increase in stress tolerance and insulin levels, which in turn reduces cortisol, which contributes to fat accumulation.
When you perform various physical exercises, you not only strengthen your abs, but you also expend energy, which results in effective fat burning. By increasing the endurance and strength of your abs, you also help improve blood circulation and normalise bowel function, which is where the movements during abs training act as a gentle massage.
Studies by the San Diego Institute of Biomechanics (USA) have shown that among abs exercises there are those in which the electrical activity of the muscles is higher than in others. The results of the study gave this list of the best abs exercises in general and for each department in particular.
Top 3 best abs exercises
- back supine bicycle
- Knee/leg raises on parallel bar
- Curls on a fitball
As for the best exercises for individual abdominal muscles, the situation is as follows:
- straight/ oblique m.j. – curls on a fitball, reverse curls, roller, plank, raising knees while hanging on a wall bars, vertical curls
- lying on the floor, curls with arms and torso raising, roller; bike curls, side curls lying on the floor.
- The best exercise aimed at developing core strength is the plank.
Ways to lose weight
For effective rapid impact on the waist and abdomen you should train the muscles of the whole body. That is why exercise should be complex and should target all muscle groups.
The more varied the exercises included in your daily workout, the faster your stomach will be toned. A sports programme should have an impact on the whole body, strong muscles are great for energy expenditure and therefore quickly get rid of excess subcutaneous fat.
The basic rule that will lead you to success is to solve two main tasks:
- organising a healthy diet;
- Doing a set of exercises regularly to burn excess fat.
Vacuum exercise
Professional fitness instructors recommend the vacuum exercise for a flat stomach. It must be performed daily for 3 weeks to get visible results.
Exercise technique
The result depends on the efforts made and the correct technique of performing this exercise. Do it twice a day: in the morning on an empty stomach and in the evening (a couple of hours before dinner). The duration of one exercise is 5-10 minutes.
“Vacuum” can be performed in three initial body positions:
- Standing, feet shoulder width apart, slightly bent forward, knees slightly bent, buttocks slightly set back, hands resting on the legs in the area just above the knees.
- Lying on your back, knees bent and standing on the floor. Perform vacuum from this position if you cannot hold on or are uncomfortable doing it from position 1.
- Standing on your knees, rest on straight arms, with your back rounded.
- Now gently exhale the air from your lungs – so that it comes out completely. Hold your breath for a couple of seconds, pulling your stomach in and tensing your abs as much as possible.
- Then inhale slowly, and as you exhale repeat the abdominal retraction and abs tension. Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth and folded lips.
- There is another variation of this exercise: the starting positions are the same, but the technique is different. Breathe out all the air, then take a shallow breath, hold your breath and tense your abs, then continue breathing and again hold and tense – do this until you have a full breath. Repeat the same with an exhalation.
- To start, you can practice without holding your breath, just on the inhale and exhale alternately retracting and inflating the abdomen. By the way, such retractions are recommended after childbirth to reduce abdominal volume and tone abs.
- The number of repetitions should be increased gradually. Start with 2-3 times and with time bring it to 10-15 times.
Proper nutrition
Even the most effective set of exercises and intensive training will not help you if you do not eat right or eat too much immediately after classes.
In order to achieve visible results, adjust your diet. Adjusting your diet has a direct impact on how quickly and effectively you solve the problem. The WHO recommends that you should calculate your caloric intake and then reduce it by 500 kcal every month until you have reached 300-500 kcal below your energy requirement for successful weight loss. For persons who are not physically active this value is 1 500-2 000 kcal.
The main recommendations during dietary intake: to consume foodstuffs rich in fibre, vitamins and other bioactive components (cereals and wholemeal products, vegetables, fruit, nuts, herbs etc.) and to limit the consumption of easily digestible carbohydrates (sugar, sweets, baked goods, bread and pasta from extra-fast flour).
Remember: if you eat more than the standard amount of food, your body does not use up fat, but only accumulates it, and with it, you gain even more extra kilos. The prerequisite for getting rid of fat and belly fat is to create a calorie deficit.
Fat deposits on the abdomen neutralise dihydrotestosterone
Deposits on the sides and abdomen of men have a negative impact on overall health. Researchers at Laval University in Canada have identified new effects of fat deposits on the body.
Enzymes in adipose tissue not only convert testosterone to estradiol, but also convert dihydrotestosterone to inactive components. Overweight men are often deficient in androgenic hormones. In clinical settings doctors usually treat this by prescribing anti-estrogens such as letrozole and courses of testosterone therapy. But testosterone injections cannot be the only remedy. The more fat a man has, the weaker the response to testosterone therapy and the greater the side effects.
The more fat, the more enzymes in the body that deactivate dehydrotestosterone. The latter is converted into 5-alpha-androstane 3-alpha,17-beta-diol and 5-alpha-androstane 3-beta,17-beta-diol by contact with the fat tissue. Anti-estrogens are no longer able to prevent this conversion.
When scientists studied subcutaneous and abdominal fat in obese and slim men, they found that the highest degree of dihydrotestosterone conversion occurred in subcutaneous fat. The most active enzymes are found in adult fat cells called adipocytes. While immature adipocytes do not show such activity in dihydrotestosterone conversion. The more fat you have, the more dihydrotestosterone is converted in your body. The more fat you have, the more adipocyte conversion activity you have.