The stomach is the one part of the body that most men and women are dissatisfied with. It is no wonder that most people looking for weight loss actually place the goal of trying to reduce belly fat as one of their highest priorities. A flat stomach is very much coveted and yet most people struggle to achieve it. The main reason for this challenge is evolution and our environment.

Why Is It So Difficult to Reduce Belly Fat

Your body considers fat as fuel to fight starvation when a drought or a famine occurs. Little does your body realize that we live in an age where food is in abundance. Famines are a rarity. When is the last time someone you knew died of starvation?

Our survival programming is not apt for current times. Our bodies do not need to hoard fat anymore. Instead, it should not hold on to the fat reserves so tightly. We thank our existence to this survival programming. Unfortunately this very same survival programming is turning against us when food is in abundance. It is contributing to the obesity epidemic and all types of lifestyle diseases.

First in Last Out

The belly is one of the first places to store fat and one of the last places to lose it. That is why it is so frustrating when trying to reduce belly fat. It always seems like nothing works. One has to realize that fat comes off in layers. Imagine the layers of fat in your body similar to the layers of an onion. Fat layers come off one layer at a time.

One should patiently pursue their weight loss initiative. A flat stomach is the prize for one who perseveres. Many get frustrated and stop even when fat layers across the body are being burnt. It’s not that the weight loss initiative is not working. It’s just that the body has not tapped into the belly fat stores yet.

Dieting and Your Starvation Response

Ant form of deprivation diet will most likely set off your body’s starvation response. This is one of the main reason that fad diets dont work. When the starvation response is initiated, it becomes almost impossible to lose belly fat. The body holds on to fat tightly. This is one of the reasons why some people are able to lose considerable amounts of weight but yet have a pooch belly. As time goes by, it becomes more and more difficult to reduce the belly fat. In short, stop starvation diets as these do not help to reduce belly fat.

Insulin Resistance

Insulin is an essential hormone required to drive nutrients into our cells. Without insulin, nutrients such as glucose cannot get into our cells. Insulin resistance is a condition where the body loses its sensitivity to insulin. In this condition, the body needs excessive insulin to do the tasks that were earlier possible with lesser amounts. The excess insulin circulates in the blood stream.

Insulin is a potent fat storage hormone. In its presence, it is almost impossible to burn fat. Insulin facilitates in storing excess nutrients as fat.

Chronic Stress

Chronic stress has been shown to promote the storage of belly fat. Chronic stress results in the body constantly spewing stress hormones into the blood stream, One of these hormones is cortisol. Cortisol promotes abdominal fat storage.

Focus on Spot Training

Spot training is when people focus on exercises such as sit-ups to flatten their stomachs.  This is another major reason people are not able to reduce belly fat. Most people have the simple understanding that the best way to tackle belly fat is by attacking the problem locally. Unfortunately, the body is a far more complicated system. No amount of localized spot training will be able to reduce belly fat.

Exercise and a Sensible Diet is the Answer

We cannot focus fat burning in localized areas. The body will decide which part of your fat stores are  tapped into and burnt during the course of your weight loss initiative. Your body’s fat burning pattern is dependent on your genetic programming. You need to be patient.

The secret to a flat stomach is exercise and a sensible diet. Calories consumed must be less that calories expanded. Exercises should be focused on weight resistance training and high intensity cardio. Learn more about high intensity cardio exercises from an earlier article entitled, “How to Make Running Work for Weight Loss“. Slowly but surely, these steps will reduce your belly fat.