Have you ever suffered from depression, health problems, or embarrassment due to the beer belly? I admit that a beer belly has been a burden to me for a long time. Not only do I indulge in drinking a few cans of beer occasionally, but I also eat significant quantities of delicious food while enjoying my favorite beverage.
Therefore, you can believe me when I say that I understand your discomfort and worries. However, there are ways to reduce your beer belly to a decent look without any risk to your health. Let’s look for helpful and practical tips on how to get rid of a beer belly.
Then and Now
In most cases, beer consumption is a direct reason for beer belly (abdominal obesity) formation. Drinking this particular beverage will reduce testosterone and interfere with the ability of your body to burn fat. Another problem is your way of life that significantly different from your ancestors’ lifestyle. Let’s take a look.
Food
Throughout history, people were struggling to produce, find, and have enough food. A beer belly wasn’t their problem, but being underfed was a significant issue. On the other hand, modern people tend to overeat.
Your ancestors didn’t eat processed food full of saturated sugars and artificial fats. Their diet was focused on more fruits and veggies, meat, and whole grains. In other words, they ate healthy food.
In most cases, you can find only supermarket food, fast food, candies, and pastries such as bread and white flour products when opening your fridge. So, the problem is in eating only unhealthy food.
Alcohol
The next problem is alcohol. Our forefathers didn’t have alcoholic drinks on disposal daily, but drinking was reserved for special events and gatherings. That is one more unhealthy habit modern people have in comparison to people from the past. As a result, our ancestors didn’t have a beer belly as frequently as people do have now.
Exercises
People used to have more activities in the past than you have now. First of all, they walked and did more manual work and, consequently, they burnt more calories. Modern human society relies on many commodities that make life easier. The equation is OK if you have a lot of physical activities to burn all the calories you have taken in. Otherwise, you will end up with a beer belly.
Lifestyle
All in all, the lifestyles of your ancestors and yours are pretty different. The solution is easy to see. You need to change your habits to stay healthy, fit, and presentable. The real question is, are you ready to change.
Keep in mind that not all the changes should be stressful and uncomfortable. It will be enough to make your transition from unhealthy habits to healthy ones that are not aggressive and unbearable.
Reduce a Beer Belly by Eating Healthier
1. Sweet snacks
Cutting down snacks is a good start. You have probably thought that it is easier to say than to do it. So, let’s start with some basics. For example, try to increase eating fruits instead of candies and treat yourself to some sweet surprise only on some special occasions.
You should make your own cakes, cookies, biscuits, and even candies to avoid processed food whenever possible. Industrial sweets have more sugars and artificial additives that pose a threat to your health and weight. One more reason for making your own snacks is that you don’t have time to make them so often, so you won’t eat them too much.
2. Salty snacks
Snacks like chips, nachos, dipping, crackers are a perfect addition to drinking beer, but you should avoid or reduce them to the minimum. This food has too much salt and fat that leads to belly fat.
You can replace them with popcorns without fat and peanuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, or other nuts. Of course, all nuts are also rich in calories, so you shouldn’t overdo them. The best recipe is to be moderate.
3. Other food
Once you decide to get rid of your beer belly, you should also be aware of other harmful food full of calories. As mentioned above, processed food is not a good option, so you should decide what to eat instead.
A lot of cooked and fresh food is a good start. You can eat a lot of fish and meat in combination with vegetables. Avoid food fried in deep fat because grilled, cooked, baked, or roasted meat and fish are better options. Also, the less white flour you eat, your plan will have more chance of success.
If you are a cheese lover, you should focus on cheese with less fat. The same thing is with milk and dairy products. It is crucial to calculate calories. You don’t need to bring a calculator with you, but you can play ‘a less calorie’ game.
For a start, pay attention to labels and the number of calories written on them. If you want to buy a particular product, you should pick the one with less fat. When purchasing some processed food, make sure to check its content. That way, you will reduce a significant amount of daily calories.
Reduce a Beer Belly by Drinking Moderately
4. Alcoholic drinks
It is very pleasant and healthy to drink a beer or two. Beer is rich in vitamin B, and it is excellent for your body when drinking it in moderation. Even ancient Egyptians drank ale for recreation and fun. However, one typical beer is 150 calories, so you should do the math and see how much is enough.
An average man needs to take in about 2,500 calories and a woman 2,000 calories a day. If you want to get rid of your beer belly, you should reduce the intake by at least 500 calories a day. With increasing physical activities and reducing drinking to one beer, your fat will slowly fade away.
Keep in mind that beer and other alcoholic drinks tend to open your appetite. Therefore, you should be aware of that fact when you drink them. Try not to chew and eat more crisps and unhealthy snacks while watching your favorite sports game and drinking beer.
Another scientific fact is that your liver will focus on filtering alcohol when you drink alcohol, and it won’t purify fat. Therefore, fewer alcoholic drinks are advisable when you are on a mission of getting rid of your waist area.
5. Other drinks
Alcoholic drinks are not the only ones that affect your waist circumference. Soft and soda drinks can also be harmful to your body. If you are keen on soda drinks, you should know they are full of saturated sugars and can be a danger not just for your belly appearance but also to a liver.
Instead of drinking soda and artificial fruit juices, it will be a good idea to drink tea, water, lemonade, or freshly squeezed fruit. Fresh fruit is full of vitamins and natural sugars that will make you stop craving sweet food. At the same time, it will fill your body with energy and help you stay fit.
6. Exercising
Manual work is not so common recently. If you are stuck behind a desk during working hours, it means you need to be more active in your spare time. Being active will equal burning calories and vice versa.
If you are crazy about sports, it is a piece of good news for you. You can spend time playing or doing your favorite sport and staying fit. In case you are not a sport type, you can always take a walk 30 to 60 minutes a day. A faster walk will do good for your body and help you reduce weight and beer belly in the long term.
There are also some specific exercises you can do to reduce the fat in the waist area. They will help you speed up the process of getting rid of your upper body weight. If you are up for the challenge, you can give it a shot.
Crunches are advisable as they will activate the muscles of your belly under the belly fat. They are not easy to do at first, but I am sure you will be more successful as time goes by.
The experts suggest jump squats, mountain climbers, push-ups, and bicycle crunches for more advanced exercising. All these workouts are perfect for reducing belly fat. If you think you can do them, you should definitely go for it.
Summary
As you can see, you can quickly put on a few pounds, but it is not that easy to get rid of them. You can surely do it by establishing the right balance between eating and exercising.
It will take time to see the first results, but after a few days of detoxification from unhealthy food, you will feel more energized and willing to go on. It is in human nature to be on the move and to be fit. Believe it or not, your body will naturally accept the lifestyle changes faster than your own will.
