What Can You Do to Target Belly Fat?

The short answer? Nothing. Fat loss just doesn’t work that way…

This is an extremely common question , and understandably so — for most of us, belly fat is the most obvious sign of excess body fat, particularly in men. For women, fat tends to accumulate around the hips to a more pronounced degree.

In both cases, the oft-expressed desire to “lose weight” is really a desire to get rid of belly fat or hip fat. And in both cases, the wish to target those areas specifically is misguided.

What Science Has to Say

While the question remains a common one, the answer had been arrived at decades ago. Back in 1971, a study performed at the University of California (Irvine) took a novel approach to investigating the topic of “spot reducing” fat.

In this study, researchers analyzed the arms of tennis players. These athletes in particular are well-known for featuring disproportionate muscular development between their arms, as their dominant arms undergo more rigorous training by virtue of their sport.

If the theory of spot reducing fat held true, those arms would be leaner than their underused counterparts. However, researchers found this not to be the case — the layer of fat was equal on each arm, despite the racket-bearing arms being nearly a full centimeter larger due to muscle development.

In a more recent study, researchers tackled the question even more directly by assessing whether abdominal training would lead to a reduction in belly fat. Subjects underwent a 6 week program of abdominal training, while the control group held merely to a fixed diet.

At the end of 6 weeks, while the test group exhibited improve endurance while performing abdominal exercises, absolutely no difference was shown between the groups in terms of body weight, body fat percentage, or even abdominal circumference.

If six weeks of crunches won’t put a dent in belly fat and targeted fat loss is a myth — as shown by these and other studies — then what is the answer to combating unwanted belly fat? The answer lies in understanding how the body uses fat in the first place.

Body Fat Basics

In general, a certain amount of body fat is necessary to a healthily-functioning body: Not only is adipose tissue a source of energy for the body, but it’s also important for regulatory functions such as hormone production and even thermogenesis — the means by which the body produces its own heat.

However, as we all well know by now, excess body fat — especially belly fat — can contribute to a host of health issues, like metabolic disorders, high blood pressure, heart disease, and an overall reduction in life expectancy. In fact, obesity is one of the leading preventable causes of death.

When it comes to the question of reducing body fat in a specific area, one needs to understand the process by which the body utilizes fat for energy. The misunderstanding about targeting belly fat stems from the fact that while muscles use fat for energy, they do not do so directly.

Most of the fat stored in the body is in the form of triglycerides. These molecules cannot easily pass through cell membranes, meaning they are great for storage but don’t serve the body’s energy needs directly. Instead, they must first be broken down into their components: Glycerol and free fatty acids.

Once these smaller molecules have been released into the bloodstream through lipolysis, they are passed into the body’s cells and used by the cells’ mitochondria through beta-oxidation and the Krebs Cycle to facilitate the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) — the body’s primary source of energy at the cellular level.

These processes take place throughout the whole of the body, as the free fatty acids are distributed by the circulatory system. The sources of the triglycerides broken down are also widespread, with larger stores of fat obviously taking longer to be depleted. This means that not only can you not target any specific region, but those in question — the belly and hips — will take the longest to be utilized by the body.

Simply put — belly fat is stubborn. If you want to get rid of your gut, you need to work consistently to reduce overall body fat.

In order to initiate this process of releasing stored fat and converting it into ATP, the body’s demand for energy must exceed more readily-available sources of fuel — like nutrients from recently-ingested food. This can be achieved either by controlling the intake of those nutrients — i.e. manipulation of diet — or by increasing the body’s demands, through exercise.

Stop Trying to Find a Diet that’s Right for You — Create One Instead

For most people, the mere mention of the word “diet” triggers fears of deprivation and starvation — and it’s no surprise, given the nature of fad diets these days. Countless diet schemes have risen to prominence over the years, many of them based on prohibiting certain foods or even entire food groups.

These methods tout themselves as quick and easy paths to weight loss — and this is exactly the problem, because they’re focused on “weight loss” and not “fat loss”.

Depriving yourself of nutrition is an easy way to change the numbers on the scale, but at the cost of muscle mass and even potentially your overall health. The problem there is that muscle tissue burns more calories at rest, so losing it means a diminished metabolism.

Once the extremity of these diets wears down your willpower, you find yourself armed with a body even less capable of burning fat than when you started. The risk of regaining the weight is only too real — hence the phenomenon known as “yo-yo dieting”. Sure, those plans might melt belly fat a little, but it could just as quickly return — with a vengeance.

Another problem presented by these faddish diet schemes is they tend to be “one size fits all”, offering generalized guidelines that care little for the ways in which individuals differ from one another. It isn’t difficult to find groups of people attempting to follow these schemes, with many of them blaming themselves when their weight loss stalls or even reverses — when it’s not they who’ve failed, but the plan itself.

What you need isn’t some quick gimmick that takes you to dietary extremes — you want something sustainable, a change in lifestyle that focuses on fat loss, can be maintained over time, and is specific to the way your body works.

Forget the Fads and Lose the Fat — with Dieting 101

Contrary to most fad diets, every macronutrient — proteins, fats, and carbohydrates — has a place on your menu, and in adequate amounts. When it comes to putting together a quality nutrition plan, the key isn’t limiting calories — it’s fine-tuning the amount of calories you get from each of those macros.

As Dr. Jim Stoppani — one of the world’s foremost experts on exercise and nutrition — explains, “You want to start a diet for fat loss by eating as many calories as you can while still losing weight. This way, you have ample room to keep lowering calories as your metabolic rate drops and fat loss hits a plateau.”

Stoppani’s Dieting 101 plan was designed after years of research in the lab and the gym, and has been successfully proven by thousands upon thousands who have followed his advice.

Protein

By far the most important of your macronutrients, protein intake should be between 1g and 1.5g per pound of your current bodyweight (up to 230lbs; above this weight, use 230 to calculate your macro targets until you drop below it). Studies have shown that higher protein intake not only contributes to more muscle mass, but also increased fat loss as well. By getting adequate protein from sources like eggs, fish, beef, and poultry — as well as a protein powder blend like Pro JYM — you’ll be optimizing both your results in the gym and on the scale.

Fat

Many diets make a point of reducing fat intake, but the truth is healthy and adequate fat consumption is necessary to many of your body’s functions. The right dietary fats can help curb your appetite, regulate hormone production, and improve cardiovascular health. Here it’s recommended you get 0.5g per pound of bodyweight of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fats in equal measure.

Carbs

The macro you’ll focus on most is carbohydrates. That’s because it’s through manipulation of your carb targets that you’ll not only reach your current goal, but continue achieving the goals you set in the future. This is where Dieting 101 becomes truly individualized, as your carb target will depend on you and your personal diet up to this point.

Calculating from Calories

The act of keeping a food diary alone can help you along the path to fat loss. Here, you’ll be putting it to even better use. With a meal-tracking app, keep track of your daily diet as it is now, for at least a few days. You want to be able to get a decent average of your daily caloric intake. Once you know that, you can calculate your starting point for carbs.

First, since there are 4 calories to every gram of protein, take your protein target and multiply by 4. Then multiply your target for fats by 9, as there are 9 calories in every gram of fat. Subtract these two numbers from your average daily calorie total, and you’re left with the calories you’ll get from carbs. Each gram of carbohydrate has 4 calories, so divide the remaining calories by 4 and you have your carb target in grams.

For example: A 200lbs person tracks and finds they eat roughly 3400 calories each day. Per Dieting 101’s recommendations, their protein intake would be 300g, or 1200 calories; their fat target would be 100g, or 900 calories. Subtracting these two numbers from their total leaves 1300 calories, or 325g of carbs per day.

Where to Go from There

It seems so counterintuitive to start a new diet with the exact same amount of calories as your old diet, but as stated above the key isn’t limiting calories but fine-tuning them. “So all you have to really do from the starting point is not even worry about your total calories and changing your total calories — it’s just adjusting your macros,” says Stoppani. “Just by manipulating those macros around, you’re going to start seeing change in your body.”

By increasing protein intake and better balancing fats and carbohydrates, this change alone can have tremendous impact on your fat loss efforts.

As time goes on, take stock of your results. Use a tape measure, or judge your progress by how you look in the mirror, or how your clothes fit. Because you’re focusing on fat loss — not weight loss — the scale won’t give you an accurate account of your progress.

If you’re not seeing a change, then reduce your carb target slightly — as little as 0.1g/bs, no more than 0.25g — and reassess your progress in a few weeks’ time. And remember, this isn’t a gimmick or quick fix — it’s a lifestyle change aimed at reducing all of your body fat over time. With patience and consistency, this will address that gut. As is often said, “abs are made in the kitchen.” If you want to lose belly fat and see yours? You need to get your diet in check.

Intermittent Fasting

One particular dieting method that has gained popularity as of late is intermittent fasting (IF). Rather than focusing on manipulating macros or calories, this dietary scheme involves the manipulation of meal timing. As the name implies, IF utilizes regular intervals of fasting.

There are two main approaches to IF: the 5/2 method, and the 16/8 style of intermittent fasting. The 5/2 method is a weekly schedule that allows you to follow your diet as normal for five days, with two non-consecutive days of complete 24-hour fasting.

From the outset, this can seem convenient as it only really affects two days out of your week; however, a full 24-hour fast can be difficult for most to manage successfully. This is one of the reasons why Dr. Stoppani prefers the 16/8 method, which is a daily schedule rather than weekly.

In this style of IF, one fasts for 16 hours and eats for 8. These shorter fasting periods are enough to affect an increase in metabolism, through the production of what are known as uncoupling proteins. Stoppani explains, “Uncoupling proteins make your body less efficient, so you have to burn more of the stuff you eat just to get the same amount of energy to do the same things.”

“That’s what intermittent fasting does,” he continues, “it literally increases the activity of genes that produce uncoupling proteins. And what the uncoupling proteins do — for those of you who know a little bit about biochemistry — is they poke holes in these little structures that are known as mitochondria.”

“When you poke holes in the membrane of the mitochondria, it doesn’t produce as much ATP. So now you have to get more fat and more carbs to burn more to get the same amount of ATP.”

This intermittent fasting style not only enhances metabolism, but has been shown to offer a host of other benefits in terms of improved bodily processes: Boosts to the immune system, improved insulin sensitivity, even better cellular repair — most notably, the skin.

To incorporate the 16/8 method of intermittent fasting into your lifestyle, simply follow your Dieting 101 recommendations on a schedule that limits your eating to the same 8 hours every day. During your fasting window, stick to water, black coffee, or plain tea to maintain the fasted state and optimize the production of uncoupling proteins.

Carb Cycling

One final method of affecting greater fat loss through diet is carb cycling. One of the obstacles to continued progress often overlooked by people is that of adaptation. The body prefers to be as efficient as possible, and as conditions remain unchanged it will accomplish this by ultimately using as little energy as it can. This is one reason why, after time has passed, it may become necessary to reduce your calories by lowering your carb target as explained above.

Another method of thwarting the body’s tendency toward efficiency — and thereby thwarting the stalling of your progress — is a pattern of regularly changing your carb targets, rather than simply adjusting and maintaining new, lower intake levels.

To use carb cycling as recommended by Dr. Stoppani, designate three days of your week as moderate carb days — days on which your carb intake will more or less fall in line with your Dieting 101 target — three days as low carb days, and one as a high carb day.

Any of these dietary methods alone will prove useful in helping you to achieving fat loss, and they can be used in tandem with each other to even greater effect. Start with Dieting 101, and don’t be afraid to try IF, carb cycling, or even both.

Furthering Fat Loss Through Exercise

While diet may be the most important aspect of your fat loss goals, it’s by no means the sole approach. And if putting together the ideas of fat loss and exercise conjures images of spin classes and treadmills, fear not — there are alternatives to classic cardio that are not only less arduous, but also more effective.

More Fat Loss, Less Time — High-Intensity Interval Training

There are a number of problems with classic, low-intensity steady-state cardio: It takes a lot of time, it reduces muscle mass as well as fat, and to most people it’s just plain boring. All of these issues are solved with high-intensity interval training, or HIIT.

HIIT is not only more effective at affecting fat loss, but does so much more efficiently than standard cardio. In fact, studies have been done in which subjects performing HIIT lost twice as much body fat from exercising in only a third of the time compared to those performing regular cardio exercises.

The essence of HIIT lies not in the exercise itself but how it’s performed — in short intervals of high-intensity, broken up by short periods of rest. While the amount of calories burned during these brief intervals is low, the effect on resting metabolism afterward is far greater than that from steady-state cardio. Because of this, overall fat loss is increased, and virtually any exercise can be used as HIIT.

One popular form of HIIT is the tabata. Named for their originator, Dr. Izumi Tabata, tabatas are HIIT performed according to a specific timing format. Each tabata cycle lasts 4 minutes, and is composed of work and rest intervals at a 2:1 ratio — 20 seconds of exertion, followed by 10 seconds of rest. Because each tabata cycle is so relatively short, they’re easy to fit into your daily routine. You can even work them into your weight training, as is the case in Dr. Stoppani’s Super Shredded 8 program.

Bite-Size Cardio for Big-Time Burn — Cardioacceleration

Another metabolism-boosting method promoted by Dr. Stoppani is cardioacceleration, first introduced in his Shortcut to Shred program, which borrows from HIIT and integrates it even further into your weight training program.

During a typical weightlifting session, as much as 75% or more of your time is spent resting between sets. While this is necessary to allow the muscles to recover for further use, this time does not have to be entirely wasted. These rest periods present an opportunity to enhance the overall effect of your workout in regards to fat loss, by using cardio to not only accelerate your recovery time between sets but your metabolism as well.

As with HIIT, virtually any exercise can be used as cardioacceleration. Simply perform an interval of your chosen exercise for 1 minute during the rest period between sets. By briefly increasing your heart rate, cardioacceleration will help to increase the rate at which waste materials are swept away from your muscles, meaning better recovery between sets of heavy lifting. And as with HIIT, the increased metabolic response will further fat loss long after the workout has ended.

Full-Body Training for Full-Body Fat Loss

Another method of training aimed at enhancing fat loss involves no cardio whatsoever — full-body weight training.

Most resistance training is performed in a split style, where only certain muscle groups are exercised on a given day. If trying to maximize strength or size gains, this training style is still optimal. However, if fat loss is the goal — while still making some progress in strength and size — training the entire body in a single day can be tremendously effective, as studies have shown

“This is likely due to the fact that with full-body training, you activate more muscle fibers throughout the body. This leads to greater activation of genes that create proteins, which will enable more fat to be burned away for fuel,” says Stoppani.

When we exercise a single muscle group, we get a single muscle group’s worth of gene activation. Whole-body training seeks to trigger as much of this activity as possible, throughout the entire body, thereby affecting a maximal increase to metabolism.

JimStoppani.com features dozens of full-body programs and individual workouts that can be used as your main method of training or as adjuncts to your current weight training program.

Weight Training Boosts Fat Loss, Too

Resistance training and weightlifting are often looked upon as strictly a means of developing muscle. Often overlooked is the way they can help toward fat loss as well.

The importance of maintaining lean muscle mass cannot be overstated, as muscle tissue is integral to a well-functioning metabolism. Weight training could be considered essential to fat loss goals for that reason alone.

However, the body requires immense amounts of energy to accomplish heavy lifts as well, and while much of this energy is derived from the muscles’ glycogen stores during the exercises themselves, the net effect is an added increase to overall metabolism.

Particularly when performing exercises at higher rep-ranges, with shortened rest times, and with the inclusion of cardioacceleration between sets or tabatas between muscle groups as described above, weight training is an essential tool in the pursuit of fat loss.

Fat-Burning Supplements Can Help

Finally, having already discussed the two main methods of affecting the metabolism of body fat — manipulation of diet and metabolism-enhancing exercise methods — there is one more tool available to help the process along: Fat burning supplements.

Relying on supplements like this from the get-go can seem tempting — the concept of “quick and easy” is always alluring — but the truth is, without a healthy diet and adequate training program, no amount of capsules will get you to your goal. If, however, you’re maintaining a healthy diet and sticking to your training program, a supplement like Shred JYM can further your efforts.

The market is flooded with supplements that claim to increase fat loss — and most of them rely on either dangerously powerful stimulants, or any number of ineffective ingredients. What you really want from a fat burner is something that enhances the process through which the body already manages its stores of fat: The release, transport, and utilization of free fatty acids.

With Shred JYM, caffeine and synephrine increase the release of fat from storage, while acetyl-L-carnitine enhances delivery of those free fatty acids to your cells’ mitochondria. Both green tea extract and capsaicin ensure those fats are put to use rather than re-stored as triglycerides. If you want something to boost to your fat-loss efforts, Shred JYM is an effective tool when used in tandem with diet and exercise.

The Comprehensive Approach to Fat Loss

As you can see, there are many more methods to achieve your fat-loss goals than starving yourself or spending hours on the treadmill. And while spot reducing belly fat isn’t possible — you can’t just crunch your way to a trimmer waistline — the concepts laid out above represent the most effective means of ultimately reaching that goal.

No gimmicks or quick-fix plans are likely to produce lasting results — as few as 5% of people who experience significant weight loss manage to keep that weight off. What’s required is a comprehensive approach and a lifestyle change that is not only one you can maintain, but something that boosts your overall health.

By making changes to your diet that are sustainable, like those described above, and introducing more effective training methods to enhance your fat loss, you’ll find that spot reducing isn’t even necessary. Tackling body fat as a whole is the best way to get rid of belly fat — and JimStoppani.com has the tools necessary to accomplish it.

Want to know more? JimStoppani.com features hundreds of articles and videos from Dr. Jim Stoppani himself, on everything from nutrition to supplementation and training.