How To Lose Belly Fat?

Yuri Elkaim, BPHE, CK, RHN & Amy Coates, RHN, BSc.

People ask me all the time, Yuri, “How can I lose belly fat?”

Men most often ask this question, but women too have a similar desire of losing weight, around their hips and thighs. So why are men and women different when it comes to fat loss? And how can both men and women succeed at losing belly fat and thigh fat, respectively?

It’s first important to understand that most people don't have their fat distributed evenly throughout their bodies. Each of us inherits a genetically determined and hormonally-influenced pattern of fat storage just as we inherit our eye or hair color. In other words, the fat seems to "stick" to certain areas more than others.

There's a scientific reason for this. Your fat cells are not just inert "storage tanks" for excess fuel. They are actually endocrine glands that send and receive signals from the rest of the body. This occurs through a hormone and receptor system.

For body fat loss to occur, you must first get the fat cell (adipocyte) to release the fat into the bloodstream. Then, the free fatty acids must be delivered to the working muscles where they can be burned for energy.

Belly Fat Determined by Fat Cell Receptors!

Fat cells have Beta 1 (B1) and Alpha 2 (A2) receptors. B1 receptors are the good guys. They activate hormone sensitive lipase, the enzyme that breaks down the fat and allows it to be released into the bloodstream to be burned. A2 receptors are the bad guys. They block the fat-releasing enzymes in the fat cell and encourage body fat formation.

It just so happens that in men, the lower abdominal region has a higher concentration of A2 receptors, so this gives us one possible explanation of why the lower abdominal region is often the first place the fat goes when men gain it, and the last place it comes off when they're losing it. (Incidentally, the fat in women's hips and thighs is also higher in A2 receptors). This situation is dictated by genetics and by the hormonal and enzymatic pathways we discussed.

Think of ab fat (or thigh fat for women) like the deep end of the swimming pool. No matter how much you protest, there is no way you can drain the deep end before the shallow end. However, don't let this discourage you. Lower ab fat WILL come off, it will simply be the last place to come off. First place on - Last place off.

This also helps to explain why abdominal exercises have little impact on body fat loss. It's a huge mistake to think that hundreds or thousands of reps of ab exercises will remove lower abdominal fat, except to the degree that it burns calories and contributes to the calorie deficit. What removes the fat - all over your body - is a calorie deficit and that comes from decreasing food intake, increasing activity, or a combination of both.

The other component to losing belly fat (and thigh fat) is one that is very often overlooked. It is the need to cleanse and detoxify your body. The reason for needing to do so is that your fat cells store toxins that accumulate in your body.

Your body knows that toxins circulating in the blood are dangerous and so they must be put in “storage” away from delicate tissues and organs. As such, the more toxic your body, the greater the tendency to gain fat.

Realize that your fat cells don’t actually increase in number, either. Rather, they simply expand like a balloon being filled with air. The more toxins you have in your body, the greater the need for storing them and, as such, your fat cells will swell markedly.

Overtime, this can even lead to the development of cellulite, especially in women, as the collagen fibers between fat cells become stretched and lose their integrity. And there is no treatment for cellulite!

So the key is to start ASAP to cleanse your body of toxins so that your fat cells do not expand out of control.

Regular exercise and a healthy diet are also critical components to losing belly fat but you need to start by purifying your body of the toxins that are forcing your fat cells into overdrive!

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