How to get rid of beer belly? Having a beer belly or pot belly is not a good sight for sure, but it can also be downright unhealthy and may way for variety of diseases.
Does Beer Belly come from drinking beer?
It is a myth that beer belly comes from drinking beer. In fact, it is caused due to excess accumulation of fat in the abdominal area; this fat is basically subcutaneous fat that is found below the skin. There are two major types of fat excess subcutaneous truncal – abdominal fat (android) and excess gluteofemoral fat (gynoid). The android fat is known as beer belly or apple shaped obesity.
Beer belly is also called pot belly. The World Health Organizatoin has said that the abdominal circumference in male when more than 90 cms and in female 80s cms, gives rise to ‘pot belly’. This can be seen in non-alcoholics too. A weight loss clinic in California says that if a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 30, it is known as beer belly, a conditoni that can cause many chronic life threatening diseases.
There is a co-relation of beer belly with metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, hypertension and glucose intolerance. Drinking beer at times, may not cause beer belly, but if you drink beer a lot, you can consume more calories, this fluid is retained in the stomach and not so easily excreted. This causes stomach to lose its elasticity and become bulged.
Causes of beer belly
1. Consuming more calories than required, and this excess calories can get convereted to fat and is stored in the belly.
2. Digestive disorders that can interfere with the digestion and excretion, mainly constipation.
3. Sedentary lifestyle that brings down the basal metabolic rate and lead to less energy spend compared to what is consumed.
In Asian countries like India, pot belly is due to high carbohydrate intake and a diet that includes masalas and gravy rich curries. Fast food in US and European countries can also lead to beer belly. Type 2 Diabetes is significant for pot belly. The other health risks can be cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, kidney diseases ec.
How to reduce Beer Belly Through Diet and Exercises
The average man weighs between 70 to 100 kgs and woman weighs between 60 to 80 kgs. Their every day calorie utilization ranges from 1500 to 2000 calories. When ones’ intake of calorie to this extent, they must burn those calories too. To bring down beer belly, one should not be tied to a particular exercise only.
Doing stomach crunches will not reduce beer belly. One need to also include activities like running, cycling and swimming to increase metabolism and reduce fat. 30 to 40 minutes of pure abdominal exercises along with a combination of a cardio work out can give you enviable abs.
Exercises to reduce beer belly, pot belly
1. Lie flat on your back. Lift your upper body to face the sky. Stay still for some time and come back to the original position. Do this repeatedly.
2. Hang yourself from a height. Lift your legs, if it is tough; lift up your knees.
3. Lie on the floor on your chest. Move up your body in a plank position, whilst keeping your elbows and toes on the floor. Stay in this position for some time and return to original position. Gradually increase repetitions.
Foods to avoid for pot belly
1. Avoid high calorie fat foods and animal meat
2. Avoid refined food products, go for high fiber foods
3. Avoid sweets and aerated drinks
4. Eat small but frequent meals for better digeston
5. Leave a gap of two hours between your dinner time and sleep
6. Check with a doctor or nutritionist if you have digestive orders or gastric problems.
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