52 Science-Backed Flat Belly Tips

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With so much hype about getting a flat belly overnight, you would think it’s as easy as saving 15% on your car insurance. (Geico anyone?)

Getting a flat belly will NOT happen overnight, however, you can do a few things to speed up the belly flattening process.

When you’re as busy as me and my clients, it’s much easier and convenient to impulsively buy fast foods, or skip the gym, or avoid doing the things you KNOW you should be doing.

So, to stay disciplined even when “it’s hard” or “your progress is to slow”, we need EASY and simple.

Believe it or not, maintaining a fit body may be easier than you think. I’ve outlined 52 of the easiest and effective ways that will help you get the flat belly you’ve always wanted.

The 52 Science-Backed Flat Belly Tips

1.) Eat Protein

Studies show that protein is by far the most filling. It helps you feel more full, with less food. If you need to lose weight or belly fat, then consider replacing some of the carbs and fats you are eating with protein. Protein also helps increase lean metabolically active tissue (i.e. muscle), which is the only tissue that efficiently burns off fat.

If your goal is to have a flat belly, adding more protein into your diet is the first step to accomplishing your goal.

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2.) Avoid High-Fructose Corn Syrup

As part of the chemical process used to make high fructose corn syrup, the glucose and fructose—which are naturally bound together—become separated. This allows the fructose to mainline directly into your liver, which turns on a factory of fat production in your liver called lipogenesis.

This leads to fatty liver, the most common disease in America today, affecting 90 million Americans. This, in turn, leads to diabesity—pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes. So, high fructose corn syrup is the real driver of the current epidemic of heart attacks, strokes, cancer, dementia, and of course, type 2 diabetes.

3.) Snack Strategically

Snacking is a double-edged sword for most women trying to get a flat belly. On one side, some women aren’t eating enough, so snacking could become vital to losing weight. On the other hand, some women are either snacking too much or eating the wrong foods when choosing to snack.

The solution is to come up with a list of the best combinations of snacks to make sure you’re snacking is doing more good than bad. Snacks should either be primarily protein or a combination or protein, fat, and healthy carbs.

Learn How The 3-Week Metabolism Diet will help you boost your metabolism with strategic snacking.

4.) Skip the Cardio

Cardio is a LONG bout of STRESS. All exercise is technically stress, but cardio is a stress that generally lasts for a longer period of time and it takes much longer to recover from it. Chronic high cortisol will actually INHIBIT your ability to burn fat and lose weight. Excess cortisol is CATABOLIC, or muscle breaking. So, if you are doing cardio throughout the week, you have to ask yourself am I losing fat or muscle, because I guarantee as awesome as it might be to see the scale going down, you do NOT want to lose muscle.

The Bottom Line: Excess cardio leads to excess cortisol, adrenaline, estrogen, and other stress hormones. If you are not eating perfectly and are completely psychologically stress-free (and who is)?

I recommend the specific type of workout you need to do to burn fat and get a flat belly below.

5.) Keep a Food Journal

Keeping a meticulous food diary or journal is useful for people wondering about potential food-related ailments or how much they eat in a day. It’s time-consuming and potentially cumbersome, but experts say many people can benefit from the effort. hen it comes to losing weight, experts say there is plenty of evidence that keeping track of daily food and calorie intake is one of the most effective ways to change behavior.

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6.) Eat More Healthy Fats

The right fats can help speed up fat loss by balancing your hormones, stabilizing your blood sugar, and reducing inflammation.

The hormonal and metabolic benefits of eating more fat are great, but one of the best benefits might be the satiating effects of fat. Nothing is worse than eating a lower-calorie diet that leaves your hungry all the time. Unfortunately, most women thing that healthy fats are nut and seed oils and tend to avoid saturated fats.

The reality is, saturated fats are the healthiest fats like coconut oil and grass-fed butter. Then monounsaturated fats like avocado, olive oil, and macadamia nuts.

You’ll learn more about which fats to avoid below, but if you’re ready for a 21-day specific detox meal plan then here’s what you need to do…

7.) Plan Your Lunches

While meal planning can be considered a chore to add onto your “to-do list,” this is one chore that should be at the top of that list! After doing thousands of nutrition consults, one of the top 3 flat belly blockers for women is a horrible lunch.

Write down 2 or 3 balanced lunch meals (this would be easy if you joined my 3-week diet), then choose a day to prepare your lunches for the week. Prepare and portion them out, then commit to eating ONLY that for the next week. Rinse and repeat.

8.) Rev Up Your Coffee

Coffee contains antioxidants, has been shown to lower Parkinson’s disease risk, increases body temperature and metabolism, protects against free radical production and oxidative stress, and ncreases overall happiness

Coffee can also stimulate the metabolism. When combined with the right adrenal protectors, coffee can help with your fat loss efforts. It’s best to combine a natural(ish) sugar, protein, and fat. The best coffee additions are raw milk, or cream, coconut milk or cream, with cinnamon, raw honey, or organic sugar. Make sure to purchase organic coffee, as coffee is amongst the highest foods in pesticide residues.

9.) Do HIMT (High-Intensity Metabolic Training)

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Before you say something like “I’m too old” or “I’m not in good shape” or “I can’t do intense training” let me stop you there. Everyone can do some form of “intense” training. Even if it’s just 3 minutes of exercise for the first week, then 6, then eventually 20. If you want a flat belly you HAVE to exercise/move, so you might as well do the most fat-burning friendly form of exercise, right?

I recommend doing 3-4 routines per week that last anywhere from 15-25 minutes.

This along with ONE other tweak, helped Juanita lose 39 pounds and get a flat belly.

10.) Cycle Your Carbs

Research suggests that healthy starches (or resistant starches) like grains, beans and legumes can help with weight loss by boosting metabolism. In one Australian study, rats that ate a diet low in resistant starch gained fat and lost muscle mass, while those that ate a diet higher in resistant starch preserved their muscle mass despite the higher carb intake.

I teach carb-cycling in all of my programs. Specifically, in the 3-Week Diet I encourage you do limit carbs on low-activity days and increase carbs on higher activity days.

Carbs can be your friend or enemy. Educate yourself and listen to your body to make sure you stay friends with carbs.

11.) Avoid Vegetable Oils

Those vegetable oils in your pantry are making you fat. Even the so called heart healthy vegetable fats like grapeseed or flax oil should be avoided!

The reason is that these vegetable oil bottles and spreads are loaded with omega-6 fats. This fat is also called linoleic acid (PUFAs) and is distinguished from the healthy omega-6 gamma linolenic acid which actually helps you lose weight.

The rancid omega-6 fats primarily found in the Western diet come from soy, corn, cottonseed, and canola oil (which also contains rancid omega-3 fats) and are a category of polyunsaturated oils found in seeds and grains.

While eating seeds and grains is not a bad thing, concentrating the oils from them is. Below, I’ll reveal the best cooking oil to use.

12.) Work Your Core

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From an exercise standpoint, the more you work the muscles that stabilize your spine, the faster you signal your body to lose fat and reduce your waistline.  Think about your abs as your spinal cord protectors, even though they’re on the other side.  When you protect your body, it gets lean, and prepares to be able to withstand more.  Your “six pack muscle” (rectus abdominus) is an after-effect of training the rest of your core.

The 5 true core muscles are the only ones that really matter when it comes to training your abs for a flat stomach.  Once you get a flat stomach, you can always enhance the ripple effect by improving definition of the rectus abdominus; but should you go out of order, your body will reduce the speed of your results.

The reason that your body wants to see you train your abs in this order is because it is the best survival strategy.  Protect your most vital organs, and above all else, protect your brain, spinal cord, and heart.  When you train your ‘true core’ muscles in your abdomen, you are also tightening something called ‘fascia.’  Fascia is basically a connective web of tissue that lines every organ in your body, attaches muscle to ligaments, ligaments to bones, and acts as a protective layer for your entire body.  Fascia runs through every aspect of your body, from your veins and arteries, all the way out to your skin.

Skip the crunches and sit-ups and work your core!

13.) Drink Apple Cider Vinegar

The “magic elixir” has been used for centuries as a versatile ingredient with a wide-range of uses for the body, including an anti-microbial and antifungal agent that increases immunity and weight loss, among other uses. Previous research has found sipping on ACV has been associated with lower body weight, body mass index (BMI), weight circumference, and serum triglycerides (fat found in blood). Obese adults who consumed a beverage containing one or two tablespoons of vinegar every day lost two to four pounds after 12 weeks.

It’s best to purchase the apple cider vinegar with the “mother.”

The “mother” strands of protein in organic ACV consists of cellulose and acetic acid. These protein strands contain enzymes and beneficial bacteria that give the organic unfiltered vinegar its cloudy and cobweb-like appearance.

Therefore, when looking for the best type of vinegar, I adviseto make sure it is “organic, raw, and contains “mother.”

14.) Eat Slower

People who describe themselves as fast eaters tend to be heavier than those who say they eat more slowly.

In fact, fast eaters are up to 115% more likely to be obese, compared to slower eaters.

Your appetite and calorie intake is largely controlled by hormones.

Slowing down can also improve your health and quality of life in other ways:

  • Increase your enjoyment of food.
  • Improve digestion.
  • Help you absorb nutrients better.
  • Promote healthy teeth.
  • Make you feel calmer and more in control.
  • Reduce stress.

Slow down to speed up…your metabolism to get a flat belly!

15.) Work Your Legs

Weight training is generally associated with building muscle and strength rather than burning fat, but lifting weights can actually be highly beneficial for fat loss. Leg training in particular has certain benefits for men when it comes to shedding unwanted pounds, though how effective your leg workouts are in terms of burning belly fat depends on a number of factors.

Resistance training builds lean muscle mass, which elevates your metabolism, notes MayoClinic.com. As women age, their metabolisms can slow down due to a decrease in muscle mass, so building more muscle can help keep your metabolic rate high. As your legs account for a large proportion of your muscle mass, building them can cause a noticeable rise in metabolism and your daily calorie burn.

Believe it or not, the more you exercise your legs the flatter your belly will get. Even more so than doing hundreds of crunches or sit-ups everyday.

16.) Take an Epsom Salt Bath

Epsom salt baths are a great tool to increase magnesium, especially when much of our society is deficient in Magnesium. As stressors increase, our need for Magnesium increases.

Adequate Magnesium helps improve circulatory health, detoxes toxins and heavy metals from our cells, improves nervous system efficiency and function, helps body regulate insulin, reduces the stress response and overall inflammation in the body and improves digestion and bowel function.

During the first phase of The Flat Belly System I have you take epsom salt baths to relieve the symptoms of stress and assist with weight loss.

17.) Avoid “Low” Foods

Low-fat and low-carb diets should not be done for long periods of time.
Low-fat diets cause hormonal imbalances, a slower metabolism, and well, they aren’t very fun at all! So you’ll end up giving up on your diet.
 
A low carb diet works extremely well for those with insulin resistance because it quickly lowers basal insulin levels and blood glucose in those with metabolic syndrome. It also requires less first- and second-stage insulin release, which allows the body’s metabolism to function more normally.
 
Typical “low carbohydrate” meal replacement bars and shakes, ice creams or ice cream sandwiches, and other low carb or sugar-free snacks often contain potentially unhealthy ingredients and are full of preservatives and highly processed ingredients. If your low carbohydrate diet involves boxed, wrapped and packaged food, it probably falls into this category.
 
There can be long term health issues as your body is chronically carbohydrate depleted over extended periods of time. Your liver is exposed to extra stress as it is forced to assist with manufacturing glucose from fats and proteins.
 
The best way to go low-fat and low-carb is to cycle your carbs and balance your macronutrient ratios, here’s what I mean.
 
18.) Do Bodyweight Exercises

Bodyweight exercises challenge you more than lifting and lowering weights. Those types of exercises will certainly improve strength and help you gain muscle, but not in the same way. This is because traditional weightlifting usually focuses on just one muscle at a time.

When you perform bicep curls with weights, all that is working is your biceps. The same goes for many other weightlifting exercises. A standard bench press primarily works the chest although the shoulders and the triceps get a little something out of the deal as well, but the chest is the primary beneficiary of the exercise. But you are usually lying down when you do them which means your lower body is out of the equation.

Which is why bodyweight exercises strutured in a specific sequence work your entire body helping boost your metabolism, build lean muscle, and burn calories.

19.) Balance Your Meals

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Learning how to properly balance your main macronutrients (carbs, proteins, and fats) can be the difference between your meals being “fat-burning meals” or “fat-storing meals.”
 
I have a very simple formula for balancing your meals, I’ll share with you shortly, but first I’d like to briefly go over why improper meal balancing is destroying your metabolism.
 
Unfortunately, most people are eating ratios that spike insulin, raise cortisol, overload their digestive systems, and slow down their thyroids.
 
The simplest and most efficient way to balance your ratios for a flat stomach is to eat equal amounts of carbs, proteins, and fats. I call it the 33/33/33 principle, which I use specifically in my 3-Week Metabolism Diet program.
 
20.) Drink Yerba Mate

In regards to weight loss, yerba mate has shown to be helpful in both weight loss and weight control. Yerba mate causes thermogensis, or increased calorie burn, increased diuresis and appetite suppression, all of which improve the chances of weight loss.

Green tea is another great flat belly tea, but yerba mate contains even more antioxidants and metabolism boosting properties. If coffee is causing you adrenal gland issues, yerba mate is a great way to wean yourself off of caffeine.

I give you a special Yerba Mate cocktail drink recipe inside The Flat Belly System, along with other metabolism boosting drinks.

21.) Avoid Soy

Over 90 percent of the soybeans grown in the U.S. are genetically modified, so most soy protein comes from genetically altered beans. This means most soy is chemically modified, processed, and filled with pesticide.

Soy foods contain anti-metabolic factors such as saponins, soyatoxin, phytates, protease inhibitors, oxalates, goitrogens and estrogens. Some of these factors interfere with the enzymes you need to digest protein. Soy contains hemagglutinin, a clot-promoting substance that causes your red blood cells to clump together. These clumped cells are unable to properly absorb and distribute oxygen to your tissues.

Soy contains goitrogens, which are substances that block the synthesis of thyroid hormones and interfere with iodine metabolism, thereby interfering with your thyroid function. Soy contains phytates (phytic acid), that bind to metal ions, preventing the absorption of certain minerals, including calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc — all of which are co-factors for optimal biochemistry in your body. This is particularly problematic for vegetarians, because eating meat reduces the mineral-blocking effects of these phytates (so it is helpful—if you do eat soy—to also eat meat).

Finally, soy contains isoflavones genistein and dadzein which can affect and inhibit thyroid peroxidase, inhibiting production of T4 and T3.

22.) Avoid Restrictive Diets

If you’ve ever been on or are currently on a diet that restricts your calories under 1800 per day, you’re going to struggle with weight loss your entire life. You might think that’s a little harsh of me to say, but it’s the truth.

Once you restrict calories below 1500 every day, your body goes into starvation mode and will start holding onto more and more calories.

Restricting calories not only causes a slow metabolism and fat storage, but it will literally make you crazy, obsessed about food, have feelings of guilt, and dwelling on your past failures.

Also, without proper nutrition your cells can’t achieve their optimal metabolic function, causing a slow thyroid. A slow thyroid does not and will never help you get the flat belly you want.

The time to STOP restricting calories and start eating whole foods is NOW.

23.) Cut Down On Alcohol

When it comes to fitness, nutrition, weight loss, and overall health, each woman has what I like to call their “biggest stressor.” Think of a big stressor as a question to ask yourself: “What is the single biggest thing preventing me from losing weight, creating health, and/or burning fat?”

Often times it is too much alcohol!

How (too much) alcohol inhibits your weight loss goals:

  • Alcohol consumption increases insulin sensitivity, which increases your chances of obesity and diabetes
  • Affects the hormone ghrelin, causing increased hunger
  • Alcohol inhibits lipolysis (the breakdown of fat)

Now, the BIG question everyone wants to know (or not know):

Should I cut out the alcohol?

I personally do NOT….give up alcohol completely and don’t recommend you do either, UNLESS you are struggling with your thyroid, digestion, liver, and/or other major organ system.

Here a few strategies to reduce the negative consequences of alcohol:

  • Dilute alcohol with mineral water or club soda. This will aid in hydration and keep your overall calorie consumption low.
  • Limit your carb intake when drinking.
  • Consume saturated fats and high quality protein before bouts of drinking.
  • Reduce your OVERALL consumption of unsaturated vegetable oils, processed foods, soy, and gluten
  • Stick to high quality spirits, wine, and gluten-free beer.
  • Avoid corn syrup laden mixed drinks, large amounts of beer, and poor quality corn-based spirits.

The KEY to reducing the negative effects of alcohol consumption is to eat and live amazingly ALL the time. Don’t concern yourself with having a few drinks if you know you are going to be eating, drinking, and living healthy the next 6, 8, or even 4 days!

Action Step: If you know you are going to drink, follow the above to minimize the consequences. If you struggling with your metabolism and/or weight, try cutting alcohol for at least a month, and see if you notice any changes.

24.) Meditate

Our society doesn’t encourage relaxation, which is why you should do it.

Sometimes, I/we get caught up in an “always be doing something”  habit and we forget to relax and CHILL OUT.

How we relax is a HUGE part of health and happiness. Work, working out, planning weekly meals, running errands, writing, etc…DRAINS the mind, body, and internal energies. THEN to “relax”, we watch tv, surf the internet, read, etc…but this is also another form of DRAINing.

Health is more than food and exercise!

3 strategies to relax, recover, and get away:

1.) Movement, not intense exercising that’s draining, rather movement for relaxation purposes. Build something with your hands, yoga, tai-chi, stretching, etc…

2.) Stillness (meditate), throughout the day, Stop everything and lay down on the floor and do not think. Hard floors or grass are best for this (and also for posture).

3.) Belly Breathing , DEEP diaphragmatic breathing. Inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Most of us use the wrong muscles when we breathe in a slumped position all day. It’s a great idea to re-connect with your breathing patterns for detox, lymph flow, and nerve function.

Action Step: Think about ways you relax and determine if it REALLY is relaxing and re-energizing. Then, plan ways to chill out, relax, and breathe. (i.e. Go on a media fast)

25.) Sleep Better or More

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Sleeping helps regulate your hormones, specifically your levels of cortisol and adrenaline, two important hormones in fat loss, but in high amounts of extended quantities can be detrimental to your fat loss efforts.

Sleeping helps stabilize blood sugar, which keeps insulin resistance in check. Controlling insulin levels promotes health, and anything that keeps you healthy will help you lose unneeded fat. Sleeping adequately and soundly will ultimately help build lean muscle, which is what helps you consistently and effortlessly burn fat all day long. Find a way to get 6-8 hours of sleep a day. Learn to take power naps if you have to. Sound sleep is preferred, so CHILL out before bed time.

26.) Drink Better or More Water

It is often claimed that drinking can help with weight loss, and this is true. Drinking water can boost metabolism by 24-30% over a period of 1-1.5 hours, helping you burn off a few more calories (study).

One study showed that drinking a half liter (17 oz) of water about a half an hour before meals helped dieters eat fewer calories and lose 44% more weight.

The other problem with water is quality. It’s best to drink filtered water, water with minerals/dissolved solids, and/or ionized water. This helps you hydrate with less water AND you avoid potential toxins in tap water. But don’t let that stop you from drinking water.

Add a pinch of sea salt to your water to help with hydration.

27.) Eat More Fruit

The sugar in fruit, fructose, provides your body with instant energy. Fructose does not store in your body as easily, which may otherwise cause weight gain. Eating fruit speeds up your metabolism, due to the massive amounts of fructose contained within fruit. Fruit also helps moderate blood sugar and regulate the adrenal glands, which in turn, increases conversion of T4 to T3.

Many fruits are often referred to as “disease-fighters” more so, they are “health-promoters.” Don’t eat fruit to “fight disease”; eat fruit to “promote health!” Fruit is loaded with antioxidants, flavonoids, and best of all, fructose. Fruit is high in micronutrients that help stabilize and improve electrolyte balance of: potassium, sodium, magnesium.

The 3-Week Metabolism Diet helps you eat the perfect amount of fruit, even if you are scared of gaining weight from eating carbs.

28.) Eat More Salt

Salt is one of those demonized foods that is one of the most natural compounds found in the body, and that is essential for all metabolic function and life. And anything that is essential for optimal metabolic function is necessary for creating healthy fat loss.

Salt intake reduces edema/water retention, maintains electrolyte and fluid balance in our cells, helps regulate blood pressure, is necessary for nervous system and muscular system communication, and salt supports healthy hormonal function

Remember, fat loss is not a “weight loss issue” it is a “health issue.” Find ways to increase your health and you will lose fat/weight. Eating plenty of salt will do just that.

29.) Go Wild And Eat Fish

I always sense a hint of frustration whenever I have to say “wild-caught” in front of fish, because two hundred years ago, ALL fish was wild, because you had to actually go fishing for it. Nowadays, we have to navigate through the grocery store fish market for “farm-raised” or “wild-caught”. If that’s how most of us “catch” our dinner these days, so be it.

Wild-caught fish is nutritionally and ethically better for you and the environment. Good quality protein source, minerals, and vitamins (A and D), with generally low levels of toxins. The main concern with wild fish is mercury, but as long as you avoid swordfish, shark, and king mackerel you should be OK with mercury. Assuming you don’t eat tuna 3 times a day, every day…

30.) Try Coconut Milk

Rich in vitamins, minerals and a fantastic source of lauric acid (a fat also found in breast milk), coconut milk is indeed a superfood. Coconut milk is the perfect substitute for cow’s milk, especially if raw milk is not easily accessible. You can directly substitute coconut milk in recipes to make it dairy free (and also free of hormones, and antibiotic found in inflammatory conventional milk.)

Coconut milk is packed with Vitamins C, E, B complex and Minerals: selenium, magnesium, and iron. Coconut milk is great for curries, coffee, baking, and beauty products. If you use coffee creamer on a regular basis, try substituting coconut milk in place of your Coffeemate. Look for coconut milk FREE of carrageenan, guar or xanthan gum, and preservatives.

31.) Get Some Sun

Want to boost Vitamin D production? Get sunlight!

Don’t be scared of the sun. Doing so will deprive your body of vital Vitamin D, decreasing your sleep quality, hormone regulation, and overall sense of well-being. Find ways to relax for 25-20 minutes in the sunlight, every day.

32.) Eat More Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate is NOT a “guilty pleasure” food. It contains essential nutrients and saturated fatty acids that are precursors to major hormones in the body. If your body is craving chocolate, you probably need specific nutrients and minerals that you aren’t obtaining through your diet. Quality dark chocolate with a high cocoa content, is actually quite nutritious.

Chocolate contains stearic acid, iron, magnesium, copper, and manganese with decent amounts of potassium, phosphorus, and selenium. You’ll also get your fair share of antioxidants, specifically for improving blood flow and skin health. Most of the chocolate at the store is not ideal. You want to look for good quality organic dark chocolate with at least 70% cacao content.

33.) Go Raw And Add Honey

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Raw honey has anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal properties, which in it of itself should make you want to always have some on hand. One of most beneficial aspects of honey is that it has been shown to help alleviate allergies. It is also full of minerals, vitamins, enzymes, and antioxidants.

Local raw honey is the best choice and preferred “medicine” for treating allergies. Take a spoonful of raw honey once or twice a day. Use it as a substitute for sugar for your baking needs.

34.) Don’t Diet, Just Eat Real (Healthy) Food

One of the biggest problems with “diets,” is that they almost never work in the long term.

If anything, people who “diet” tend to gain more weight over time, and studies show that dieting is a consistent predictor of future weight gain.

Instead of going on a diet, make it your goal to become a healthier, happier and fitter person. Focus on nourishing your body, instead of depriving it.

Weight loss should follow as a natural side effect, which is why I focus on helping you get healthy to easily lose weight and stubborn body fat. (see what I mean here)

35.) Cook With Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is high in fats called medium-chain triglycerides, which are metabolized differently than other fats.

Studies show that they can boost your metabolism slightly, while helping you eat fewer calories.

Coconut oil is helpful in reducing the harmful belly fat.

Note that this does not mean that you should add this fat to your diet, but simply replace some of your other fat sources with coconut oil.

36.) Load Up On Eggs

Eggs are the ultimate flat belly food. They are cheap, low in calories, high in protein and loaded with all sorts of nutrients.

High-protein foods have been shown to reduce appetite and increase fullness, compared to foods that contain less protein (study)

Furthermore, eating eggs for breakfast may cause up to 65% greater weight loss over 8 weeks, compared to eating bagels for breakfast. It may also help you eat fewer calories throughout the rest of the day (study).

Have you ever tried a metabolic omelet? Well that’s one of my famous metabolic recipes inside The 3-Week Metabolism Diet.

37.) Be Calorie Conscious

I’ve never been one to count calories and have only recommended a small % of my clients to count calories. And I’ve had over 5,000 clients I’ve consulted with over the years. Being aware of what you’re eating is very helpful when trying to lose weight.

There are several effective ways to do this, including counting calories, keeping a food diary or taking pictures of what you eat (study).

Using an app or another electronic tool may be even more beneficial than writing in a food diary (study).

38.) Eat More Fiber

Dietary fiber is mostly indigestible plant matter. It is often claimed that eating plenty of fiber can help with weight loss. This is true, but it’s important to keep in mind that not all fiber is created equal.

It seems to be mostly the soluble and viscous fibers that have an effect on your weight. These are fibers that bind water and form a thick gel that “sits” in the gut. This gel can dramatically slow the movement of food through your stomach and small bowel, and slow down the digestion and absorption of nutrients. The end result is a prolonged feeling of fullness and reduced appetite.

One review study found that an additional 14 grams of fiber per day were linked to a 10% decrease in calorie intake and weight loss of 2 kg (4.5 lbs) over 4 months.

What this implies, is that soluble fiber may be particularly effective at reducing the harmful belly fat.

The best way to get more fiber is to eat a lot of plant foods like vegetables and fruit. Legumes are also a good source, as well as some cereals like oats.

39.) Go Gluten-Free

You don’t need to be diagnosed with celiac disease to have negative reactions to wheat and gluten.

You could very well have gluten sensitivity (AKA gluten intolerance), which is extremely common in today’s society given the prevalence of digestive disorders, hormonal imbalances, and GMOS (genetically modified organisms).

Symptoms of non-celiac gluten sensitivity are bloating, fatigue, weight gain, joint pain, IBS, diarrhea, and hormonal imbalances.

Given that there is no clear definition of gluten sensitivity, or a good way to diagnose it, the only true way of knowing is by eliminating gluten temporarily from your diet, then reintroducing it to see if you have symptoms.

Going gluten-free does not guarantee that your diet will be either healthy or lower in calories. It just means you’re avoiding foods with gluten, a protein found in wheat. There is nothing magical about gluten-free for weight loss. Your body still does the age-old calorie math of “Calories In (food) vs. Calories Out (exercise and metabolism)”. Too many calories in means weight gain. When calories in equals calories out, you just stay the same weight. Even when the calories are from gluten-free foods.

Going gluten-free doesn’t have to be forever, you just need to know how to do it sustainably, I’ll show you how inside The 8-Week Metabolism Makeover.

40.) Move Your Whole Body

To transform your body, to get fit, to be healthy, to feel great, and to get a FLAT belly you gotta exercise. That’s the hard to swallow truth about exercise, while you don’t technically need to exercise to lose weight, it makes burning stubborn belly fat so much easier.

Total body workouts, like THESE increase growth hormone, decrease cortisol, and help stabilize insulin. These 3 hormones determine how fast and how much weight you lose.

Putting aside all the complicated, scientific reasons to exercise, exercise offers benefits that dieting just can’t. Exercise allows you to boost your metabolism and turn your body into a fat blasting furnace. Exercise builds muscle in the places you want, improves body shape and gives you a firm, toned body.

I’ve coached over 10,000 whole body metabolic workouts over my 11 year career as a personal trainer and holistic nutritionist and when you join The Flat Belly System you’ll have access to 16 personal-trainer guided metabolic workout videos (a $497 value.)

41.) Eat More Butter

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Butter is high in Conjulated Linoleic Acid (CLA). In a nutshell, CLA helps you store muscle, instead of fat…have I sold you already?

Many studies have shown significant improvements seen in both reducing body fat and increasing lean body mass.

Previous studies have shown that CLA reduces body fat while preserving muscle tissue, and may also increase your metabolic rate.

CLA protects against cancer? In a number of studies, conjugated linoleic acid, inhibited mammary tumorigenesis.

Since CLA cannot be manufactured in the human body, you must get it from your diet by consuming high-quality dietary sources such as grass-fed butter.

42.) Eat A Carrot

A carrot a day keeps the doctor away! That is, if you are a believer that health begins in the gut. You should at least understand that your digestive system is crucial for creating in healthy fat loss in women. Carrots have a unique ability to remove harmful endotoxins and excess estrogen from your gut, thus helping with liver detoxification.

Why carrots?

Estrogen Detoxification: Eating raw carrots can prevent the absorption of estrogen from the intestines, allowing the liver to detox excess estrogen, this in turn helps thyroid function as most T4 to T3 conversion happens here.

Bowel Health: Carrots increase bowel health and function, mainly through the reduction of harmful endotoxin. Use raw carrot (in the salad form, see below) to reduce endotoxin. Endotoxins are produced from excess stress, aging, alcohol etc….all of which tend to inflame the gut.

Antimicrobial: Since carrots defense mechanisms’ are centered on microscopic organisms, they inadvertently serve to balance gut microflora.

Carrots are best eaten raw and shredded for maximum benefit.

43.) Avoid Sugary Foods

Sugar contains processed fructose which has been linked to several chronic diseases when consumed in excess. These include heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity and fatty liver disease.

Many studies show a relationship between excess sugar intake and increased abdominal fat.

It’s important to realize that more than just refined sugar can lead to belly fat gain. Even “healthier” sugars (such as real honey) should be used sparingly.

The most important thing to remember about sugar is the healthy you are, the more you can “afford” to eat. The unhealthier you are, sugar can do major damage especially when combine with other inflammatory foods.

Learn How The 3-Week Metabolism Diet can reverse insulin resistance weight gain caused by sugar.

44.) Eat More Bone Broth and Gelatin

This simmering causes the bones and ligaments to release healing compounds like collagen, proline, glycine, and glutamine that have the power to transform your health.

Real collagen is the source of stock’s immune-boosting properties.  You’ve probably seen this jiggling layer atop the broth in your cooling roasting pan and discarded it but think again next time–this is the good stuff.

Collagen is the protein found in connective tissue of vertebrate animals.  It’s abundant in bone, marrow, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments.  The breakdown of collagen in bone broths is what produces gelatin.

Broth or “stock” plays an important role as it’s easily digestible, helps heal the lining of your gut, and contains valuable nutrients.

Helps heal and seal your gut, and promotes healthy digestion: The gelatin found in bone broth is a hydrophilic colloid. It attracts and holds liquids, including digestive juices, thereby supporting proper digestion.

You can use gelatin as you main protein powder for smoothies, shakes, oatmeal, and yogurt.

45.) Eat More Probiotic Foods

Probiotics are bacteria found in a few foods and, of course supplements. They have all sorts of health benefits, including improved gut health and enhanced immune function.

Researchers have found different types of bacteria play a role in weight regulation, and having the right balance can help with weight loss, including loss of belly fat.

Those shown to reduce belly fat include members of the Lactobacillus family. These include Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus amylovorus and especially Lactobacillus gasseri.

Probiotic supplements typically contain several types of bacteria, so make sure you purchase one that provides one or more of these bacterial strains.

While supplements are a great way to SUPPLEMENT your diet, it’s always best to consume probiotic-rice whole foods like sauerkraut, yogurt, kimchi, and pickled vegetables.

46.) Pump Up The Magnesium

According to the National Institutes of Health, magnesium is needed for more than 300 chemical reactions in the body, including keeping the heart rhythm steady, regulating blood sugar levels, and helping lower blood pressure. … In addition to those health benefits, magnesium can also aid in weight loss and body shaping.

Magnesium may be helpful for regulating blood sugar and insulin levels in people who are overweight or obese. “A 2013 study found that taking higher amounts of magnesium helps better control insulin and glucose blood levels. This same study also showed magnesium helps with bloating and water retention.

Here’s a fun fact about Magnesium: The more stressed you are, the MORE Magnesium you need, because your metabolism uses up your supply the more stress hormones you have floating around in your body.

So if you aren’t great at chilling out and managing your stress, see the stress reducing tactics above and eat more Magnesium rish foods.

47.) Protect Your Liver

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Your liver is one of the most vital and essential organs for a strong and efficient metabolism. With over 500 metabolic functions taking place at your liver…it’s busy. When we overburden our liver with toxic foods, pesticides, estrogenic foods, alcohol, vegetable oils, etc…our liver struggles to provide the body with adequate metabolic function.

Most of your conversion of inactive T4 to active T3 occurs at the liver. What this means, is that liver health is directly correlated to thyroid health. Remember, when you provide your liver with the right foods it CAN be a health creating, fat-burning powerhouse that will always work FOR you.

Remember, the food you eat either eases the livers job or it taxes it. Choose wisely!

A word on endotoxin…Endotoxin is produced by intestinal bacteria (we have a lot of this) and is generated upon consumption of anything that disrupts digestion and can ultimately lead to an increased intestinal permeability (i.e. leaky gut).

In an ideal body, the liver will detoxify endotoxin, but because of increased toxic food consumption, inflammation, increased stress hormones, estrogenic foods, and free radical production the liver loses its ability to rid the body of this toxin.

This causes liver sluggishness and inhibits detoxification of excess estrogen, which can lead to a WEAK (hypo) thyroid.

Avoiding foods like PUFA oils, carrageenan, soy, indigestible fibers, and grains WHILE increasing foods like carrots, bamboo shoots, coconut oil, coconut water, and gelatin (to name a few) will HELP decrease endotoxin and increase endotoxin (and estrogen) detoxification and support a healthier more efficient liver and thyroid.

Action Step: Be aware of HOW you are digesting your foods: if you are bloated, gassy, constipated, etc…after meals, pin point what food (s) could be causing digestive distress and eliminate. Gas is NOT “normal.”

Learn How The 3-Week Metabolism Diet Can Detox Your Liver And Boost Your Thyroid

48.) Let Go Of Your Limitations and Excuses

Getting in a good workout isn’t limited to a gym or track. Use your bodyweight, a single set of dumbbells, or even a nearby playground to work up a sweat.

Believe it or not, we often look for an excuse before our commitment to get healthy and lose weight even starts. We sabotage our success by saying things like “well I could start eating real food and if it doesn’t work right away, I can blame my schedule or genetics or spouse…” Then when things get tough, we don’t know what to cook, what to eat, etc…or a company party is scheduled and we are supposed to bring donuts….we continue to add to our excuse list.

Years ago, when I first started blogging about nutrition and recipes, I would make excuses as to why I wasn’t going to post a certain article. I realized I was making these excuses as I was typing the article. Are you kidding me? I was sabotaging myself and my readers suffered.

People who have a built-in universal excuse end up failing (many of the times.) It’s like they carry around a “get out of jail free” card and when the going gets tough, the weak have excuses. Boom, here’s my card, I’m out!

Every time you feel an excuse looming, power forward, redirect it into an action step!

Instead of seeking excuses, the successful real food eater starts with YOU being obsessed with avoiding excuses

49.) Be A Chef

Yes, you can cook. No it doesn’t have to be gourmet, camera ready with Martha Stewart undertones (I think that’s a thing).

If you don’t like cooking, then you are saying you don’t like creating food, or playing with your food, or connecting with your food. It’s not that you don’t “like” these things, it’s that you haven’t truly experienced them.

Cooking and cultivating your inner chef is essential for a healthy metabolism that can absorb the poor-quality foods when we eat out restaurants.

Have you seen how many recipe sites are on Facebook? Cookbooks at the bookstore? Once you learn what real food is and what foods support your metabolism and health, then you can substitute and alter literally ANY recipe in any cookbook.

You can either go about this with a mindset of “ugh, ANOTHER thing on my list” or “Yay, a new adventure and an opportunity to improve my life and health (and my family’s).” Your choice.

Action Step: Take 20 minutes every Sunday to brainstorm and plan out you and/or your families meals for the week. It doesn’t have to be set in stone, just an easy to follow semi-structured week. If any meals require time preparation that you know you won’t have later in the week, then cut, chop, and store any fruits, vegetables, meats, etc…for easy access and cooking.

50.) Take Action

You can have massive dreams or goals, but ZERO action, and well, you’ll still have dreams and goals…instead of success and results.

How many times have you thought “how awesome would be to fit in that dress I just saw at Nordstrom?” or had a BIG goal to lose “30 pounds this year!” BUT your thought or daydream continued to be just that…a thought?

Big dreams and crazy goals are awesome and every fit woman should have them, but what separates the women who are successful from the ones who aren’t, is ACTION! It is action that promotes the success of the goal. Makes sense doesn’t it? You can’t think yourself thin or will yourself to be healthy.

Massive dreams require massive action, not massive wishing or massive hoping.

And if you are anxious about your massive dreams, just remember AAA: Action Alleviates Anxiety.

Dream Big. Act Big.

51.) Focus On Your Fat-Burning Metabolism

Your Metabolism is controlled by 5 equally important parts:

  • Your Liver – The main detoxification organ. The liver is responsible for ¾ of your thyroid hormone production.
  • Your Adrenals – Your stress glands. The adrenal glands regulate steroid hormones (for fat loss) and stress hormones helping balance your metabolism.
  • Your Thyroid – Your master metabolism gland controls your body temperature, metabolism functions, and ability to burn fat.
  • Your Muscle – The only metabolically active tissue in the body, helps burn fat, regulate blood glucose, and support an elevated metabolism.
  • Your Body – The product of the 4 previous metabolism factors. Your body is either functioning optimally or is in a state of dis-ease.

This sounds over-simplistic, but when you start to investigate how your metabolism functions in relation to your ability to burn fat, this is what you’re left with.

Are your habits, exercise, food, and lifestyle supporting a metabolism that helps you burn fat or store fat?

Here are the 7 Differences Between the 2 Body Types. As you can clearly see, all 7 differences can be traced back to the 5 metabolic factors discussed in this article.

Your metabolism is responsible for deciding which type of body you have and you are responsible to swaying your metabolism in either direction.

52.) Follow A Flat Belly System

The Flat Belly System Is The Only Complete Fat Loss Program For Women, That Outsmarts Your Fat Cells To Unleash The Power Of Your Female Fat-Burning Metabolism With Simple 20-30 Minute HIMT Sessions And An Easy To Follow Whole Food Nutrition Plan

This system allows women of all shapes and sizes, just like you to achieve true freedom from restrictive diets, endless frustration, obsession, and long hours of exercise.

This system has helped Juanita (co-creator) drop 30+ pounds and hundreds of other women drop 7-44 pounds and 12-30 inches in as little as 9-weeks. (see her transformation HERE)

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In order to lose fat, not just weight, you must understand WHY you gained weight and why you aren’t able to lose it.

You’ll learn how to DEACTIVATE the 3 fat-storing hormones keeping you overweight. You’ll also learn how to ACTIVATE the 5 fat-burning hormones that will make you fat-burning machine.

Phase 1: The 21-Day Flat Belly FLUSH

Phase 2: The 21-Day Macro-Balancing Belly Fat FIX

Phase 3: The 21-Day Flat Belly for Life Plan for the FUTURE

Each phase of the Flat Belly Nutrtion Plan builds on one another until you are a fat-burning, meal making, machine.

Phase 1 helps you detoxify your fat loss organs stimulate fat-burning hormones and suppress fat-storing hormones.

Phase 2 teaches you how to balance your macro-nutrients and eat carbs.

Phase 3 helps you eat sustainably and enjoyably so you don’t have to count calories or obsess over food anymore.

It’s a COMPLETE and total lifestyle program that will help you figure out how to never need flat belly tips or weight loss tricks ever again.

Click HERE to learn more and sign up!

Your flat belly coach,

Nick

P.S. If you’re not interested in getting a flat belly right now, then you should consider my 21-day metabolism focused program, which are helping women lose weight and change their lifestyle. See for yourself HERE and below:

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upgradedhealthAnd check out Crystals results using The 3-Week Metabolism Diet

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