It’s Not Just About the Food
Losing belly fat is not just about the food. And it’s not just about exercise either. What I’m talking about is your entire lifestyle and everything that you are doing around your diet. Remember, your lifestyle is likely what got you into this state in the first place. And it’s probably what’s making it so hard to get out.
We’ve already seen how coming home stressed from work makes you more likely to binge eat and then store fat more rapidly. This is a combination of factors but even comes down to the direct and precise action of cortisol on the body.
So it stands to reason then that if you want to reduce belly fat, you should look at combating any workplace stress (or other stress for that matter!). This is easier said than done perhaps but it’s important to recognize just what a profound impact stress has on us. If you can remove stress from your life, then you’ll have far more energy for working out and eating right.
There are a few things you can do to this end. One is to take up meditation or another form of practice that will help you to combat stress generally. Meditation can significantly improve your mood, help you to cope with stress better and even make you smarter! This is a great tool to help fortify you and defend you against things going wrong that can prevent you from continuing your new healthy lifestyle.
Another tip is to look for ways to make your life a little easier. One obvious culprit may be the commute. Could you make this easier in any way? Perhaps with a car share? You might even decide that the job you’re doing is not for you.
If it’s not leaving you with the energy or the willpower you need to look after your own health then guess what: this job is not good for you and you should probably quit!
Prioritize your health!
More Ways to Get Your Body on Your Side
Of course it should go without saying that you should also avoid any toxins that might damage your metabolism. This particularly applies to smoking and to alcohol – both of which can really stand in your way of successful and healthy weight loss (not to mention ruining your energy levels).
Another tip though is to make sure that you are getting enough sleep. We actually burn a lot of sleep during the night but what’s even more important is the fact that sleep is what sets your rhythms and begins the cycle between catabolic and anabolic. Sleep is the ‘ultimate anabolic state’.
If you are skimping out then, you’re not going to be performing at your best and you won’t have the energy or the willpower to stick to the new regime. Try to get 7-8 hours every night and keep it systematic so that you have the same bedtime schedule at the same time. The body likes routine! Another tip is to consider investing in a daylight lamp.
These are alarms that wake you up with a wavelength similar to that of the sun and which get brighter slowly like a sunrise. This is great for combating ‘SAD’ (seasonal affective disorder) and helping us to feel more awake and alert first thing in the morning.
Want one more trick for getting yourself firmly into a catabolic/focussed state in the morning? Take a cold shower! This also happens to be great for stimulating the production of testosterone.
