In this post you will learn why belly fat is unhealthy and how to lose it.

If you are carrying a few extra pounds — whether in the form of belly fat, love handles, a beer gut or potbelly — you’re not alone. In recent years, the number of people who are overweight has increased dramatically worldwide. Two-thirds of American men are overweight or obese. But this is one case where following the crowd is not the best idea, because extra weight — especially belly fat — can be downright risky. And while women often put on extra pounds in the hips, thighs and legs, men are much more likely to gain belly fat.

Why is it important to lose your belly fat?

Although the link between belly fat and health is not entirely clear, experts do know that people with a lot of belly fat are at higher risk of health problems than are people who accumulate fat in other areas — and men are more likely than women to put on weight around the waist.

Our bodies are designed to store fat for release during times when there is not enough food. But when we put on weight and never have these lean times, fat cells begin to release fat molecules into the blood at a higher rate. This affects normal metabolism and the way the body uses insulin. These metabolic changes can worsen or increase your risk of health problems, including:

Diabetes
Some types of cancers
High blood pressure
Sleep apnea
Abnormal lipids — high triglycerides and low HDL (”good” cholesterol)
Insulin resistance
Metabolic syndrome

When you lose fat through exercise and improved eating habits, you improve your metabolism. This reduces your risk of health problems — and may improve existing health problems.

How can you tell if you have excess belly fat?

First things first how big around are you at the waist is a good indicator of whether you have too much belly fat. Although measurements that compare your hip and waist circumference (waist-to-hip ratio) or compare your height and weight (body mass index) are more precise and can be useful for research, your waist size alone can give you a pretty good idea of how much belly fat you have.

For most men, the risk factors for heart diseaseand other diseases increase with a waist size over 40 inches (102 centimeters). To accurately measure your waist:

Place a tape measure around your bare abdomen just above your hipbone.
The tape measure should be snug — but not so tight it pushes into your skin.
Check to make sure the tape measure is level all the way around.
Relax, and measure your waist after you breathe out — no sucking in your belly!

What role does exercise play in losing belly fat?

To lose weight — and keep it off — you have to get regular exercise. This means doing something active most days of the week. Most people need at least 30 minutes a day of moderate exercise to stay healthy. But to shed the pounds in the first place, you may need longer periods of activity.

Aerobic exercise such as bicycling, swimming or strenuous yardwork — the kind of exercise that gets you breathing hard and gets your heart rate up — is the best kind of exercise to burn fat.

One great way to get regular aerobic exercise is to walk. Using a pedometer, a simple device that measures how many steps you take, can help you make sure you’re getting enough activity. For many men, walking 10,000 steps a day — plus eating right — is enough to stay at a healthy weight. Men with more weight to lose may need to walk farther. You may need to slowly build up the amount of exercise you get. Once you get the weight off, you may not need to do as much exercise to keep it off. But the more weight you lose, the more activity you’ll need to keep the pounds from coming back.

Can you lose belly fat by doing sit-ups?

Sit-ups will make your abdominal muscles stronger, sure. And, you may look thinner by building your abdominal muscles because you can hold in your belly fat better. But strengthening your stomach muscles alone will not specifically reduce belly fat.

There are no particular “spot” exercises that are best at reducing belly fat. But most people do lose belly fat before losing fat in other parts of their body when they get more exercise of any kind.

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