Yes, You Can Get Rid of Belly Fat: How to Lose Belly Fat Naturally and Safely
Learn how detox water and a balanced lifestyle can help you lose belly fat
Belly fat is not a natural part of aging. Belly fat is not a fact of life. Belly fat is not inevitable! Belly fat, bloating, and sluggishness do not need to be part of your life. With a few small changes you can say good-bye to belly fat, muffin tops, love handles, rolls, and bloating.
Now, I’m the first to tell you there are no shortcuts to losing the belly fat and getting your sexy back! There are no quick fixes! But with just a few changes to your diet, routine, and lifestyle, you can get rid of belly fat and extra weight.
And it all starts with water. Water, as you know, is essential to keeping you alive. The human body is on average 60% water. And according to MedicalNewsToday, water is essential in four key areas:
- Protecting the spinal cord and other sensitive tissues
- Removing waste by urination, sweating, and bowel movements
- Regulating temperature
- Lubricating and cushioning joints
In addition, we know water is key to helping you regulate your metabolism, flushing out toxins, keeping your liver and kidneys healthy, aiding digestion and preventing constipation, and in helping you lose weight and release stored fat.
I want you to lose the belly fat for good and know you can always look fantastic in your favorite jeans and shirts. But – it’s going to take some focus from you!
In this blog I explain belly fat and why it’s a health risk and then give you my top tips on how to naturally lose belly fat and extra weight with some key lifestyle changes. And yes, I talk a lot about water, detox water, and my belly fat detox water drink.
Remember to subscribe to my mailing list and join the JJ Smith Community Facebook page. You’ll connect with like-minded people who, like you, are on the path to wellness and getting their sexy back! And if you want an extra jumpstart on losing belly fat and feeling great, read my 7-Day Apple Cider Vinegar Cleanse book.
Why is Belly Fat a Health Risk
The belly fat you see around your waist is more problematic than making your jeans tight – it is often a sign you have an accumulation of visceral fat around your liver and other organs. And there is nothing good about visceral fat.
Consider this excerpt from a WebMD.com article about The Risks of Belly Fat:
“This visceral fat in your middle makes toxins that affect the way your body works, says Samuel Dagogo-Jack, MD, president of the American Diabetes Association. Among them are chemicals called cytokines that boost your chance of heart disease and make your body less sensitive to insulin, which can bring on diabetes.
Cytokines also cause inflammation, which can lead to certain cancers, says Eric Jacobs PhD, a researcher at the American Cancer Society. In recent years, he says, scientists have uncovered links between belly fat and cancers of the colon, esophagus, and pancreas.”In other words – if you have an expanding waistline or visible belly fat, you need to take steps now to eliminate this health risk. Losing your belly fat can reduce your risk of high blood sugar, fatty liver disease, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
I want you to keep in mind this message from Harvard Health on losing belly fat, “The good news is because it’s more readily metabolized into fatty acids, it responds more efficiently to diet and exercise than fat on the hips and thighs.”
Hydration, Belly Fat and Weight Loss
Most people associate losing weight and belly fat with eating more healthful foods, reducing sugar, and exercising more. And while these are cornerstones of a balanced and healthy lifestyle, one key piece of the weight loss puzzle is missing – water and hydration.
Drinking water and staying hydrated is essential to a well-functioning body and organs. The water you drink and absorb through food helps transport hormones, nutrients, and other components in your body.
If you’re dehydrated, even for just a day, your body works to compensate for this lack of water by slowing down non-essential or immediately needed processes. And often this starts with slowing down your metabolism. This triggers other issues including constipation, headaches, fatigue, dry itchy skin, muscle cramps, and weight gain.
This explanation of the link between water, hydration, and weight gain underscores why you need to stay hydrated:
“Water is required to break down fats into fatty acids, polysaccharides into monosaccharides, and glucose and protein into amino acids through the process of hydrolysis to be utilized for energy. The limited water supply in our bodies slows down all these chemical reactions, which can affect the rate at which you burn your calories for energy, which can then in the long-term lead to greater difficulty in weight loss. Adequate water means proper digestion, an optimally running metabolism, and the ability to burn calories at a higher rate.”
3 Natural Ways to Lose Belly Fat
To lose belly fat, trim your waistline, and reduce the harmful impacts of visceral fat, make these natural habits part of your daily routine:
- Drink Detox Water
Detox water is water infused with fruits, vegetables, and herbs. This adds flavor and beneficial health properties to the water, helping you stay hydrated and giving you an extra boost of nutrients.
Detox water is very easy to make and takes boring plain water to the next level, making it easier to stay hydrated. Here are some of my favorite detox water recipes:
- Apple Cider Vinegar Detox Water: add 2 tablespoons of unfiltered and unprocessed apple cider vinegar (Bragg’s Organic, Raw, and Unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar with the Mother), a dash of lemon, and a pinch of cayenne pepper to 6-8 ounces of water. If you prefer a sweet detox water, add a small amount of stevia. To drink, add a small amount of this healthful water to a large glass of water. Apple cider vinegar detox water helps remove toxins, aids in digestion, supports liver health, and improves circulation. Drinking diluted apple cider vinegar water before every meal helps stimulate your metabolism, reduce inflammation, boost your energy levels, and get rid of stubborn, unwanted belly fat.
- Lemon Detox Water: simple squeeze one fresh lemon into a large glass of water. Drink immediately.Lemon detox water is a great way to get hydrated first thing in the morning. I like to start my day with a large glass of lemon detox water. When I do a natural liver detox, I make sure I have a large pitcher of lemon detox water ready to drink.
- Alkaline Detox Water: this water is a hydrogen-rich water which detoxifies the body and gives your skin a young, smooth, and elastic appearance. Alkaline water has a higher pH level, making it less acidic than regular water.The easiest way to make alkaline detox water is to squeeze a lemon or lime into a glass of distilled water. Using distilled water ensures there aren’t any additives or artificial ingredients in your detox water.Feel free to experiment and add your favorite fruits, vegetables, and herbs to water. Popular choices include sliced cucumber, cubed pineapple, fresh mint leaves, sliced turmeric, sliced ginger, berries, and celery.
- Move Your Body
Make exercise part of your daily routine. This doesn’t need to be time-consuming or exhausting. Put on your shoes and walk out your front door – start with a 15-minute walk and build up from there. The key is to find some kind of exercise you enjoy and to make it part of your daily routine.
Exercise helps strengthen your muscles and bones, fires up your metabolism, helps support healthy digestion, reduces your stress levels, and supports your liver health. So, find something you enjoy – yoga, swimming, biking, jogging, weights, fitness classes, or anything else to get you moving – and do it!
- Eat the Rainbow
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – you are what you eat. When you put good healthful food in, you look and feel great inside and out. Too many people decide to make drastic changes to their diet – cutting out all sugar, giving up their favorite foods and eating only vegetables. Guess what? This doesn’t work!
Instead, I want you to think about incorporating key liver superfoods into your diet and to eat a variety of whole grains, lean proteins, healthy fats, and hydrating foods like fruits and vegetables. In my blog about the top 5 liver superfoods I give you links to quick and easy recipes to help you change your diet, lose the belly fat, and feel great.
Conclusion
With time and regular healthful habits your waistline shrinks, the belly fat melts away, your liver health improves, energy levels normalize, and you reduce the harmful impacts of belly fat. All thanks to small changes of drinking detox water, paying attention to your hydration, and caring for your whole-body health.
To kickstart your healthy lifestyle journey and see how easy it is to make small changes, adding up to weight loss and a slim, sexy waistline, read my 7-Day Apple Cider Vinegar Cleanse book.
