Scientifically, you can start to see results and lose belly fat for yourself in something as little as 2 weeks time. That being said, even if the timeline might be short, cutting around inches off your waistline could require a lot of hard work and following the right balance of diet and workout.
Losing belly fat and getting a flat stomach is done through achieving a caloric deficit by eating less, exercising more, and doing that for at least 6-12 weeks. The more stubborn your belly fat is, the more strict and consistent you need to be with your diet and exercises regimen throughout that period.
While it's impossible to lose all of your belly fat in 2 weeks, you can lose some of it quickly by losing weight and body fat all over. All you have to do is eat the right foods (cutting calories in the process), amp up your exercise routine, and make a few lifestyle changes for the next 2 weeks.
Crunches:
The most effective exercise to burn stomach fat is crunches. Crunches rank top when we talk of fat-burning exercises. You can start by lying down flat with your knees bent and your feet on the ground. Lift your hands and then place them behind the head.
The battle of the bulge
One reason belly fat is so hard to lose is that it's considered an “active fat.” Unlike some fatty tissue that simply sits “dormant,” belly fat releases hormones that can have an impact on your health — and your ability to lose weight, especially in the waist and abdomen areas.
A note from Cleveland Clinic
Fortunately, visceral fat is actually easier to lose than visible subcutaneous fat. By maintaining a healthy diet and keeping up with regular exercise, you should be able to prevent visceral fat from building up in your abdominal cavity.
Too many starchy carbohydrates and bad fats are a recipe for that midsection to expand. Instead, get plenty of veggies, choose lean proteins, and stay away from fats from red meats. Choose healthier fats in things like fish, nuts, and avocados. Even a moderate cutback on carbs (grains, pasta, sugars) can help, too.
As against areas such as legs, face and arms, our stomach and abdominal regions possess beta cells that makes it difficult to reduce the fats easily and lose weight in these areas. However, as per research, belly fat is the most difficult to lose as the fat there is so much harder to break down.
Yes, fat can get “jiggly” before or during weight loss — BUT, it's a good sign, and there are ways to prevent it or make it better.
But losing weight overall will help shrink your waistline; more importantly, it will help reduce the dangerous layer of visceral fat, a type of fat within the abdominal cavity that you can't see but that heightens health risks, says Kerry Stewart, Ed.D. , director of Clinical and Research Physiology at Johns Hopkins.
Most people who have difficulty losing weight are simply eating too many calories. An important factor in weight loss is how many calories you're eating versus how many calories you're burning. It may seem easy, but if you're not tracking your calories each day, you may be consuming more than you think.
A stomach overhang can form after fast weight loss, a result of obesity or after pregnancy. Sometimes this excess skin and fatty tissue can be mistaken for a hernia or tumour.
You've Gained Muscle Mass
If you're exercising regularly and doing a mix of cardio and strength training, it's very likely your body composition (ratio of muscle to fat) is changing for the better. If you're gaining muscle while losing fat, the scale may not show any weight change.
This type of fat is located just below your skin and keeps you warm and is a source of energy for your body. They are not as harmful as hard belly fat and are considerably easy to lose. When you start exercising and following a healthy diet, soft belly fat melt on its own.
The best way to tell if you have visceral fat is to measure your waist. The waist circumference is a good indicator of how much fat is deep inside the belly, around the organs. For women, your risk of chronic disease is increased if the waist circumference is 80 cm or more and for men 94cm or more.
The first place men typically lose weight is the belly, while women tend to lose weight all over, but hold onto weight in their thighs and hips, Dr. Block explains.
If you have been exercising and still have belly fat, you could be doing the wrong style training, your stress levels may be too high, or you may have an endocrine disorder like polycystic ovary syndrome.