Abdominal Fat Dangers to Your Health, Subcutaneous vs Visceral Stomach Fat - Get a Flat Belly
Excess Abdominal Fat is Not Only Ugly, but Extremely Dangerous to Your Health - This is More Than a Vanity Issue!
The difference between subcutaneous fat and the more deadly "visceral
fat"... Plus the simple steps to REMOVE this fat permanently
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer author of best-selling programs: The Truth about Six-Pack Abs & The Fat-Burning Kitchen
Although this picture depicts an overweight man, this article applies to dangerous types of fat inside the bodies of both men and women... and this discussion also applies even if you only have a slight amount of excess stomach fat.
Did you know that the vast majority of people in this day and age
have excess abdominal fat? It's true -- as much as 70% of the
population in some "westernized" countries such as the US and Australia
are now considered either overweight or obese. The first thing that
most people think of is that their extra abdominal fat is simply ugly,
is covering up their abs from being visible, and makes them self
conscious about showing off their body.
However, what most people don't realize is that excess abdominal fat in particular, is not only ugly, but is also a dangerous risk factor
to your health. Scientific research has clearly determined that
although it is unhealthy in general to have excess body fat throughout
your body, it is also particularly dangerous to have excess abdominal
fat.
There are two types of fat that you have in your abdominal area. The first type that covers up your abs from being visible is called subcutaneous fat and lies directly beneath the skin and on top of the abdominal muscles.
The second type of fat that you have in your abdominal area is called visceral fat,
and that lies deeper in the abdomen beneath your muscle and surrounding
your organs. Visceral fat also plays a role in giving certain men that
"beer belly" appearance where their abdomen protrudes excessively but at
the same time, also feels sort of hard if you push on it.
Both subcutaneous fat and visceral fat in the abdominal area are serious health risk factors, but science has shown that having excessive visceral fat is even more dangerous than subcutaneous fat.
Both types of fat greatly increase your risk of developing heart
disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, sleep apnea, various
forms of cancer, and other degenerative diseases.
Excess stomach fat has also been
associated in studies with higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), an
indicator of inflammation within the body that can lead to heart
disease and other health issues.
Part of the reason visceral fat is particularly dangerous is that studies show that it releases more inflammatory molecules into your system on a consistent basis.
One of the major reasons that some people accumulate more visceral fat than others can be from a high carbohydrate diet that leads to insulin resistance
over time (years of bombarding your system with too much sugars and
starches for your pancreas to properly handle the constant excess blood
sugar) ... and studies show that high fructose intake particularly from high-fructose corn syrup can be a major contributor to excess visceral fat.
If you care about the quality of
your life and your loved ones, reducing your abdominal fat (including
reducing visceral fat) should be one of your TOP priorities! There's
just no way around it. Besides, a side effect of finally getting rid of
all of that excessive abdominal fat is that your stomach will flatten
out, and if you lose enough stomach fat, you will be able to visibly see
those attractive six pack abs that everyone wants.
So what gets rid of extra abdominal fat, including visceral fat?
Is
there actually a REAL solution beyond all of the gimmicks and hype that
you see in ads and on commercials for "miracle" fat loss products?
The first thing you must understand
is that there is absolutely NO quick fix solution. There are no pills
or supplements of any sort that will help you lose your abdominal fat
faster. Also, none of the gimmicky ab rockers, rollers, or ab belts
will help get rid of abdominal fat either. You can't spot reduce your
stomach fat by using any of these worthless contraptions. It simply
doesn't work that way.
The only solution to consistently
lose your abdominal fat and keep it off for good is to combine a sound
nutritious diet full of unprocessed natural foods with a properly
designed strategic exercise program that stimulates the necessary
hormonal and metabolic response within your body. Both your food intake
as well as your training program are important if you are to get this
right.
I've actually even seen a
particular study that divided thousands of participants into a diet-only
group and an exercise & diet combined group. While both groups in
this study made good progress, the diet-only group lost significantly LESS abdominal fat than the diet & exercise combined group.
Now the important thing to realize
is that just any old exercise program will not necessarily do the trick.
The majority of people that attempt getting into a good exercise
routine are NOT working out effectively enough to really stimulate the
loss of stubborn abdominal fat. I see this every day at the gym.
Most people will do your typical
boring ineffective cardio routines, throw in a little outdated body-part
style weight training, and pump away with some crunches and side bends,
and think that they are doing something useful for reducing their
abdominal fat. Then they become frustrated after weeks or months of no
results and wonder where they went wrong.
Well, the good news is that I've
spent over a decade researching this topic, analyzing the science, and
applying it "in the trenches" with myself as well as thousands of my
clients from all over the world to see what works to really stimulate
abdominal fat loss.
From my research, two of the most important aspects to getting rid of visceral fat are:
1. The use of high
intensity forms of exercise and full-body resistance training. Low
intensity cardio exercise simply isn't as effective for removing
visceral fat in particular. High intensity exercise such as interval
training, sprints (bike sprints or running sprints), AND
full-body weight training are very effective at helping to improve your
body's ability to manage glucose and increases insulin sensitivity, a
crucial step in removing visceral fat.
These
types of high intensity exercise routines are also very effective at
increasing your fat-burning hormones and creating a hormonal environment
conducive to burning off abdominal fat, including visceral fat.
2. In addition,
it's vitally important to get blood sugar under control to help restore
insulin sensitivity through the right nutrition. This means greatly
reducing sugars and refined starches in your diet (including fully
eliminating any use of harmful high fructose corn syrup!), and focusing
more of your diet on healthy fats (such as avocados,
nuts, seeds, coconut fat, olive oil, grass-fed butter, free-range eggs,
fatty fish and fish oils, etc), as well as increasing protein and fiber
intake. The standard diet recommended by the government, which contains
an unnaturally high grain intake is NOT conducive to controlling blood
sugar and reducing visceral fat!
Reducing grain-based foods in your
diet and getting more of your carbs from veggies and high fiber fruits
such as berries can go a long way to helping to solve this problem.
Another important tip below on the next page to specifically help you lose abdominal fat (and visceral fat)
Excess Abdominal Fat is Not Only Ugly, but Extremely Dangerous to Your Health - This is More Than a Vanity Issue!
The difference between subcutaneous fat and the more deadly "visceral
fat"... Plus the simple steps to REMOVE this fat permanently
by Mike Geary, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer author of best-selling programs: The Truth about Six-Pack Abs & The Fat-Burning Kitchen
Although this picture depicts an overweight man, this article applies to dangerous types of fat inside the bodies of both men and women... and this discussion also applies even if you only have a slight amount of excess stomach fat.Did you know that the vast majority of people in this day and age
have excess abdominal fat? It's true -- as much as 70% of the
population in some "westernized" countries such as the US and Australia
are now considered either overweight or obese. The first thing that
most people think of is that their extra abdominal fat is simply ugly,
is covering up their abs from being visible, and makes them self
conscious about showing off their body.
However, what most people don't realize is that excess abdominal fat in particular, is not only ugly, but is also a dangerous risk factor
to your health. Scientific research has clearly determined that
although it is unhealthy in general to have excess body fat throughout
your body, it is also particularly dangerous to have excess abdominal
fat.
There are two types of fat that you have in your abdominal area. The first type that covers up your abs from being visible is called subcutaneous fat and lies directly beneath the skin and on top of the abdominal muscles.
The second type of fat that you have in your abdominal area is called visceral fat,
and that lies deeper in the abdomen beneath your muscle and surrounding
your organs. Visceral fat also plays a role in giving certain men that
"beer belly" appearance where their abdomen protrudes excessively but at
the same time, also feels sort of hard if you push on it.
Both subcutaneous fat and visceral fat in the abdominal area are serious health risk factors, but science has shown that having excessive visceral fat is even more dangerous than subcutaneous fat.
Both types of fat greatly increase your risk of developing heart
disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, sleep apnea, various
forms of cancer, and other degenerative diseases.
Excess stomach fat has also been
associated in studies with higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), an
indicator of inflammation within the body that can lead to heart
disease and other health issues.
Part of the reason visceral fat is particularly dangerous is that studies show that it releases more inflammatory molecules into your system on a consistent basis.
One of the major reasons that some people accumulate more visceral fat than others can be from a high carbohydrate diet that leads to insulin resistance
over time (years of bombarding your system with too much sugars and
starches for your pancreas to properly handle the constant excess blood
sugar) ... and studies show that high fructose intake particularly from high-fructose corn syrup can be a major contributor to excess visceral fat.
If you care about the quality of
your life and your loved ones, reducing your abdominal fat (including
reducing visceral fat) should be one of your TOP priorities! There's
just no way around it. Besides, a side effect of finally getting rid of
all of that excessive abdominal fat is that your stomach will flatten
out, and if you lose enough stomach fat, you will be able to visibly see
those attractive six pack abs that everyone wants.
So what gets rid of extra abdominal fat, including visceral fat?
Isthere actually a REAL solution beyond all of the gimmicks and hype that
you see in ads and on commercials for "miracle" fat loss products?
The first thing you must understand
is that there is absolutely NO quick fix solution. There are no pills
or supplements of any sort that will help you lose your abdominal fat
faster. Also, none of the gimmicky ab rockers, rollers, or ab belts
will help get rid of abdominal fat either. You can't spot reduce your
stomach fat by using any of these worthless contraptions. It simply
doesn't work that way.
The only solution to consistently
lose your abdominal fat and keep it off for good is to combine a sound
nutritious diet full of unprocessed natural foods with a properly
designed strategic exercise program that stimulates the necessary
hormonal and metabolic response within your body. Both your food intake
as well as your training program are important if you are to get this
right.
I've actually even seen a
particular study that divided thousands of participants into a diet-only
group and an exercise & diet combined group. While both groups in
this study made good progress, the diet-only group lost significantly LESS abdominal fat than the diet & exercise combined group.
Now the important thing to realize
is that just any old exercise program will not necessarily do the trick.
The majority of people that attempt getting into a good exercise
routine are NOT working out effectively enough to really stimulate the
loss of stubborn abdominal fat. I see this every day at the gym.
Most people will do your typical
boring ineffective cardio routines, throw in a little outdated body-part
style weight training, and pump away with some crunches and side bends,
and think that they are doing something useful for reducing their
abdominal fat. Then they become frustrated after weeks or months of no
results and wonder where they went wrong.
Well, the good news is that I've
spent over a decade researching this topic, analyzing the science, and
applying it "in the trenches" with myself as well as thousands of my
clients from all over the world to see what works to really stimulate
abdominal fat loss.
From my research, two of the most important aspects to getting rid of visceral fat are:
1. The use of high
intensity forms of exercise and full-body resistance training. Low
intensity cardio exercise simply isn't as effective for removing
visceral fat in particular. High intensity exercise such as interval
training, sprints (bike sprints or running sprints), AND
full-body weight training are very effective at helping to improve your
body's ability to manage glucose and increases insulin sensitivity, a
crucial step in removing visceral fat.
Thesetypes of high intensity exercise routines are also very effective at
increasing your fat-burning hormones and creating a hormonal environment
conducive to burning off abdominal fat, including visceral fat.
2. In addition,
it's vitally important to get blood sugar under control to help restore
insulin sensitivity through the right nutrition. This means greatly
reducing sugars and refined starches in your diet (including fully
eliminating any use of harmful high fructose corn syrup!), and focusing
more of your diet on healthy fats (such as avocados,
nuts, seeds, coconut fat, olive oil, grass-fed butter, free-range eggs,
fatty fish and fish oils, etc), as well as increasing protein and fiber
intake. The standard diet recommended by the government, which contains
an unnaturally high grain intake is NOT conducive to controlling blood
sugar and reducing visceral fat!
Reducing grain-based foods in your
diet and getting more of your carbs from veggies and high fiber fruits
such as berries can go a long way to helping to solve this problem.
Another important tip below on the next page to specifically help you lose abdominal fat (and visceral fat)
His