That is a great question. How to get rid of belly fat for men over 40? I feel youthful and excellent, but now and then, my body reminds me that I’m already 51 years old.
One of those reminders is that it’s a little bit harder to lower my fat percentage than when I was 25 years old, especially in the belly area.
Men over 40 will notice that losing weight in their mid-section is a bit harder than it used to be because of a change in hormones and a decrease in metabolism.
There are two sorts of fat within the body: the softer kind right beneath the surface, called subcutaneous fat, and visceral fat, which is more challenging and stored deeper in your abdomen and wrapped around organs.
Excessive visceral fat can indicate various health issues, including diabetes, higher cancer risk, insulin resistance, and high blood pressure. This article will focus more on visceral (belly) fat.
It’s harder to grow muscle and burn fat when we age. A bit harder, but not impossible!
We have to adjust our cardio and muscle-building exercises a bit. So let’s focus on this tiny problem and make sure we use the best strategy to lose that stubborn belly fat.
WHY IS IT HARDER TO GET RID OF BELLY FAT OVER 40?
AGE:
As you age, you lose muscle, especially if you don’t exercise enough, but age alone doesn’t necessarily change where visceral fat is stored, but for many of us, belly fat starts to increase as we age.
Usually, our diets may change. We burn fewer calories in general, and we tend to exercise less. This contributes to ultimately gaining weight, also in the abdominal area.
METABOLISM:
Unfortunately, as we get older, our metabolism decelerates. Thus we burn way fewer calories, which results in us starting to lose muscle and gain weight.
HORMONES:
Gaining and losing fat is hormone-driven. Women will gain more “curves” due to estrogen, and men will usually gain more muscles from the higher testosterone.
Men store more visceral (hard) fat within the abdominal area, and ladies tend to store (soft) fat within the abdominal and thigh area. In puberty, the differences become apparent when both sexes increase in weight.
Nonetheless, fat storage tendencies shift as we age and women go through perimenopause and menopause. Men gain more “of the softer” fat when they get older, while women gain more “of the harder” abdominal fat caused by lower testosterone and estrogen levels.
STRESS:
Cortisol is a hormone that is essential for survival, and a high-stress lifestyle can lead to increased cortisol levels. It’s processed by the adrenal glands and is known as a “stress hormone” because it helps your body respond to any threat, physical or mental.
Since we usually are not actually “running” from danger, having this reaction continuously firing up our system can be very damaging.
Cortisol causes fat to be stored or taken from other areas in the body to be accumulated in the belly area. Along with the direct impact that cortisol can have in adding fat to the abdomen area, it can also have an indirect outcome.
Higher cortisol levels and increments due to stress lead to more fat cell development, increased blood glucose, insulin blocking, and more cravings for junk food. That brings me to my next section.
EATING UNHEALTHY:
If anything makes it harder for us to get rid of belly fat, it’s eating unhealthy.
That speaks for itself, and I will explain a lot more about eating well and dieting in future articles. Anyway, try to avoid a low-fiber, low-protein diet. Don’t consume excessive sugary foods and beverages; take it easy on alcohol.
I know that the latter two factors mainly apply to all ages, but in general, they will have more impact on the elderly among us.
Let us now discuss what we can do daily to eliminate belly fat. In general abdominal fat can be reduced similarly to any approach to losing weight. The bad news is that we can not only target belly fat when we want to lose weight.
How To Create a Calorie Deficit Over 40?
We have to reduce our body fat to reduce our visceral fat. Don’t believe people telling you otherwise. It’s just the way it is. The good news is that it’s very doable to lose body fat, even short term. You will notice that when you follow these steps, you will get rid of belly fat rapidly, especially in the beginning.
WE ARE GOING TO CREATE A CALORIE DEFICIT.
Simply put, we will burn more calories daily than we take in.
HERE WE GO!
1- We are going to eat lots of protein:
What?! Eating more? Yes! Eating enough protein is the most straightforward change you can make to your diet to eliminate belly fat. It sounds counter-intuitive, but there are several reasons for this.
Increasing your protein intake increases satiety. If you’re not hungry, your won’t eat. Hence, increasing satiety can result in effortless weight loss.
Moreover, eating enough protein throughout the day maintains your metabolically active mass even when you have a calorie deficit. If you push your muscles to failure through resistance training, your can even build muscle while you get rid of belly fat by eating enough protein.
2- We are going to eat more healthy fats:
When you’re trying to burn abdominal fat, good, healthy fats are not your bitter enemy, my friends. While it may seem illogical, eating healthy fats can help you feel “full,” which lowers the risk of further weight gain.
It also makes weight loss more manageable because you will be less enticed to overeat. Add healthy fatty foods to your diet, such as tuna, salmon, almonds, olive oil, and whole milk.
You should make a good effort to limit your intake of unhealthy fats. Do not consume processed food that contains trans fats. In general, make an effort to eat less unhealthy foods with saturated fats. Ciao Mac Donald’s: welcome cashew nuts.
3- We are going to drink healthier:
Another simple thing you can do to burn belly fat is to make healthier beverage choices. If your drink Coca-Cola, Fanta, or 7-Up, please stop!
It would be best if you stopped drinking processed fruit juices while we are at it, and you will quickly get rid of your belly. This may be a hard shift at first, but it will diminish your calorie intake without even committing more time to your exercises.
If you can’t start your day without a glass of orange juice, make a nice, fresh, homemade orange juice. Nowadays, preparing the most delicious juice with all those handy juice processors on the market is a piece of cake.
For some of us, the next one is going to hurt. You have to try to drink less alcohol. It dehydrates your body, and a night of boozing will increase your calorie intake immensely, making it much harder to get rid of belly fat, especially when we age.
And don’t forget the craving for salty junk food the next ‘hangover’ day.
4- We are going to drink lots of water:
There is nothing wrong with drinking some milk or fresh, homemade fruit juice, but most of your liquid intake should come from calorie-free beverages. Green tea and coffee are high in polyphenols, antioxidants, and other good micronutrients for your health.
If you are not overly sensitive to caffeine, these are decent choices, but drinking water is the best thing you can do to help you lose those extra pounds.
Often, we mistake our thirst for hunger. Therefore we automatically eat high-sodium foods to help our body retain the water it has left. But our body does not need calories for fuel, so logically, we will gain weight.
So, water boosts your metabolism, does not throw off your hunger signals, and is calorie-free.
5- We are going to eat more fiber:
Soluble fibers move slowly through the digestive area and soak up water. Hence, you get rid of belly fat. That way, you don’t have the feeling of wanting to eat for a while.
A study with over 1000 adults presented that for every 10-gram increase in fiber intake, participants lost around 4% of belly fat without changing their regular exercise routine or any other part of their diet, for that matter.
Another study presented that increasing overall fiber intake (soluble and insoluble) by 15 grams resulted in a 10% reduction in caloric intake. This equated to 4.5 pounds of weight loss in approximately four months, with no other changes to diet and exercise. For example, I always bring a small bag of unsalted nuts, one of my favorite snacks.
6- We are going to try intermittent fasting:
Research indicates intermittent fasting is a beneficial technique for men to lose weight and get rid of belly fat fast. Intermittent fasting means that you have periods of eating and not eating. In our “not eating” period, we can not consume more than 50 calories. You can have a bit of milk in your coffee during your fasting window.
The reason is that you don’t want to raise your glycemic index in your fasting window. In my opinion, the most popular intermittent fasting diet is the 16/8 method of intermittent fasting, which means that you fast for 16 hours and eat for eight hours.
So, you can eat lunch at noon, eat dinner at 5 o’clock and eat a snack at 8 p.m. Then, you would go to bed and not eat breakfast. Of course, this is just an example. If you want to change the hours, that is up to you, but stick to the 16/8.
If you want to get off belly fat quickly, start intermittent fasting. You’ll be blown away by the results, my friend.
7- We are going to increase our iron intake:
Iron is an essential mineral for your thyroid health. When you don’t take in enough iron, thyroid disease may appear, such as hypothyroidism, which can manifest fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, and weight gain.
How To Burn Those Calories?
– We are going to work out
If your goal is to lose weight and get rid of belly fat, you need to start picking up those barbells and dumbbells. If you already go to the gym, add 1 or 2 sessions to your weekly workout routine.
Research indicates that strength training reduces visceral fat. Numerous studies show that if you combine weight training with a cardio workout, you will get rid of belly fat and overall body faster than with cardio exercise alone. Interesting.
– We are going to increase our cardio
We will increase our cardio to get rid of belly fat over 40.
Cardio is one of the best things you can do to lose weight. It improves the strength and endurance of the heart and lungs. I think most of us have a love-hate relationship with it.
A review of 15 studies found a strong connection between cardiovascular exercise and losing belly fat. Also, cardio training leads to the growth of muscle mass and reduced waist width, belly fat, -and overall body fat.
Currently, I’m doing my cardio training 3-4 times a week, early in the morning, combined with light abdominal training. I push myself to do 10-15 minutes of abs and then 30 minutes of slow cardio.
I like to position the treadmill on 15% and walk around 3.5 – 4 km p/hr. I encourage you to try it out, and please let me know your experience.
– We are going to include 1 or 2 HIIT workouts per week
If you’re serious and want to get rid of belly fat fast, you must introduce high-intensity interval training. HIIT training involves a quick burst of high-intensity activity followed by a relatively short recovery period. This is usually repeated 6 to 8 times
It’s also a great way to execute HIIT when you are short on time that day. You can complete a full HIIT training in 10-12 minutes. Another excuse for not doing our cardio is out the window.
Be careful, though! HIIT training is excellent for getting rid of belly fat but can be intensive and demanding on the joints. So if you are at the beginning of your fitness journey and want to get rid of belly fat using HIIT training, take it easy.
Listen to your body and stop the HIIT training immediately when you feel any pain or discomfort. You can always replace it temporarily by walking or swimming, for example, at least until you are ready for the more intense workouts.
Conclusion
Okay, guys, I am going to wrap this up. I hope your enjoyed reading this article about how to get rid of belly fat over 40. I have studied the matter a lot, but I mostly want to share my view and experience(s).
Taking care of yourself is, in my opinion, a must. Set realistic goals and reward yourself when you reach one. Important though is to have fun and enjoy the journey.
So keep up the excellent work, and I hope you had a pleasant read, my friends.
What ideas do you have to get rid of belly fat effectively?
I would love to know what you guys think of the content I write in my articles, so if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, please let me know in the comment section below.
Stay Healthy and Strong!
