Your abdominal fat is destroying your organs and setting the stage for diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
There are two types of fat: subcutaneous and visceral (abdominal) fat. Subcutaneous fat is stored under the skin at the surface level. Visceral fat is far more dangerous because it wraps around organs, releases inflammatory markers, and produces toxic chemicals and hormones.
You can’t touch or see visceral fat but it’s the beer belly that pushes out the abdominal area. It’s also common in those who are skinny fat and lack muscle in their upper body with an increased waistline >40 inches in men (think dad bod) and >35 inches in women.
What are the dangers of visceral fat? Visceral fat is a sign of the metabolic syndrome which includes: -High blood pressure -Obesity -High cholesterol -Insulin resistance These often lead to: -Heart disease -Diabetes -Stroke -Dementia
What are the causes of visceral fat? 1) Too many calories in and too little activity. 2) Alcohol intake plays a major factor in increased visceral fat storage. 3) Genes do play a role in where your body is predisposed to storing fat.
Here’s 5 ways you can fight back against visceral fat: 1) Intermittent fasting Create an 8-10 hour eating window at first to rest/heal your gut. Reduces gut/systemic inflammation and teaches the body to utilize stored energy. Burns fat while maintaining metabolic rate.
2) Eat a high protein diet -Slows down digestion limiting spikes and crashes in blood sugar that lead to insulin resistance and visceral fat storage. -Increases satiation (fullness) cutting down on the need for snacking. -Burns 80-100 calories/day extra through digestion.
3) Don’t drink your calories Alcohol, soda, and juices create massive sugar spikes. They act like an IV of sugar into the bloodstream because there is nothing to slow down digestion. Over time this leads to insulin resistance and fat storage around the liver and abdominal area.
4) Resistance train Lifting weights helps build muscle which is the most metabolically active tissue. This helps to burn more calories throughout the day and regulate sugar levels. When sugar levels are stable the body is able to more effectively burn stored fat.
5) Prioritize sleep Poor sleep decreases your fullness hormone (leptin) and increases your hunger hormone (ghrelin) causing you to snack. Bad sleep reduces insulin sensitivity keeping blood sugar levels elevated. Your body will then want to store energy instead of burn it.
