Raise your hand if you don’t want flat abs.
I am not spying on you through an online camera, but I am pretty sure your hand didn’t go up.
Seems like the quest for a flat belly is never-ending and perhaps you have been down this road more than once.
Wondering if Zumba Fitness can actually help you losing belly fat?
In this article you will read:
- How starving can make the situation worse
- Is it all about the calories?
- Aerobic-type of exercises
- Can reducing stress help you with losing weight?
Starving = Losing or putting on weight?
People desperate to lose weight will willingly starve themselves, take expensive supplements or do the latest fad diet that promises to give them that flawless figure in 30 days. Thankfully, belly fat is metabolically active and easier to lose.
However, if proper nutrition is not observed and the resort is made to low-calorie diets, weight loss may not happen within the desired time frame. Hunger and calorie deprivation will eventually kick in and dieters confronted with that favourite food they have been avoiding will have the tendency to binge at the first opportunity. The likelihood of gaining more weight than they originally lost is not far-fetched.
According to Christine Rosenbloom, a nutrition professor at Georgia State University, eating a calorie-controlled diet and 60 minutes of daily moderate exercise activity will result to weight loss and can even help with the desired weight maintenance.
In fact, according to Professor Michael Jensen of the Mayo Clinic, intense aerobic exercise will result in being leaner around the abdomen.
It is important to remember that keeping the body’s metabolism up and running so that the body continuously burns calories prevents it from going into the fat-storing mode that causes unnecessary weight gain.
Is it all about the calories?
Most people involved in weight loss believe that it’s all about the calories. If you burn calories more than you take in, you lose weight. If you take in more calories than you can burn, the body gains fat. While this piece of logic may make sense, it is only partly true. What burns calories nonstop is actually the lean muscle mass underneath body fat that allows more intake of calories without weight gain.
The body actually adapts to the changes it undergoes. Losing weight without exercising increases the risk of losing lean body mass, slowing the metabolism and putting the body into fat-storing mode.
People who have lost body fat and muscle mass may notice that they don’t have the muscle mass they once had. Worse yet, once they overeat even a little bit, they start filling up on body fat once again.
Aerobic Exercise (ZUMBA is an aerobic exercise)
One of the best benefits to exercise is burning calories and fat. Aerobic exercises such as ZUMBA Fitness are the best way to get the higher calorie and fat burn from your exercise efforts.
You should aim to get 30 minutes of aerobic exercise at least 3 times a week, more if you really want to lose belly fat faster.
Your aerobic exercise could be something you enjoy like dancing, jogging, water aerobics, ZUMBA Fitness or just walking for exercise. If you are just starting an aerobic exercise routine, start slowly and remember to stay within your target heart rate zone.
If you are overweight or haven’t exercised for a very long time, you may want to start with low-intensity classes to slowly ease you into the routine.
Reducing Stress = Losing weight?
Stress can cause many different health related issues from high blood pressure to chronic heart diseases. But stress also is a main cause to weight gain and increased body fat.
When a person is stressed, the body prepares itself to either fight or get the heck out of there. This “fight or flight” response is your body’s way of protecting itself in stressful situations.
What happens when you are stressed is your body releases adrenaline, cortisol and insulin. What does this mean to you? Well, the increase in cortisol can cause you to feel hungry and can increase fat production.
This extra fat generally settles in your stomach, creating more belly fat. The extra insulin can also cause higher levels of fat as too much insulin sends a signal to your body to start storing fat.
Another great benefit of exercising is to reduce stress. So by adding aerobic exercises to your weekly routine you are not only reducing stress, but you are able to lose belly fat.
Overview
The best strategy for weight loss is to observe a healthy diet coupled with exercise of at least an hour a day. Although there is no sure-fire way to deal with belly fat, there are a number of activities from which to choose and enjoy. As long as you’re having fun, you can lose weight without realizing it. It is important to look for an exercise you enjoy. Hiking, swimming, running, dancing or joining a ZUMBA Fitness class can help you achieve your goals.
If you want to have fun while losing belly fat, for a limited time, you can try our classes absolutely free. Start your free 14-day trial here.
