If this question was easy to answer, there would be no need for nutritionists, personal trainers or weight loss coaches in this world.  

If you researched this question before, you likely found a few different theories:

The Articles That Claim You Can Lose Belly Fat by Taking a Supplement. 

Examples include: Cucumis melo var. gaettongchamoe water extract (CGWE) (1), Matured Hop Extract (2), Catalpic Acid (3), Clarinol CLA (4), saccharomyces cerevisiae (5) 

Although these are not wrong, they are usually not enough.  Most of these supplements were tested and found that people were able to lose anywhere between 5-8% of abdominal fat.  

However, let’s say your abdominal fat represents 35lbs of your body weight.  Then you pick one supplement and you take it religiously for 12 weeks.  In an ideal world, you will lose about 2.8lbs.  

It’s something!  However, it may not be what you had in mind.  

Let’s not forget that a lot of these supplements were combined with a diet & exercise program which made the results even more significant! 

The Articles That Claim Losing Belly Fat is Impossible (It’s a Myth)

Okay, this escalated quickly, don’t you think?  Can we relax a little bit and explore this further please?  Thank you. 

This claim is not entirely true.  

Although I agree that you can’t reduce belly fat with a one time, specific formula (or a magic potion if you will), you can adjust a few specific things that will give you results over time.   

How to Lose Belly Fat

Let’s start by talking about Yeager’s article that explains how fat is not the same everywhere on our body - and the reason why belly fat in particular is actually more stubborn: “We used to think of fat as simple storage for excess calories, which the body can draw upon as needed” “We now know that fat, particularly belly fat and visceral fat, is a source of inflammatory substances, such as C-reactive proteins and interleukin-6—what we call cytokines” (6)

Calories in vs. calories out

What this means is although calories in vs. calories out can significantly reduce your weight and your overall fat storage, it is not enough to get to the bottom of that abdominal fat.  This is why a lot of people who take on standard calorie deficit diets tend to lose weight on the scale, but can’t get rid of the stubborn belly fat!

Exercise

So, as Yeager’s article explains it: “when it comes to reducing visceral fat, exercise is the key...regular physical activity (approximately 30 minutes per day - which includes at least two days of resistance/strength training) tends to burn visceral fat before other fat deposits.” (6)

Nutrition

Beyond the calories in vs. calories out, there are some specific food choices that have a direct impact on abdominal fat.  Essentially, because belly fat has a different composition than standard body fat, which contains inflammatory substances, on top of watching out calorie intake, we want to be eating food that helps reduce inflammation and stress - like raspberries, asparagus, brussels sprouts, red cabbage, guava, bok choy, melon, kale, oranges. (7)

Makes sense right? Perman’s article explains it well:  

• “Cherries – a cup has a quarter of your daily Vitamin C requirement, and they also provide melatonin, which helps you sleep.” (7)
• “Blueberries attack belly-fat, lower blood pressure and corral free radicals that disrupt your physiology.” (7)
• “Strawberries and tomatoes have high levels of polyphenols, which not only fight disease but also prevent fat from forming.” (7)
• “Turnips combat body fat with a rich storehouse of phytochemicals and glucosinolate, which reduces inflammation and lowers the risk of cancer.” (7)
• “Sweet potatoes stabilize blood sugar levels, which reduces cravings and lowers insulin resistance, which drops fat conversion.” (7)
• “Pineapple contains bromelain, which breaks down foods and reduces bloating.” (7)
• “Broccoli’s cancer fighting sulforaphane boosts testosterone and interferes with body-fat storage.” (7)
• “Red peppers offer dihydrocapsiate, which drives metabolism and burns fat.” (7)
• “Green peas plunge cortisol levels.” (7) 

Stress Management Strategies: 

A study in 2011 found that reducing stress can lower cortisol levels and improve eating patterns which may reduce abdominal fat over time. (8)

The Evolve Method

So now hopefully you understand that it is POSSIBLE to reduce belly fat specifically, but you can’t rely on standard weight reducing strategies (calories in vs. calories out) or on specific supplements alone.  You need to combine more strategies that not only target fat, but also target the inflammatory substances that hang around your belly fat specifically.  

But if you’re like me, reading a list of strategies is not enough to make you change your habits, let alone stick to them long enough to see results!

That is why I developed a blueprint (step-by-step program) that implements these strategies.  I explain everything in my FREE Online Masterclass.  Click HERE to Register!

Julie Richard

Certified Health Coach

Founder of Ulikeyou Weight Loss

REFERENCES

1- Park, S. Y., Kim, J. E., Kang, H. M., Song, H. J., Kang, N. J., Hwang, D. Y., & Choi, Y.-W. (2023). Adiposity Reduction by Cucumis melo var. gaettongchamoe Extract in High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Mice. Nutrients, 15(15), 3292. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15153292

2- Morimoto-Kobayashi, Y., Ohara, K., Ashigai, H., Kanaya, T., Koizumi, K., Manabe, F., Kaneko, Y., Taniguchi, Y., Katayama, M., Kowatari, Y., & Kondo, S. (2016). Matured hop extract reduces body fat in healthy overweight humans: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel group study. Nutrition Journal, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12937-016-0144-2

3- Hontecillas R, Diguardo M, Duran E, Orpi M, Bassaganya-Riera J. Catalpic acid decreases abdominal fat deposition, improves glucose homeostasis and upregulates PPAR alpha expression in adipose tissue. Clin Nutr. 2008 Oct;27(5):764-72. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2008.07.007. Epub 2008 Sep 7. PMID: 18778878.

4- Kurstjens J. (2008). CLARINOL CLA helps overweight and obese people lose fat where it matters most. Wellness Foods Europe, 8(3), 56–59.

5- ReferenceWasko, J. (2015). The Deadly Consequences Of Excess ABDOMINAL FAT. Life Extension, 21(2), 26–33.

6 - Yeager, D. (2016). Overweight/Obesity. Fighting Belly Fat. Today’s Dietitian, 18(5), 12–13.

7 - Perman, D. (2018). Stress-Fighting Foods That Reduce Belly Fat. Council on Nutrition Newsletter, 4–5.

8- Daubenmier, J., Kristeller, J., Hecht, F. M., Maninger, N., Kuwata, M., Jhaveri, K., Lustig, R. H., Kemeny, M., Karan, L., & Epel, E. (2011). Mindfulness Intervention for Stress Eating to Reduce Cortisol and Abdominal Fat among Overweight and Obese Women: An Exploratory Randomized Controlled Study. Journal of Obesity, 2011, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/651936