Flat Belly Diet - Walk Off Your Belly Fat (2024)

3 routines to shrink your waist up to 2 inches

By ​Selene Yeager
Flat Belly Diet - Walk Off Your Belly Fat (1)

Forget crunches. For a workout that really flattens your belly, get up and move your feet. Studies show walking is one of the best ways to shed belly fat, in less time than you think. Researchers reviewed 40 years of studies on exercise and belly fat and found that just 2 1/2 hours of brisk walking a week--about 20 minutes a day--can shrink your belly by about 1 inch in 4 weeks.

Why does walking work so well? It appears to help reduce deep belly fat (called visceral fat) first, explains Tim Church, MD, MPH, PhD, of Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Louisiana State University. "If you exercise enough to lose 10% of your body fat, you may actually reduce visceral fat by 30%," says Church.

All walking burns belly fat, but for best results, crank up your weekly MET (metabolic equivalent) hours--the number of calories you burn. "Shaking up the intensity with on-again, off-again bursts of energy will give you the most time-efficient, calorie-burning workout possible," says exercise physiologist Peggy Pletcher of Source Endurance, an online coaching service based in Austin, TX.

The Experts

Exercise physiologist Peggy Pletcher, consultant for Source Endurance, an online fitness coaching service, helped design the walking plans. Celebrity trainer Valerie Waters developed the firming moves.

What to Do

6 or 7 days a week: Do one of the Flat Belly Walks, following our pace guidelines, below. If your goal is to whittle your waistline with the bare minimum exercise, follow Plan 1. If you have more time and want to rev up your results, dive into Plan 2. To shed inches all over, go with Plan 3.

Find the Right Pace

Use a scale of 1 to 10. It's the best way to determine how hard you should be working, with 1 being very easy and 10 an all-out effort. If you're on a treadmill, try our suggested speeds, but adjust the speed according to your effort level.

Warm-up/cool-down: 2 to 3 (treadmill at 3 mph). You can chat with ease.

Brisk pace: 4 to 5 (3.5 to 3.8 mph). Your breathing is pleasantly harder. Can still talk, but with pauses.

Push pace: 6 to 7 (4 mph). Some huffing and puffing. One- to two-word replies.

Power pace: 8 to 9 (4.2 to 4.5 mph or uphill at 3.5 mph). No talking possible.

3 Flat Belly Walks

Plan 1: Speedy Waist Whittler

Time: 20 minutes a day, 7 days a week

  • Start: Warm-up
  • 3:00 Brisk pace
  • 6:00 Push pace
  • 9:00 Brisk
  • 12:00 Power pace
  • 13:00 Push
  • 15:00 Brisk
  • 18:00 Cool-down
  • 20:00 Finish

Total calories burned: About 100 (based on a 150-pound person)

Plan 2: Lose-a-Size Tummy Trimmer

Time: 40 minutes, 6 days a week

  • Start: Warm-up
  • 3:00 Brisk pace
  • 6:00 Push pace
  • 13:00 Power Pace
  • 15:00 Repeat minutes 3 through 15 (brisk walk for 3 minutes, push for 7 minutes, power for 2 minutes)
  • 27:00 Brisk
  • 37:00 Cool-down
  • 40:00 Finish

Total calories burned: About 200 (based on a 150-pound person)

Plan 3: Total-Body Fat Blaster

Time: 60 minutes, 6 days a week

Note: If you're doing this workout indoors on a treadmill, start with a 3% incline for the hills, working up to 5%. If you're outside, try to find a loop with two hills about midway through that will take you about 5 to 6 minutes to climb.

  • Start: Warm-up
  • 3:00 Brisk pace
  • 5:00 Push pace
  • 20:00 Brisk
  • 22:00 Uphill Brisk
  • 28:00 Brisk
  • 32:00 Uphill Brisk
  • 38:00 Brisk
  • 42:00 Push
  • 57:00 Cool-down
  • 60:00 Finish

Total calories burned: About 330 (based on a 150-pound person)

Flat Belly Diet - Walk Off Your Belly Fat (3)

​Selene Yeager

“The Fit Chick”

Selene Yeager is a top-selling professional health and fitness writer who lives what she writes as a NASM certified personal trainer, USA Cycling certified coach, Pn1 certified nutrition coach, pro licensed off road racer, and All-American Ironman triathlete.

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Flat Belly Diet - Walk Off Your Belly Fat (2024)

FAQs

Flat Belly Diet - Walk Off Your Belly Fat? ›

Studies show walking is one of the best ways to shed belly fat, in less time than you think. Researchers reviewed 40 years of studies on exercise and belly fat and found that just 2 1/2 hours of brisk walking a week--about 20 minutes a day--can shrink your belly by about 1 inch in 4 weeks.

What is the best way to walk off belly fat? ›

For the main set, alternate 2 minutes of walking at a moderate pace with 1 minute at the fastest walking pace you can tolerate. Open your stride, pump your arms and raise your heart rate as much as possible to burn the most calories. Alternate the 2 minutes easy, 1 minute hard for 20 minutes.

What is the flat tummy walk? ›

abdominal muscles, leading to a flatter stomach. This type of exercise typically involves engaging the core muscles and walking at a brisk pace. It can be done indoors or outdoors and doesn't require any equipment. It is also called a “power walk” or “brisk walk”.

How long does it take to walk off belly fat? ›

In one small study, women with obesity who walked for 50–70 minutes three times per week for 12 weeks, on average, reduced their waist circumference and their body fat.

Will I lose belly fat if I walk 30 minutes a day? ›

Can a person lose belly fat by walking? Regular aerobic exercise such as walking may be an effective way to lose belly fat. A 2014 study supports this and concluded that walking could help to burn body fat, including fat around the waist and within the abdominal cavity.

What burns the most belly fat? ›

Aerobic exercise includes any activity that raises your heart rate such as walking, dancing, running or swimming. This can also include doing housework, gardening and playing with your children. Other types of exercise such as strength training, Pilates and yoga can also help you lose belly fat.

What are the 5 foods that burn belly fat? ›

Five foods that may help burn belly fat include:
  • foods with soluble fiber like fruits, vegetables, and legumes.
  • foods with protein like meat, fish, eggs, and dairy.
  • fatty fish like tuna and salmon.
  • foods with probiotics like yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, and kimchi.
  • green tea.

What to eat for a flat stomach in 3 days? ›

What to eat to get a flat stomach in just 3 days
  1. Ginger mint tea. ...
  2. Bloat-free breakfasts. ...
  3. Coconut yoghurt with blueberries. ...
  4. Cinnamon oat smoothie. ...
  5. Spinach and tomato omelette. ...
  6. Mid-morning snack. ...
  7. 2 slices of watermelon or cantaloupe. ...
  8. Spiralised apple and cinnamon noodles.
Jul 7, 2016

Will walking get rid of a saggy belly? ›

Studies show walking is one of the best ways to shed belly fat, in less time than you think.

How to reduce belly fat in 7 days? ›

Doing cardio and abdominal exercises every day, coupled with a healthy diet (that is low in calories, fats, and sugars) is an efficient strategy for losing belly fat quickly. Which fruits are good for a flat tummy? Banana, full of potassium, helps your body get rid of excess water weight.

What is the best diet to get rid of belly fat? ›

Focusing on plant-based foods, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Choosing lean sources of protein, such as fish and low-fat dairy products. Limiting processed meats, as well as the saturated fat that's found in meat and high-fat dairy products, such as cheese and butter.

How to shrink your stomach in a week? ›

Things You Should Know
  1. Do cardio exercises, like running, swimming, or jogging throughout the week.
  2. Target your ab muscles with exercises like crunches and planks.
  3. Eat small meals every 2 to 3 hours to stay full for longer.
  4. Reduce bloating with potassium-rich foods, like mangoes, cantaloupe, and papaya.

What are the signs that you are losing belly fat? ›

How to know when your body is burning fat
  • An improved sense of well-being.
  • A decreased appetite.
  • An improvement in the way your clothes fit.
  • Better-quality sleep and less snoring.
  • An improvement in your mood.
  • Better health parameters such as a lowering of blood pressure, decrease in chronic pain, or smoother bowel movements.
Aug 4, 2022

What exercise burns the most belly fat for females? ›

Some great cardio of aerobic exercises for belly fat include:
  • Walking, especially at a quick pace.
  • Running.
  • Biking.
  • Rowing.
  • Swimming.
  • Cycling.
  • Group fitness classes.
Apr 25, 2023

How many miles is 10 000 steps? ›

Using 2,000 steps in one mile as an average benchmark, 10,000 steps is approximately 5 miles.

How much weight can I lose in 1 month by walking 30 minutes daily? ›

So if you just walk for 30 mins you will be burning close to 200 calories per day. For 28 days, you would be burning 5600 calories. Now for every 7000 extra calories you burn you lose 1kg. So you would be losing less than a kg weight just by this exercise.

How effective is walking for losing belly fat? ›

Studies show walking is one of the best ways to shed belly fat, in less time than you think. Researchers reviewed 40 years of studies on exercise and belly fat and found that just 2 1/2 hours of brisk walking a week--about 20 minutes a day--can shrink your belly by about 1 inch in 4 weeks.

How do I flatten my stomach while walking? ›

Move Your Arms

Not only does swinging your arms at a faster rate help you walk faster—and ignite serious calorie burn—but that movement also engages the upper body, lower body, and, of course, your abs.

What kind of walking burns the most fat? ›

Lower-speed and longer duration of aerobic exercise over a 4.8 km distance will produce greater total body fat loss than isocaloric exercise at a higher speed.

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