Identifying your body type, prioritising your diet and reducing your overall stress are three of the four ways you can drop belly fat in 10 days, a personal trainer from Sydney has claimed.
Rachael Attard said while you might think it sounds too good to be true to drop fat within a fortnight, it is possible to create a more defined physique, provided you’re diligent.
‘You cannot really spot reduce fat. If you want to lose belly fat, you’ll need to lose body fat all over. Drop your body fat percentage and you’ll see results on your belly,’ Rachael wrote on her website.
Rachael Attard (pictured) said while you might think it sounds too good to be true to drop fat within a fortnight, it is possible to create a more defined physique, provided you’re diligent
The first thing the trainer said you need to do is get to know your body type, as this dictates how you eat and train (pictured before and after)
Step one: Get to know your body type
The first – and most important – thing Rachael said you need to do is identify your body type, which can go a long way towards indicating how you should eat and work out.
The three body types are endomorph, ectomorph and mesomorph.
Rachael explained that endomorphs tend to naturally have higher percentages of body fat.
They store fat more easily, typically around the belly, thighs, and bum, and getting rid of it can be difficult.
For this reason, she said they benefit from low carb diets and plenty of cardio.
Ectomorphs, on the other hand, tend to be naturally lean, though they can still have the ‘skinny fat’ look and often have stubborn belly fat.
Rachael said ectomorphs should eat a diet high in carbs and do plenty of resistance work if they want to see rewards for their efforts.
Finally, the PT said mesomorphs are between the two body types.
They can store body fat more easily than ectomorphs, but it’s easier for them to lose it than it is for endomorphs.
‘They do best following a balanced diet and with doing moderate amounts of cardio for fat loss,’ Rachael said.
Rachael (pictured) also said you need to cut out all bad foods including processed foods and alcohol for the 10 days
What are the different body types and their characteristics?
This system breaks down all of the body types into three unique stereotypes: ectomorphs, mesomorphs and endomorphs (pictured)
* Ectomorph:
Ectomorph body types are very tall and slim. They don’t have much muscle and find it difficult to put on muscle or any weight in general.
* Mesomorph:
The mesomorph is between the ectomorph and the endomorph, and they are defined by a muscular frame and broader shoulders than their waist.
* Endomorph:
An endomorph body type is usually a larger curvier figure. They are quite commonly a stocky build and their bodies hold onto fat well and find it hard to lose.
Step two: Clean up your diet
Once you have identified your body type, the trainer said the next thing to do is take a long, hard look at your diet.
Rachael explained that you’ll never see results without cleaning up your diet, and for this reason, she recommends cutting out junk food, processed food, bad carbs, sugar, and alcohol for the 10 days in question.
‘And you need to eat the right amount of food for your body type. If you have no idea about the calories and macros in your food, try counting it for a few days,’ Rachael said.
She uses the Harris-Benedict equation, which will see you do 447.593 + (9.247 x body weight (kg)) + (3.098 x height (cm)) – (4.33 x age in years).
‘My weight is around 52kgs, my height is 167cm and my age is 27 years. So here’s my example: 447.593 + (9.247 x 52) + (3.098 x 167) – (4.33 x 27) = 1329 calories,’ Rachael said.
Stress is the enemy of a flat stomach, so Rachael (pictured) said you need to reduce yours if you want to get your figure in shape – and fast
Step three: Reduce stress
Stress is the enemy of a flat stomach, so Rachael said you need to reduce yours if you want to get your figure in shape – and fast.
‘When you are stressed, your body releases the stress hormone called cortisol. Constantly high levels of cortisol will result in your body storing fat, especially around the stomach,’ she said.
She recommends avoiding the things that put your body under too much stress as much as possible.
These things could include bad sleep, alcohol consumption, too much exercise, poor diet or gut health and excessive travel.
If you do this, you should see quick results.
The best exercises for fat loss (pictured before and after) include steady state cardio like walking or jogging, high intensity interval training (HIIT) and resistance training
Step four: Do the right exercise
There is some exercise that is better than others for fat loss.
These include steady state cardio like walking or jogging, high intensity interval training (HIIT) and resistance training.
‘You should also incorporate some ab focused routines to help tone that tummy. As I mentioned, doing just ab workouts on their own won’t make your belly fat disappear,’ Rachael said.
But she does believe that working on your obliques and various upper and lower abs can help with definition.
To read more from Rachael Attard, you can visit her website here.