How to Lose Belly Fat in a Week or Month

Many people have a common goal of wanting to lose weight as quickly as possible. People might be motivated for many different reasons.

For example, Rachel has a wedding coming up and she wants to impress all of her family members that she doesn’t normally interact with except on holidays or special occasions. Brad might want to shed some pounds because the beach season is coming soon and he wants his friends to think highly of him. Or, Carson might need to lose weight because it is beginning to influence his day to day life of getting from place A to place B.

Whatever your motivations for losing weight, I am sure you want it to happen fast. Those who want to lose weight often seek answers to a common question, “How to exercise and lose belly fat fast”.

How to get rid of belly fat in a week

Let’s get real about what your goal is. You just want to look better for whatever reason or day that is coming up. If you start a normal diet today then you probably won’t make much of a dent on the scale in just one week with normal long term results oriented dieting. But that’s not what you’re looking for, is it? If your more interested in long term results skip down past this part.

If your goal is to drop as much weight as possible in the shortest amount of time then get ready for a rough week.  I have used a combination of liquid keto with intermittent fasting to lose as much as 12 pounds in one week.

First off realize that this is not going to be all fat loss, a lot of water loss will contribute to the overall weight loss. Secondly, you probably gain all the weight you lost right back. 

Third: There is a risk associated with liquid diets. If you do this I would not do it for very long.  

The Quickest Way to Lose Weight

If you want to lose belly fat fast or the appearance of it than liquid drinks will be your fastest method to achieve weight loss. I take this one step further and mix in intermittent fasting, keto, and high-intensity workouts, and lots of water.

My Plan that helped me achieve the fasted weight loss possible

1. Calories will be 800-1000 for the next week. I only allowed myself liquid for a solid week. I used protein, coconut oil, olive oil, fruit and vegetable powders, nuts, berries, and peanut butter.
2.  I did keto on low calories. If you don’t know what keto is here is a good place to start. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/ketogenic-diet-101#types You want way more fat than protein and very low carbs. The goal is to go into ketosis quickly (burning fats for fuel instead of carbs) The macro targets I used for 1000 calories were  20 carbohydrates- you really do not want to go below 20 carbs a day.  Keto snacks can be very helpful when doing low carb. Look for high fat low with moderate protein and of course as low of carbs as possible. 

My daily goal was 1000 calories, 85 grams of fat, 20 carbs and 50 grams of protein. Only liquids and only the foods I listed. I used the blender every day. 

      3. I fasted every day between 8pm to 11am the next day. That means there were just 9 hours that I could eat. This is called intermittent fasting, it is where you fast for hours and only allow certain times to eat. Yes, I was starving for the first few days, but then I started getting used to it. I may try it again for two weeks, but I know that this is not healthy to stay on. 

4. You will probably feel a lack of energy so this next part will be even harder. I worked out every day for 20 minutes. Using an elliptical and hit cardio. I did the warm-up for five minutes and then went into 5 one minute rounds and then a 5-minute cooldown. For the high-intensity rounds, I went as hard as I physically could for one minute then went to a crawling pace for one minute, and repeat. For me this is the best way to get a killer work out in the shortest amount of time.

5. Drink lots of water. My goal was to drink a gallon a day. This whole week puts serious stress on your body and it needs its water!

In addition, I drank zip fizz for energy and took multivitamins as I always do. After my week of misery, I felt good about going on my trip. No way was I going to keep up the liquid diet and it only took two weeks to gain it all back. lol

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The Most Important Tool in Losing Weight is Nutrition and Diet

The fastest way to lose weight for men or women listed above is not a healthy or sustainable option. I have done it and understand why others want to, desperation. The best option is to plan on long term for lasting results. 

Nutrition Terms

In order to comprehend how to exercise and lose belly fat fast we need to understand some key terms in the world of fitness and nutrition.

• Calorie Deficit
• Calorie Maintenance
• Calorie Surplus
• Refeed Day

These terms are important because if you understand them, you can align your diet so you naturally lose weight!

Calorie Maintenance is a term that refers to the number of calories your body naturally burns in a day in order to survive.

Calorie Deficit then means that you are eating below the number of calories your body naturally burns in a day. Therefore, if your calorie maintenance is 2400 calories and you eat 1800 calories, you naturally will burn fat at a rate of 600 calories for that day. This is why your diet plays a huge role in fat loss.

Calorie Surplus simply represents the calories that you eat beyond your calorie maintenance. For example, if your maintenance is 2400 calories and you eat 2800, you will gain weight in the form of fat or muscle depending on if you lift weights.

Refeed Day is a term that can be described as eating at your calorie maintenance level for one day out of the week as to ensure your metabolism does not fall too low.

Let’s pull this all together.

The key to losing weight is to set up your diet in a calorie deficit. You can find many calculators online that will help you discover what your calorie maintenance is. You can also use these calculators to find how many calories you should eat a day for steady rate of fat loss. For a healthy and steady rate of shredding fat, you should typically aim to eat around 600 fewer calories than your calorie maintenance.

If your calorie deficit is set at 1800, it is important to eat 1800 for the entire week. EXCEPT, once a week you should eat at maintenance. This is not necessarily a cheat meal, it is called a refeed day. You should still try to eat clean, but by eating at maintenance, your metabolism should stay steady over a long period instead of crashing.

How Should I Exercise to Lose Weight Quickly?

By now, you realize that the most important role in losing weight is your diet. However, if you pair a healthy diet with exercise you will notice much better results!

Personally, I lift weights 3x a week and make sure that I hit each of the main muscle groups.

A big key that helps me burn extra calories, is the 20 minute cardio session I hit right after. I have never been a runner and actually hate it. After doing my research I found how positive using an elliptical can be on weight loss. You burn calories while not straining any of your muscles in the process! Unlike running, using an elliptical is fairly easy on your body. 

Let’s put this in perspective. If I am eating 1800 calories a day to reach my calorie deficit goal and I do a 20-minute cardio session on the elliptical, I can then eat 200 extra calories that day and not hurt my fat loss progress.

OR

I could simply eat 1800 calories like usual and for this day, I would have burned off 200 extra calories of this goal. Technically, I would be at 1600 calories for the day.

When deciding how to exercise and lose belly fat fast, the choice is really yours. It all depends on how hungry you are feeling throughout the day. Dieting should not be a pain or a hassle. You should not feel like you are suffering. Do what works best for you!

What If I Want to Shred Fat Fast? Is It Safe?

Of course, anybody who is trying to lose weight is most likely trying to lose it fast. However, this is NOT the best course of action to take.

When you shred fat too fast, more often than not, the weight eventually will be put back on. The best way to shred fat is to lose weight at a slow but constant rate. This rate could be anywhere from 2-4 pounds a week.

Another downfall to losing weight too quickly, is that you will also lose a lot of muscle mass. A slow steady rate of fat loss allows for better retention of your muscles.

No, this will not be a quick fix to losing pounds, however, you will be much better off in the long run.

Losing weight is a marathon not a sprint.

What Is Your Next Step?

After carefully considering all the information above, you should be in perfect shape to begin your weight loss journey.

It is key never to make yourself suffer during diet and exercise. You should not feel like you are starving or in pain. If this is the case, you may need extra help in setting up a healthy plan.

What are my next steps?

1. Calculate your calorie maintenance
2. Make a plan and eat about 600 calories less than your maintenance level a day
3. Set up an exercise routine you can stick with (Perhaps using an elliptical for 20 minutes 3x a week like I do).
4. Don’t forget to enjoy yourself. Go out, have fun, eat a burger. Just get back on track the next meal, or the next day

Remember, Consistency is key. You’re not going to gain 50 pounds from one bowl of ice cream, and you’re not going to lose 20 pounds by eating under your calorie deficit for one day.

The process of being healthy, fit, and losing weight is surely going to take some time and dedication. Like I said, losing weight is a marathon, not a sprint.

Please let me know if you have any questions or if I can help in any way.

Russell