Get a Flat Stomach in Five Days

Most people want to have a flat stomach with “six-pack” abdominal muscles. Although you won’t be able to lose a lot of weight in such a short time, it is still possible to kick start your body’s fat-burning process and firm up your core. By making some good dietary choices and adding in some targeted exercises, you can work towards getting a flatter stomach in just five days. You can also make some smart fashion decisions to make yourself instantly appear slimmer.

Steps

Making Smart Beverage Choices

1. Drink more water. It’s counterintuitive, but the more water you drink, the more easily your body will let go of excess water, including any water that’s making your belly look bigger and rounder. Drinking 16 ounces of water prior to meals can also help you eat less, which can lead to weight loss.
   • If you don’t like the taste of plain water, try adding lemon. Lemon water (with no sugar added) will add flavor to otherwise plain water as well as give you a nice boost of vitamin C.
2. Drink tea. In addition to drinking plenty of water, try incorporating green and black tea into your daily fluid intake. Tea can help boost your mood, reduce your risk for stroke and heart disease, and also help kickstart your energy. With a little extra energy, you can feel more pumped up for exercise!
   • Green tea, especially, is high in the antioxidants known as catechins, which have been shown in studies to aid in weight loss.
3. Avoid alcohol. Alcohol is high in calories and will make you more likely to eat foods you hadn’t planned to eat. It will only hinder your efforts. If you do choose to keep drinking, keep it down to one or two alcoholic beverages now and then.
   • Remember that “one” drink is different for different types of alcohol. One glass of wine, for example, is about 5 ounces, but one standard beer is usually about 12 ounces. Both of these constitute “one” drink, despite being different quantities.
4. Avoid soft drinks. Carbonated beverages can cause bloating because of their gas content, and they quickly pack on the sugar. You are better off sticking with water, lemon water, tea, or coffee. When choosing drinks, avoid processed sugars or sugar substitutes, which are often found even in diet sodas. Opt for naturally flavored sparkling water if you need your carbonation kick.

Changing Your Diet

1. Reduce your overall calorie intake. Consider cutting the number of calories you consume each day. Eat normally for one day and keep a log of your caloric intake. Try to reduce that intake based on the weight you’d like to lose. For example, a pound equals 3,500 calories. If you currently eat about 2,500 calories per day, you could reduce your daily intake to 2,000 calories, and potentially lose 1 pound in about 7 days.
   • Don’t cut your caloric intake too drastically right away. Not only could this be potentially unhealthy, it could also lead to what is called “yo-yo” dieting. This is when a dieter loses a lot of weight quickly, but then ends up gaining it back by returning to their normal caloric intake. It’s best to shave calories off your daily intake slowly.
   • If you don’t usually count calories and aren’t sure about your maintenance level, there are many websites and apps that can give you an estimate. Simply punch in your gender, age, height, weight, and activity level, and these tools will tell you how many calories you need to eat to maintain your weight.
2. Reduce portion sizes. In addition to reducing your overall calorie intake, try to consume smaller individual portions, taking care not to eat too much at any one time. Eating too much at once can cause bloating and gas, so spread your calorie consumption evenly throughout the day. Read nutrition labels on foods. These will tell you the actual serving size for that food.
   • Try using smaller dishware. When you use a smaller plate size, for example, you can fill it up and trick your brain into thinking you’ve eaten more than you have!
   • To further enhance the effects of eating smaller portion sizes, try eating slowly and taking plenty of time to chew each bite. You may eat less, and you’ll also avoid bloating by swallowing less air.
3. Focus on whole foods. Processed foods will only hinder your efforts, as they tend to be high in some combination of sugar, fat, and sodium. Use your calorie allotment on whole foods instead: fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and low-fat dairy.
   • Dairy is a whole food, but note that if you are lactose intolerant, it will cause bloating, gas, and other digestive issues. Get your protein and calcium from other sources instead. Try taking a multivitamin if you are worried you aren’t getting enough calcium, and add a low-carb protein shake to your daily routine.
   • Take particular care to avoid sweets and snack foods made from refined white flour, sugar, and trans fats. These foods will make your problem worse, not better.
4. Choose healthy fats. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are much better for you than saturated fats and trans fats. Oils that are derived from plants, like olive or sunflower oil, as well as things like nuts and avocados are all great sources of monounsaturated fats. These can help lower cholesterol and are heart-healthy.
   • Substitute olive oil for butter or other cooking oils, or combine it with vinegar for a homemade salad dressing. Even just drinking one or two tablespoons of non-virgin, extra light olive oil each day is said to kickstart weight loss.
5. Increase your fiber intake. Your body needs fiber, especially when it comes from healthy vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains. Incorporating high-fiber foods can make you less hungry and help you lose weight. Don’t overdo it, though – too much fiber can contribute to gas and bloating. Aim for about 30 grams of fiber each day.
   • One way to get your fiber without risking excess bloating is to eat high-fiber cereal for breakfast. Try having a bowl of raisin bran, shredded wheat, or another type of high fiber cereal.
   • You can also try having a bowl of oatmeal or whole wheat toast for breakfast. Starting your day with high-fiber complex carbohydrates is a nutritious choice for eliminating extra weight: these kinds of carbs take time to digest, do not cause a blood sugar spike, and keep you feeling full.
6. Eat grapefruit. Although the research is controversial, many people think grapefruit can help you burn fat. It does, at least, seem to help regulate your metabolism and your blood sugar levels, and it contains phytochemicals that can reduce insulin levels, prompting your body to burn fat. Try eating a fresh grapefruit before each meal to help curb your appetite and help you feel full.
   • For best results, eat the white part of the grapefruit as well, and try eating it first thing in the morning to jumpstart your metabolism.

Exercising for a Flatter Stomach

1. Add abdominal exercises. To get a flatter stomach (and one that has nice visible muscle tone once any excess fat gets burned off), you’ll need to engage your abdominal muscles. This includes the external obliques (those on the side of your torso) and the rectus abdominus (those that make that amazing “six-pack”). There are a variety of core exercises that will work your abdominal muscles. Try incorporating a few sets of each into your regular exercise routine.
   • Basic crunches: Lie down, bend your knees, and lift your shoulder blades off the ground. Hold the position for a few seconds, then lower yourself back down.
   • Lower Flexion: lie down on your back and raise your legs into the air. Hold, then lower them slowly back down.
   • Double Flexion (a variation on crunches): Lie on your back, and raise both your legs and your shoulders off the ground at the same time. Your body should form a slight "V." Hold the position for a few seconds, then carefully lower your legs and shoulders.
   • Side Flexion (another variation on crunches): Lie on one side, resting yourself on your arm, bent at the elbow. Raise yourself up into the air, supporting yourself with your arm.
   • Planks: Lower yourself to the floor, facing it. Support your body weight on your elbows and the balls of your feet while keeping your body absolutely straight.
   • Upper Twist: While standing with your feet about shoulder-width apart, keep your lower body still and twist the upper part of your body from side to side. These can be performed on a gym machine or by using a gym rod held on your shoulders.
   • Lower Twist: Lay down on a padded floor or floor mat. Then, bend your knees and begin to twist the lower part of your body from side to side while keeping your upper body still.
2. Dedicate an hour to cardio. Cardiovascular exercise—running, swimming, dancing, biking—gets your heart rate up and helps you burn fat. Since you’re trying to make a difference in just five days, dedicate a full hour to cardio every day. Bump it up to two hours if you have the time and ability.
   • Calorie burns vary a great deal from person to person—but as an example, a typical 155-pound person burns around 298 calories running at 5 miles per hour for thirty minutes.
3. Try high intensity interval training. There is no way to “spot reduce” fat, so if you want to get a flatter belly as soon as possible, start with exercises that burn a lot of calories. High intensity interval training (or HIIT) torches calories by having you alternate between bursts of very high intensity exercise and brief periods of recovery.
   • There are a number of different HIIT training programs, and you can incorporate interval training into most kinds of cardiovascular exercise. For example, if you walk and run, a HIIT routine might have you sprint for {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, then walk back to your starting point; you’d then repeat this 10 times.
   • Calorie burns vary a great deal from person to person, but HIIT workouts may burn up to 15 calories per minute, or up to 450 calories in 30 minutes.

Creating the Illusion of a Flatter Stomach

1. Choose fabrics wisely. If you’re not happy with your results after five days, there are still ways to achieve the look of a flatter stomach. First of all, gravitate to the most flattering fabrics. Don’t wear clothing made of Lycra or other clingy materials. Instead, choose lighter fabrics that skim your body.
2. Conceal your tummy with carefully-chosen shapes. Choose a peplum top or dress to conceal a stomach that you wish were flatter. Or, try wearing a top with a v-neck or lower neckline to pull the focus away from your midsection.
   • Adding a belt to emphasize your waist can also help improve the look of your figure.
3. Pick flattering colors. Darker colors like black, burgundy, navy, and emerald green will create a slimmer look. It’s also important to stick to one color top and bottom. You can layer a black shirt under a red blazer with red pants, and the color of the pants and blazer will help create a connected line between your top and bottom halves, helping you appear slimmer and taller.
4. Try shapewear. If you still aren’t happy with the way your stomach appears, consider purchasing shapewear to wear under your clothing. Shapewear is usually made of stretchy, soft material that will hold in your waistline, and smooth out your hips.
   • Be sure to get shapewear that is sized appropriately – you want it to do its job, but you don’t want it to be so tight that you can’t breathe!
5. Maintain good posture. Stand up straight. Your shoulders and hips should be in alignment. Hold your head up confidently and tuck your tummy in. Good posture will make you look much slimmer.
   • For those who like to wear high heels, try a thin heel with a pointed toe. These types of high heels can make your legs appear longer and thinner.

Tips

• If you aren’t happy with your results in five days, consider trying to keep up your new diet and exercise habits for a longer period of time. A nutritious diet, cardiovascular training, and abdominal exercises are healthy! You’ll see more results if you stick with it.
• Keep your expectations reasonable. You won’t be able to shed a beer belly in five days, no matter what you eat or how much you exercise.

Sources and Citations

See also

• Lose Weight With a Mediterranean Diet
• Burn Fat (for Men)
• Stay in Ketosis
• Lose Weight in Wrestling
• Lose Belly Fat
• Get a Flat Stomach in a Week
• Lose Weight in One Month
• Lose Weight Fast
• Lose Thigh Fat
• Lose Weight and Gain Muscle

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