The DEFINITIVE Answer to Lower Belly Fat: Insights from New Research

A lot of people are worried about lower belly fat. Also known as FUPA (Fat Upper Pubic Area), lower belly fat affects men and women and not only looks unsightly but is also a significant health risk.

According to research published on PubMed, people with large amounts of lower belly fat are more prone to (1, 2, 3):

• Metabolic syndrome
• Type 2 diabetes
• Impaired lipid profile
• Hormone imbalances
• Reproductive issues
• Cardiovascular disease, including strokes and heart attacks
• Gastrointestinal disorders, including IBS
• Certain cancers

Whether you’re worried about your health or your appearance, losing lower belly fat is at the top of many people’s to-do lists. Unfortunately, a lot of the information regarding this topic is confusing, contradictory, or just plain wrong.

For example, sauna belts and thermogenic creams won’t melt away your lower belly fat. The only pounds you’ll lose with these “amazing” methods are from your wallet!

As a personal trainer with more than 30 years of experience, I’m often asked to help people lose lower belly fat. Consequently, I’ve spent a considerable amount of time learning the most effective ways to prevent and eliminate FUPA.

In this article, I delve into the latest research on lower belly fat and share the best methods for getting rid of it once and for all!

1. Diet and Nutrition

Despite all the myths and misinformation surrounding lower belly fat, it’s important to remember that it’s more or less the same type of fat that accumulates in other places around your body, e.g., your buttocks, the backs of your arms, or your chest. As such, the key to losing it is creating a kilocalorie deficit.

A kilocalorie deficit means consuming fewer kilocalories than your body needs. Faced with this energy shortage, your body has no choice but to burn stored body fat for fuel. Therefore, if you want to get rid of your FUPA, you must reduce how much food eat.

Conventional fitness wisdom suggests that a deficit of around 500 kilocalories a day will result in a one-pound weight loss per week. In my experience, this math adds up. Combined with some regular exercise, eating less is the key to losing unwanted lower belly fat.

That said, what you eat may be as important as how much, and the right dietary approach could help you target lower belly fat more effectively.

Lose More Belly Fat with The Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet is often described as the healthiest diet in the world. It’s based on the traditional eating practices of people living in Crete, Greece, coastal France, southern Spain, southern Italy, and Portugal.

The populations of these countries tend to live longer, healthier lives than those whose diets include a lot of processed and refined foods. While there are regional variations, the mainstays of the Mediterranean diet include:

• Fruits
• Lean proteins, especially fish and chicken
• Legumes
• Nuts and seeds
• Unprocessed dairy
• Vegetables
• Whole grains
• Heart-healthy fats and oils
• Herbs and spices

As well as being incredibly healthy, research published in October 2023 suggests that the Mediterranean diet may help you lose lower belly fat faster than a conventional low-kilocalorie diet (4).

This is probably because processed foods and refined sugar increase abdominal fat storage so eliminating those “problem foods” will help reduce it.

However it works, the Mediterranean diet is tasty, straightforward, healthy, and relatively easy to follow. It’s also one of the diets found in several “Blue Zones,” where people tend to live the longest, healthiest, most productive lives.

Try Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent Fasting (IF) is a hot topic right now. Most weight loss diets involve eating several main meals and small snacks each day. This is thought to optimize your metabolism while maintaining stable energy and blood glucose levels. However, with IF you skip meals and go without food for extended periods.

There are numerous intermittent fasting protocols, put some of the most popular include:

• 20:4
• 16:8
• 14:10
• 12:12
• Alternate day

Intermittent fasting makes creating that all-important kilocalorie deficit much easier. After all, you’ll be eating fewer meals. However, some experts believe that fasting primes your body for fat-burning while offering several additional health benefits, such as less systemic inflammation and improved cell renewal.

In addition, a recent large-scale study on PubMed suggests that intermittent fasting is effective for targeting lower belly fat (5). Participants in the study lost significantly more lower belly fat than those on conventional kilocalorie-restricted diets.

Key Takeaway: You are what you eat, or so the saying goes, and it’s critical to acknowledge the role your diet plays in losing lower belly fat. Foods that are thought to promote lower belly fat include sugar, refined carbs, trans fats, and alcohol, so make sure you avoid them to get rid of your FUPA once and for all.

For even better results, try combining the Mediterranean diet with intermittent fasting. Studies suggest this is the 1-2 punch that will knock your lower belly fat out for good!

2. Exercise

While eating fewer kilocalories (and less often) is the key to losing lower belly fat, exercise can also help. Exercise and other types of physical activity burn additional kilocalories, deepening that all-important energy deficit.

Both cardio and strength training can help burn lower belly fat and lose weight (6), but recent research suggests that there is a novel workout that may produce even better results.

Lower Belly Fat Spot Reduction

Spot reduction is the idea that doing lots of exercises, sets, and reps for a specific body part will burn fat from the area you are working. For as long as I can remember, this was viewed as a myth. Spot reduction, we were told, was a waste of time and simply did not work!

However, a November 2023 study published on PubMed suggests that spot reduction may be possible, and could be an effective way to target lower belly fat (7).

In the study, participants did the following workout while a control group performed a longer (45-minute) cardio workout so both cohorts expended a similar number of kilocalories.

• Cardio: 27 minutes of treadmill running at 70% of maximum heart rate.
• Torso Rotation Machine: 4 sets of 4 minutes at 30%-40% of one-repetition maximum (1RM).
• Abdominal Crunch Machine: 4 sets of 4 minutes each at 30%-40% of 1RM.
• Total Session Time: 84 minutes, including rests.

Despite burning the same number of kilocalories, the high-volume abdominal training group lost significantly more lower belly fat than the cardio-only group. This suggests that spot reduction is possible provided you are willing to put a lot of time into your abs training.

Key Takeaway: High-rep abs training may be an effective way to target lower belly fat. However, it’s worth noting that this is just one study, and others have dismissed spot reduction as a myth. Also, the study involved a very high volume of abs training combined with a lengthy run. This may be impractical for many exercisers.

Consequently, while this training protocol MAY preferentially target FUPA, a more balanced cardio and strength training program is still probably the most reliable way to lose lower belly fat.

3. Lifestyle Changes

While there is no denying the importance of diet and exercise for losing lower belly fat, your lifestyle also plays a role in your success. After all, with 168 hours in a week, eating and working out only take up a small fraction of your time. Two of the most impactful lifestyle factors for losing lower belly fat are sleep and stress.

Get More Sleep to Lose Lower Belly Fat Faster

Life is becoming increasingly hectic and with so many demands on our time sleep can feel like a luxury that few can afford. Previous generations slept longer and also tended to be slimmer.

Coincidence? Probably not!

According to a 2024 study published on PubMed, chronically sleep-deprived people are at greater risk of developing FUPA than those who get the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night (8).

There are numerous reasons for this, including:

• Tiredness undermines willpower and determination to exercise and eat healthily.
• Sleep deprivation means less energy for exercise.
• Chronic tiredness increases sugar and refined carb cravings.
• Insufficient sleep increases insulin resistance, contributing to lower belly fat.
• More waking hours means more time available for eating.

Related: The Importance of Sleep for Building Muscle and Losing Fat

So, if you are exercising hard, your diet is going well, but you still aren’t losing as much belly fat as you’d like, you may benefit from going to bed earlier and getting more sleep. Not just at weekends, but every day of the week. While getting more sleep is not always easy, prioritizing bedtime could be the key to shifting those unwanted inches and pounds.

Reduce Stress for Less Lower Belly Fat

Increased demands on our time and energy, the pressure to succeed, financial worries, and media doom and gloom mean that many people are constantly stressed and anxious. While stress affects your mindset and mood, research suggests that chronic stress also contributes to belly fat, and reducing stress will help you lose it faster (9).  

Chronic stress raises your cortisol levels while lowering insulin sensitivity, creating the perfect environment for lower belly fat storage. In addition, many people “eat their feelings,” and try to alleviate stress with energy-dense junk food. Stress can also impair sleep quality and duration, further undermining your efforts to get in shape.

Stress is such a big topic that it’s impossible to explain how to deal with it in this short article. You may even benefit from professional help if you are finding it hard to cope with stress and anxiety.

However, proven stress-busting strategies include:

• Not taking on more responsibilities than you can handle.
• Avoiding perfectionism.
• Talking problems over with a friend or family member.
• Avoiding excessive caffeine.
• Getting enough sleep.
• Practicing relaxing breathing exercises.
• Avoiding known anxiety/stress triggers.
• Engaging in regular exercise.
• Taking time out each day to do something you enjoy.

Related: Sweat Away Stress: The Best Exercises for Anxiety Relief

Key Takeaway: While sleep and stress may seem unconnected to lower belly fat and weight loss, they’re actually intrinsically linked. Too little sleep and too much stress can make it much harder to shed those unwanted pounds and inches, essentially undermining your diet and exercise efforts.

These two issues are not always easy to fix, as they’re both part and parcel of modern living. However, if you want your diet and workout regimen to be as effective as possible, time spent lowering your stress and getting more sleep will be greatly rewarded.

Closing Thoughts

Whether you are worried about your appearance or your health, losing lower belly fat is a worthwhile use of your time and energy. However, it’s stubborn stuff and may resist even your hardest attempts to get rid of it.

A sensible diet and sustainable exercise program will get you most of the way to your dream of a flat, defined stomach but there are a few extra things you can do to optimize your progress.

Intermittent fasting, the Mediterranean diet, targeted abs exercises, getting more sleep, and lowering stress are all proven to help shift lower belly fat. Use the tips in this article to get rid of your FUPA once and for all!

References:

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2. Carey DG, Jenkins AB, Campbell LV, Freund J, Chisholm DJ. Abdominal fat and insulin resistance in normal and overweight women: Direct measurements reveal a strong relationship in subjects at both low and high risk of NIDDM. Diabetes. 1996 May;45(5):633-8. doi: 10.2337/diab.45.5.633. PMID: 8621015.
3. Elliott EA, Matanoski GM, Rosenshein NB, Grumbine FC, Diamond EL. Body fat patterning in women with endometrial cancer. Gynecol Oncol. 1990 Dec;39(3):253-8. doi: 10.1016/0090-8258(90)90247-i. PMID: 2258066.
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