Trying to plan the perfect breakfast is easier said than done, especially when you want to burn fat. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, dieters should try to target visceral fat, which builds up around your abdominal cavity and correlates to higher risks of heart disease, insulin resistance, and other serious conditions. Eating too much saturated fat can lead to an increase in visceral fat, and knowing exactly how to target it can help you feel better in the long run.
Diet and exercise both help reduce this type of fat which prominently gathers in one’s abdominal area. By tackling visceral fat with breakfast, you can hit the day running and start reducing this harmful substance from the get-go.
When it comes to the best breakfast, dieters might wonder if they should greet the morning with a breakfast smoothie, try to prepare a massive meal, or find a balance in between. Luckily, we asked a handful of dietitians to find out exactly how breakfast can help burn visceral fat.
While breakfast can help jumpstart this process, make sure to include some other Surefire Ways to Lose Visceral Fat into your lifestyle to burn that stubborn belly fat regularly.
You may have heard that a glass of water in the morning helps jumpstart your metabolism for the day, but you might not know that this simple drink can get you burning visceral fat in the morning.
“A breakfast routine is a good way to kick-start healthy habits for the day,” says Blanca Garcia, RDN Nutrition Specialist of HealthCanal. “Choosing to drink water first allows your body to rehydrate after hours of being on a fast. This also gets your stomach juices ready for the food to come.”
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“Choosing breakfast foods that are high in fiber will help reduce the amount of sugar and fat that is absorbed and spare you the storage of visceral fat,” says Garcia. “Fiber-rich foods can be found in vegetables and whole grains with more than 5 grams of fiber per serving.”
“When eating breakfast, add vegetables to your meals, pre-cut vegetables, or use leftover vegetables to add at breakfast time for time-saving.”
Grabbing the right fibrous foods for you might take some trial and error. You can speed up the process by selecting some of the 43 Best High-Fiber Foods For a Healthy Diet to get your morning started right.
Oatmeal has stood the test of time as a breakfast staple, and it turns out that this morning option can help you burn a ton of fat in the long run.
“Opting for a whole grain and protein-filled breakfast can help reduce fat by keeping you feeling full for longer,” says Trista Best, RD at Balance One Supplements. “This will prevent overeating throughout the morning and gives you a nutrient-dense breakfast rather than a calorie-dense one.”
“Oatmeal is an excellent breakfast to replace your refined carbohydrate-laden breakfast pastries. Oats are an excellent source of whole grains and contain plenty of fiber and nutrients that make them a healthy meal or snack,” Best continues. “However, many of their benefits are often negated with excessive sugar and calorie-dense toppings and mix-ins. Healthy oatmeal can be made either savory or sweet without excess calories. Some of the best toppings and mix-ins for oatmeal include nuts, cinnamon, blueberries, strawberries, and bananas. Savory oats can be made healthy by adding tomatoes, eggs, mushrooms, and spinach.”
Keeping an eye out for particular toppings can seriously affect how much visceral fat you burn.
“Maple syrup, brown sugar, dried fruit, and chocolate are toppings that can make [for] an unhealthy meal,” says Best. “It is best to exchange these ingredients for nutrient-dense varieties.”
It might feel tempting to heat up some microwavable pancakes or breakfast sausages, but these items can’t help you burn visceral fat in the morning.
“A lot of people tend to have convenient or fast foods for breakfast,” says Julia Glanz, RD at living.fit. “Break that habit and make an effort to prepare yourself a healthy breakfast. There are quick grabs you can choose like fruits and yogurt, oats with lean proteins, or make smoothies.”
Make sure to stick to whole foods and avoid as much added sugar and fat as possible. When in doubt, whip up one of 30 Nutritionist-Approved Healthy Breakfast Ideas for a great way to start the day.
Erich Barganier