Don’t even think about sucking it in so you’ll fit into those cute
fitted white jeans: There are less-painful and longer-lasting ways to
get the amazing middle you crave. We went straight to experts to get
their very best advice for quickly shrinking your tummy. Here are the
surprising foods, tricks, and moves they swear by. Their genius tips
will help you shed inches and pounds, banish the bloat, and feel even
more gorgeous. Hello, skinny jeans!
Most people go on a diet for purely aesthetic reasons, with a goal of
getting rid of a spare tire around the midsection or unsightly back
fat, so it's no wonder that with a name like "the flat belly diet"
people are jumping on the latest fad diet bandwagon. Details of the new
diet are, of course, chronicled in a book written by Liz Vaccariello and
Cynthia Sass.
Vaccariello, editor-in-chief of Prevention Magazine, and Sass, a
registered dietitian and the nutrition director of Prevention Magazine,
stress the importance of mind tricks in achieving your weight loss
goals. This could be something as simple as keeping those skinny size
28 jeans that no longer fit hanging in plain view.
According to the authors, getting a flat stomach is all about food
and attitude. The mind tricks serve to remind you at mealtime that "you
have embarked on a new way of life."
Mindtricks aside, the key component of the flat belly diet is a 1600
calorie per day plan spread out over four 400-calorie meals. The diet
also stresses the importance of allowing no more than four hours between
meals, and that each meal should include a monosaturated fatty food to
help get rid of that flabby belly.
Creators of the diet claim that new research shows that monosaturated
fatty acids help make weight loss easier, but specifically target belly
fat. The fine flat belly foods in the diet include oils, olives, nuts
and seeds, dark or semisweet chocolate, and avocado. Specifically, the
nuts and seeds include almond butter, almonds, chunky natural peanut
butter, and Brazil nuts. Oils include olive oil, flaxseed oil, and
canola oil.
The diet itself lasts 28 days, and begins with a four-day anti-bloat
start designed to eliminate swelling and prep the body for the diet.
Water mixed with ginger and a prescribed list of food and drinks are
consumed to "help flush out fluid, reduce water retention, and relieve
digestive issues."
Some sample meals on the diet include a # Crunchy Tuna Melt, Shrimp
and Snow Pea Sesame Pasta, Cheesy Spinach Ziti, and more. Additional
recipes, customizable daily menus, and online support are available at
the diet's subscription based website located at flatbellydiet.com.