Love handles are deposits of fat found right above the hips that give you a soft appearance, but unfortunately, they’re extremely difficult to get rid of for many people. Mostly men are struggling with this stubborn problem area because it’s one of the first spots that we tend to pack on fat while also being one of the last spots to release it.
And one of the worst things you can do if you want to burn this stubborn fat is go on a crash diet. Because diets that require you to heavily restrict your diet typically lead to yo-yo dieting, where you give up and just regain all the weight within a relatively short time frame, this usually leads to your love handles getting worse.
Foods With High Thermic Effect
The very thing that you need to do to be able to get rid of love handles is to eat foods with high thermic effects. We all know that cutting calories can feel difficult but burning more calories just by prioritizing certain foods is much easier. And it could really contribute quite a bit to your total calorie deficit leading to more fat loss without having a lot of effort into it.
The thermic effect of food is essentially the energy that your body requires to break down, digest, and assimilate the nutrients from the food that you eat.
Reduce Sugary Foods And Drinks
The second thing that you need to do to get rid of love handles is by avoiding sugary drinks and foods. Not only sugar is very high in calories for the volume that it’ll fill up your stomach. But eating too much sugar is also specifically linked to central obesity, which is essentially storing more fat specifically around your stomach and love handles area.
Another problem with a diet that’s high in sugar is that it increases circulating insulin levels while decreasing insulin sensitivity which causes your body to store more fat and makes it much harder to burn previously stored fat.
See Also: The 9 Best Exercises To Get Rid Of Love Handles
Avoid Refined Carbs
The third thing you might wanna cut out in your diet to reduce your love handles is refined carbs. Refined carbs are quickly converted to sugar right after you eat them. When grains are refined they’re stripped of all the brand fiber and nutrients. Not only do these refined carbs reduce the thermic effect but it also speeds up the rate of digestion, so it’s not long before you’re hungry once again.
On top of all that, refined carbs also have additional added sugar like white bread, dough, pasta, pastries, white flour, and most cereal products. It’s not that you can never eat these foods, you just need to do your best to avoid or limit them in your diet.
High Soluble Fiber Intake
The fourth thing you need to do is to eat foods that are high in soluble fiber to avoid those love handles. Soluble fiber really helps to fill you up and help you feel full longer. Foods that help you stay full help reduce your calorie intake naturally without having to feel like you’re starving yourself.
Foods that are high in soluble fiber include brussels sprouts, beans, broccoli, and some grains like barley and oats. Eating more of these high-fiber foods has been shown to help lead to fat loss by many research studies.
See Also: HOW TO GET RID OF LOVE HANDLES: DISPELLING BODY FAT MYTHS
Healthy Fats
The fifth thing you might wanna include in your diet if you want to lose your love handles is by eating foods high in healthy fats. Healthy fats in your diet help to slow down the digestion process helping you stay full for longer. The other thing about healthy fats is that it simply tastes good so it helps to make your diet more enjoyable.
Lifting Weights
Another tip to get rid of love handles is by lifting weights. A lot of people make the mistake of trying to lose their love handles by targeting them with oblique building exercises. However, simply doing tons of abdominal work won’t help you get rid of your love handles because it doesn’t burn all that body fat, it simply builds muscles underneath them.
So instead, you need to focus on weight training exercises that build the most muscles and burn the most amount of calories. Exercises like deadlifts, squats, pull-ups, bench presses, rose and cleans are very good workouts for losing a lot of fat.
See Also: 10 Best Ways On How To Reduce Belly Fat On Men
Sleep
Probably the easiest but most essential thing that you need to do to lose love handles is by getting enough sleep. Not getting enough sleep has a very negative effect on your testosterone-to-cortisol ratio which leads to less fat loss and less muscle growth. Hormonal changes can highly contribute to the problem of excess fat being stored around your love handles and belly area.
And one of the simplest ways to avoid many of these negative changes is by getting enough sleep. You need to do your best and aim for at least 6-8 hours of sleep every night to help in avoiding those love handles.
Some studies have shown that people who tend to have a few hours of sleep every night have a higher chance of developing belly fat and love handles. So make sure to always have a good night’s sleep.
