How To Lose Belly Fat In 1 Week In 2024 – 8 Healthy Ways Suggested By Our Health Expert

Jennifer Jacobsen, PhD
Victor Nguyen, PharmD
If you want to learn how to lose belly fat in 1 week in 2024, there are some helpful strategies to try. Learn more in this detailed article.
how to lose belly fat in 1 week
Lose belly fat faster with HIIT exercise. Photo: Ba Le Ho

When people begin on a fitness or weight loss journey, they often have goals in mind. These may include improving their appearance or reducing their risk of weight-related health problems. One common goal among people trying to lose weight is reducing their belly fat. After all, stubborn abdominal fat can make it difficult to fit into your favorite clothes, and most people don’t find it very attractive.

If you’re looking for tips on how to lose belly fat in 1 week, the information below can be helpful. It’s important to remember that you cannot always control exactly where you lose fat. However, when you choose specific strategies, you increase the chances of targeting stubborn fat in the midsection. For the best results, you should continue with these strategies for longer than one week, as it takes time for lasting, significant fat loss.

8 Helpful Tips To Lose Belly Fat In A Week

Can you figure out how to lose belly fat in 1 week? With some key strategies, you can reduce your overall body fat, and certain strategies are particularly helpful for reducing fat in the midsection.Consider these 8 strategies:

  1. Try High-Intensity Interval Training
  2. Increase Your Protein Intake
  3. Take up Weight-Lifting
  4. Try A 7-Day Detox
  5. Cut Out Sugar-Sweetened Beverages
  6. Increase Your Fiber Intake
  7. Incorporate Dairy Into Your Diet
  8. Track Your Calorie Intake 

Keep in mind that you cannot spot reduce fat, but with these strategies, loss of abdominal fat is more likely.

8 Most Effective Methods To Lose Belly Fat In 1 Week

There isn’t one perfect fat loss plan that works for everyone. If you’re looking for ways to reduce belly fat, there are a number of strategies you can use to get a trimmer waistline. Consider some of the strategies below to jumpstart your weight loss in just one week. Note that results may vary by individual.

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Try High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

If you’re looking for information on how to lose belly fat in a week, consider high-intensity interval training (HIIT). This form of exercise requires you to alternate periods of lower-intensity, recovery exercise with higher-intensity efforts. For instance, you might do a 30-minute treadmill workout, during which you alternate periods of walking for 4 minutes with one-minute intervals of sprint running.

A recent meta-analysis[1] in l Sports Medicine reviewed 39 different studies that assessed whether HIIT was effective for fat loss. Results showed that this type of training significantly reduces abdominal fat, and cycling exercises were particularly beneficial for burning belly fat.

Studies included in the meta-analysis involved training regimens that lasted as little as four weeks. The average duration was 12 weeks of HIIT training, with three training sessions per week. What this means is that it may take more than one week to lose a significant amount of belly fat with HIIT. That being said, one week of regular workouts can have you well on your way to dropping belly fat.

Increase Your Protein Intake

how to lose belly fat in 1 week
Protein is helpful for belly fat loss. Photo: nehophoto/Shutterstock

People often wonder what to eat to lose belly fat in 1 week, and the answer lies in increasing protein intake. Protein-rich foods can keep you full for longer, and they’ve been shown to help with weight loss.  A review of several clinical studies[2] recently found that high protein diets are helpful for weight loss. The review also found that a high protein diet can prevent weight regain.

The studies included in the review found that protein increases feelings of fullness. This leads to lower food intake, and as a result, weight loss. It may take longer than a week to see significant benefits from higher protein intake. However, if you remain consistent with high protein intake, you will likely see weight loss over time. A week of a higher protein diet can help you to eat less for belly fat loss.

Take Up Weight Lifting 

Cardiovascular exercises like running and cycling often get all the credit for promoting weight loss. However, weight training can actually be quite beneficial for those who want to burn fat in the stomach area. A recent clinical trial[3] evaluated the effects of weight lifting among a group of obese women. Results showed that when compared to those in a control group, women in the weight training group experienced significant reductions in abdominal fat after 10 weeks of completing three 45 to 50-minute weight lifting sessions per week.

A randomized controlled trial[4] in PLOS ONE confirmed the benefits of weight training for fat loss. In this trial, participants completed one of three exercise protocols: 60 minutes of aerobic training three days per week, 60 minutes of weight training three days per week, or 30 minutes of weight training combined with 30 minutes of aerobic training three days per week. At the end of the 8-week study, those who completed weight training alone lost over half an inch from their waists.

Some of the benefits of resistance training for belly fat loss come from its ability to increase resting metabolic rate. This is the amount of calories your body burns each day at rest. One study[5] found that weight training can increase resting metabolic rate by as much as 5%, which helps your body to burn more fat.

Try A 7-day Detox

If you’re interested in what to drink to lose belly fat in 1 week, a detox drink may help. A randomized trial[6] published in Nutrition Research evaluated the effects of a lemon juice detox drink on overweight women. The women in the study consumed just the detox drink for 7 days. It consisted of maple syrup and lemon juice and provided a total of just over 400 calories per day.

After one week, women consuming the lemon juice detox drink lost a significant amount of body fat, and their waist sizes also decreased significantly. Women consuming a placebo drink of equal calorie content also lost body fat and experienced a decrease in waist size. However, the lemon juice drink provided the added benefit of reducing inflammation above and beyond the placebo drink. This suggests that a lemon juice detox not only promotes fat loss; it is also beneficial for health.

While a 7-day detox can jumpstart your weight loss by significantly reducing your calorie intake, it’s important to keep in mind that sticking to such a low-calorie diet is not sustainable over time.  It’s also probably unhealthy. Check with your doctor before beginning a fast to ensure that it’s safe for you to do so.

Choose Water Over Sugary Drinks

When trying to drop belly fat, sugar-sweetened beverages can really be a setback. Swap these beverages for water, and consume fewer calories overall, since water is calorie-free. If you have a habit of regularly drinking sugary drinks throughout the day, cutting them out completely can significantly reduce calorie intake. This will help with weight loss.

Drinking water before a meal can even help you to feel more full. A recent study[7] evaluated the effects of drinking water before a meal, compared to when no water was consumed. Results showed that people consumed less food when they drank water prior to eating. Despite eating less, they did not feel less satiated. This suggests that drinking water can increase feelings of fullness so you eat less.

Drinking water may not specifically target belly fat, but it can lead to an overall lower calorie intake when compared to consuming sugar-sweetened beverages, or when not drinking anything at all. Since a calorie deficit is necessary for fat loss, choosing water can have a significant effect.

Increase Your Fiber Intake 

Fiber is important for proper digestion, but it can also help with belly fat loss. One recent study[8] in Nutrients found that increasing fiber intake by 10 grams per day was associated with significant fat loss. The relationship between dietary fiber intake and fat loss was so strong that it existed independently of calorie intake. This means that a calorie deficit alone did not explain why fiber caused fat loss.

Study authors suggested that fiber is helpful for weight loss because it increases feelings of fullness and therefore reduces hunger. This leads to lower calorie intake. If you’re looking for foods that burn belly fat, high fiber choices like apples, cereal, oatmeal, and whole grain breads can be a good choice because of their high fiber content.

Incorporate Dairy Into Your Diet

They may not directly burn belly fat, but dairy products have been associated with lower belly fat levels. Adding dairy products like yogurt and cheese to your diet may be helpful. A longitudinal study[9] published in Clinical Nutrition followed women for 12 years and assessed their dietary intake. Study results found that women who consumed more dairy products were at a lower risk of developing abdominal obesity, or excess belly fat, over the course of the study.

The study’s authors concluded that the content of whey protein and essential amino acids in dairy products explains this effect. Protein and amino acids can help to maintain muscle mass and metabolic functioning, which prevents fat gain, especially in the midsection.

For those looking to burn belly fat, incorporating dairy products into the diet could potentially assist with fat loss, because of higher muscle mass and improved metabolic functioning. Dairy products on their own may not lead to belly fat loss, but when they are a part of a healthy diet and exercise regimen, they can have a beneficial effect.

Track Your Calorie Intake

how to lose belly fat in 1 week
You need to track calorie intake for fat loss. Photo: Kamil Zajaczkowski/Shutterstock

Ultimately, to lose belly fat, you must be in a calorie deficit. This means you’re burning more calories than you consume each day. A calorie deficit will lead to overall fat loss, but you cannot determine where you’ll lose fat first. For example, some people may first lose fat from their legs when they eat in a calorie deficit, whereas others may notice that abdominal fat loss occurs right away.

Nonetheless, if you want a shot at losing belly fat, you must reduce your calorie intake so that your calorie consumption is lower than what you’re burning off each day. Use a calorie calculator to estimate how many calories you’re burning each day, based upon your age, height, weight, gender, and activity level. Once you’ve determined your total daily calorie burn, begin to track your calories, ensuring that you’re eating less than you’re burning off each day.

Experts generally recommend[10] a calorie deficit of 500 to 750 calories per day for weight loss. This means that if you burn 2,250 calories per day, you should be eating between 1,500 and 1,750 calories a day to lose weight. Keep in mind that belly fat loss won’t occur overnight, and it will likely take longer than a week to notice a difference. However, 7 days of eating in a calorie deficit can get you off to the right start.

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Extra Tips On Shredding Belly Fat In A Week

If you’re looking for strategies for how to lose belly fat in 1 week, it’s helpful to keep an open mind, and give yourself some grace. You may not notice significant belly fat loss in just one week, but if you stick with the strategies here, and you remain consistent over time, you can shed that extra abdominal fat. 

Beyond the 8 strategies above, there are some general tips for how to lose belly fat in a week:

  • Reduce your overall calorie intake, as eating in a calorie deficit is what leads to fat loss.
  • Increase your step count by walking, jogging, or simply taking the stairs rather than the elevator. When you move more, you’ll burn more calories, making it easier to stay in a calorie deficit for belly fat loss.
  • Try to limit your intake of high-sodium foods or carbonated beverages, both of which can lead to bloating. While bloating is not the same as belly fat, your midsection may appear rounder if you’re consuming foods and beverages that leave you bloated. 
  • Start a regular exercise regimen, to increase your calorie burn over the course of the day. If you’re new to exercise, you might consider simply walking for 30 minutes a day, five days a week. 
  • Don’t feel the need to incorporate all the strategies discussed here; instead, you can simply pick a few strategies that work for you, and use these in combination. For instance, try to cut out sugary beverages, increase your protein intake, and start lifting weights a few days a week for the fat-burning benefits. 

Remember, losing a noticeable amount of belly fat usually takes time. If you stick to the strategies discussed here, you will likely start to see results in a few weeks to a few months. 

Conclusion

It’s common for people to focus on losing belly fat when they begin a weight loss journey. Those who are particularly eager to shed stomach fat might even wonder how to lose belly fat in a week. The strategies discussed here, such as completing high-intensity interval training, upping your protein intake, and monitoring calorie intake, can help you to begin shedding belly fat.

Keep in mind that one week is not very much time, and it’s unrealistic to expect to lose more than a pound or two of fat in a week. It’s also unrealistic to expect all of your fat loss to come from the midsection. The strategies here can be beneficial for specifically targeting stomach fat, but don’t give up if you don’t see immediate results. 

You will likely have to stick to these strategies for more than a week to get the results you’re after.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I lose my belly fat in a week?

If you want to lose belly fat, you can practice certain habits, such as incorporating weight training or high-intensity interval training into your routine, eliminating sugary drinks, and including fiber, protein, and dairy products in your diet.

Is 1 week enough to lose belly fat?

Usually no. It can be difficult to lose a significant amount of belly fat in just one week. Lasting weight loss requires time and consistency, but you can get off to a good start on your fat loss program in a week.

Can I slim down in 7 days?

Significant weight loss in just 7 days isn’t likely. However if you start new habits, you can lose a few pounds in a week. If you stick to these new habits beyond 7 days, you can achieve significant fat loss.

How can I lose belly fat in 7 days without dieting?

If you’d like to achieve belly fat loss without restrictive dieting, consider weight lifting and high-intensity interval training. Choosing foods that are high in protein and fiber can also be beneficial for belly fat loss, without requiring you to diet.

What are the 5 foods that burn belly fat?

Foods cannot directly burn belly fat, but research suggests that high protein, high fiber foods can be beneficial for losing body fat. You might consider consuming foods like oatmeal, apples, eggs, lean fish, and yogurt to jumpstart belly fat loss.

What eats belly fat fast?

There isn’t any food that literally eats belly fat, but certain foods, such as those higher in protein and fiber, can keep you full and reduce your overall calorie intake, which can lead to belly fat loss.

Resources

  1. Maillard, F., Pereira, B. and Boisseau, N. (2017). Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on Total, Abdominal and Visceral Fat Mass: A Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine, [online] 48(2), pp.269–288. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0807-y.
  2. Moon, J. and Koh, G. (2020). Clinical Evidence and Mechanisms of High-Protein Diet-Induced Weight Loss. Journal of obesity & metabolic syndrome, [online] 29(3), pp.166–173. doi:https://doi.org/10.7570/jomes20028.
  3. Parvin Heydarpour, Sedigheh Fayazi and Somayeh Biparva Haghighi (2015). Resistance Training Effect on Lipid Profile and Body Fat Percentage of Premenopausal Women. Jundishapur Journal of Chronic Disease Care, [online] 4(2). doi:https://doi.org/10.5812/jjcdc.28339.
  4. Schroeder, E., Franke, W.D., Sharp, R.L. and Lee, D. (2019). Comparative effectiveness of aerobic, resistance, and combined training on cardiovascular disease risk factors: A randomized controlled trial. PLOS ONE, [online] 14(1), pp.e0210292–e0210292. doi:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0210292.
  5. Juan Carlos Aristizábal, Freidenreich, D.J., Volk, B.M., Kupchak, B.R., Sáenz, C., Maresh, C.M., Kraemer, W.J. and Volek, J.S. (2014). Effect of resistance training on resting metabolic rate and its estimation by a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry metabolic map. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, [online] 69(7), pp.831–836. doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.216.
  6. Mi Joung Kim, Jung Hyun Hwang, Hyun Ji Ko, Hye Bock Na and Jung Hee Kim (2015). Lemon detox diet reduced body fat, insulin resistance, and serum hs-CRP level without hematological changes in overweight Korean women. Nutrition Research, [online] 35(5), pp.409–420. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nutres.2015.04.001.
  7. Jeong, J.N. (2018). Effect of Pre-meal Water Consumption on Energy Intake and Satiety in Non-obese Young Adults. Clinical Nutrition Research, 7(4), p.291. doi:https://doi.org/10.7762/cnr.2018.7.4.291.
  8. Kahleová, H., Dort, S., Holubkov, R. and Barnard, N.D. (2018). A Plant-Based High-Carbohydrate, Low-Fat Diet in Overweight Individuals in a 16-Week Randomized Clinical Trial: The Role of Carbohydrates. Nutrients, [online] 10(9), pp.1302–1302. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10091302.
  9. Lee, J., Cho, A-Ra. and Kwon, Y. (2022). Association between dairy protein and body composition in middle-aged and older women: A community-based, 12-year, prospective cohort study. Clinical Nutrition, [online] 41(2), pp.460–467. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2021.12.015.
  10. Ju Young Kim (2021). Optimal Diet Strategies for Weight Loss and Weight Loss Maintenance. Journal of obesity & metabolic syndrome, [online] 30(1), pp.20–31. doi:https://doi.org/10.7570/jomes20065.

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