How to Get a Flat Tummy Quickly

If you're feeling bloated or need to look slimmer in a hurry, there are quick, natural strategies to streamline your belly without performing a single crunch. Focus on steps to reduce bloating and promote healthy digestion to achieve a flatter belly quickly.

Instructions

Steps

• 1

  Water helps flush belly bloat.

  Drink lots of water. In order to get rid of belly bloat fast, you must be well-hydrated. Drink at least eight glasses of water a day, and consume plenty of hydrating foods like fruits and vegetables. Giving your body enough fluid helps reduce water retention, says Leslie Bonci, RD, MPH, director of sports medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

• 2

  Add more fiber to your diet. Fiber helps keep the digestive system running smoothly, reducing belly bloat and constipation. For maximum belly-flattening results, consume foods that contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. Joanne Slavin, Ph.D., professor of food science and nutrition at the University of Minnesota, explains that the two types of fiber work together in the body to pull water into the colon, speeding up the process of elimination and helping you feel slimmer quicker. Aim for 22 to 25 total grams of fiber a day, suggests Prevention.com.

• 3

  Salt causes water retention.

  Cut back on sodium. Sodium causes your body to retain water, which gives the belly a puffy, bloated appearance and makes you feel lethargic. According to the Centers for Disease Control, most people consume more than 3,400 milligrams of sodium daily --- more than twice the recommended intake of 1500 milligrams. To reduce your sodium intake and help lose water weight, put down the salt shaker and start carefully reading labels on all the packaged foods you eat.

• 4

  Get more sleep. You may be tempted to skip sleep to go to the gym, but staying in bed may have as much effect on your waistline as a workout. "There's a definite association between lack of sleep, increased stress hormones and weight gain," says Michele Olson, Ph.D., an exercise researcher at Auburn University. Regularly skimping on sleep raises levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which promotes fat storage around the belly and waist. In a six-year Canadian study, researchers found that adult subjects who slept for five or six hours a night were 35 percent more likely to gain more than ten pounds and had 60 percent thicker waistlines that those who averaged seven to eight hours a night. Make sleep a priority to reap the belly-busting benefits.

• 5

  Lean protein promotes fatburning.

  Eat more protein. Protein helps build lean muscle mass and burn fat. Adults who included more protein in their diets lost two more pounds of belly fat than those who ate less protein and more carbohydrates, according to a Korean research study. Prevention.com recommends consuming 25 percent of your daily calorie intake in the form of lean protein such as fish, white meat poultry, and egg whites.