Losing belly fat: abdominal and visceral fat

01The short answer

02Two kinds of fat below the navel

Subcutaneous fat is the kind you can pinch. Visceral fat lies deeper: it surrounds the organs of the abdomen, and you cannot see it in the mirror; if it worries you, talk to your doctor.

What changes with age matters too: around menopause, according to the International Menopause Society, fat shifts from the hips and thighs toward the belly. Weight loss for women goes into this in more detail.

03Why sit-ups alone are not enough

The idea of “burning the belly” with crunches has been tested. In a study published in 2011 in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, six weeks of abdominal exercise alone did not reduce abdominal subcutaneous fat. A meta-analysis of 13 studies, published in Human Movement in 2022, concludes that training a muscle locally does not reduce the fat at that spot.

A small 2021 study of 14 people did observe a local effect with a specific circuit: so the question is not closed, but the evidence largely points the other way. Sit-ups strengthen the belly; they do not choose where the fat comes from.

04What reduces visceral fat

A review of 15 studies (852 participants), published in PLoS ONE in 2013, shows that an aerobic exercise program, without a diet, can reduce visceral fat. Another review, in Obesity Reviews in 2016, found that without weight loss, exercise was associated with a drop of about 6% in visceral fat, while diet alone barely changed it (only a non-significant trend).

For its part, Obesity Canada recommends aerobic activity (grade A): it can reduce visceral and abdominal fat, even without weight loss. Good news for anyone intimidated by intervals: according to the same chapter, there is no clear evidence that high-intensity interval training causes more fat loss than moderate effort.

05Sit-ups still have their place

Dropping the myth does not mean dropping core work. A strong trunk holds your posture and transfers force, in a squat as in a dance routine. So keep your core exercises: for trunk strength, not to target fat.

06Joanie's classes, several times a week

Joanie Roussy's women's classes, at noon on weekdays, combine cardio and strength over the week: Strong Nation™ synchronizes both to music, Bootcamp spreads them across stations, and Zumba® uses dance — 6.5 METs for a group class, according to the 2024 Compendium of Physical Activities. Adult karate, which is mixed, is also open to everyone from 14. The calculator does the math for your weight.

07On days without class, around the island

To add aerobic activity on other days, stepping outside is often enough. In Verdun, the riverside path (piste des Berges) runs along the St. Lawrence, and the urban beach sits behind the Auditorium, near De l'Église metro station. From Nuns' Island, the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge multi-use path leads to Brossard, on foot or by bike, all year round. On class days, the dojo is at 550 chemin du Golf, suite 010: the schedule lists the classes, and getting to the dojo maps the way.

Sources

1. Obesity Canada, Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines, chapter “Physical Activity in Obesity Management” (2020) — obesitycanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Physical-Activity-in-Obesity-Management.pdf
2. Vispute et al., J Strength Cond Res 25(9) (2011) — doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181fb4a46
3. Meta-analysis on localized training, Human Movement (2022) — doi.org/10.5114/HM.2022.110373
4. Paoli et al., study on localized training (2021) — pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8038840
5. Vissers et al., PLoS ONE (2013) — pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3568069
6. Verheggen et al., Obesity Reviews (2016) — researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/3673/
7. International Menopause Society, Davis et al., Climacteric (2012) — www.imsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wmd-2012-white-pages-english.pdf
8. 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities — pacompendium.com/

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