Holding some extra fat in the belly area can make people self-conscious. It may seem like an impossible task to remove that extra bit of fat, but do not fear, this is entirely possible!
Losing belly fat is a challenge for many people, but it’s not impossible. You can lose belly fat by making some lifestyle changes and incorporating some fat-burning exercises into your day.
While you can’t necessarily eliminate fat in only one area of your body, you can reduce your overall fat.
Reducing the overall fat in your body will lead to less belly fat, and climbing stairs can do exactly that!
How You Lose Fat
In order to lose weight, you must be in a calorie deficit. This is when you burn off more calories than you are consuming.
To create a calorie deficit, you need to eat fewer calories than what you use during exercise.
For example, 3500 calories are equal to a pound of fat, so if your goal is to lose a pound, you must burn 3500 calories.
You can reduce your calorie intake by consuming smaller portions in your meals, and switching to less calorie-dense foods.
In order to achieve this, you could seek assistance from a certified dietician or personal trainer, as they can help you with a meal plan and a workout routine that adheres to how many calories you want to burn and consume.
Stairs Burn Calories
When you climb up and down the stairs at work, school, or home, you are burning calories, especially if this is done with moderate intensity.
The American Council on Exercise recommends doing stair climbing three times per week. The best time to do these workouts would be before breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
These sessions should last about 10 minutes each, and you should aim to complete 20 to 30 steps per minute.
If you have been trying to lose weight, then you know that it’s important to combine cardio with strength training. Cardio helps improve your heart health, while strength training builds muscle mass.
Climbing stairs burns calories because it requires energy to move up and down the steps. The average person burns about 100 calories per hour while walking up and down the stairs.
Studies show that for a person who weighs around 120 pounds, walking up the stairs moderately can burn 5 calories in one minute.
Furthermore, using a stair-climbing machine for an hour has been shown to burn 660 calories on a person who weighs 160 pounds.
Stairs Build Muscle
Climbing stairs burns calories because it requires energy to move up and down the steps. In addition, When you climb stairs, you are using your muscles, which require energy to work.
In addition, your heart rate increases while climbing stairs, which also uses energy.
Climbing stairs burns approximately 7 calories per minute. That means that every time you climb up 10 steps (or however many it takes you to climb in one minute), you have burned about 70 calories.
If you climb up and down stairs frequently throughout your day, then you will easily burn around 500 calories
Building muscle goes hand in hand with fat loss. Using a stair climber, or walking up the stairs in your apartment building at a moderate intensity will work your muscles such as hip flexors, calves, hamstrings, glutes, and quads.
While this mainly targets the muscles in your legs, they are some of the biggest muscles in the body, which means you are burning more calories.
Workouts and exercises that build on your larger muscles, will mean that more calories are being burned.
How To Do It
To engage in this type of exercise, you can either use the stair climber at your gym if they have one, or simply use any stairs you have either in your home or apartment building. You could even use the ones in your workplace to get you pumped for the day!
To achieve the best results, you must increase the intensity of your manner of climbing the stairs.
You can run up the stairs, or power-walk up them before increasing your speed gradually.
You could also do this in intervals. You can complete a few sets walking up to them and then switch to running up them.
As you improve with this exercise, you want to add some variety to your fitness routine.
You should engage in some other cardio workouts at least three times a week and also engage in some strength training to build muscle. This should also be done around 3 times a week.
Your other cardio workouts could involve running, cycling, or working on a cross-trainer.
Your strength-training workouts could be some simple weight lifting exercises, or perhaps a Pilates class if you rather use your own body weight.
You should also target your abs, as these are the muscles around your belly. They are also some of the largest muscles in the body, so you’ll burn more calories by working them out.
Diet
As mentioned in this article, in order to lose body fat you must be in a calorie deficit, which means you must burn more calories than you are consuming.
Now, this does not mean you should skip meals to reduce the number of calories you are consuming.
This is a very unhealthy form of losing weight and won’t serve you well if you are also trying to work out.
Instead, you should incorporate nutrient-dense foods in your diet that will provide you with all the appropriate vitamins and minerals in order to remain healthy.
This may mean reducing your alcohol intake, as alcoholic drinks tend to have many calories in them.
When it comes to your meals, you should always begin with a healthy and nutritious breakfast.
This will fuel you for the day, giving you a good start! You should include foods that contain protein, fiber, and carbohydrates, and avoid unhealthy fats and sugary breakfasts.
Then, once you finish your morning meal, you should ensure you are drinking plenty of water.
When it comes to your lunchtime meals, you should choose lean proteins, vegetables, whole grains, and fruits.
Don’t forget to include nuts and seeds, as these provide you with healthy fats and energy! Which you’ll need for all that stair climbing activity!
Avoid fatty meats, fried food, and sugary treats. You should drink enough water throughout the day to keep you hydrated.
When it comes to dinnertime, you should avoid eating this meal too late in the day. This is because it becomes hard to burn off what you eat later in the day.
Your calories may not be digested properly later in the day, leading to more fat being stored in the body.
Similarly to your lunch, make sure to choose lean proteins, complex carbs, and vegetables. You should also limit the amount of nighttime snacks you are having after dinner, as doing this can lead to acid reflux, blood sugar issues, and weight problems.
If you would like to snack, it is best to spread it out throughout the day and switch to healthy snacks such as fruits, nuts, and perhaps some protein bars.
Final Thoughts
To conclude, performing stair climbing exercises can help you lose body fat as it will help you lose body fat throughout your body.
In addition, you are working out some very large muscles in the body when doing this, such as your glutes and quads, which will result in more calories being burned.
As mentioned in this article, in order to achieve the fat loss result you want, you must combine this fitness regime with a healthy and balanced diet, and you must be in a calorie deficit.
If losing fat is a goal of yours, it is best to speak with a certified personal trainer or dietician, as they can provide you with an appropriate plan to achieve these goals.
