Gender does not matter when it comes to showing off washboard abs because all of us strive every single day to get rid of belly fat and get defined abs. Over the last few days, we have been continuously reminding everyone that “abs are made in the kitchen” and it’s absolutely true because what you eat today will determine whether you would have abs tomorrow. We need to be mindful of what we eat to get the abs because certain foods can sabotage the abs from showing up and even if you’re exercising 3-5 times a week, there are a few food items that can make it extremely difficult for the abs to show up. If you can’t lose overall body fat, even then the layer of fat will sit unmoved over the ab muscles. So, apart from eating the right kind of food to eat to develop abs, getting on the right kind of weight loss diet such as on the Rati Beauty app, here’s a list of foods to avoid if you want abs to show up.
1. Soft Drinks/Aerated Beverages: Do you find chilled soft drinks and sugary beverages irresistible, these beverages are loaded with sugar and empty calories that can ruin your weight loss goals, particularly to develop abs. Instead, make chaach, spiced buttermilk, and lemonades at home using natural sweeteners like stevia. Additionally, whipping up a sattu sharbat will not only keep you cool, it will also accelerate the fat-burning process as well.
2. Transfat: If you have to cut out something completely from your diet, it’s transfat – because it tends to mobilize fat from other areas of the body to the tummy area, increasing the waist circumference, making it difficult for ab muscles to develop. Microwave popcorn, margarine, fried foods, cakes, pastries, etc. may have transfat and it would be a good idea to avoid them.
3. Packaged Fruit Juices: Packaged and processed fruit juices mostly have loads of empty calories and sugar, along with artificial flavours, preservatives and it is a misconception that they can replace raw and fresh fruits. Regular consumption of these fruit juices can increase the waist circumference rather quickly.
4. White Bread: White carbs are bad, ditto for white bread. Though bread isn’t good for weight loss, you can have ones made out of whole wheat or whole grains. Also, breads made with 100% whole grain, 100% whole wheat breads, with fiber content intact are better options.
5. Flavoured Greek Yogurt: Though we might think it as a good source of probiotics, flavoured Greek yogurt has loads of sugar, artificial color, flavour, and preservatives, making it calorie dense.
6. Processed Food: Processed food is high in calories, sugar, salt content and also has preservatives, and the main ingredient being refined flour. Sweets, candies, chocolates, biscuits, cookies, fast food, sweet beverages, colas, etc. offer little to zero nutritional value to the body and are highly processed.
7. Refined Flour: We are talking about empty calories without any nutrient content that build up fat layers over ab muscles.
8. Refined Sugar: Totally give up refined sugar if you want to flaunt abs because sugar raises inflammation, adds lots of calories, spikes insulin, and increases waist circumference too.
9. Candies/cakes/pastries/cookies: Since most candies, cakes, pastries, cookies, etc. are made from refined sugar, flour, transfat – all bad ingredients that would add up to belly fat.
10. Alcohol: Alcohol, especially beer can give you, well “beer belly,” totally covering up ab muscles with layers of fat, preventing them from showing up.
11. Refined Carbs: Refined carbs should be switched with complex carbs because high on calories and low on nutrient value, they lead to quick weight gain.
12. French Fries: High in transfat and calories, French fries are bad for weight loss.
13. Ice Cream: Digging into a tub of ice cream once in a while can be part of a rare indulgence, but regular ice cream treats can hamper your weight loss goals, particularly that of flaunting washboard abs goals.
14. Margarine: Most people buy margarine over butter in an effort to cut down calories, but it’s a completely wrong move for the abs because margarine tends to have transfat that mobilizes fat from the rest of the body to the tummy area!
15. High Fructose Corn Syrup: High fructose corn syrup is commonly found in baked goodies, salad dressings, soda, candies, sauces, and also in breakfast cereals is an extremely unhealthy and regular consumption can cause insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, weight gain, and belly fat, and totally cancel out the efforts you are putting through ab exercises.
16. Junk Food/Fast Food: This is a no brainer, junk food in all flavours, variants, varieties, cuisines is the worst kind of food for weight loss and abs.
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