How to lose hanging belly (the NO BS answer)

how to lose hanging belly fat

What I am going to reveal will hopefully help you understand how to lose hanging belly and why it happens.

Hanging belly occurs after pregnancy and, or, a massive weight loss. 

Being pregnant, according to my other half, your body goes through changes. Eating what you usually don’t eat, like craving sugar when you normally have a sour tooth.

And that’s not the only changes your body goes through. 

Emotionally and physically, you are a different person. The most distressing part for women is the change in their body. 

The most distressing for the partner is the emotional roller coaster the wife put them through. 

There have been times when the mother of my child drove me insane. To give you an example, one day, she lost her pen. The entire day was spent looking for a bloody pen!

That’s not a one-off incident, there were others, but we are here to talk about you and to fix this unsightly problem.

How to lose a hanging belly, behind the research and experience

Losing belly fat is hard. Losing a hanging belly is harder. The bigger you get, the impossible it becomes to lose belly fat. 

As you get worse, you’ll get into depression and spiral more out of control with overeating; and living a sedentary lifestyle by getting lazy.

The best way to lose hanging belly is prevention. As you already know, losing weight is hard compared to putting it on.

You can prevent yourself from gaining more belly fat by educating yourself in weight maintenance through balanced nutrition and exercise.

How to lose hanging belly fat after having a baby

belly fat after baby

Right after my partner had her baby, she told me not to look at her for a couple of weeks or months. 

I knew what she was trying to do and how she felt. She was insecure with her belly, and she needed time to get back to her old self.

I didn’t care how she looked; I thought it was a warrior’s mark. Having our first child was tough. The 24-hour labor took a toll on me, ha! Yes, me. I was stressing out so much!

She was going through a lot of insecurities. The pain of the labor she went through was a testament to how tough she can be.

After the undertaking, after that ordeal, my respect for my partner and mother grew even more. My mother had three. There has to be so much love to experience such pain three times. 

For my grandmother, she had seven. Seven! God bless all the mothers in the world.

Back on topic, the following is what my partner implemented to lose belly fat:

  1. Exercise
  2. Eat right
  3. Juicing
  4. Keep active

Exercise

old people exercising

Exercising is the best way to lose your belly fat by using up the extra calories you put into your body.

Her favorite exercise was walking; this was her routine after work. At 4 PM on the dot, she puts on her walking shoes. She grabs her phone, calls her friend, and out the door, she goes.

Half an hour later she gets back still talking on the phone with the same friend she called earlier. 

Eat right

eat clean

Eating right is about choosing the right foods you put into your body. She concentrated on eating fibrous snacks, eating frequent small meals, focused on leafy greens for dinner.

On some occasions, she eats bad food such as a Whopper burger, french fries, and ice creams. Albeit, she puts more good stuff in her body than bad.

Juicing

juicing

To further lower her calorie intake, she concocts various juices. There are many ingredients you can add to make your juice. 

I mixed so many types of fruits, and this is what I found: banana goes with everything. I don’t know what it is, but it makes every juice taste yum.

Keep active

man skating on ice

Keeping active was easy for her because she gets bored quickly and does not relax for long. She relaxes when she hits the hay. 

She works a sedentary job, glued to a chair for 8 hours. Which is terrible because sitting down most of the time is linked to an early grave.

[source: Too much sitting and all-cause mortality: is there a causal link?]

Companies in the professional industry should recognize this problem. Some companies are aware of sedentary behavior causes obesity. Hence, these corporations implemented necessary precautions—standing desks.

Upon learning the impact of prolonged sitting on health, some individuals adopted a standing desk workstation.

[source: Taking a Stand: The Effects of Standing Desks on Task Performance and Engagement.]

There is a direct correlation to technology and sedentary behaviors. Think about it, if you don’t have a TV, iPod, PC, video games, what will you be doing right now? 

You’d be bored out of your mind forcing you to go out with friends, play sports, or get out of the house. Scary.

I know some people prefer to stay home and stare at the walls, but the majority of you will go crazy.

We now live in an autonomous era: thank you technology. In the not so distant future, we won’t have to lift a finger to get things done.

And if we don’t move, we just belly up.

The more articles, education, information, advertisement about obesity will only do the world a whole lot of good.

Want to know how to lose hanging belly? You need to learn what causes it. The following is an article I wrote you might want to look at:

What is a hanging stomach called?

Mother’s apron, the pouch, the overhang, apron belly, are all the same. It is called abdominal panniculus.

Panniculus happens after an individual experience a massive weight loss or pregnancy. The skin stretches out so much that it loses elasticity. 

As an example, the woman’s body does incredible things to prepare and accommodate for the baby; from a little tiny embryo to a full-blown fetus the size of a huge watermelon.

You can imagine putting a watermelon inside a small bag; it stretches. When you take it out,  what happens to the bag? It doesn’t go back to its original size.

This excess skin can reach your mons pubis (the rounded mass of fatty tissue lying over the joint of the pubic bones) and in worse cases, can reach down to your knees.

People with abdominal panniculus that hang to their thighs complain about discomfort and irritation while walking. 

The problem is due to the excess skin rubbing against the thighs while walking or running. There are also reports of rashes forming under the fold.

Can you lose hanging belly fat without surgery?

hanging belly fat surgery

Many people have no idea what is a hanging belly. They have the assumption that it is mostly fat; by burning fat, you’ll lose the apron belly.

There are specific sites out there promoting diet and exercise to remove the excess skin. I think they are misinformed because doing so only makes the skin stand out. 

To answer the questions, “can you lose hanging belly fat without surgery?” Or, “how to get rid of apron belly without surgery?” Apron belly, hanging belly, maiden’s pouch is all the same thing. It is an excess skin hanging over your genitals.

It took some research and I can finally say that the answer is no. The only way you can lose an excessive belly hang is through surgery. 

To give you context for the following example, a woman, 45 years of age, asked the medical board of doctors.

“I am 45, three kids, 2 C-sections,and Abdominal Hysterctmy. Dieting and excersizing(walking 4-8 miles 3-4 times a week/mixed jogging). I have lost 25lbs so far. Started at 186lbs, now 162lbs. My goal is 135-140, I am 5’5. I always had a fannypack/bellybutton roll/pannus. First stretch marks were from puberty not pregnancy. I want ME back at my original size6.(had bellyroll at that size too). How do I get rid of this belly fat finally w/diet and excersize? With no surgeries.”

The following are quotes from certified doctors and qualified medical practitioners answering the woman’s question:

“It’s difficult to make a specific recommendation without a physical examination or pictures. Your history suggest the presence of a significant lower abdominal roll that extends posteriorly into your flanks. In my experience exercise and diet often make loose skin more noticeable.

Although it’s important to continue weight loss, this probably won’t affect your loose hanging skin. Under these circumstances, an abdominoplasty will probably be necessary.

For these reasons, consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon is appropriate. This surgeon should be able to formulate a plan that addresses your concerns”

Richard J. Bruneteau, MD

“A picture may be helpful in answering your question. You sound determined to reach your goals. It is difficult to predict what your result will be post-weight loss. Many of my weight loss patients reach their ideal weight but are left with loose skin that cannot be removed without surgery. You described stretchmarks, meaning that the quality of your skin is such that it may not be able to “bounce back” after weight loss. Surgery may be necessary.

On this site, I do my best to give advice without a physical examination but I want you to know that a physical examination by a board certified physician is always the best way to get the most accurate information.”

Tom J. Pousti, MD, FACS

“After you reach your ideal weight, you can consider trying a serires of non-invasive techniques such as Zeltiq, which uses cold therapy to to freeze fat cells, but you will not get the results you will with abdominoplasty surgery.  Even if you do have a reduction in fat, it sounds like skin excess is also a problem – which responds best to a surgical excision. Tummy tucks are very common procedures, have an excellent safety record, and patients are usually thrilled with the results!  Consultation with a plastic surgeon will help answer questions and make recommendations based on your body.”

Michelle A. Spring, MD, FACS

“Many people want their old body back with weight loss and exercise.  It rarely happens that way. With pregnancies and C-sections and stretch marks and a hanging panniculus the damage to the tissues is permanent and irreversible.  Surgical intervention is a good solution for a better and permanent result which can be quite remarkable. Good luck with your exercise and weight loss.”

Talmage J. Raine, MD, FACS

How to get rid of a hanging belly?

Can you get rid of hanging belly without surgery?

Experts answered.

They all echoed one thing, which is, you can’t lose the excess skin without surgery. The damage to the tissues is extensive and irreparable. 

[source: How to Get Rid of Pannus(fannypack)?]

There are exceptions, us and many others. My partner and I were lucky enough to have prevented further permanent damage to the skin’s tissues.

In my partner’s case, perhaps staying active while pregnant has helped; she was shopping for 3 hours when her water broke for goodness sake.

As for me, I guess I never really reached the point of no return. 

Conclusion

To summarize, you can’t lose the hanging belly due to excessive weight loss or pregnancy. Certain sites beg to differ by advocating and promoting diet and exercise to lose excess abdominal skin.

The best way to lose belly apron is prevention. Be active while pregnant, not too excessive, though. Don’t overeat and eat clean: no junk food.

Also, this is very important to do and I will keep echoing it multiple times. Please seek medical advice before following any exercise or diet regimen. What works for someone may not work for you.

To help you get started preventing a woeful situation, download the FREE ebook below.

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