Different Types of Belly Fat

You look into the mirror, and abhor your increasing body size. Your belly, it looks like a sagging mass that would take eternity to go away. You know, for once, you may just think that it's flab and only flab everywhere, but the truth is, it's not. That is to say, your belly fat may look the same to you from everywhere, but is actually different. That brings us to talk about the two types of belly fat that make your life a disaster! They are subcutaneous belly fat and visceral belly fat. You know, for researchers and scientists, fat has become all the more intriguing, for the reason that it is something that has been explored quite recently. Not only does your belly fat store excess calories for you to mobilize the fat stores in case of hunger, but it also releases hormones that are known to regulate metabolism. All in all, fat is good in some ways, and bad in others. However, for women battling with their thigh fat, and men waging a daily hassle with their beer-bellies, it's hard to accept that fat is good. When it comes to learning about the types of fat, we study about the goods and the bads of both. So, here goes all the information about the two types of fat around our belly - Subcutaneous and Visceral.

Subcutaneous Fat
Definition: Lying directly under the skin, subcutaneous fat contains fatty tissues along with blood vessels and nerves. The subcutaneous fat helps the body absorb shocks and traumas, as it stores energy that is brought into use by the body during high activity.

Subcutaneous fat is essential for life as it keeps you warm by insulating your body. However, too much subcutaneous fat is bad for health, for the simple reason that it leads to obesity that is no less than an alarm for many health problems. A person who has too much of subcutaneous fat is often prone to high cholesterol levels, heart problems, diabetes, and comparatively lower energy. The body should have subcutaneous fat in moderate amounts - not too much, not too less.

It wouldn't be wrong to refer to subcutaneous fat as notable cellulite around the belly. However, given the current obsession of thin-is-in, many people resort to dieting and exercising to get rid of this kind of fat. Note that, when you workout and put your body to use, it is your subcutaneous fat that burns down and is reduced with exercise. The more one exercises, the more subcutaneous fat can be lost. However, exercise alone doesn't contribute to reduction of subcutaneous fat - people who diet and don't exercise regularly lose considerable amount of the subcutaneous fat tissue, although it was nearly half of that lost during exercise. Subcutaneous fat has a reputation of being the bad fat around the belly, but the truth is, it stores enormous amount of energy which one requires during rigorous physical activity. Moreover, it provides a cushion for nerves and blood vessels, and protection to the skin as well as the skeleton. As astonishing as it may sound, it is much better than the other type of belly fat, information on which is given below.

Visceral Fat
Definition: Fat that surrounds the internal organs of the body is referred to as visceral fat. Unlike subcutaneous fat, visceral fat is difficult to lose, since the body fails to absorb energy from this type of fat during rigorous activity. It is considered to be much more dangerous than subcutaneous fat, since it is most vulnerable to diabetes, strokes, and hypertension.

Research shows that people who smoke and drink have more visceral fat in comparison to those who don't. For the reason that it is intimately implanted in the body's tissues, it is nearly impossible for an average person to lose belly fat of this type. Note that, even though a person seems to be absolutely fit and fine, he or she may have an abnormal amount of visceral fat, given his medical conditions aren't normal. Visceral fat has inflammatory properties which can cause many health problems within the body, and hence, it is highly important for a person to maintain a healthy lifestyle, and keep their body from piling up visceral fat around their internal organs.

If in case, a person is found to have more than normal amount of visceral fat in their body, they are recommended to keep themselves engaged in cardiovascular exercises, and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Walking is known to have had a positive impact on many people who had large amounts of visceral fat in their abdominal area. What's more, if you know swimming, you could make it a habit to swim for a considerable amount of time every week. It will not only keep your cholesterol levels low, but help you lose excessive visceral fat. Note that, even though many people have normal amount of visceral fat in their abdominal area, doing no physical activity can increase the amount, and can lead to various health problems.

Belly fat, whichever type it is, has a bad status. We abhor it, but still do nothing. It's time you get up from that chair you're resting on, and do something about the belly fat that has made things all the more difficult for you. Obesity doesn't come alone - with it comes a slew of health problems. Fighting obesity alone or fighting multiple health problems in future - you choose.