5 Belly Blasters That Really Work

1. Rev Your Metabolism with Hot Pepper Jelly

The first step to blasting belly fat is to rev your metabolism. Ignite your body's fat-burning engines by eating hot pepper jelly. This condiment is packed with capsaicin, a chemical that puts the kick in peppers and speeds metabolism up to 20 percent for 30 minutes after you eat it. Take advantage of these benefits early in the day by having 2 tablespoons of hot pepper jelly every morning. Spread it on a whole wheat English muffin or eggs. It costs around $5.00 and you can find it at most supermarkets and online.

2. Kill Your Hunger with Acacia Powder

The powder comes from the bark of the acacia tree and is a shakable fiber. Sprinkle it on your meals and it will fill you up so you eat less. Make sure to drink a big glass of water with your meal.

3. Use Pickles to Detox Your Digestive Track

You have many different types of bacteria in your gut. While some kinds are good and aid with digestion, there are also bad types that can build up in your digestive track. The amount of both good and bad bacteria depends on what you eat. The wrong types of food can allow bad bacteria overgrowth in the colon, which makes the lining of your gut leaky and inflamed. This causes bloating and expands your waistline. New research shows that bad bacteria can increase belly fat as well.

Fight bad bacteria by snacking on pickles. This food is packed with probiotics, which helps to prevent harmful build-up and reduces inflammation in your gut. Make sure you choose a low-sodium option. If you're not a pickle person, you can get the same benefits from sauerkraut, kimchi or any fermented food.

4. Drink Red Wine to Reduce Stress

One of your body's responses to stress is to store extra calories, especially in your belly. Reduce the stress hormone cortisol by having 4 ounces of red wine daily. Research shows a glass at the end of the day can lower your stress levels by helping you unwind. Plus, it's packed with antioxidants that reduce inflammation.

Next: The one type of food that can banish bloating

5. Eat Wet Foods to Flatten Your Belly

When you're dehydrated, you hold onto water in the wrong places, which can make you look and feel bloated. Foods that are wet are full of water to flush out your system and fight inflammation. Wet foods have two main characteristics—a water content of 70 percent or higher and 5 grams of fiber or more per serving. They're usually whole foods with low salt content. Since most food labels don't display water content, identify wet foods by seeing if they fit into either of these two criteria:

Wet fruits and vegetables should juice if you bite or cut into them. For instance, banana and avocado are not wet foods.

If the food swells or requires water or liquid to be prepared, it can be considered a wet food. For example, you need water to prepare dry beans and oats and chia seeds swell when wet.

Use the meal plan below to incorporate wet foods into your diet to fight bloat:

Breakfast
Pair your hot pepper jelly breakfast with belly-blasting water. Start with a pitcher of water and add in lime, watermelon, mint and blackberries. You can continue to sip on this drink all day long.

Lunch
Beans are very hydrating. Try a bean burrito made with pinto beans, shredded cabbage, salsa and guacamole in large lettuce leaves.

Snacks
Swap out dry munchies for a snack bag that will beat the bloat! Try chopped jicama, celery, clementines and cashews. Add a dash of cayenne pepper for extra belly-blasting kick. Toss the mix in a bag and you can take these bloat-fighting benefits with you to munch all day long.

Dinner
During dinner, blast your belly bloat with a turkey burger made with chia seeds and have a side fattoush salad. Enjoy an orange for dessert.

More Ways to Trim Your Midsection

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