Tip: Get Rid of Lifter's Belly

Answer these three questions, drop that last bit of flab, and make sure it never comes back. Start here.

What is Lifter's Belly?

No, we're not talking about the drug-induced belly bloat that many pro bodybuilders develop. We're talking about the average lifter in the average gym. You know this guy. In fact, you may be this guy.

Usually, this dude is an experienced lifter who trains hard multiple days per week. His diet is okay... well, most of the time. But to go along with the big arms and big chest, he's also got a big belly. Or at least a bigger belly than he wants.

In other words, this guy is carrying around maybe 10-15 pounds of extra fat. And being a guy, most of that is stored in the belly and love handle area.

The good news is, it doesn't take much effort to get rid of it. Hauling around a lot of muscle mass means that all you need is some tweaking, not a strict diet or training program overall.

How to Lose It

Here's the first question you need to answer:

1. Have you been at this level of conditioning for several months, maybe even a year or more?

If the answer is yes, then whether you count calories or not, you have found your maintenance level of caloric intake. If you're a little chubbier than you want to be, then realize that everything you're doing now is "maintenance mode."

But maintenance mode is about more than just how much you eat. It's also about your output: how much do you burn? If you have sustained the "10 pounds too fat" level, then you're just slightly out of balance. So the second question is:

2. Do I want to burn more calories or take in a fewer calories?

Think practically. For this to be sustainable, you have to chose the one you're most likely to stick with. Are you more comfortable with moving a little more or adjusting your diet?

If you want to move a little more, it can be as simple as tacking 5-10 minutes of metabolic conditioning onto the end of your normal workouts. Since you're already in a heart-hammerin' sweaty state after your lifting workout, it won't take much to create an inroad into your fat stores.

Example: Finish every workout with 5 lung-crushing minutes on the stairmill. Or rope skipping, battle ropes, sled pushing, stationary bike etc. Choose something you'll stick with. Your body fat really doesn’t know the difference.

It doesn't sound like much, but you don't need much. Remember, you're maintaining the condition you're in now, which isn't too shabby. A little metcon will tip the scales and you'll see a difference in two weeks.

If you'd rather tighten up your diet, just drop an easy 100 to 200 calories from your daily intake. It shouldn't be too painful. If you like throwing two servings of nut butter into your oatmeal or protein shake, drop that down to one serving. Boom. Easy.

But there's a third option here too, and a third question:

3. Is there anything you can do to make your body handle calories, especially carby calories, more efficiently?

The answer is yes, and my top choice would be to take Indigo-3G®. In a nutshell, it helps you partition nutrients toward muscle gain instead of those same nutrients being shuttled off to that storage depot just below your belly button.

While changing nothing else about their training or diets, most people are able to easily drop some fat and build more metabolism-boosting muscle after a month or two of use.


Buy Indigo-3G Here

Chris Shugart is T Nation's Chief Content Officer and the creator of the Velocity Diet. As part of his investigative journalism for T Nation, Chris was featured on HBO’s "Real Sports with Bryant Gumble." Follow on Instagram