How to Achieve a Flat Stomach as a Girl

• Build core muscles by doing exercises like crunches, side bends, or planks. Workout routines like Pilates or Yoga are particularly effective at toning your core.
• Limit your use of salt, and eat foods rich in whole grains and protein.
• Stay hydrated, avoid alcohol, and manage stress-related weight gain by meditating or distracting your mind with fun activities when you feel inclined to stress-eat.

Exercising to Lose Belly Fat

Focus on your whole body. Spot reduction, or reducing fat in one specific area of the body, is a weight loss myth. Toning certain areas, like the arms and stomach, may make them look trimmer, but to remove fat, you have to focus on exercising your entire body. Losing weight and keeping it off involves a calorie controlled diet and 150-300 minutes of moderate exercise per week (or around 20-40 minutes per day). Regular high-intensity aerobic workouts tend to lead to slimmer waists, such as running, boxing, and HIIT. Circuit training is another good exercise that reduces fat throughout the entire body. Workouts are divided into circuits that combine different cardio exercises, with little to no breaks in between. A good circuit routine increases your heart rate and strengthens a variety of muscles, and you can find them online or enroll in a class at your gym.

Build core muscles. Focus on your core muscles by doing exercises that target the abdomen, like crunches, planks, Pilates, or yoga. This won't help you lose fat, but it can make your stomach appear more flat. It can also build lean muscle mass and increase your metabolism so you burn more calories during your normal routine. The crunch is a classic core strengthening exercise. Lie on your back and place your feet against a wall so they're bent at a 90-degree angle. Cross your arms on your chest, lift your head and shoulders forward, and take in 3 breaths before lying back down. Repeat. Planks are another popular core exercise. Get in a push-up position with your hands under your shoulders. Keep your legs straight behind you and your feet together. Instead of lowering down for a push-up, hold this pose as long as you can. Challenge yourself each time to hold the pose longer. Workout routines like Pilates and yoga focus primarily on core muscles. Enroll in a class or find routines online. Many YouTube vloggers and exercise enthusiasts post easy-to-follow videos that can be done from home, as long as you have a mat and basic workout clothing.

Try side bends. While spot reduction is impossible, some exercises focus on areas towards the abdomen. Side bends work your core, which can help you gain abdominal muscle and tone your stomach. They may also help you improve your overall strength, resulting in more efficient workouts. Bend to one side while holding your opposite arm over your head and then bend to the other side, raising your other arm. Do this until you've done 10 stretches on either side of your body. To narrow your waist, choose exercises that cause your waist to twist and rotate, such as Russian twists, bicycle crunches, and hip dips.

Changing Your Diet

Limit your use of salt. High salt intake is linked to higher body fat, so consuming too much salt can have a negative effect on your weight loss routine. Especially in the short-term, cutting back on salt is a quick way to prevent bloating and get a flatter stomach. Consuming excess salt can make you retain water, causing bloating or temporary weight gain. Read food labels to see how much sodium is in the products you consume. Be careful because labels can be tricky. Sometimes, a bag of chips doesn't look unhealthy until you realize the nutritional information is "per serving" and the bag comes with 2.5 servings. Be realistic about how much of a product you expect to eat and avoid products with more than 200 mg of sodium per serving. Avoid processed foods, and do not add too much salt to table foods. Watch out for canned vegetables and soy sauces, which can be salt-heavy.

Eat more whole grains. Processed or refined grains, like those found in white rice and bread, are considered “empty calories,” which have very few nutrients and minerals. Swapping refined grains for whole grains may help you get a flatter stomach. Whole grains contain all the naturally-occurring nutrients of a food's entire grain seed in its original proportion. Processed grains are grains that have been cracked, rolled, crushed, cooked, or otherwise tampered with, resulting in less overall nutritional value. Whole wheat foods include: whole wheat bread, brown rice, barley, buckwheat, oats, and quinoa. Eating refined grains triggers your blood sugar and insulin levels to rise. When this occurs, the body is more ready to deposit fat and tends to do so in the abdomen. Whole grain, high fiber foods help regulate insulin levels in the body. This lowers overall blood glucose levels, which results in a reduction of fat deposition. Always read food labels carefully. Oftentimes, products labeled as "whole wheat" are made with only a small amount of whole wheat flour. The word “whole grain” should be the first item on a product's ingredient list.

Eat a high-protein breakfast. Protein is one of the most important nutrients for weight loss because it can suppress your appetite and increase feelings of fullness. Eating a high-protein breakfast is proven to reduce cravings in teenage girls. This happens because your body uses more calories to metabolize proteins compared to fats or carbohydrates. High protein foods include: Milk, cheese, yogurt, quinoa, tofu, beans, peas, lentils, eggs, lean meats, fish, nuts and seeds.

Stock up on healthy foods. Whole wheat is just the beginning. For a flat stomach, the bulk of your calories should come from healthy foods. NASM certified personal trainer Laura Flinn recommends “eating a balanced and nutritious diet” of “fresh fruits and vegetables, at least 25 grams of fiber daily, and lean protein and healthy fats, such as avocados, nuts, and olive oil.” Ditch sugary and processed foods, like potato chips, TV dinners, and fast food. Beans and other legumes are high-quality carbohydrates packed with protein. Beans help you feel fuller faster, so try swapping out meats like chicken and beef for black, pinto, or kidney beans for a few meals each week. Berries, such as blueberries and strawberries, are low in calories and a good source of essential vitamins to keep your body healthy. Keep a bowl of berries in your fridge if you need a snack, and choose it over pretzels or sweets. Nuts are filled with heart-healthy fats and can help reduce cravings, but be careful—they’re high in calories so it's easy to accidentally go overboard and gain weight by overeating them.

Altering Your Lifestyle

Drink less alcohol. Alcohol is a bad idea for anyone wanting to lose belly fat for a variety of reasons: Heavy drinkers tend to have what's known as a "beer gut" or a "beer belly." This is because alcohol releases estrogen into the bloodstream, which may make you more likely to hold onto fat and gain weight. Alcohol increases appetite while simultaneously lowering your inhibitions and self-control. Binge drinking episodes often end in late night snacking or eating junk food. The calories from alcohol combined with the calories from excess eating can result in a massive caloric intake in a single night.

Drink more water. Drinking water throughout the day has a positive impact on weight loss. Studies show that it may temporarily boost your metabolic rate, or the number of calories you burn at rest. Drink 2 cups (16 oz) of water around 30 minutes before each meal to help you lose weight. Drinking before a meal fills up your stomach, resulting in your eating less during breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Find ways to avoid stress-related weight gain. Stress contributes to weight gain in multiple ways. When we're stressed, we're less likely to eat right and exercise, for one, and certain hormones released when we're stressed can contribute to fat retention in the body. Finding ways to cope with stress can help ward off the unwanted weight gain associated with it. Ask yourself why you're eating each time you prepare a meal. Are you eating because you're truly hungry or because something's on your mind? If it's the latter, find a more effective way to deal with the issue than eating. Keep “comfort” foods away from your home and office. If you have less access to the foods that you consume when you’re stressed, the temptation is easier to avoid. Find a distraction if you're tempted to eat when stressed. Puzzles, games, and reading are a great alternative to emotional eating. You can even try a light exercise, like a short walk, to cope with stress. Look into practicing relaxation skills like yoga, meditation, stretching, and deep breathing exercises. Find an approach to stress that works for you and practice it when you start to feel anxiety coming on.