1. Stop the ugly belly!
If women appreciate men with a small belly, one thing is certain: the brioche, they prefer it dipped in their coffee with milk in the morning than firmly installed around their waist!
It’s true that sporting a very small bidou is cute, but when it goes from “bidou” to “big bidou”, our sex appeal takes a hit! However, we are not obliged to chain abs or sheathing sessions to lose belly.
The first step is of course to pay attention to what we put on our plate, and to avoid having too unbalanced a diet… but not only that! Indeed, we know that certain foods make you fat, but some of them are particularly known to make you fat!
Fork & Bikini gives us the top 10 foods that make your stomach swell!
2. Crucifers
They may be cabbage, but members of the cruciferous family (red cabbage, green cabbage, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, etc.) do not necessarily mean good to our belly.
Crucifers contain raffinose, a substance which, once in our digestive tract, will cause the creation of intestinal gas. Suddenly, swollen belly, feeling of discomfort, bloating, and very often, flatulence.
To avoid these inconveniences (and the bad smells that go with it), they can be steamed, blanched before cooking, or combined with vegetables that deflate the can, such as green vegetables for example.
3. White bread
It doesn’t look like it when you see it like this, but in reality, white bread is a longtime enemy of flat bellies! Bread making requires the use of yeasts that can continue to work while undercooked bread is digested. The result ? Belly swelling, bloating…Sourdough bread and wholemeal bread are easier to digest. Wholemeal bread is twice as rich in insoluble fiber as white bread, which is good for us because:
Insoluble fibers have a recognized appetite suppressant effect,
They boost intestinal transit.
4. Banana
The banana is a fruit that is full of health benefits: it gives the peach, helps fight against the blows of slack, depression… Unfortunately, when you are struggling with a small round belly, the banana is not really our ally.
Indeed, when they are not ripe enough, bananas can cause constipation, and in addition, promote the creation of intestinal gas in the stomach (which risks ending up in flatulence!).
The solutions for girls who are fed up with their little boobs? Skip the bananas for fruits that are easier to digest (such as apple, kiwi, pineapple, papaya), or eat very ripe bananas, which are easier to digest.
5. Raw vegetables
When summer approaches, at aperitif time, we often have the reflex to “No” to the peanut sausage combo and “yes” to the raw food assortment. Okay …. but on condition of not abusing it!
Indeed, even if the sticks of carrot, cucumber, pepper, cherry tomatoes and radishes are very low in calories and very good for health, you should not eat only that to hope to have a flat stomach before the bikini test.
While raw vegetables are light and healthy, they also contain insoluble fibre, which is more difficult to digest. They can be irritating for the most sensitive people and can cause irritation or bloating. Morality: to keep the line, we do not forget to also fill up with cooked vegetables to limit digestive disorders!
6. Pulses
If legumes (split peas, chickpeas, lentils, beans, dried beans, etc.) are rich in protein, fiber, and low in calories, they hide a darker side… Indeed, pulses can make us inflate the belly!
The explanation is simple: on the one hand, pulses are rich in non-degradable carbohydrates, and on the other, the fibers they contain are quite hard. What, when they are consumed, results in a fairly long digestion time, and fermentation in the stomach. With, as a result, a distention of the abdominal wall (a big belly effect what), irritated intestines, and possibly gas. Not really what we dream of.
Fortunately, there is a very simple trick to make legumes go hand in hand with a flat stomach: before cooking them, you must always soak them for several hours in cold water, rinse them, then discard the first cooking water.
7. Dairy products
Dairy products are our friends for life… but maybe not when you want to find a flat stomach! Indeed, milk and dairy products (yogurts, ice creams, etc.) contain lactose, a sugar which, in the body, is digested by certain enzymes, lactases.
However, when you ingest a lot of dairy products or when you don’t have a lot of lactases, these enzymes are overwhelmed by the amount of lactose to digest… which will result in stomach swelling, bloating, and flatulence to top it off. Youhoo!
This is why people prone to digestive discomfort have every interest in consuming dairy products made from fermented milk (it is digested more easily), or even taking lactase capsules before meals.
8. Fries
It’s no secret: fries, crisps, donuts (and all fatty foods in general) are not recommended when you want to keep your figure and sport a nice little flat stomach, because they rhyme with “fat”. “.
But in addition to being rich in lipids and fats, fried foods tend to block (or slow down) intestinal transit (which is not good for the stomach), and cause bloating.
It is therefore recommended not to consume it too often, and in moderation when this is the case!
If, in addition, the chewing gums contain sugar, sweeteners or other, then our line risks drinking twice as much!
9. Charcuterie
Even if in France we love to eat salami, sausage and rosette as an aperitif, charcuterie is a dish which it is advisable to be wary of, and which it is better to consume in moderation. Especially when you have a small bottle that you would like to eliminate!
Indeed, in addition to being very caloric, cold cuts contain:
Saturated fats, which make it difficult to digest. And the more it ferments in the stomach, the more likely it is to give us bloating and gas…
Salt, which promotes water retention, and makes our belly swell
10. Soft drinks
As their name suggests, carbonated drinks are rich in…gas. And when we ingest gas, it will inflate our stomach like a balloon! And the balloons, we like to see them flying in the sky, but certainly not around our waist. When we want to get rid of our little can, it is better to avoid soft drinks… especially if they are sodas!
Because in addition to being rich in gas, sodas are also rich in sugars, sweeteners, and additives of all kinds. As a reminder, drinking a 33 cl can of Coke is equivalent to eating 7 sugar cubes. There you go!
11. Chewing gum
We have just seen it: when you consume a carbonated drink, you swallow gas. And when you chew gum…well, it’s almost the same: with each chew, you ingest a little air.
Which is far from optimal when you want to keep a flat stomach, because when you introduce air into your stomach, it starts to swell! And when our belly bulges, in addition to being unsightly, it can also be painful. 9. Charcuterie
Even if in France we love to eat salami, sausage and rosette as an aperitif, charcuterie is a dish which it is advisable to be wary of, and which it is better to consume in moderation. Especially when you have a small bottle that you would like to eliminate!
Indeed, in addition to being very caloric, cold cuts contain:
Saturated fats, which make it difficult to digest. And the more it ferments in the stomach, the more likely it is to give us bloating and gas…
Salt, which promotes water retention, and makes our belly swell
10. Soft drinks
As their name suggests, carbonated drinks are rich in…gas. And when we ingest gas, it will inflate our stomach like a balloon! And the balloons, we like to see them flying in the sky, but certainly not around our waist. When we want to get rid of our little can, it is better to avoid soft drinks… especially if they are sodas!
Because in addition to being rich in gas, sodas are also rich in sugars, sweeteners, and additives of all kinds. As a reminder, drinking a 33 cl can of Coke is equivalent to eating 7 sugar cubes. There you go!
11. Chewing gum
We have just seen it: when you consume a carbonated drink, you swallow gas. And when you chew gum…well, it’s almost the same: with each chew, you ingest a little air.
Which is far from optimal when you want to keep a flat stomach, because when you introduce air into your stomach, it starts to swell! And when our belly bulges, in addition to being unsightly, it can also be painful.