How Much Cardio Should You Do To Lose Belly Fat? (4 Step Plan)

Wondering how much cardio is needed to burn belly fat? Well, you’re in the right place. We’re going to talk all about cardio, and more specifically how you can use it to get rid of belly fat. The truth is, most people seeking burn belly fat approach their cardio routines the wrong way and fail to account for the various metabolic adaptations we experience. The good news though is by Implementing the right cardio plan, you will be able to break through any plateaus you encounter to the point where you’re able to lose belly fat. Before that, let’s first take a look at the problems we face when it comes to cardio and belly fat loss.

One of the major limitations with cardio for fat loss is that as we lose weight and improve our fitness levels, our body compensates by trying to burn less calories throughout the day. That’s obviously bad news if you want to burn belly fat. And is also why your cardio plan needs to be designed and actually progressed overtime such that it accounts for this. But, at the same time, you don’t want to do too much too soon.

So, how exactly do we account for those factors? Well, we can do so with a 4-step plan that when combined with a calorie deficit from your diet, will help you lean down and eventually get rid of belly fat. The first thing we need to do here is establish a small amount of cardio to get you in the habit of moving and adhering to a cardio plan that we can then progress. What I’d recommend is just 10 minutes of incline walking every single day. You can swap this for light cycling or any low intensity, low impact cardio modality.

In step 2, we want to then very gradually start increasing the duration and/or difficulty of our cardio sessions. But again, the key here though is that you’re simply increasing your cardio very gradually overtime to enable you to break through any plateaus you encounter so you lose belly fat successfully. That said, the extent to which you do so though will vary individually and depend on your lifestyle.

As you apply the above 3 steps, you need to ensure that you’re not then compensating outside of these cardio sessions. So, to avoid this possible compensation from impeding your belly fat loss, you need to control and monitor 3 variables. First, your step count. Second, you need to be adhering to a regular weightlifting routine. And lastly, you need to monitor and control your calorie intake and ensure that you’re still adhering to a calorie deficit.

Now the last step here has to do with maintaining your new physique. Find a routine or hobby that you can now stick to that'll enable you to maintain your new bodyweight and physique with ease.

Here’s a summary of what I’ve covered on how much cardio is needed to burn belly fat:

Step 1 (Baseline): Start at a low baseline level of cardio.

Step 2 (Increase): In gradual increments, increase the duration/difficulty of your weekly cardio sessions every time you reach a plateau.

Step 3 (Control): Control all other variables and keep them consistent (weights routine, daily steps, calorie intake) to avoid compensating for your cardio sessions.

Step 4 (Maintain): After you’ve successfully stripped off the belly fat, find a routine that’ll enable you to maintain your new bodyweight and physique.

Just keep in mind that you need to be pairing your cardio routine with a regular weightlifting routine and a solid nutrition plan, as these will both help speed up the process and ensure that you don’t just end up “skinny fat” by the end of your fat loss journey. And for a step by step plan that shows you exactly how to do this by optimizing your workouts, nutrition, and cardio plan for you such that you can lean down as efficiently as possible with science, just like countless of our members have done with their Built With Science programs, then simply take the analysis quiz below to discover which specific program is best for your body and where it’s currently at:
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*The scientific contents of this video have been proof-read and verified by published researcher Dr. K Rayani, PhD in Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology

Filmed by: Bruno Martin Del Campo

MUSIC:

STUDIES:

CARDIO ADAPTATION

MODEL OF ENERGY EXPENDITURE

[JeremyEthier]

Let’s try this again :). For those unaware of why I re-uploaded this, in the last version of this video I made a poor oversight and error on my part with regards to some of the research that was presented, and also just didn’t present the cardio plan in a way that would best help/guide the viewer to long term success. I’ve made those corrections and improvements in this video. In addition, I’ve taken the initiative of having the application of the scientific research in this video proof-read by a published researcher in the field (Dr. K. Rayani, PhD in Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology) to help minimize the chances of oversights on my end from happening again. Future videos that are heavily reliant on scientific research will be proof-read by Dr. Rayani (or someone else credible in the field) before publishing. Again, I’m glad that I made those mistakes in the last video as it forced me to take the necessary action to further improve the quality and credibility of my videos, which I feel is extremely important given the size of my audience and the type of content that I put out. I’m bound to make mistakes, I’m only human. But as a content creator I’m dedicated to continue learning, growing, and improving from those mistakes, I owe that to all of you. Thank you for all of your continued support. Enjoy!

[babyslothawful]

I did 30-45 minutes 4-7 times a week on the treadmill and kept at a 1500 calorie diet and lost 80 lbs in 5 months. We’ll worth it! You just have to get up and do it.

[DopetheKid]

i like that he accounts for everything, like being lazy or tired, inconsistent & bored, etc.

[monicavandeventer]

HIIT cardio. 15-20 minutes, 3-4x per week, if you’re training 6 days. That got me results fast!

[damagedgoods]

watching this at 2am i’m trying to get my life together

[yp.]

Jeremy is really trying his best to stay real and accurate. He admits when he's wrong and tries to learn from his mistakes. Mad respect to him for apologizing and even remaking the video.

[jasonfernandez]

I did intermittent fasting and did 30 minutes of cardio in the morning before my first meal and followed a 1600 calorie intake. Within 3 months I lost 80 pounds from 240 to 160

[itsjroses]

I mix in weight training and cardio into my five day workout plan.
Sunday: incline walk for 10 mins at a high speed/ running or cycling one mile
Tuesday: arms
Wednesday: full body weighted workout / or cycling
Thursday: legs
Saturday: stairmaster / 12-3-30
I also stay active on days I don't go the gym by walking a mile each day.
Feel free to try this it works great

[adamf]

Mad respect for apologizing. It takes a big man to admit they’re wrong. Keep up the good work!

[dinizen]

every workout training video:
60% math
30% talk
10% workout

[farhan]

For me, an effective method to make sure I'm increasing my difficulty in cardio is with a chest heart rate monitor. If I target the same average heart rate every workout, that means I'm going to be naturally increasing speed over time because my heart is just going to get stronger and I can tell immediately that I need to ramp up the speed when doing the same routine gives me a lower average heart rate. That means by body is well conditioned at that speed and I need to ramp it up.

[TorvestaRS]

We all make mistakes, you took this really well. Respect

[DrSwole]

I think it's really admirable that you took down that video and redid it to keep your messages straight. Not many fitness influencers have that level of internal standard and accountability 💯

[SucessPeriod]

One of the best most realistic relatable videos I’ve seen on the topic. Awesome job!

[cameroneshleman]

I'm 14. Have belly fat. Just finished my first week of waking up at 5:30, eating breakfast, letting it digest and go on a mile run and it feels great

[brendankeefe]

Dudes who make fitness videos can never ever put their hands down.

[AshleyChiLLi]

The greatest test of someone's character is how they're able to handle criticism/downfall. You didn't cower/wish your mistake away Jeremy. Instead, you rectified your mistake and came back even stronger. As a subscriber to both you and Dr. Greg, I can only commend you for taking the criticism so well.

[snowminkankles]

I was 280 and I ran atleast 2 miles a day for about a year and a half and I got down to 190...This guy is correct, if you just run you will be hungry all the time. You can deal with it and eventually your stomach won’t hurt anymore but if you’re eating less calories than you take in you are going to feel it. Don’t let your stomach rule your world and you’ll be alright.

[seannash]

This is the most eloquent way of describing what is actually required from cardio to assist fat loss. Fantastic.

[KishUnleashed]

I have so much respect for a Man who admits and corrects his mistakes Long-term subscriber here!