Now, give up this morning habit to get a flatter stomach.

Start writing...

It is not something that I have not told myself, and I am about to tell you the same thing. In order to accomplish what I set out to do, I had to alter my morning routine. I am with you if you have ever looked in the mirror and pulled at your abdominal fat. I used to do the same thing twice a day, first thing in the morning and again before bed.

I was doing all in my power to improve my diet, I was working out on a regular basis either at home or at the gym, and I was drinking water on a schedule as if it were a job. Despite this, my stomach did not appear to be becoming any flatter.

It was a very frustrating experience.

I take it you want your stomach to be flatter? Your inability to lose belly fat is probably due to a routine that you engage in first thing in the morning. Although it may appear to be innocent, this habit is actually preventing you from achieving your goal of decreasing belly fat.

What’s this “harmless” habit? — It’s taking hits of sugar for breakfast.

Every morning, if you begin your day with something sweet, such as sugary cereal, flavored yogurt, a large cup of fancy coffee, juice (unless you squeeze your own), or anything else sweet, you are giving your body the instruction to store fat in your abdominal region. And it’s cumulative.
Natural sugar in fruit is fine. It’s added sugar in foods and table sugar that gets you.

When I found out that sugar in the morning was a significant reason why my waist was increasing, I switched things up. I desired a flatter stomach.

I wait till after 12:00 noon.

You might be thinking like I was, asking myself, “How bad can a little sugar at breakfast time be? I love strawberry jam with biscuits!

But then I realized that breakfast meant to break the fast that we go into overnight. So not breaking it with sugar made sense.

I normally eat in an intermittent fasting window of 16:8, fasting from 6 p.m. to 10 a.m. the next morning. So, even when I break my overnight fast at 10:00, I won’t have anything sweet until the afternoon.

If you want to get rid of belly fat, taking sugar on an empty stomach is not a good idea.
Here’s why:
Insane blood sugar fluctuations: Eating sweets first thing is like hitting go on a rollercoaster you don’t want to be on. Your blood sugar jumps up fast, and your body responds to bring it back down by pumping additional insulin, creating a crash. But that’ll encourage you to seek more sweets to get your energy back up.
Makes you hungrier, faster: After that crash, guess what? You’re hungry again. And I get it. It happened to me. It’s happened to all of us. This is where you turn into the snack junkie, searching for more carbs or sugar to kill the hunger. But let’s be serious: who wants to spend their whole day fighting off cravings?
Keeps your body in fat-storage mode: When your insulin’s doing extra, your body accumulates additional fat. And where does it want to store fat first? Right around the middle. That’s the first place excess weight puts on me—my stomach!
Sneaky sugar bombs you don’t even think about
Of course, you may point to the obvious sugar-laced morning dishes you eat, like pancake syrup and donuts. But if you’re like most people, you might not be aware of hidden sugars you think are good.

Flavored yogurt: Even the ones that look all “natural” are usually laden with added sugars. Sometimes it’s even as much as a candy bar!
Smoothies & juices: Store-bought smoothies, especially the fruity ones, are just liquid sugar. And if you look at the label on your orange juice, you’ll discover there’s a ton of added sugar in it.
Cereals & bars: Even the “whole grain” ones are sugar bombs. Look at the ingredients, and you’ll see sugar hidden behind names like “agave” or “cane syrup.”
Coffee with creamers or flavor shots: If you’re adding flavored creamers or ordering a fancy latte, you’re drinking sugar. I used to put 3–4 hazelnut creamers in my coffee every morning.
The trick here is keeping breakfast low in sugar and high in the stuff that keeps you full, like protein, fiber, and healthy fats. I like that these won’t spike my blood sugar, and they’ll keep me from going on food binges before noon is even close.

So instead of sugary cereal, I’ll have eggs and maybe get a cup of cereal later in the day. Instead of flavored yogurt, I’ll do plain Greek yogurt with almonds. with instead of a granola bar, I consume overnight oats with chia seeds. If I want a smoothie, I’ll make it myself and do a green smoothie instead of one that’s only fruit.

It takes planning.
One thing that was a mistake for me was trying to eat better in the morning off the cuff. Usually, I just did not have the time. And if you are like I was, you may have some of the same issues with cutting out sweets in the morning.

So here are some tips:
Cut back slowly: If you generally drink your coffee sweet, consider lowering the sugar in half. Once you’re acclimated to that, cut back again until you’re drinking it without sugar.
Prioritize protein & fiber: You can’t go wrong with eggs, Greek yogurt, or a smoothie with protein powder. But I wouldn’t overuse the protein powder.
Prep ahead of time: If mornings are rushed for you, make your breakfast the night before. That way, you’re not tempted to grab a sweet “quick fix” on your way out the door or before it’s time for lunch.
The best thing you can do next is give it some time. Stick with it for a few weeks. After a little while, you should notice your energy is stable, you’re not crashing at 10 a.m., and cravings aren’t as powerful.

Getting a flatter stomach suddenly became easier after cutting the morning sugar habit.
Things are so much better for me in the mornings now. I get up, have a nutritious breakfast, and feel well instead of sick. I’m not starving an hour later, and I don’t have to fight the impulse to nibble every 10 minutes.

As the first weeks went by, I observed my body starting to grow adjusted to the new schedule. And then, I observed my tummy fat starting to go away. My body got a chance to burn stored fat more efficiently without being on the constant sugar rollercoaster.

The takeaway
Want a flatter stomach? Ditch the morning sugar rush. Starting the day with sweets is paradoxical to wanting to get rid of belly fat. Getting out of the habit of using it to break the night’s fast is a significant move that can make a big difference over time.

And you don’t have to go crazy with it, either. I tried it for a month to see how I’d feel. That may be the greatest thing for you too. And it’s not about being perfect every single day. It’s about making tiny, consistent choices to make a change.