Few things are as frustrating as committing to a workout routine and sticking with it, only to see the scale refuse to budge and your favorite pants not fitting.
But new research from the University of Michigan offers some encouraging news: Even if you don’t lose a lot of weight, regular exercise can still make your belly fat healthier.
The study, published in the journal Nature Metabolism in September 2024, compared two groups of adults with similar levels of obesity, but one group exercised four times a week for at least two years and the other did not.
Compared to the non-exercisers, those who were active had better belly fat composition, with more blood vessels and beneficial proteins, fewer inflammatory markers and less of a type of collagen linked to metabolic disorders such as Type 2 diabetes, according to the research.
The active group was also able to keep more of their fat stored under their skin as subcutaneous fat, keeping it away from vital organs like the liver, heart and pancreas, where it can lead to serious health problems.
Study author Jeffery Horowitz, a professor of movement science in the school of kinesiology at the University of Michigan, emphasizes that getting rid of excess belly fat through a healthy diet and exercise is still your best bet for longevity and good health.
But if you can’t seem to take off those extra pounds, then regular exercise seems to change the way fat behaves, making it less harmful and better for your overall health, Horowitz says.
“It’s somewhat counterintuitive because we think of fat as being the bad guy,” Horowitz says. He adds that although less fat is still better, you can still have healthier fat tissue.
The study builds on other research that shows that exercise reduces dangerous visceral fat in overweight and obese people, even when they don’t lose weight. Visceral fat, which lies deep within your abdomen and surrounds your organs, is linked to serious health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.
