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Visceral fat in men: what it is and how to shift it

Published 25 October 2026 · Matt O'Brien

Three different men talking in a brick-walled community sports hall after a workout: a slim young South Asian man with curly black hair and a short beard in a mustard hoodie holding a water bottle, a broad bald white man in his fifties with a grey goatee in a dark green t-shirt, and a large mixed-race man in his late thirties with long dreadlocks tied back and a moustache in a grey zip-up track top

Short answer: visceral fat is the deep fat stored around the organs inside your tummy, and the way to shift it is to lose weight overall through eating, activity and drinking changes. This applies to men of any age.

What is visceral fat?

Visceral fat is fat stored deep inside your tummy, around the internal organs. It is different from the fat you can pinch. As our guide to belly fat explains, fat around the middle comes in two kinds:

Visceral vs subcutaneous fat: why the difference matters

Weight alone does not show where fat sits. The NHS page on overweight and obesity notes that BMI cannot tell the difference between muscle and fat. Instead, it suggests a waist to height ratio to check if you are carrying too much fat around your tummy.

NICE guidance on central adiposity calls this fat around the middle central adiposity. It uses waist-to-height ratio alongside BMI as a practical estimate of it, and advises trying to keep your waist to less than half your height.

Why it matters

NICE lists the health risks of higher central adiposity as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease.

The NHS page on metabolic syndrome describes a group of health problems that put you at risk of type 2 diabetes or conditions affecting your heart or blood vessels. It says the condition may be linked to having too much fat around your tummy.

The NHS page on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease adds that you are more likely to get it if you are overweight, particularly with a lot of fat around your stomach and waist.

How to lose visceral fat

The NHS overweight and obesity page sets out the basics of losing weight:

The NHS says losing just 5 to 10% of your body weight can improve your health.

For activity, the NHS guidelines for adults aged 19 to 64 say aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity a week, plus strengthening activities on at least 2 days. The guidelines for adults aged 65 and over add balance and flexibility work. If you have not exercised for some time, or have a medical condition, speak to a GP first.

Track it with a tape

Measure your waist the same way each time, as our waist size guide explains, and watch the trend over months.

From Matt

"Choose measurements for a reason. A weight trend can be helpful to some people and unhelpful to others. Waist measurements and other checks may add context, but no single figure captures a person's health. You might also note what you can do: the stairs you used to avoid, the energy you have after work, whether you are joining in rather than watching."

A falling waist is worth noticing. So are the stairs.

Source: Matt O'Brien, Get Your Life Back (book draft, 2026). Matt is sharing his own view and is not a clinician.

When to get help

Measure waist-to-height ratio

Use our waist-to-height calculator, then visit our male obesity hub for a next step.

FAQ

What is visceral fat? Deep fat stored inside your tummy, around the internal organs.

What is the difference between visceral and subcutaneous fat? Subcutaneous fat sits under the skin. Visceral fat sits deeper, around the organs.

How do you lose visceral fat? By losing weight overall through eating, drinking and activity changes.

Sources

Last updated .