Why am I gaining weight in my stomach?

jokoh92

So on the scale I have dropped a whopping 8lbs in almost a month and though some of it is water weight, I have been steadily losing for the past year. July 1st, 2014: SW: 272lbs Now: CW: 220lbs

But when I look in the mirror, I still have a huge protruding belly and it seems to be getting bigger or rather wider. I have always had a bigger bottom stomach that I think most people would call a pooch.

Although my waist and sides are going in and my pooch has gone down considerably, its now a lot wider and droopy.

I am now incorporating more strength training, drinking a gallon of water a day, eating between 1200-1500cals/day and doing cardio. Two days out of the week I eat at 1800-1900 cals so that I don't feel deprived. But maybe I should just do everyday between 1200-1500cals, if not lower.

Because its still not budging and I am getting so frustrated. Should I give it another month or should I accept that it is never going away?

arditarose

Until you're closer to a healthy weight range, you're still going to be carrying extra fat. Sometimes as our measurements change, the belly can appear bigger even though you've lost weight and it is definitely not getting larger. If your natural waist, bust, hips and thigh measurements have gone down-the tummy can look bigger than it did before. But it's not. It's just taking awhile to catch up.

Are you set to lose 2 lbs a week I presume? Did MFP tell you to eat 1200 or high than that for this goal?

jokoh92

arditarose wrote: »

Until you're closer to a healthy weight range, you're still going to be carrying extra fat. Sometimes as our measurements change, the belly can appear bigger even though you've lost weight and it is definitely not getting larger. If your natural waist, bust, hips and thigh measurements have gone down-the tummy can look bigger than it did before. But it's not. It's just taking awhile to catch up.

Are you set to lose 2 lbs a week I presume? Did MFP tell you to eat 1200 or high than that for this goal?

No its actually 1400 for 1.5lbs a week and I am trying not to eat under or over it but some days I get so frustrated that I don't want to eat pass 1300 cals even on workout days. I am at a point where I just want the pooch to go away.

arditarose

jokoh92 wrote: »

arditarose wrote: »

Until you're closer to a healthy weight range, you're still going to be carrying extra fat. Sometimes as our measurements change, the belly can appear bigger even though you've lost weight and it is definitely not getting larger. If your natural waist, bust, hips and thigh measurements have gone down-the tummy can look bigger than it did before. But it's not. It's just taking awhile to catch up.

Are you set to lose 2 lbs a week I presume? Did MFP tell you to eat 1200 or high than that for this goal?

No its actually 1400 for 1.5lbs a week and I am trying not to eat under or over it but some days I get so frustrated that I don't want to eat pass 1300 cals even on workout days. I am at a point where I just want the pooch to go away.

You have to be patient. It's not going to disappear overnight, the same way you did not put on the weight overnight.

When you are calorie counting, it's okay to go above or below on certain days. At the end of the week you want to be in a deficit. You should just be careful that you are watching your weekly deficit. You should probably aim for AT LEAST 1400 daily net average.

aalbert_82

I'm apple shaped. I've lost 30 lbs and experienced the same thing early in my weigh loss. Like someone above said, it's not actually getting bigger, it just appears bigger, or more jiggly. My stomach was fat and almost firm. When I started to lose weight it looked worse for awhile, flabbier, even though it was smaller. Remember the measuring tape is your friend!

arditarose

aalbert_82 wrote: »

I'm apple shaped. I've lost 30 lbs and experienced the same thing early in my weigh loss. Like someone above said, it's not actually getting bigger, it just appears bigger, or more jiggly. My stomach was fat and almost firm. When I started to lose weight it looked worse for awhile, flabbier, even though it was smaller. Remember the measuring tape is your friend!

Yes! Take measurements.

I am pear shaped so I kind of have the opposite problem, but I DO experience the same thing with my fat getting loose and melty looking as I'm losing. Even now, losing at 130 lbs, it's still doing that. I just have to remember it's not the final product

Keep it up OP!

jokoh92

arditarose wrote: »

jokoh92 wrote: »

arditarose wrote: »

Until you're closer to a healthy weight range, you're still going to be carrying extra fat. Sometimes as our measurements change, the belly can appear bigger even though you've lost weight and it is definitely not getting larger. If your natural waist, bust, hips and thigh measurements have gone down-the tummy can look bigger than it did before. But it's not. It's just taking awhile to catch up.

Are you set to lose 2 lbs a week I presume? Did MFP tell you to eat 1200 or high than that for this goal?

No its actually 1400 for 1.5lbs a week and I am trying not to eat under or over it but some days I get so frustrated that I don't want to eat pass 1300 cals even on workout days. I am at a point where I just want the pooch to go away.

You have to be patient. It's not going to disappear overnight, the same way you did not put on the weight overnight.

When you are calorie counting, it's okay to go above or below on certain days. At the end of the week you want to be in a deficit. You should just be careful that you are watching your weekly deficit. You should probably aim for AT LEAST 1400 daily net average.

Thanks and you are absolutely right but its so frustrating at times. I know they say its harder to maintain than losing but some days it feels like there can be no worse process than losing the weight.

I will try to stay at MFP's recommended intake and just try to be patient.

jokoh92

aalbert_82 wrote: »

I'm apple shaped. I've lost 30 lbs and experienced the same thing early in my weigh loss. Like someone above said, it's not actually getting bigger, it just appears bigger, or more jiggly. My stomach was fat and almost firm. When I started to lose weight it looked worse for awhile, flabbier, even though it was smaller. Remember the measuring tape is your friend!

Congrats on the weight loss and yeah the mirror seems to be our worst enemy and if it wasn't for the fact that I have to make sure I look decent when I go to work everyday, I wouldn't even look into it until its toned up a bit. I will try to keep measuring myself in mind because it does help remind me how far I've come. Thanks.