Losing weight but belly flab is still there (especially sitting down)

Fatvaporizer

I've been on a weight loss program for a while now and have lost around 50 pounds, but I'm still about 10 pounds away from my goal weight. The thing is, I've lost so much fat on my face and elsewhere but the belly fat remains, and it shows especially when sitting down, rolls of belly fat that I could just squeeze.

How do I lose this 'stubborn belly fat?' Why is it still there despite having lost so many pounds?

PS: Someone said 'don't be in a caloric deficit, just maintain to lose that belly fat.' But I just don't believe them because maintaining when you're not even at your goal weight, how would you get to the goal weight if you're not burning enough calories right? Could someone dispute this. Thanks.

middlehaitch

With 10lbs to go to your goal weight keep losing at .5 lbs a week. The last 10-20 are slow to go.
Whoever told you to maintain while not at goal weight was wrong. Maintain means you are not losing any more.

A good thing to start now, if you are not already is to start resistance or strength training- bodyweight, dumbbells, or barbell, and continue doing it one way you are in maintenance.
This is called a recomp and it will help you sculpt your body. (Edit- a recomp may have been what your friend in your ps was talking about)
Fair warning- For some of us who carry most of our weight in the abdomen it is extremely hard to get rid of all the rolls. I have been maintaining a few years now and although my rolls are small, I still have them. I decided I didn't have the dedication to exercise (lift) enough to get and maintain that flat stomach.

Lift weights get to your goal and decide where you want to go from there.

Cheers, h.

jemhh

Stomach fat is commonly the last to go. In addition, it is extremely common for people to underestimate how much fat they will need to lose to look lean. In other words, you may hit your goal weight and still have too much fat for your liking, even if you previously looked good at that weight. Body composition is not static. You may be fatter at X lbs now than you were at X lbs five years ago.

grinning_chick

You aren't confusing perfectly normal rolls of skin and subcutaneous tissue that overlay your abdominal muscles and form because you are bending your torso ("belly") when you sit because said tissue has to go somewhere in order to do so with bonafide fat, are you? That seems to be a fairly common thing for some bizarre reason so I have to ask.

NORMAL:




NORMAL, TOO:




ALSO NORMAL:





(Sources: Google Image grabs)

rybo

Everyone has rolls when they sit. Be patient

DebLaBounty

Congratulations on your weight loss! Maybe I'm too lax, but I'm just happy that all my rolls are smaller. When I sit, there are my belly rolls, but at least I'm more comfortable in my pants than I used to be. Just a different perspective, I guess.

gothchiq

In 10 more lb that may be loose skin there. That's what happened to me.

fiddletime

When I got to goal weight and had a little belly fat I decided that I looked great with clothes so would just live with it.....

CMNVA

It depends a lot on how heavy you were and how old you are. If you have been heavy for a long time and you are older, you can also be dealing with loose skin/sagging skin that doesn't retract easily after the weight is gone. Not sure when that starts for each person, but I'm in my 50s now and I think I noticed it in my late 40s. When I lost weight, I couldn't quite get rid of the rolls, but it was just really skin at that point.

LAMCDylan

Maybe you should focus on accepting the rolls. Maybe you should try to get over that shame that we have in this society about weight. That is the root of the problem. Underneath all this BS that people (and ourselves) judge about us is our inherent worth. Focus on that. Your worth does not change every time your weight changes (although many people do think this). You are perfectly fine just the way you are, AND you have a few belly rolls.

Alatariel75

http://www.health.com/beauty/anna-victoria-shows-even-fitness-models-have-stomach-rolls

skymningen

Embrace them. As people correctly showed, they are there for very lean and athletic people too. They give us mobility. The ability to stretch and breath, eat some more on our wedding day (or whatever important party with lots of food), for the females have baby bumps, turn your upper body, "contort" at a yoga class, stretch, jump, lift, laugh and all that without your skin and other abdominal tissue hurting and breaking. Those "flabs" are awesome.

LifeinReboot2018

I have lost 300 pounds and the roll will most likely stay unless I have skin surgery. The idea of eating more calories to loose weight seemed strange to me at first. I refused to go over 950 a day and was burning anywhere from 1000 to 2000 calories a day. I finally started eating 1100-1250 a day and burning the same amount. I have developed more lean muscle and lost a dress size in 2 weeks. I feel better and will continue to adjust until I find the point at which lean muscle is fed and weight loss is maintained. I hope that helps and you odd as it sounds eat enough to maintain the loss and build muscle. Keep in mind your skin is probably stretched and need a little tone-up. Work on core strength and ab work. Good luck and congratulations on your great loss.

TavistockToad

pookietoes296 wrote: »

I have lost 300 pounds and the roll will most likely stay unless I have skin surgery. The idea of eating more calories to loose weight seemed strange to me at first. I refused to go over 950 a day and was burning anywhere from 1000 to 2000 calories a day. I finally started eating 1100-1250 a day and burning the same amount. I have developed more lean muscle and lost a dress size in 2 weeks. I feel better and will continue to adjust until I find the point at which lean muscle is fed and weight loss is maintained. I hope that helps and you odd as it sounds eat enough to maintain the loss and build muscle. Keep in mind your skin is probably stretched and need a little tone-up. Work on core strength and ab work. Good luck and congratulations on your great loss.

Sorry but you havent gained muscle eating net 0 calories.

Which is incredibly unhealthy by the way, you really should stop starving yourself before you do any lasting damage

capaul42

pookietoes296 wrote: »

I have lost 300 pounds and the roll will most likely stay unless I have skin surgery. The idea of eating more calories to loose weight seemed strange to me at first. I refused to go over 950 a day and was burning anywhere from 1000 to 2000 calories a day. I finally started eating 1100-1250 a day and burning the same amount. I have developed more lean muscle and lost a dress size in 2 weeks. I feel better and will continue to adjust until I find the point at which lean muscle is fed and weight loss is maintained. I hope that helps and you odd as it sounds eat enough to maintain the loss and build muscle. Keep in mind your skin is probably stretched and need a little tone-up. Work on core strength and ab work. Good luck and congratulations on your great loss.

Wow that's extremely unhealthy.

Fatvaporizer

pookietoes296 wrote: »

I have lost 300 pounds and the roll will most likely stay unless I have skin surgery. The idea of eating more calories to loose weight seemed strange to me at first. I refused to go over 950 a day and was burning anywhere from 1000 to 2000 calories a day. I finally started eating 1100-1250 a day and burning the same amount. I have developed more lean muscle and lost a dress size in 2 weeks. I feel better and will continue to adjust until I find the point at which lean muscle is fed and weight loss is maintained. I hope that helps and you odd as it sounds eat enough to maintain the loss and build muscle. Keep in mind your skin is probably stretched and need a little tone-up. Work on core strength and ab work. Good luck and congratulations on your great loss.

Maybe he means he was burning 2000 calories a day as in his bmr + exercise, not all from exercise. So if his intake was 1250, then he'd have about a 750 calorie deficit which doesn't sound bad.