Any change to fat distribution during maintenance?

ceiswyn

...I know, my vanity is clutching at straws here

I've lost 207 lb so far and will be moving into maintenance in another 17 or so. What I've noticed is that my body will do literally anything rather than burn fat below the waist; my upper body currently looks almost gaunt, with such protruding collarbones that I can hook my fingers behind them to keep my arms in place when I do crunches, while I can still grab handfuls of fat from my thighs! And to add insult to injury, I'm now fast going down cup sizes as the only fat my upper body still has to burn...

While I've always been a pear shape and clearly am always going to be, is there any chance that when I get to maintenance and stop losing weight, my body will redistribute its stores a bit? I quite like the collarbones, but I'm gonna miss the breasts!

TavistockToad

the joys of being pear shaped :laugh:

h1udd

The joys of fat loss !!!! ... I went for a couple of months with T-Rex arms and chicken legs and a fat belly until the weight finally came off the mud section and my arms look to be in proportion,

I am currently in maintenance and have been told that you can lose fat and build muscle in this state ... I dunno thoug, I just don’t believe it, despite giving it a go ... can’t help but believe if you want to loose the thighs then you have to stick to that deficit until the fat goes ... and probably lose more from the breasts ... but, when it’s gone you will be back in proportion, just smaller all over

andreaen

There are a LOT of things that affect fat distribution, so it can definitely happen, but I wouldn't count on it. The best thing you could do would probably be to build some muscle to create the illusion of the shape you desire and then lose some more fat to lean out those legs as well. Won't solve the booblies problem though

mitch16

Just because you go into maintenance doesn't mean you will stop losing fat/gaining muscle. If you aren't already, consider adding weightlifting to your workout (even at maintenance) and continuing any cardio work you're doing (or even add some more there, too).

MessyApron

andreaen wrote: »

There are a LOT of things that affect fat distribution, so it can definitely happen, but I wouldn't count on it. The best thing you could do would probably be to build some muscle to create the illusion of the shape you desire and then lose some more fat to lean out those legs as well. Won't solve the booblies problem though

Building upper body muscle to help balance out her proportions would actually physically change her shape, nothing illusory about it. And while I agree with you that building muscle won't fill a bra cup, at the same time, a well-rounded pectoral muscle can really be a boost for the silhouette.

@ceiswyn, I want to say first and foremost, CONGRATULATIONS! 207 lbs. down and less than 20 lbs. left until your goal? That's amazing and inspiring. YOU are amazing and inspiring.

You've probably gathered this from what I've said above, but I highly recommend weight lifting with the goal of filling out your upper body with lean mass to help get you closer to the shape you're looking for. As for spot reducing fat, that's hecking tough, and there's no one right answer because everybody's body is different. However, I recommend you read a few articles about body recomposition to see if it's something that might work for you. Body recomposition is all about losing fat while gaining muscle, and ideally staying the same bodyweight.

Hope this helps, and good luck!

ceiswyn

I’m currently doing strength work at least twice a week, but no heavy lifting; I have weak arms/shoulders that get injured easily, so I thought it best to avoid much in the way of weights until I’m out of deficit and can actually build muscle there.

I fear for my boobs, though!

LivingtheLeanDream

Alot of our shape is genetic, those last 17lbs could make a huge difference. Its usually the last pounds that help us look more leaner.

RadishEater

ceiswyn wrote: »

I’m currently doing strength work at least twice a week, but no heavy lifting; I have weak arms/shoulders that get injured easily, so I thought it best to avoid much in the way of weights until I’m out of deficit and can actually build muscle there.

I fear for my boobs, though!

Unfortunately boobs consist of a large amount of fat with some tissue/glands etc. thrown in there too. I feel your fear. I was quite small chested to begin with and now I am even smaller. It is fun to throw out pants that are too big not so much for throwing out pretty bras.

bfanny

and here I am, stick arms and legs with a 3-4 months pregnant looking like abdomen that just won’t go...I swear the more and heavier I lift the more skinny my limbs get!!!

spiriteagle99

I'm just like you: bony upper body (you can count my ribs) with big thighs and calves. I'm a runner, so my legs are strong, but they will never be thin. I should have done more weight training, but a bad shoulder precludes a lot of upper body work. (I screwed up my rotator doing a push-up challenge.)

briscogun

Great job on the weight loss! Wow!

To answer your question, no. Fat does not redistribute at any point in the process. It's either where it is or its gone. It sounds like you are asking about recomposition, changing your body composition slowly over time. There's a great thread here:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

The strength training will really help with that. Great thing about it is that you can reach your goal weight and then kinda shift your goals/focus to using that new body in new ways to reach new goals!

ceiswyn

Thanks for all the responses! To clarify, I am aware of recomposition, I plan to do it, and it is definitely not what I am asking about. Muscle gain is not gonna fill out my bra cups again - in fact, recomp will if anything make the problem worse!

However, I was mildly curious as to whether fat always goes back on in exactly the reverse of the order it came off, as anecdotal evidence from friends suggests it might not (for example, the friend who always gained weight on her bust but lost it from her hips; after several rounds of weight gain and dieting she had to have reduction surgery).

Sounds like I shouldn’t hold out much hope, though. Time to buy new underwear!

sijomial

ceiswyn wrote: »

Thanks for all the responses! To clarify, I am aware of recomposition, I plan to do it, and it is definitely not what I am asking about. Muscle gain is not gonna fill out my bra cups again - in fact, recomp will if anything make the problem worse!

However, I was mildly curious as to whether fat always goes back on in exactly the reverse of the order it came off, as anecdotal evidence from friends suggests it might not (for example, the friend who always gained weight on her bust but lost it from her hips; after several rounds of weight gain and dieting she had to have reduction surgery).

Sounds like I shouldn’t hold out much hope, though. Time to buy new underwear!

Ignoring musculature changes.....

I've been maintaining for years but yes I do notice that when I regain weight (I tend to be heavier in winter and lighter in summer for cycling...) the fat I lost from my legs and arms during my main period of weight loss doesn't seem to go back there. It seems to prefer to settle around my middle while my limbs remain lean.

Faces though often seem to go through a fat loss phase but then fill out again at maintenance. I had people say I looked better in the face (better is extremely relative!!) after regaining some weight - except I hadn't regained any. Odd and no explanation for it.

The 17lbs you have to go may make a huge difference, as you get closer to goal each pound make proportionally a bigger difference.

As for your empty bra cups, building pecs can add some volume under your breasts.

wellthenwhat

I guess I am the opposite. I always love to see that my boobs are shrinking, they are so uncomfortable larger, even though I have never had particularly large boobs.

nowine4me

I’m the same too. Down #99 and still have grab-able fat on my thighs/belly while my upper body is getting pretty bony. I’m sending you a FR. Congrats on your loss - that’s amazing. Not sure if you saw the post of the woman that got a full body lift, she looks freaking awesome. Short of that, I think we need to be proud of our accomplishments. Personally, I’m at the very bottom of BMI and not willing to continue to see what I might look like at 115 (I’m 5-7, 120#), it’s just not worth it.

RadishEater

Why would someone woo @nowine4me response?

bfanny

kballsocc wrote: »

Why would someone woo @nowine4me response?

Because of the “no wine” part? Lol

RadishEater

Oh well I can understand that.

MegaMooseEsq

kballsocc wrote: »

Oh well I can understand that.

Also, there's a pretty strong "no plastic surgery" contingent around these parts. /shrug

RadishEater

@MegaMooseEsq oh yep I misread that, in my head I read she did full body lifting... like an intense lifting program for the whole body and that helped her tone up and look great.

lorrpb

17 lbs is a lot of fat and it will make a huge difference, so just keep it going!

ceiswyn

lorrpb wrote: »

17 lbs is a lot of fat and it will make a huge difference, so just keep it going!

That’s what I’m worried about! If it all comes off my chest I will be the SADDEST PANDA.

Orphia

Hi! I started a similar topic 2 years ago which made it to 3 pages.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10371789/does-your-remaining-fat-redistribute-after-losing-weight-or-is-that-a-myth/p1

When I started the thread, I had just hit maintenance. I was a bit gaunt and felt a bit saggy at the time and was worried about my "paunch".

I'm now 51, and since then, and recently, I've been getting compliments on how nice my skin looks. I also feel happier with my shape, and have no fatty areas, just a bit of thicker skin above my navel which is my genetic "fattest spot". It's the only really wrinkly bit and that's mainly when I tense my stomach muscles a lot.

My boobs are tiny, but I'm happy like that. The skin there also looks better after 2 years.

I agree that your last 17 lbs should make a big difference. You should feel more in proportion after that. Keep up the awesome work!