Belly Fat

cindycrofford49

I am 72 and need to lose about 10 more pounds. Are there certain foods that are help for firming one's stomach. I lift weights twice a week and do pilates 3-4 times a week. I eat between 1000-1250 calories a day.
Also, what is the goal for carbs, fat, sugar and protein. I don't really eat sugar. That helps a lot.

AnnPT77

Firming one's stomach is about body fat levels and muscle mass. Generically, there aren't specific foods, but for maintaining/repairing/gaining muscle, it's important to get adequate protein, in a context of overall good nutrition. Posture is in the mix, too, when it comes to appearance of central fat - things like anterior pelvic tilt or rounded shoulders/chin-forward posture can emphasize what's there by pushing it forward and squishing it downward.

I'm a little younger than you, but not by much (female, 66), and also active. For people in our demographic, recent expert consensus is that protein timing may matter much more for us than for our younger friends. The recommendation is to not only get enough (true for all), but also to spread it through the day (for our older demographic). The recommended amounts vary based on body size or other factors, but generically they're suggesting 25-30g protein per meal, plus maybe some in snacks. That would be 300- 360+ calories of protein daily, so the MFP default 20% could be low as a goal for you, but it depends on your size.

This is an article about this specific subject, from a mainstream source:

https://www.jamda.com/article/S1525-8610(13)00326-5/fulltext#tbl4

For fats, I go with around 0.35-0.45g fat daily per pound of body weight.

These days, in maintenance, I'm targeting 100g minimum protein daily (it was a little lower when losing, like high 80s/low 90s grams most of the time), 50g minimum fats (prioritizing mono/polyunsaturated sources so I don't under-do them, and loosely considering Omega-3/6 balance). I use carbs to balance my calories, don't much worry about where they fall, other than trying to eat boatloads of varied, colorful veggies and fruits (5+ x 80 gram servings daily minimum, shoot for 10+ and usually get there).

I also don't eat a lot of added sugar, other than the micronutrient-rich blackstrap molasses in my daily oatmeal (yum), but do go over the MFP default sugar goal most days from the inherent sugars in my veggies, fruits, and no-sugar-added dairy foods (such as plain Greek yogurt, skim milk, etc.).

I usually exceed my protein minimum, partly because I find protein filling, partly because I'm vegetarian and think it's wise to err on the high side with more plant-source protein in the mix (though I do eat dairy foods daily). Fat is usually OK, but if I'm short on anything, that's the one I'm most likely to undereat if not paying attention (unlike a lot of people).

For reference, I'm 5'5", maintaining mid-120s pounds, working out 6 days most weeks (rowing and biking, stationary/indoor in Winter, boats and paved trail biking in Summer; I lift some, but not nearly enough for my own good).

Hope that helps!