Am I on the right path to losing my belly fat?? Need advice!

ashnicbro

Hi everyone!

I've been using MFP for about two years on and off but I've never used the forum so here I am! I figured this would be a great place to go for advice and support. So...

My goal is to lose all of my belly fat within the next 30 days for a family trip to Virginia Beach and then keep it off and stay healthy after that. As you can see below, I don't have a large amount of fat to lose. Starting tomorrow, I plan to up my cardio to 5-6 days a week for 45 minutes walking on a treadmill on an incline and then do ab exercises (planks and stuff) on top of weights. MFP has me at 1260 calories so my diet has been:

Breakfast: Egg white and mozzarella cheese omelette
Snack: Handful of cashews and a tablespoon of semi sweet chocolate chips (so good!)
Lunch: Can of progresso soup or chicken salad.
Snack: Same as above..if I have time to eat it
Dinner: Chicken, fish or steak, corn and mashed potatoes...or shrimp.

I KNOW..I REPEAT..I KNOW YOU CANNOT SPOT REDUCE!! I know you must lose fat all over. Considering my routine, am I on the right path to losing this belly in 30 days? I don't even know how many pounds I need to shed to get rid of it so I'll just say 5. Is my diet okay? Is the workout enough?

HELP!

kittyr77

where is the belly fat??
personally i think you look phenomenal!

DeterminedFee201426

i agree she looks very nice she does have a little belly fat but with so little it wont take very long to lose it

DeterminedFee201426

my own judgeing in about 3 month that will go away but you might want to add more fruits and veggies to your diet :0

I_love_to_ride

You you on the right track. You look fabulous in your pictures. Do not worry about a little bit of belly fat. Healthy eating and exercise will take it off.

12by311

OP, Please…PLEASE look at this thread:


http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1281688-from-skinny-fat-to-fit-and-muscular


Edit: I just want to add, I actually think you should eat more and lift and ditch the cardio (at least cardio as your plan for the majority of your exercising).

SLLRunner

Actually, you look awesome. You can't change your basic shape.

30 days to try and beat any body fat is unrealistic.

Have you thought of heavy weight lifting?

ashnicbro

Awww thank you all for the compliments! Every time I tell someone I am trying to lose my belly fat or when I turn down fatty foods, everyone looks at me like i'm crazy and say "Lose what?!?" lol. Trust me..the fat is there! lol

I will definitely try to add fruits to my diet. I love apples, don't know why I don't eat them.

gail70zur

If I had a belly that looked like that, I would not be worried at all about sitting on the beach. In fact if I sit on the beach they would send for the 'save the whale society' and start hosing me down....go and enjoy your holiday, its not a time be obsessing Go and have fun

cadaver0usb0nes

OP, Please…PLEASE look at this thread:


http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1281688-from-skinny-fat-to-fit-and-muscular


Edit: I just want to add, I actually think you should eat more and lift and ditch the cardio (at least cardio as your plan for the majority of your exercising).

THIS!

ashnicbro

Actually, you look awesome. You can't change your basic shape.

30 days to try and beat any body fat is unrealistic.

Have you thought of heavy weight lifting?

Honestly, no. Why? I am terrified that I am going to get too muscular. I am actually fine with every other part of my body EXCEPT my stomach. I am naturally skinny. Runs in the family.,

ashnicbro

OP, Please…PLEASE look at this thread:


http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1281688-from-skinny-fat-to-fit-and-muscular


Edit: I just want to add, I actually think you should eat more and lift and ditch the cardio (at least cardio as your plan for the majority of your exercising).

She looks great! I'm just scared that I'm gonna look crazy with a bunch of muscles when I'm naturally skinny. That just my body shape. I will definitely research this though.Thanks!

SLLRunner

Actually, you look awesome. You can't change your basic shape.

30 days to try and beat any body fat is unrealistic.

Have you thought of heavy weight lifting?

Honestly, no. Why? I am terrified that I am going to get too muscular. I am actually fine with every other part of my body EXCEPT my stomach. I am naturally skinny. Runs in the family.,

Fair enough. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

ETA: but weight lifting does wonders. I know because I do weight lifting and have seen wonderful changes in my body.

ninerbuff

Takes years to get muscular, so lifting weights for 30 days ain't going to do it.

Switch your steady state cardio to HIIT cardio. Train harder and more intense in a shorter time. This increases RMR which is what you need to burn body fat. Why? Because the majority of body fat is burned AT REST.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

mslovecats

Hi!
You look great. To lose belly fat, you should simply cut out all dairy products. Don't eat canned soup or any processed food. Eat more vegetables and fruit.
As for exercise, do the hula hoop exercise. Or just simply imagine it is there, try to suck in your belly and squeeze your belly muscles for the entire duration of an exercise. Do at least 100 in each direction to get rid of the waist fat. That way you won't have "scary" muscles. Also, whenever you can, suck in your belly and hold for as long as you can.
Good luck!

JenTracey

I agree, no processed food,no dairy except greek yogurt, fresh low gycemic vegetables. Dr. Oz has a 14 day jump start that is wonderful. I lost 10 1bs in 2 weeks mostly from my belly. Keep it up

katkins73

Have you heard of Jillian Michael's 30 day Shred? It is perfect timing and will get you tightened up all over. It is only 20 mins a day and is a mixture of strength, cardio and abs. Do a search on the exercise board and see what wonderful results people get! I am on day 3 of level 2 but I didn't do level one properly, just 7 sessions over 2 weeks but my mid-section is looking so much better already. As the others have said you look wonderful already but this dvd will really tone everything up quickly

ashnicbro

Have you heard of Jillian Michael's 30 day Shred? It is perfect timing and will get you tightened up all over. It is only 20 mins a day and is a mixture of strength, cardio and abs. Do a search on the exercise board and see what wonderful results people get! I am on day 3 of level 2 but I didn't do level one properly, just 7 sessions over 2 weeks but my mid-section is looking so much better already. As the others have said you look wonderful already but this dvd will really tone everything up quickly

Ive heard about it but ive never seen anyones results from it. I will check it out! Thanks!

SLLRunner

To lose belly fat, you should simply cut out all dairy products. Don't eat canned soup or any processed food. Eat more vegetables and fruit.
As for exercise, do the hula hoop exercise. Or just simply imagine it is there, try to suck in your belly and squeeze your belly muscles for the entire duration of an exercise. Do at least 100 in each direction to get rid of the waist fat. That way you won't have "scary" muscles. Also, whenever you can, suck in your belly and hold for as long as you can.

I agree, no processed food,no dairy except greek yogurt, fresh low gycemic vegetables. Dr. Oz has a 14 day jump start that is wonderful. I lost 10 1bs in 2 weeks mostly from my belly.

No. Just no.

Losing fat anywhere on your body has nothing to do with the types of food you eat. The only times you should cut out any food is (1) you don't like said food, (2) said food makes you feel ill, (3) you simply don't feel like eating said food, or (4) your doctor has a medical reason for having you cut said food from your diet.

Also, while hula hoops are certainly fun, they are no the magic exercise to reducing belly fat.

Fat is lost through a calorie deficit.

12by311

OP, Please…PLEASE look at this thread:


http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1281688-from-skinny-fat-to-fit-and-muscular


Edit: I just want to add, I actually think you should eat more and lift and ditch the cardio (at least cardio as your plan for the majority of your exercising).

She looks great! I'm just scared that I'm gonna look crazy with a bunch of muscles when I'm naturally skinny. That just my body shape. I will definitely research this though.Thanks!

Holy cow, I've never actually had a female tell me they were worried about getting "a bunch of muscles". I've read about it happening but never gotten that response.

OP, I'm not being rude but PLEASE understand that gaining muscle is NOT an easy task. It's a major commitment and crazy hard work. People don't accidentally build muscle for the most part.

Take a look at the gaining weight board and the people trying to gain muscle.

Look at the success stories about, females especially, bulking for muscle gains.

Another thread to check out:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1096001-halp-heavy-lifting-made-me-supah-bulky

It's fine if skinny is your goal instead of fit, but again building muscle isn't by chance.

12by311

Hi!
You look great. To lose belly fat, you should simply cut out all dairy products. Don't eat canned soup or any processed food. Eat more vegetables and fruit.
As for exercise, do the hula hoop exercise. Or just simply imagine it is there, try to suck in your belly and squeeze your belly muscles for the entire duration of an exercise. Do at least 100 in each direction to get rid of the waist fat. That way you won't have "scary" muscles. Also, whenever you can, suck in your belly and hold for as long as you can.
Good luck!

Holy guacamole.

PJPrimrose

Lanky "naturally skinny" chicks don't bulk without roids or an intense 4 hr-a-day training schedule. It's not likely you'll ever bulk and get all crazy muscley.

I started lifting fairly recently. I can deadlift 90lbs, bench press 75, and squat 75. It's not heavy but not light either. I have absolutely no signs of bulking AT ALL. I do intense cardio (kick boxing competitively) three times a week. I lift as heavy as I can, with good form, twice a week. I rest the other 2 days. I maintain my weight at 145 to maintain my weight class in k.boxing.

Aaron_K123

Someone being worried about getting super bulky and muscular from casual lifting over a period of a month to a year is like a sumo wrestler being afraid that eating some broccoli will cause them to lose 300 pounds of fat.

Both are huge underestimates of the time and discipline commitment that muscle building or fat loss takes. Honestly it is much harder to put on muscle than to lose weight fat and no one does it by accident especially women.

Lifting heavy, especially deadlifts, is how you get that fit flat toned stomach look. Dieting can only take you so far.

_KitKat_

OP, you do really need to check the ladies that lift threads...you will be amazed on the bodies these women have. Also like most said muscle is very hard to put on but for a woman large muscles are near impossible, we do not have anywhere near enough testosterone. Lifting will give you a butt (squats, dead lifts) and make it so parts that shouldn't jiggled don't. You can retain a soft look by making sure to not drop your body fat % too low (not an easy feat getting it very low).

LKArgh

You do not need to restrict calories, or you are on your path to anorexia based on how you look now. If you want a more toned belly, add some strength training in your exercise routine and do not change what you eat. There is barely any fat there. And do not expect to build a 6 pack in a few weeks, it does not work this way.

mslovecats

Ok, I'm BACK to defend my hula hoop exercise. I was just trying to make a long story short, but here it is.
I was 44 kg, and I needed to gain weight, my goal was 50 something, not more. I began to eat dairy (ORGANIC ONLY!), although I rarely had it before and don't like it, because I read a lot of amazing things about it, like how it is high in calcium and protein. I don't have scales at home, since I never had a weight issue, so one day I went to the swimming pool, where they had scales and nearly fainted as I saw number 63 kg. Ok, I overdid it, so I continued to consume dairy (yoghurt mainly) but started to restrict calories to 2000. A month later I was still 63, it's like time stopped. I continued to eat dairy and restricted to 1500, finally 2 month later I was down to 61. But then, something else came up - a rather large LUMP in my BREAST!!!!!!! In panic, I rushed to my doc, and he told me to stop eating dairy. As I stopped eating it, the lump began to decrease in size, and a year later it went away, and with it the extra weight. I was 52 kg at last. THIS IS WHY I now recommend a dairy free lifestyle by default. Sorry, if you don't agree with me. But now you understand what caused such hatred towards dairy in me.
Then I discovered coconuts... Yes, binging on them was not the best idea - I was eating 2 whole coconuts a day, plus other stuff, and went slowly up to 59 kg. Slowly.
OK, but back to when I was eating dairy on a daily basis. That's when I for the first time was properly introduced to this disgusting thing called belly fat!!!!!!!! I did not invent the HULA HOOP exercise - I saw it on youtube in several videos made by fitness coaches. I would sometimes change my daily routine, when I noticed that without the hula hoop exercise for a week, my tummy and the entire waist in general, would grow belly fat again. So, I have looked, but was unable to discover exercises that have a similar slimming effect on buttocks and arms, but hula hoop exercise stayed in my routine. And now, I am too lazy for any exercise, but one - the hula hoop exercise. If I don't do it, I get belly fat after one week. And it only takes 5 mins a day, but you gotta squeeze your belly and side muscles really hard, and you can even bend down as you draw a circle with your hips. I do them fast, cuz naturally i want to get on with life. But the slower you do them, the better the result will be. JUST TRY them, and if you don't see improvement after 1 week, then just tell everyone you gained belly fat on purpose to learn to belly dance
Calorie restricting def doesn't work. Like when i log all my food, I can see that I am not even eating as much as I am used to, so it turned out I usually eat at least 2200 a day, e.g. yesterday and the week before. But then, again, my diet consists of almost only vegetables, and fruit - but I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, I am just a vegetarian who doesn't like grains (let alone lentils, yuck). Next time I go to the swimming pool, I will weigh myself and update, because I can tell I am already losing grams again, and I am def not 59 right now.
You are gorgeous! Keep up the good work! And good luck with losing your belly fat!

SLLRunner

mslovecats,

Thanks for sharing that. However, the reason you lost weight is because you created a calorie deficit, which included the hula hoop exercise; eliminating dairy and doing the hula hoop itself were not the causes of your weight loss. In other words, you can eat any type of diet you want and do any exercise you want, or even choose not to exercise, but as long as you eat in a calorie deficit you will lose weight.

As for getting belly fat after not doing the hula hoop for one week, it really doesn't work that way.

Eating "healthy" has nothing to do with it, because you can eat only healthy food and gain weight if you eat more calories than you burn. I know, I've done before with NO diary, by the way. I had plenty of bettly fat then.

As for dairy, I am lactose intolerant but I can have certain brands of yogurt, which I do eat plenty of. I don't have a lot of belly fat, but then again I lost 42 pounds eating at a deficit and do weight lifting and run.

Calorie restriction is the ONLY thing that creates weight loss, but there are many different ways to get that deficit.

As for cutting out milk due to a breast lump-I'm glad it was nothing serious.

mslovecats

mslovecats,

Thanks for sharing that. However, the reason you lost weight is because you created a calorie deficit, which included the hula hoop exercise; eliminating dairy and doing the hula hoop itself were not the causes of your weight loss. In other words, you can eat any type of diet you want and do any exercise you want, or even choose not to exercise, but as long as you eat in a calorie deficit you will lose weight.

As for getting belly fat after not doing the hula hoop for one week, it really doesn't work that way.

Eating "healthy" has nothing to do with it, because you can eat only healthy food and gain weight if you eat more calories than you burn. I know, I've done before with NO diary, by the way. I had plenty of bettly fat then.

As for dairy, I am lactose intolerant but I can have certain brands of yogurt, which I do eat plenty of. I don't have a lot of belly fat, but then again I lost 42 pounds eating at a deficit and do weight lifting and run.

Calorie restriction is the ONLY thing that creates weight loss, but there are many different ways to get that deficit.

As for cutting out milk due to a breast lump-I'm glad it was nothing serious.

I am new to this, cuz I am now obsessed with trying to understand food after watching scary documentaries like Food Inc. I swear to you that I do NOT have a calorie deficit. I eat more than 2000 a day. In fact, I eat about 2200 calories a day. How can you explain that? I never even counted calories until now, when I started logging all my food, I was shocked at how many calories I consume (e.g. more than 3000 today), and my carbs are always in red font and at least three times above the daily recommended amount. My fat is usually the exact allowed amount, but my protein is often kinda low, cuz i am a vegetarian. And by the way, I often eat all evening long and if my bladder wakes me up I always grab some fruit on my way to bed. I truly believe it is the type of food that you eat that makes you gain or lose. Cuz otherwise it doesn't make any sense, at least not to me. E.g., high in calories flaxseed gives me diarrhoea, and it cleanses me like a laxative would. Low-fat, low-cal, rather low-carb lactose-free yoghurt gives me terrible constipation, as if I had swallowed concrete.
If it's not a secret, how many calories a day do you eat? And how much do you weigh?

Anyhow, I will stick to doing what works for me -my hula hoop exercise. And in case you think I don't know a thing about sports and muscles - I used to train as a professional boxer a long time ago. Almost every day I had horrible workouts - so bad that at times I could hear my heartbeat despite the loud music. All I got was muscle, and of course what I wanted out of it in the first place - self-defence techniques. I first noticed extra muscle on the front part of my upper legs after only 1 month, then the calves grew larger in another month, at the same time my arm muscles grew, after 6 months I noticed my *kitten* became somewhat muscular and male-like. To avoid getting a six pack, I started to cheat during classes. Maybe to a body-builder this would not seem like too much of a change, to me it was very noticeable. All those workouts and weight lifting kinda ruined my good "body" looks. But I continued for another year, cuz i liked it too much. Gradually, I learnt that most workouts really don't make you slimmer. The slow "tension" exercises do.
btw, the lump was quite serious. they wanted to perform a biopsy, but i freaked out and did not let them. it was painful and quite large. so, if you're a guy, maybe you can keep eating dairy. but girls need to think twice.
Cheers

darkhunters1983

Jillian Michaels 30 day shred will get rid of that

12by311

mslovecats,

Thanks for sharing that. However, the reason you lost weight is because you created a calorie deficit, which included the hula hoop exercise; eliminating dairy and doing the hula hoop itself were not the causes of your weight loss. In other words, you can eat any type of diet you want and do any exercise you want, or even choose not to exercise, but as long as you eat in a calorie deficit you will lose weight.

As for getting belly fat after not doing the hula hoop for one week, it really doesn't work that way.

Eating "healthy" has nothing to do with it, because you can eat only healthy food and gain weight if you eat more calories than you burn. I know, I've done before with NO diary, by the way. I had plenty of bettly fat then.

As for dairy, I am lactose intolerant but I can have certain brands of yogurt, which I do eat plenty of. I don't have a lot of belly fat, but then again I lost 42 pounds eating at a deficit and do weight lifting and run.

Calorie restriction is the ONLY thing that creates weight loss, but there are many different ways to get that deficit.

As for cutting out milk due to a breast lump-I'm glad it was nothing serious.

I am new to this, cuz I am now obsessed with trying to understand food after watching scary documentaries like Food Inc. I swear to you that I do NOT have a calorie deficit. I eat more than 2000 a day. In fact, I eat about 2200 calories a day. How can you explain that? I never even counted calories until now, when I started logging all my food, I was shocked at how many calories I consume (e.g. more than 3000 today), and my carbs are always in red font and at least three times above the daily recommended amount. My fat is usually the exact allowed amount, but my protein is often kinda low, cuz i am a vegetarian. And by the way, I often eat all evening long and if my bladder wakes me up I always grab some fruit on my way to bed. I truly believe it is the type of food that you eat that makes you gain or lose. Cuz otherwise it doesn't make any sense, at least not to me. E.g., high in calories flaxseed gives me diarrhoea, and it cleanses me like a laxative would. Low-fat, low-cal, rather low-carb lactose-free yoghurt gives me terrible constipation, as if I had swallowed concrete.
If it's not a secret, how many calories a day do you eat? And how much do you weigh?

Anyhow, I will stick to doing what works for me -my hula hoop exercise. And in case you think I don't know a thing about sports and muscles - I used to train as a professional boxer a long time ago. Almost every day I had horrible workouts - so bad that at times I could hear my heartbeat despite the loud music. All I got was muscle, and of course what I wanted out of it in the first place - self-defence techniques. I first noticed extra muscle on the front part of my upper legs after only 1 month, then the calves grew larger in another month, at the same time my arm muscles grew, after 6 months I noticed my *kitten* became somewhat muscular and male-like. To avoid getting a six pack, I started to cheat during classes. Maybe to a body-builder this would not seem like too much of a change, to me it was very noticeable. All those workouts and weight lifting kinda ruined my good "body" looks. But I continued for another year, cuz i liked it too much. Gradually, I learnt that most workouts really don't make you slimmer. The slow "tension" exercises do.
btw, the lump was quite serious. they wanted to perform a biopsy, but i freaked out and did not let them. it was painful and quite large. so, if you're a guy, maybe you can keep eating dairy. but girls need to think twice.
Cheers

not sure if srs

SLLRunner

mslovecats,

Thanks for sharing that. However, the reason you lost weight is because you created a calorie deficit, which included the hula hoop exercise; eliminating dairy and doing the hula hoop itself were not the causes of your weight loss. In other words, you can eat any type of diet you want and do any exercise you want, or even choose not to exercise, but as long as you eat in a calorie deficit you will lose weight.

As for getting belly fat after not doing the hula hoop for one week, it really doesn't work that way.

Eating "healthy" has nothing to do with it, because you can eat only healthy food and gain weight if you eat more calories than you burn. I know, I've done before with NO diary, by the way. I had plenty of bettly fat then.

As for dairy, I am lactose intolerant but I can have certain brands of yogurt, which I do eat plenty of. I don't have a lot of belly fat, but then again I lost 42 pounds eating at a deficit and do weight lifting and run.

Calorie restriction is the ONLY thing that creates weight loss, but there are many different ways to get that deficit.

As for cutting out milk due to a breast lump-I'm glad it was nothing serious.

I am new to this, cuz I am now obsessed with trying to understand food after watching scary documentaries like Food Inc. I swear to you that I do NOT have a calorie deficit. I eat more than 2000 a day. In fact, I eat about 2200 calories a day. How can you explain that? I never even counted calories until now, when I started logging all my food, I was shocked at how many calories I consume (e.g. more than 3000 today), and my carbs are always in red font and at least three times above the daily recommended amount. My fat is usually the exact allowed amount, but my protein is often kinda low, cuz i am a vegetarian. And by the way, I often eat all evening long and if my bladder wakes me up I always grab some fruit on my way to bed. I truly believe it is the type of food that you eat that makes you gain or lose. Cuz otherwise it doesn't make any sense, at least not to me. E.g., high in calories flaxseed gives me diarrhoea, and it cleanses me like a laxative would. Low-fat, low-cal, rather low-carb lactose-free yoghurt gives me terrible constipation, as if I had swallowed concrete.
If it's not a secret, how many calories a day do you eat? And how much do you weigh?

Anyhow, I will stick to doing what works for me -my hula hoop exercise. And in case you think I don't know a thing about sports and muscles - I used to train as a professional boxer a long time ago. Almost every day I had horrible workouts - so bad that at times I could hear my heartbeat despite the loud music. All I got was muscle, and of course what I wanted out of it in the first place - self-defence techniques. I first noticed extra muscle on the front part of my upper legs after only 1 month, then the calves grew larger in another month, at the same time my arm muscles grew, after 6 months I noticed my *kitten* became somewhat muscular and male-like. To avoid getting a six pack, I started to cheat during classes. Maybe to a body-builder this would not seem like too much of a change, to me it was very noticeable. All those workouts and weight lifting kinda ruined my good "body" looks. But I continued for another year, cuz i liked it too much. Gradually, I learnt that most workouts really don't make you slimmer. The slow "tension" exercises do.
btw, the lump was quite serious. they wanted to perform a biopsy, but i freaked out and did not let them. it was painful and quite large. so, if you're a guy, maybe you can keep eating dairy. but girls need to think twice.
Cheers

I'm a female.

Really, there is not reason to avoid dairy or any other food unless there is a medical reason for it.

Seriously, you lost weight because you were in a calorie deficit. That's the only way you can lose weight. It's been proven over and over.