Gaining weight only on stomach

mzbek24

This question is for a friend, so I will try to give as many details as possible.

Male, 27.
178cm, 63kg.
Currently eating 2600 calories per day and lifting weights. Minimal cardio (1 session weekly-around 2hrs of table tennis)
Hoping to gain weight and muscle, goal weight of around 70kg.

However, he said and I can see as well that he is mainly putting on weight around his mid section (has a little bit of a pot belly now, while the rest of the body is quite thin) has trouble doing up jeans, and is concerned that he is just putting on fat on the stomach.

How could he lose that stomach fat without having to eat at a deficit? is this something that would just flatten out over time with the strength training? would the weight eventually start gaining in other areas of the body and balance it out?

waldo56

Did he just start strength training?

If so, a calorie surplus is not appropriate, it will lead to fat gain more than anything.

Ideally you should spend 4-6 months strength training first, get as strong as you can with your existing muscle mass, before attempting to gain more. You'll know you reached the point when you are ready when strength gains begin to stall out when in a calorie deficit.

To lose stomach fat a calorie deficit is needed.

mzbek24

Oh ok. Makes sense.
Yeah I think focusing just on one thing for a few months might help him to stick with it, too. He struggles with eating that much food, logging it, and getting time to do weights consistently every week.
I got him to put his details into Scooby's and it came up as 400 calories less than the 2600 he's currently eating, too. So I think perhaps that could have something to do with the fat gain?

Lifting, he has been attempting to do it for a while, a few years. But sort of on an on and off basis. Work, low cal home cooked meals, social life, and motivation get in the way, and every couple of months he's picking it up again. Not very consistently, definitely nothing like 4-6 months at it at once....maybe 2 months at a stretch, and up to 40kg.

watto1980

And make sure he is following a proven beginner strength program if he is not already, and don't miss any training sessions. If he's been in the gym a few years and no progress it sounds like he might not be training effectively.

Walter__

Did he just start strength training?

If so, a calorie surplus is not appropriate, it will lead to fat gain more than anything.

Ideally you should spend 4-6 months strength training first, get as strong as you can with your existing muscle mass, before attempting to gain more. You'll know you reached the point when you are ready when strength gains begin to stall out when in a calorie deficit.

To lose stomach fat a calorie deficit is needed.

Your advice would only apply to someone who's really fat.

It makes absolutely no sense when this guy is only 5'8, 138lbs. He's a toothpick. With those stats, a deficit should be the last thing on his mind.

He needs to keep eating in a surplus.


Mzbek, I'd make sure that first of all he's following a decent weight lifting routine. If he's going to the gym and just bull****ting around then that would be a problem of course.

Now if he actually has a decent routine and he's gaining too much fat, then he should eat at a smaller surplus.

And make sure he's getting in at least 1 gram of protein per lb of bodyweight.

chrisdavey

So he is eating at a surplus but not consistently training?

This is not optimal for muscle gains.

I'd say the cals are probably about right if he is gaining around 1-2kg per month but consistent progressive tension overload with a strength training program is required.

waldo56

Did he just start strength training?

If so, a calorie surplus is not appropriate, it will lead to fat gain more than anything.

Ideally you should spend 4-6 months strength training first, get as strong as you can with your existing muscle mass, before attempting to gain more. You'll know you reached the point when you are ready when strength gains begin to stall out when in a calorie deficit.

To lose stomach fat a calorie deficit is needed.

Your advice would only apply to someone who's really fat.

It makes absolutely no sense when this guy is only 5'8, 138lbs. He's a toothpick. With those stats, a deficit should be the last thing on his mind.

He needs to keep eating in a surplus.


Mzbek, I'd make sure that first of all he's following a decent weight lifting routine. If he's going to the gym and just bull****ting around then that would be a problem of course.

Now if he actually has a decent routine and he's gaining too much fat, then he should eat at a smaller surplus.

And make sure he's getting in at least 1 gram of protein per lb of bodyweight.

When you first start strength training, virtually all your surplus goes to fat if you are in a calorie surplus.

That strength gain slowdown point is very important. Set to set recovery times increase a great deal as do workout to workout recovery times. At that point you are generating about as much tension as your muscles are capable of producing with the current CSA and you are much more thoroughly fatiguing them, both are important factors for muscle growth.

When still in the noob gains territory, actual muscle gain in a surplus will be minimal.

While the person in question may be too skinny to cut much more (though why not work on excess belly fat as you work on getting strong), unless strong a surplus isn't going to be very helpful either.

Think about it for a second, if your muscle has adequate CSA to bench 150 lbs, but you are only strong enough to bench 80 lbs, why on earth would the body grow more muscle in response to training? It'll just increase neuromuscular efficiency, using what you already have better, and use any excess calories to save up for times of famine. It sucks but that is how it works.

I'd argue the two most common issues with bulking are:

- Underestimating calorie needs and/or trying to "lean" bulk, in the end spinning your wheels and accomplishing very little.

- Bulking before you are strong enough to bulk efficiently, in the end gaining a lot of fat and very little muscle for your efforts.

BattlingMaxo

it's unrealistic to think he gain gain muscle without gaining fat He has to be dedicated to his diet and training and consistent in both. Buy a scale and tape measure, If he is gaining too much around the belly lower the cals, if after a few weeks he gains nothing add more cals The goal is to keep fat to a minimum. I have bulked twice and cut 3 times Last year alone after my cutting I ended up with 15 to 16 lbs of muscle which is not so bad. It's going to take a lot of time

darrensurrey

If he makes sure he lifts heavy (ie a proper strength training routine), then he could happily eat around 2500. I'm shorter than him and heavier than him yet don't have the pot belly you describe despite me eating up to 3000 calories.

daynerz

your horomones decide where to deposit the fat and where to take fat off.

He cant do spot treatment and just lose weight in his stomach, no such thing.
Usually most people store their weight on the stomach/ and yes overtime his fat will be in different places on his body, perhaps his stomach will always hold the most though

itsbasschick

hormones caused by stress or lack of sleep can contribute to storing fat on the belly, but so can genetics.

mzbek24

Thanks for the replies guys will link him the info to have a read and think.

What would happen if he kept eating 2600 and put on weight/fat etc while still lifting, and then ate at a deficit to lose the stomach fat afterwards? would that actually work?


Yeah lack of sleep is definitely another factor. And I've spoken to him about starting some sort of program like Stronglifts 5x5 before because that's what I'm doing. He said it sounded better and simpler than what he currently does, so he may try that.

BusyRaeNOTBusty

Stronglifts while a good solid program is NOT a hypertrophy program.

This is Lyle McDonald's "Generic Bulking Routine":

http://forums.lylemcdonald.com/showthread.php?t=1696

Devlyn_P

First thing that came to mind was, umm preggo? lol.

mantium999

Did he just start strength training?

If so, a calorie surplus is not appropriate, it will lead to fat gain more than anything.

Ideally you should spend 4-6 months strength training first, get as strong as you can with your existing muscle mass, before attempting to gain more. You'll know you reached the point when you are ready when strength gains begin to stall out when in a calorie deficit.

To lose stomach fat a calorie deficit is needed.

Your advice would only apply to someone who's really fat.

It makes absolutely no sense when this guy is only 5'8, 138lbs. He's a toothpick. With those stats, a deficit should be the last thing on his mind.

He needs to keep eating in a surplus.


Mzbek, I'd make sure that first of all he's following a decent weight lifting routine. If he's going to the gym and just bull****ting around then that would be a problem of course.

Now if he actually has a decent routine and he's gaining too much fat, then he should eat at a smaller surplus.

And make sure he's getting in at least 1 gram of protein per lb of bodyweight.

When you first start strength training, virtually all your surplus goes to fat if you are in a calorie surplus.

That strength gain slowdown point is very important. Set to set recovery times increase a great deal as do workout to workout recovery times. At that point you are generating about as much tension as your muscles are capable of producing with the current CSA and you are much more thoroughly fatiguing them, both are important factors for muscle growth.

When still in the noob gains territory, actual muscle gain in a surplus will be minimal.

While the person in question may be too skinny to cut much more (though why not work on excess belly fat as you work on getting strong), unless strong a surplus isn't going to be very helpful either.

Think about it for a second, if your muscle has adequate CSA to bench 150 lbs, but you are only strong enough to bench 80 lbs, why on earth would the body grow more muscle in response to training? It'll just increase neuromuscular efficiency, using what you already have better, and use any excess calories to save up for times of famine. It sucks but that is how it works.

I'd argue the two most common issues with bulking are:

- Underestimating calorie needs and/or trying to "lean" bulk, in the end spinning your wheels and accomplishing very little.

- Bulking before you are strong enough to bulk efficiently, in the end gaining a lot of fat and very little muscle for your efforts.

This is an interesting thought I have not seen presented before, which makes a lot of logical sense to me. As a thin guy with more jiggle in the midsection than I would prefer, and less strength than I would like, I am intrigued by this thought.

chrisdavey

Thanks for the replies guys will link him the info to have a read and think.

What would happen if he kept eating 2600 and put on weight/fat etc while still lifting, and then ate at a deficit to lose the stomach fat afterwards? would that actually work?


Yeah lack of sleep is definitely another factor. And I've spoken to him about starting some sort of program like Stronglifts 5x5 before because that's what I'm doing. He said it sounded better and simpler than what he currently does, so he may try that.

I would recommend a slow bulk with mini cuts when required. Basically, aiming to gain weight and when the BF% becomes too high for his liking, drop the cals and cut some fat for a few weeks. This is basically what I do year round. Keep training the whole time.

LazSommer

Did he just start strength training?

If so, a calorie surplus is not appropriate, it will lead to fat gain more than anything.

Ideally you should spend 4-6 months strength training first, get as strong as you can with your existing muscle mass, before attempting to gain more. You'll know you reached the point when you are ready when strength gains begin to stall out when in a calorie deficit.

To lose stomach fat a calorie deficit is needed.

Your advice would only apply to someone who's really fat.

It makes absolutely no sense when this guy is only 5'8, 138lbs. He's a toothpick. With those stats, a deficit should be the last thing on his mind.

He needs to keep eating in a surplus.


Mzbek, I'd make sure that first of all he's following a decent weight lifting routine. If he's going to the gym and just bull****ting around then that would be a problem of course.

Now if he actually has a decent routine and he's gaining too much fat, then he should eat at a smaller surplus.

And make sure he's getting in at least 1 gram of protein per lb of bodyweight.

When you first start strength training, virtually all your surplus goes to fat if you are in a calorie surplus.

That strength gain slowdown point is very important. Set to set recovery times increase a great deal as do workout to workout recovery times. At that point you are generating about as much tension as your muscles are capable of producing with the current CSA and you are much more thoroughly fatiguing them, both are important factors for muscle growth.

When still in the noob gains territory, actual muscle gain in a surplus will be minimal.

While the person in question may be too skinny to cut much more (though why not work on excess belly fat as you work on getting strong), unless strong a surplus isn't going to be very helpful either.

Think about it for a second, if your muscle has adequate CSA to bench 150 lbs, but you are only strong enough to bench 80 lbs, why on earth would the body grow more muscle in response to training? It'll just increase neuromuscular efficiency, using what you already have better, and use any excess calories to save up for times of famine. It sucks but that is how it works.

I'd argue the two most common issues with bulking are:

- Underestimating calorie needs and/or trying to "lean" bulk, in the end spinning your wheels and accomplishing very little.

- Bulking before you are strong enough to bulk efficiently, in the end gaining a lot of fat and very little muscle for your efforts.

The extra weight will help him lift bigger in the long run if he's a chicken *kitten* right now.

stephe1987

178 cm (5' 10") and 63 kg (138.9 lbs) is very thin. I think he should maintain his weight, exercise/lift to get rid of any extra fat, and then bulk up after he's gotten as strong as he can at his current weight.

chrisdavey

I just saw those stats again and reminded me that that is basically my BIL. Tall and thin. 5'10" and 60kg.

I gave him my beginner strength program and he went from a 40kg squat, 40kg bench and 60kg deadlift to 120kg squat, 85kg bench and 150kg deadlift. He maintained weight at 60kg but is visibly "larger". (Muscle being more dense than fat)

In summary, lift stuff often and consistently

itsbasschick

*LOL* her friend is a guy, so probably not...

First thing that came to mind was, umm preggo? lol.