Recomposition question: How to rid belly fat?

ShreddedTweet · October 2012

As you see on my progress bar, I've lost a LOT of weight. And I've done it all through eating a healthy and 90% clean diet. I am 5'8" and at my last personal scale weigh in I was 146.2 lbs. I have a small to medium body frame and as far as BMI is concerned I am nearing the lowest part of the "healthy" range for my height. But I still have fat on my thighs, on my butt, in my stomach, and on my face; should I go beyond my 140 scale goal until these areas are flat even though it dips me in the "underweight" category for my height on the BMI scale? Even if I incorporate exercise, it's going to cause a deficiet and scale weight loss is still going to occur, so what do you suggest? Take a look at my diary and suggest if you need the extra info. Side note: I am lactose intolerant and I have been gluten free due to concern of Celiac (though undiagnosed due to no health insurance). Help me find my flat stomach? Nothing is worse than being skinny EVERYWHERE except your stomach so when you sit, you look like a fat cow. :laugh:

have you considered seeing a therapist? It sounds like you might have BDD. Perhaps getting a trainer might help. you're likely already TOO SKINNY--no man should be your weight (hope that doesn't offend you).

He's really short though so maybe 142 is okay? I can't see how you could possibly have excess fat at 142 and 5'8 though! Maybe it's just bloating because of the celiac thing? Don't lose more weight! Lift, lift, lift!

EccentricDad · October 2012

I stand corrected. I haven't checked my BMI in a long time and here's what MFP had to say:

Your BMI is: 22.2
Target weight range: 121.7 - 164.4 lbs

So with that said, a person who is 5'8" and 146 would be in the middle of this range. What is your advice then knowing this? If I keep dieting and staying as active as I am, will the fat eventually go away being at a deficiency?

SideSteel · October 2012

Nothing is worse than being skinny EVERYWHERE except your stomach so when you sit, you look like a fat cow. :laugh:

Here is my suggestion:

Bring calories to maintenance/TDEE. (EDIT: You might even consider a small surplus -- not a deficit at this point however).
Bring protein intake to at least 1g/lb LBM
Fat intake to at least .35g/lb bodweight
Remainder in carbohydrate.

Start lifting heavy three to four days per week using primarily compound lifts. Check out DetermindNoob's epic post with beginner info as I believe he's linked to all-pros beginner routine.

Start here for a few weeks, monitor body changes. Eventually you will choose to bulk or cut. Right now you are what we call "skinny-fat". It is in your best interest to start lifting, build some LBM so that when you do cut the remaining fat you aren't left looking skinny .

The above is not a cure-all. It is an interim step. It may (it likely will) require multiple cycles of bulking followed by cutting.

drgndancer · October 2012

Calorie deficit + time + patience is all that is needed.

I'd add strength training to that list - it all sounds very simple and easy but we all know that's not the case, so patience is the biggest enemy. Bear with it and it'll happen, no-one put on weight overnight and it won't disappear overnight.

Stick with it and good luck EccentricDad

Well, he asked how to get a flat belly. [Bold]Strength training is definitely not needed.[/Bold] There are plenty of people out there with flat stomachs who have never even seen a gym.

Yes some people naturally have flat stomachs but to say strength training is DEFINITELY not needed is complete rubbish you need to do some more research before you give bad advice

He's completely right. You can't spot reduce fat, it comes off where it comes off. Strength training, cardio, eating right, all those things help you lose fat, but none of them is a magic bullet that will take fat off your gut. You just have to lose fat. It'll come off where it comes off and the last place it comes off on most men is the gut. Strength training may make what eventually gets revealed look better, but beyond it's calorie burning benefits, it won't help the reveal any more than running or eating less.

Seriously guys, all this bull****: do my magic exercise program, don't eat meat, eat nothing but meat, blah, blah blah... It's all just fancy ways of eating fewer calories than you burn. That's the secret. My "diet" is running 5-10 miles day, and eating normal portions of normal food.. I go out to dinner twice a week, drink a beer most nights, more than one occasionally. I make sure that at the end of the week 3500 more calories went out than went in. I lose a pound or two a week regularly. Burn more than you eat, lose weight, fat eventually comes off gut. Patience, work and little discipline.

EccentricDad · October 2012

As you see on my progress bar, I've lost a LOT of weight. And I've done it all through eating a healthy and 90% clean diet. I am 5'8" and at my last personal scale weigh in I was 146.2 lbs. I have a small to medium body frame and as far as BMI is concerned I am nearing the lowest part of the "healthy" range for my height. But I still have fat on my thighs, on my butt, in my stomach, and on my face; should I go beyond my 140 scale goal until these areas are flat even though it dips me in the "underweight" category for my height on the BMI scale? Even if I incorporate exercise, it's going to cause a deficiet and scale weight loss is still going to occur, so what do you suggest? Take a look at my diary and suggest if you need the extra info. Side note: I am lactose intolerant and I have been gluten free due to concern of Celiac (though undiagnosed due to no health insurance). Help me find my flat stomach? Nothing is worse than being skinny EVERYWHERE except your stomach so when you sit, you look like a fat cow. :laugh:

have you considered seeing a therapist? It sounds like you might have BDD. Perhaps getting a trainer might help. you're likely already TOO SKINNY--no man should be your weight (hope that doesn't offend you).

He's really short though so maybe 142 is okay? I can't see how you could possibly have excess fat at 142 and 5'8 though! Maybe it's just bloating because of the celiac thing? Don't lose more weight! Lift, lift, lift!

Yeah I don't look sick or anything. My family has a history of being very slender. Like "slim straight jeans" slender. No bones are showing through my skin except my ribs when I suck in my gut (pull abs in). And I only JUST started to see my muscle tone when I flex a muscle. Hell, at my leanest (in high school) I looked like the men do in the Olympic swimming events (minus six pack abs).

ktrn0312 · October 2012

Bump

qtiekiki · October 2012

As you see on my progress bar, I've lost a LOT of weight. And I've done it all through eating a healthy and 90% clean diet. I am 5'8" and at my last personal scale weigh in I was 146.2 lbs. I have a small to medium body frame and as far as BMI is concerned I am nearing the lowest part of the "healthy" range for my height. But I still have fat on my thighs, on my butt, in my stomach, and on my face; should I go beyond my 140 scale goal until these areas are flat even though it dips me in the "underweight" category for my height on the BMI scale? Even if I incorporate exercise, it's going to cause a deficiet and scale weight loss is still going to occur, so what do you suggest? Take a look at my diary and suggest if you need the extra info. Side note: I am lactose intolerant and I have been gluten free due to concern of Celiac (though undiagnosed due to no health insurance). Help me find my flat stomach? Nothing is worse than being skinny EVERYWHERE except your stomach so when you sit, you look like a fat cow. :laugh:

have you considered seeing a therapist? It sounds like you might have BDD. Perhaps getting a trainer might help. you're likely already TOO SKINNY--no man should be your weight (hope that doesn't offend you).

He's really short though so maybe 142 is okay? I can't see how you could possibly have excess fat at 142 and 5'8 though! Maybe it's just bloating because of the celiac thing? Don't lose more weight! Lift, lift, lift!

I think he lost a lot of lean mass by losing weight without exercise. My husband is 5'8" and 152lbs, and he has visible abs. I think at this point, you need to strength train to recomposite your body.

Akimajuktuq · October 2012

6) Saturated Fats (butter, mayo, dairy);
7) Sodas, Diet Soads, Fruit Juices.
All of these cause you to store excess fat usually around the mid-section.

There is plenty of information indicating that Saturated fats aren't this demon that need to be avoided and that your diet should include "x" amount of them.

Diet soda's... really? Aside from the sodium what is in a diet soda that causes you to store fat in your mid-section? Please don't post any articles on how artificial sweeteners confuse your brain into storing or not burning fat, read them, and can find equally as many that refute those articles. LOL.

It's interesting to me that you are up to date with your research on saturated fats (yes they are healthy when from healthy sources) but then blow it with promoting diet sodas (which don't really have that much sodium imo). Nutritional research is always problematic due to the difficulty of isolating factors. Whether diet sodas are fattening or if other obesogens compound their effect, I don't know, but just look around at all the obese people consuming them; I'm thinking diet sodas aren't helping reduce the obesity epidemic one bit, and according to information that I have found, are likely stimulating appetite and contributing to the development of serious diseases in some people. There is plenty of research (amazing, considering how underfunded research that goes against corporate interests is!) that challenges their acceptance by the FDA as GRAS. If it's not food, I don't eat it.

DopeItUp · October 2012

Calorie deficit + time + patience is all that is needed.

I'd add strength training to that list - it all sounds very simple and easy but we all know that's not the case, so patience is the biggest enemy. Bear with it and it'll happen, no-one put on weight overnight and it won't disappear overnight.

Stick with it and good luck EccentricDad

Well, he asked how to get a flat belly. [Bold]Strength training is definitely not needed.[/Bold] There are plenty of people out there with flat stomachs who have never even seen a gym.

Yes some people naturally have flat stomachs but to say strength training is DEFINITELY not needed is complete rubbish you need to do some more research before you give bad advice

Thank you for posting today for my personal entertainment. Much appreciated.

Your welcome troll. Thanks for add more useless crap to the internet we are blessed with your wisdom

Don't get me wrong, strength training is awesome and is useful for many reasons. But all that's required for a flat stomach is to drop the fat. Which requires a caloric deficit to achieve. You don't have to do strength training to achieve it.

So, please feel free to enlighten everyone on why you NEED strength training to get a flat stomach. I'm dying to hear what you come up with.

EccentricDad · October 2012

I think he lost a lot of lean mass by losing weight without exercise. My husband is 5'8" and 152lbs, and he has visible abs. I think at this point, you need to strength train to recomposite your body.

But is your husband medium to large frame? That could be the difference. I have a very feminine style and small to medium body frame. I fit my wife's clothes for godsake LOL! The only thing that has ever been built on my body was my thighs. So what I'm getting at is I've never had muscle tone and my biceps have only ever been as big as my fist when I flex. I agree I should recomposition, which is why I'm asking about fat loss. But you can't lose fat AND build muscle at the same time. Losing requires a calorie deficit, and gaining muscle requires a calorie surplus. So are you suggesting my goal should be to muscle build despite that not being the look I'm going after for with my body? (Not to mention would be a look my body has never produced even in football tech)

MB_Positif · October 2012

With maybe the exception of your belly area, maybe some of the fat you see on your face, legs, etc. is just loose skin?

Vonwarr · October 2012

...So are you suggesting my goal should be to muscle build despite that not being the look I'm going after for with my body?

Basically, I think he is, and I agree. Not to sound sarcastic, but you don't trip over a barbell and magically gain 30 lbs of muscle. :laugh: It takes time and dedication to build muscle - it happens even slower than losing fat and requires a lot more effort and attention to proper nutrition.

Take some time lifting and put a bit of muscle on... you can stop and maintain your current body composition whenever you've reached a place where you're happy. You don't have to continue gaining until you reach grotesque proportions. As you mentioned, body recomposition is where you are currently headed. 142 lbs with 128 lbs of lean mass is going to look a lot smaller, tighter, and better than 142 with only 114 lbs of lean mass. You don't get that "bulky" look unless you've been lifting progressively heavy weights for years, and eating a diet which supports muscle growth.

You can also lift in ways which increases your strength and muscle tone without increasing your size much, if at all. Strength training is generally slightly different than hypertrophy (muscle mass) training.

Dave198lbs · October 2012

. It may (it likely will) require multiple cycles of bulking followed by cutting.

to lose belly fat? maybe I missed too many posts on this one but why would anyone need multiple cycles of bulking and cutting?

not giving you any crap, I know you shoot strait but I dont get this one

JNick77 · October 2012

6) Saturated Fats (butter, mayo, dairy);
7) Sodas, Diet Soads, Fruit Juices.
All of these cause you to store excess fat usually around the mid-section.

There is plenty of information indicating that Saturated fats aren't this demon that need to be avoided and that your diet should include "x" amount of them.

Diet soda's... really? Aside from the sodium what is in a diet soda that causes you to store fat in your mid-section? Please don't post any articles on how artificial sweeteners confuse your brain into storing or not burning fat, read them, and can find equally as many that refute those articles. LOL.

It's interesting to me that you are up to date with your research on saturated fats (yes they are healthy when from healthy sources) but then blow it with promoting diet sodas (which don't really have that much sodium imo). Nutritional research is always problematic due to the difficulty of isolating factors. Whether diet sodas are fattening or if other obesogens compound their effect, I don't know, but just look around at all the obese people consuming them; I'm thinking diet sodas aren't helping reduce the obesity epidemic one bit, and according to information that I have found, are likely stimulating appetite and contributing to the development of serious diseases in some people. There is plenty of research (amazing, considering how underfunded research that goes against corporate interests is!) that challenges their acceptance by the FDA as GRAS. If it's not food, I don't eat it.

With the amount of crap that we breathe in the air alone the last thing I'm concerned about is a little aspartme. I've lost 30lbs and I drink plenty of diet soda. Reducing obesity regarding diet soda. No, because how often do you see people order a couple Whoppers or take 9-inches of pizza and drink it with a diet soda. Of course you're not going to lose weight that way, diet soda or not. A healthy person, eating an appropriate calorie deficit and getting adequate exercise will lose weight if they consume some diet soda; it's not going to roadblock anything. The research that is interesting is how it seems to affect one's ability to manage sweet cravings but again that's self-control and not the sweetener causing you to gain weight. Now if you want to worry about the concern of aspartme and cancer or other diseases or whatever else then that's a valid concern but like I said above, there's are toxins in all foods, even organic gets processed, the air we breathe, water we drink, that it doesn't matter; there is always some chemical around us reducing our quality of life to some degree.

SMarie10 · October 2012

You can't spot reduce...unless you get a tummy tuck or lipo.

Sorry!

Here's a winner. OP If you're not going to tone up the muscles under the fat, it's not going to go anywhere. Surgery might be your option.

qtiekiki · October 2012

I think he lost a lot of lean mass by losing weight without exercise. My husband is 5'8" and 152lbs, and he has visible abs. I think at this point, you need to strength train to recomposite your body.

But is your husband medium to large frame? That could be the difference. I have a very feminine style and small to medium body frame. I fit my wife's clothes for godsake LOL! The only thing that has ever been built on my body was my thighs. So what I'm getting at is I've never had muscle tone and my biceps have only ever been as big as my fist when I flex. I agree I should recomposition, which is why I'm asking about fat loss. But you can't lose fat AND build muscle at the same time. Losing requires a calorie deficit, and gaining muscle requires a calorie surplus. So are you suggesting my goal should be to muscle build despite that not being the look I'm going after for with my body? (Not to mention would be a look my body has never produced even in football tech)

I don't know what is considered small or medium or large frame, in term of male. He will not fit in my clothes because I am 5'3" and 108lbs, so if your wife is my size, then yes my husband is bigger than you. But if your avatar is you, then I don't think my husband is of a larger frame than you. Yes, you can't gain muscle easily and without a calorie surplus. The thing is that you need to preserve what lean mass (not just muscle, it includes your bones and skins) you have and/or decrease the amount you are losing, so you are losing more fat than muscle. I am not suggesting anything for your goal. Your goal is yours. I am merely just explaining why you might still have a belly when your weight is low-ish.

EccentricDad · October 2012

With maybe the exception of your belly area, maybe some of the fat you see on your face, legs, etc. is just loose skin?

Possible. I did lose it pretty fast. I lost all my weight since April this year. When I pinch it, it doesn't hurt unless I squeeze really hard. It just jiggles around when I jog in place and it's pretty disturbing to watch. It's only an inch that jiggles, but it still creeps me out.

MoreBean13 · October 2012

I would love to help, but the OP called my MFP bestie a C U Next Tuesday, rendering me incapable of providing assistance.

DawnEH612 · October 2012

Sounds to me like you're eating at too much of a deficit and your body might be "holding onto" that fat. There's an earlier post that suggested eating at TDEE. I'd tend to agree with that as well as increase your protein consumption to about .75-1 gram of protein per pound of body weight, so in your case about 105-ish to 142 grams of protein a day. I do tend to agree with another female post, personal preference perhaps, but a 5'8" male at 142??? Really... I'm a 5'6.5" female and weigh 137... Just seems unhealthy... IMPO

StephanieStC · October 2012

Seems like you're doing it - 73 lbs lost.

Now, I haven't been consistent, so I'm not sure if it works, but I've read up on things that are specifically supposed to help with belly fat, and one of them is safflower oil, which can be taken in pill form - usually called Conjugated Linoleic Acid. There are other things that are supposed to help with belly fat - such as an apple a day (for real), a cup of yogurt a day, 25 - 35 grams of fiber a day. There were a few others but I can't remember what they were. Dr Oz talks about some of these things.

Good luck!