advice much appreciated

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vsipin
vsipin Posts: 9
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok so I'm 5'9 148lbs and have lost a little over 20lbs since having my son. I workout 5 times a week and eat about 1500-1700 calories a day. My huge problem is the lower belly fat...it wont go away no matter what I do. As anyone else had this problem and if so can you share with me what I could do? Thanks!

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  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
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    You can't spot reduce. There will be a small train of replies telling you to do certain "ab" exercises and routines, but all they do is strengthen the core (not that it's a bad thing). You can do core exercises all day long, but your body will burn fat from wherever it wants to, and the belly is usually the last place.

    It takes a caloric deficit, work (cardio mixed with compound lifting), and patience...
  • hafbreed02
    hafbreed02 Posts: 28
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    you re doing what needs to be done.....there is no such thing as spot reduction. Keep doing what your doing and you will continue to burn fat.....fat is an organism, burned over your entire body....some areas, (belly fat) take longer than others! Congrats on the weight loss!
  • seif0068
    seif0068 Posts: 193 Member
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    Unfortunately, you can't really spot reduce. Different bodies gain and lose differently. For me, the lower belly pooch has been the absolute LAST thing to go. First it came off the boobs and back, then thighs and arms, and finally my pooch is starting to flatten out now that I am within 5 pounds of my goal weight!

    Some say HIIT (high interval impact training) is good for getting rid of belly fat. You can do core strengthening stuff to tone your ab muscles but there will still be fat over it unless you work on overall fat loss.

    My advice would be to make sure you are doing weights and core work, not cardio only, and get your calorie goals right (not too low, which is very common) - with the right combination of eating enough (while still at a small deficit) and doing strengthening work, you will lose fat and not muscle mass.

    Good luck!
  • dbanks80
    dbanks80 Posts: 3,685 Member
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    I had my first son at 24 and my second at 26. I am 5'9" i gained 60 lbs with both and lost 60 lbs with both. I was 140 well into my 30s. Tall and slender but I could not get rid of my belly fat (mainly lower abs) I did every situp exercise i could, I just couldnt get rid of it. My solution was liposuction. And that worked wonders for me. Try some of the recommendations people on this site my have to offer as far as doing ab work. Use lipo as a last resort.

    Good Luck
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
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    You can't spot reduce. There will be a small train of replies telling you to do certain "ab" exercises and routines, but all they do is strengthen the core (not that it's a bad thing). You can do core exercises all day long, but your body will burn fat from wherever it wants to, and the belly is usually the last place.

    It takes a caloric deficit, work (cardio mixed with compound lifting), and patience...

    ^ This.
  • skullshank
    skullshank Posts: 4,323 Member
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    You can't spot reduce. There will be a small train of replies telling you to do certain "ab" exercises and routines, but all they do is strengthen the core (not that it's a bad thing). You can do core exercises all day long, but your body will burn fat from wherever it wants to, and the belly is usually the last place.

    It takes a caloric deficit, work (cardio mixed with compound lifting), and patience...

    /thread
  • taunto
    taunto Posts: 6,420 Member
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    You can't spot reduce. There will be a small train of replies telling you to do certain "ab" exercises and routines, but all they do is strengthen the core (not that it's a bad thing). You can do core exercises all day long, but your body will burn fat from wherever it wants to, and the belly is usually the last place.

    It takes a caloric deficit, work (cardio mixed with compound lifting), and patience...

    LOTS of patience :(

    (says the man with a soccer ball shaped belly and fairly nice and firm rest of the body)
  • sinistras
    sinistras Posts: 244 Member
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    How long ago did you have your son? After my son was born, it took a good year of eating healthy and exercising when I had the time (okay, I had usually had daily beer "to cope" and ate whenever hungry as I breastfed him for 19 months). The weight came off but the lower ab pooch remained.

    Being a new mom is a lot of work/stress on the body, and a strict diet on top of it can make life miserable. It took a while but now, with continued slight calorie deficit and keeping the workouts going, I am finally seeing the post-baby lower ab sag tighten up.

    I think a lot of it just has to do with the fact that us moms have super stretched (traumatized) loose skin we're annoyed with, not a ton of fat. Loose skin will tighten up in time. Eating a lot of dark leafy greens will help aid anyone's diet and promote healthier, tighter skin. Amazing, too, how much my stretchmarks have faded since the skin has tightened.

    Keep your chin up! You are headed in the right direction!
  • vsipin
    vsipin Posts: 9
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    Thanks so much for the responses. I had my son 15 months ago. And I can honestly say that I'm strengthening my entire body and I see everything else moving BUT that pooch. I guess my problem is patience. It seems to be taking a long time for that area to move when I'm doing what I'm suppose to be doing. I guess ill just suck it in and wait it out.

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