How do i lose this excess belly fat?! Cant stop eating

missjamielynn4
missjamielynn4 Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello,
I'm 25 years old, about 5'1 and weigh about 115 give or take. My weight is constantly fluctuating. Smallest ive ever been is around 104, and the heaviest was about 135. No matter what my weight, my biggest problem is belly fat. Im HORRIBLE at any sort of ab workouts. I work out usually atleast 4 or 5 times a week. My workout is about 30 minutes on the eliptical, and about 15 minutes of light weight lifting. Through the day( on breaks ect) ill walk outside. As far as diet, i eat pretty healthy through the whole day. Its at night where i struggle. Mostly ill have a SOMEWHAT healthy dinner, but its the snacking afterwards that i cant control ! Anything from crackers to icecream to cereal. Its mindless eating really. Ill have half a box of wheat thins, followed by a HUGE bowl of cereal, followed by maybe some goldfish or something. IDK you get the idea! This happens more often than not, and i go to bed feeling disgusting and regretful. I feel like this is the #1 reason why i cant seem to get rid of all this extra fat i carry around my belly! its easy to say "stop eating" and i say i wont do it, but the next night i find myself doing it again. HELP!!

Replies

  • tlblood
    tlblood Posts: 473 Member
    Well, everyone will tell you that you can't spot reduce, so the only way to lose the belly fat you dislike is to keep losing overall. You can do ab work, to help develop the muscles, but that doesn't eliminate the fat.

    A couple of tricks to try to curb the late night snacking that have worked for me are chewing gum and brushing your teeth. If it's the oral fix that you're really after, the gum will help tremendously. Many people have found success with brushing their teeth because it puts them in a "time for bed, done eating" mentality.

    Hope this helps! Good luck!
  • dt3312
    dt3312 Posts: 212 Member
    I used to eat like that, especially after dinner and before bed. It really helped me to read Breaking Free from Emotional Eating by Geneen Roth. Now I don't eat like that (out of control) hardly at all.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    What's your calorie goal? Open your diary?
  • stephe1987
    stephe1987 Posts: 406 Member
    You can't spot reduce belly fat; it's an overall body fat percentage and your body will choose which order to take the fat off in. Just eat at a deficit and exercise.

    I would suggest not keeping snacks in the house if you feel tempted to eat them.

    You could fast during the day and then you can still have some snacks without going over your calorie goal. Some people have lost weight by only allowing themselves to eat during certain hours.

    The last suggestion is to go to bed earlier. A lot of people have that problem: they stay up too late and their body gets hungry again. Go to sleep and you'll be sleeping instead of eating.
  • Jiminibee
    Jiminibee Posts: 82
    I have some thoughts about what you're probably doing that isn't helping you, from your post i already see things I would personally change.

    Open your dairy/add me as a friend and I'll make some suggestions if you like :)
  • missjamielynn4
    missjamielynn4 Posts: 3 Member
    Thanks everyone. Its too bad that you cant spot reduce, wouldnt that be nice! Belly is really the only place i have trouble with! Gum helps me through out the day at work and stuff not to snack. Maybe ill start chewing the gum at home too! Ive tried the whole brushing the teeth thing, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt. i just really lack self control when it comes to snacking at night! its awful. I was thinking because i "deprive" myself all day from all these yummy foods, maybe thats why i "binge" at night? Are there any foods anyone could suggest to help satisfy these "cravings" (if you could even call them that) , or maybe something to break the habbit of eating at night? I've always heard of foods that HELP burn belly fat, but is that going back to the spot reducing thing ?
  • whitebalance
    whitebalance Posts: 1,654 Member
    "Excess belly fat" typically seems to stick around until one is very lean. Here on MFP, I see flat tummies on the fighters and power lifters who've been at those activities for a year or so. Consistency, patience, and caloric deficit are all required.

    Re the eating thing, if you can't exercise self-control in your home, try exercising it at the store: Don't buy the junk, don't bring it home. You don't necessarily have to deny yourself completely, just make it so you have to go out to get those snacks if you want them that bad. This has worked for me, because either I wanted a particular snack bad enough that I was willing to work for it or meh, didn't want it that much so didn't go get it and the craving passed. Just knowing I could if I really wanted to, and I was choosing not to, also made the sense of deprivation fade. Might work for you too.
  • princessG12
    princessG12 Posts: 21
    Hi, before we go any further let me assure you this has nothing to do with silly exercise machines, cardio, restrictive or pre-packaged diets, or whatever weird berry pill the diet industry is talking about these days. This is something completely different and you’re going to love it. www.bit.ly/1iVzT3a <
    kindly watch this video

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