80lbs down, but need help with loosing belly

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  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Strength gains =/= muscle growth. Your current muscle can build strength without adding new mass. As far as your change in measurements, again there is a small window for gains in the beginning of training and you know, a guy I highly respect doesn't fully disregard the possibility of minor muscle gain during a deficit but even if, it's minute at best, as the body isn't going to waste energy building while it's busy retaining and using fat stores for energy in proper conditions. Also, how are you measuring the muscle gain? Or are you assuming a change in measurement is muscle? Water weight can play a role in measurement changes too, so I would check consistencies in that, as well.

    Yes to all of this.
  • jward199
    jward199 Posts: 7
    Have you read "Wheat Belly"? Since giving up wheat and sugar, I have lost 4 inches from my waist. Reducing calories alone didn't work at all on my waistline.

    Here's a link to a video where the author explains the concept: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCFQNUG97HQ
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    Honestly, I would ditch the body pump classes and focus on a progressive loading program with compound movements. Stronglifts, Starting Strength, something like that. Bodypump can be fun but it is more cardio and muscle endurance than strength. Nothing wrong with lightening up and doing some endurance every once in awhile, but I think you are better off lifting heavy with fewer reps.

    Not getting in the middle of the diet argument except to say that your fat looked a little low to me. You could increase that and decrease your carbs *slightly* (fwiw my macros are at 40c/30f/30p and I get 150+ grams of carbs a day before exercise calories, so not pushing low carb by any means).
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Here are a couple of reads about gluten/food allergies. Just in case you're curious since Wheat Belly has been brought up.

    http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/is-gluten-the-new-candida/

    http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/food-allergies-facts-myths-and-pseudoscience/

    http://www.aaccnet.org/publications/plexus/cfw/pastissues/2012/OpenDocuments/CFW-57-4-0177.pdf

    http://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2014/05/gluten_sensitivity_may_not_exist.html


    TL;DR: unless you're gluten intolerant (which is still up for debate in and of itself) or have celiacs or wheat allergy, you don't need to avoid gluten
  • techcoast
    techcoast Posts: 26 Member
    Yah, I'm not sold on the gluten thing. My body hasn't done anything strange in the last couple of years, so I'm not keen on trying to eliminate from the diet things that naturally happen anyway.. But, it's good to stay informed so thanks for the info. :)

    As for gaining muscle, I'm not getting huge by any stretch of the imagination, but I am checking both in physical measurements and body fat check ins that a specific scale (not my own but someone who does it for a living) measures body fat. So, according to that scale I have gained muscle and the physical measurements also seem to jive with what I'm being told.

    So, starting yesterday, I'm lowering my carb intake (a little) and continuing it for now until I hit a couple of weeks and see what happens by then. I do plan on going to a pure heavy lifting after I reach my goal weight but am more concerned with loosing weight for the time being. Though, I will admit, seeing muscles starting to be revealed in the arms is a huge incentive to keep going!
  • jward199
    jward199 Posts: 7
    Wheat Belly isn't about gluten, it is about what wheat, specifically the modern wheat that is now in almost all processed foods, and how our bodies process it. I applaud you for keeping informed.
  • segovm
    segovm Posts: 512 Member
    I was in the same boat when I was in my 20's, I was quite skinny (5'9 and 135 pounds) but still had a little ring of belly fat that refused to go away. In my particular case at the time, I was a vegan and definitely calorie and protein starved... one should never become a vegan if they hate veggies.

    I think, in the long term, eating well and adding some upper body mass will probably do the trick but it might take a while.

    Honestly though... how much time do you really spend in your day to day life with your shirt off in a situation where people can even spot the little belly? If the goal is a six pack I guess you have to keep going till you get it but if the goal is being healthy and active maybe you are already there.

    I just hate to see someone lose weight, get healthy and still be disappointed because some specific part of their body is not exactly how they imagined it. At least if you do feel inclined to work it off try and keep some focus on the fact that you are lighter, stronger and will live longer regardless of what happens around your waist.

    Anyways, good luck!
  • techcoast
    techcoast Posts: 26 Member
    So, it's been a little while and I've made a small adjustment that seemed to make a BIG difference. I simply lowered my calorie intake to 1700 from 1900 and watched the weight just drop off. I'm down to 200 (My original weight goal!) and now working toward 190. My bodypump class has been all that I'm doing along with a run after every class (Going for 300 calories each time) and I'm feeling stronger with my jeans fitting way more loose.

    I guess that makes sense since I hadn't adjusted my calorie intake since I started this whole thing. I have more muscle, less weight on me, so my body burns less during the day. So, I'm guessing I was beginning to match what I was taking in with what I was burning and hence the incredibly slow weight loss.

    In any event, I'm pretty happy with the changes I'm seeing (vascular arms, muscles starting to be defined, etc) and when I hit 190 I'll switch up to more strength oriented training. (heavy lifting).. Anyway, just an update! :)

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