Really want to get a flatter stomach?

emily120699
emily120699 Posts: 32 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My legs and arms I'm fine with, they have muscle, however there's fat on my stomach. I've lost 45 pounds and I flunctuate between 135-137 pounds and I'm 5'5. I'm still trying to lose weight but nothing is happening anymore. I've been eating cleaner and just started running. I don't know what else to do, I've been this way my entire life and I'm tired of stomach flab.

Replies

  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    Sued0nim wrote: »
    focus in on your calorie and eat to a defecit - clean means nothing

    follow a progressive weights programme

    give it time

    stomach fat can be stubborn

    I basically agree. Lifting isn't a bad idea, but it's probably not required for your goals. Calorie deficit + consistency + patience.
  • briscogun
    briscogun Posts: 1,138 Member
    You can't spot reduce, its just your overall body composition. Most people lose the fat in the reverse order that they put it on, so if your body started storing fat in your mid-section, then that's the last place it'll come off and it'll be the hardest place to lose it from.

    A lot of people will begin doing recomposition once they reach their target weight but they still want to change their look (lose fat, add muscle). The only way to lose the belly is to either continue to eat at a deficit and lose it, or very slowly over many, many months work out using weights to lose the fat by replacing it with muscle (recomp).

    This is the best thread here for recomp/nice stomach info:

    community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p1

    Good luck! It's an ongoing process. Remember: the satisfaction isn't in the destination, it's in the journey!
  • singletrackmtbr
    singletrackmtbr Posts: 644 Member
    What the others said. I would also add the suggestion to buy a body fat caliper and learn how to use it. It is a great tool when combined with the scale to give you an idea of where you are. Good luck!
  • paige_lawson
    paige_lawson Posts: 1 Member
    To get rid of tummy flab you need to decrease your over all body fat percentage. Sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Personally I suggest empty stomach cardio. Bring a breakfast shake w you to the gym. Go within an hour of waking up don't eat and do no more than 30 minutes cardio then eat your shake and be done or continue with a workout.
  • singletrackmtbr
    singletrackmtbr Posts: 644 Member
    I don't know much about empty stomach cardio, so I did some quick research via "the Google." As with every other kind of exercise, there are pros and cons and differing opinions. One of the consistent opinions from detractors is it will lead to muscle loss.

    http://www.mensfitness.com/training/build-muscle/should-you-do-cardio-empty-stomach

    So my suggestion would be to do some research before making this part of your routine.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    How long have you been maintaining? I was maintaining for a few months (and continuing resistance training) before I felt truly happy with my stomach. Around the same time, my husband noticed that it was, in his words, "really flat." In my opinion, it's still improving now -- albeit rather slowly (which is fine). I haven't really lost any weight, I'm just reducing my body fat gradually.
  • Wicked_Seraph
    Wicked_Seraph Posts: 388 Member
    paige_lawson wrote: »
    To get rid of tummy flab you need to decrease your over all body fat percentage. Sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Personally I suggest empty stomach cardio. Bring a breakfast shake w you to the gym. Go within an hour of waking up don't eat and do no more than 30 minutes cardio then eat your shake and be done or continue with a workout.

    I work out on an empty stomach but I fail to see how doing so would give OP a flatter stomach.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Wicked_Seraph wrote: »
    paige_lawson wrote: »
    To get rid of tummy flab you need to decrease your over all body fat percentage. Sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Personally I suggest empty stomach cardio. Bring a breakfast shake w you to the gym. Go within an hour of waking up don't eat and do no more than 30 minutes cardio then eat your shake and be done or continue with a workout.

    I work out on an empty stomach but I fail to see how doing so would give OP a flatter stomach.

    Some people theorize that when you do cardio in a fasted state, you target your fat stores more than when you have eaten something prior to the workout.

    I have no idea if it works or not. I do fasted cardio, but mostly because I exercise first thing in the AM and I don't like to have anything in my stomach when I run.
  • Wicked_Seraph
    Wicked_Seraph Posts: 388 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Wicked_Seraph wrote: »
    paige_lawson wrote: »
    To get rid of tummy flab you need to decrease your over all body fat percentage. Sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Personally I suggest empty stomach cardio. Bring a breakfast shake w you to the gym. Go within an hour of waking up don't eat and do no more than 30 minutes cardio then eat your shake and be done or continue with a workout.

    I work out on an empty stomach but I fail to see how doing so would give OP a flatter stomach.

    Some people theorize that when you do cardio in a fasted state, you target your fat stores more than when you have eaten something prior to the workout.

    I have no idea if it works or not. I do fasted cardio, but mostly because I exercise first thing in the AM and I don't like to have anything in my stomach when I run.

    I'm the same way. I've tried eating a bit before working out and fasting a bit, and every single time I feel I perform better in a somewhat fasted state. Plus, TMI, working out seems to encourage digestion more than I'd like when I'm running! :lol:
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
    edited June 2016
    Wicked_Seraph wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Wicked_Seraph wrote: »
    paige_lawson wrote: »
    To get rid of tummy flab you need to decrease your over all body fat percentage. Sounds like you may have hit a plateau. Personally I suggest empty stomach cardio. Bring a breakfast shake w you to the gym. Go within an hour of waking up don't eat and do no more than 30 minutes cardio then eat your shake and be done or continue with a workout.

    I work out on an empty stomach but I fail to see how doing so would give OP a flatter stomach.

    Some people theorize that when you do cardio in a fasted state, you target your fat stores more than when you have eaten something prior to the workout.

    I have no idea if it works or not. I do fasted cardio, but mostly because I exercise first thing in the AM and I don't like to have anything in my stomach when I run.

    I'm the same way. I've tried eating a bit before working out and fasting a bit, and every single time I feel I perform better in a somewhat fasted state. Plus, TMI, working out seems to encourage digestion more than I'd like when I'm running! :lol:

    I run early in the morning before eating or drinking anything, mostly because that's the only time I can consistently carve out of a day, but also because after 4 big babies, my bladder can't be trusted on a run if I drink anything. I am not sure that burning fat vs. carbs has any effect on weight loss whatsoever, since we are always eating food; but have seen studies that show that fasted cardio improves glucose tolerance. I have noticed, though, that I am much stronger, physically, in the afternoon.
  • briscogun
    briscogun Posts: 1,138 Member
    I run/workout in the AM as well. I go for 30-45 minutes at a time so eating isn't required. In fact, if I eat first I end up having to wait 1-2 hours to digest unless I want to re-visit my breakfast. So I go fasted because of time, I just wake up and hit it ASAP.
  • ccrdragon
    ccrdragon Posts: 3,374 Member
    Working out in a fasted state doesn't really burn fat during the workout (it takes too long for the body to convert the fat to sugar as energy during the workout) - what it does do is help to deplete the sugar stores in the muscles and liver (since these are the easiest/fastest available energy stores for the body to access). After the workout, the body has to replace the sugar stores, so the idea is that the body will burn fat (converting it to sugar) as a replacement for the energy reserves. At least this is the current theory on the idea of fasted-workouts.
  • 12Sarah2015
    12Sarah2015 Posts: 1,117 Member
    Do some YouTube walking videos as well as running
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    ccrdragon wrote: »
    Working out in a fasted state doesn't really burn fat during the workout (it takes too long for the body to convert the fat to sugar as energy during the workout) - what it does do is help to deplete the sugar stores in the muscles and liver (since these are the easiest/fastest available energy stores for the body to access). After the workout, the body has to replace the sugar stores, so the idea is that the body will burn fat (converting it to sugar) as a replacement for the energy reserves. At least this is the current theory on the idea of fasted-workouts.

    So what I'm reading is that there is no benefit ..because that process is continual ...converting excess calories into stored energy, and using stored energy

Categories