Belly fat!!!

Being underweight, if your stomach is not as defined as you want to be, it is not so much a matter of fat but lack of muscle. Could also be you are seeing fat when really it could just be your normal shape.

I would not recommend you keep losing weight...without more muscle base under, your body composition won't change much (and could potentially look worse). Not to mention you are already underweight.

I would consider gaining some weight/muscle to improve your body composition... eat in a surplus (set MFP to gain 0.5lb per week), get adequate protein (0.8-1g per lb bodyweight) and make sure you are following a lifting program where you are progressing over time. At the very least maintain your weight, although with your stats you probably won't make as much progress in terms of body composition as you would if you gain some weight.

Are you following a program set by a trainer?

Is that how much MFP tells you to gain? Keep in mind that doesn't include your exercise calories which you will enter and have to eat on top of that in order to gain.

You won't ruin everything, as long as you keep the gain small and continue to progress in your training program. I know it is scary... but continuing to lose weight or even maintain your weight at this point will not give you the results and improve your body composition. Right now you are at a place where you have nowhere to go but up.

You could try lowering your carb intake for a while: going low carb for a bit often helps with stubborn (belly) fat. The easiest way to do it is to eliminate all or most grains and starches (and sugary foods) for a few weeks. If you do so, make sure to up your intake of healthy fats. All starches and all excess protein will be used by your liver to convert to sugar, and sugar is what then turns into fat to be stored in your belly.

Going for a long (45 min minimum) moderate-pace walk first thing in the morning, before you've had any breakfast, would also help speed up fat loss from your belly region.

Best wishes :-)

vaskaxtumir wrote: »

You could try lowering your carb intake for a while: going low carb for a bit often helps with stubborn (belly) fat. The easiest way to do it is to eliminate all or most grains and starches (and sugary foods) for a few weeks. If you do so, make sure to up your intake of healthy fats. All starches and all excess protein will be used by your liver to convert to sugar, and sugar is what then turns into fat to be stored in your belly.

Going for a long (45 min minimum) moderate-pace walk first thing in the morning, before you've had any breakfast, would also help speed up fat loss from your belly region.

Best wishes :-)

Lowering carb intake has nothing to do with stubborn fat. Any excess calories, be it from fat, carbs, protein can turn into fat. While lowering carbs can help some people reduce bloat and help them get into a calorie deficit which can help lose fat... the OP is underweight and this does not apply.

Also fasted cardio/walking will have nothing to do with fat loss as well.

There is plenty of research done in the past 10 years that counters the notion that excess calories rather than excess carbs produce weight gain in the form of stubborn (belly) fat.

Fasted *moderate-pace* walking activates the type of muscles which produce steady, continuous fat burning for hours afterwards. Again, the effect has nothing to do with calories but with human metabolism.

vaskaxtumir wrote: »

There is plenty of research done in the past 10 years that counters the notion that excess calories rather than excess carbs produce weight gain in the form of stubborn (belly) fat.

Fasted *moderate-pace* walking activates the type of muscles which produce steady, continuous fat burning for hours afterwards. Again, the effect has nothing to do with calories but with human metabolism.

Oh yea I'd love to see this research if you have it handy, peer reviewed studies?

Believe me I have deliberately gained weight many many times..on a very high amount of calories. I would have loved to gain weight by only adding extra carbs.. a few bags of Skittles and bam I'd be on the gain train. But unfortunately it doesn't work like that. Otherwise we could tell all underweight or starving people to eat some extra carbs to gain.

Also OP I want to show you a photo of myself. Left is almost underweight, right is 20lbs heavier. Muscle makes a huge difference in body composition. Obviously this wasn't a result of just gaining weight.. it took several years of bulk (gaining) cycles then leaning down. Ps. No low carb or fasted cardio involved.