Stick thin everywhere with tons of stomach fat
kelliihere
Posts: 28 Member
Am looking for some advice here.
I’m 5’3 and 105 pounds. My arms and legs are thin. They don’t have any fat on them at all. But my stomach is huge. If someone were to see my whole body, stomach included, they would think I weigh 140-150. I have A TON of fat on my stomach and a muffin top that goes out to the sides. This isn’t how my body naturally is. Some people say how people naturally carry extra weight in their stomach. That’s not what this is. I had a super thin flat stomach that matched the rest of my body last year. This year, I have a ton of fat and a muffin top. It appeared overnight like that. It is very jiggly and goes way out.
Now when I say a muffin top, I don’t mean my pants are too tight. I mean the muffin top is visible naked. I can also wear bikini bottoms or shorts that are very loose and oversized and still see a bad muffin top. Nothing I wear hides it.
I contacted a trainer who says you can’t spot reduce and would have to lose weight everywhere. But what people don’t understand is I have no weight to lose! I am 105 pounds. I can’t lose any more weight. In fact, I’m trying to GAIN weight and build muscle. But apparently you can’t build muscle over fat. So what am I supposed to do?
My weight was extremely low at one point, 95 pounds and I still looked like I weighed 140-150 pounds with the belly fat and muffin top. And I looked very sickly because I was so thin. It doesn’t matter how low my weight goes. It will still be there. But yet everything I read says you can’t spot reduce and have to lose weight and fat everywhere. But my question is...what if you literally have NO fat anywhere on your body and are stick thin everywhere except your stomach area?
I’m 5’3 and 105 pounds. My arms and legs are thin. They don’t have any fat on them at all. But my stomach is huge. If someone were to see my whole body, stomach included, they would think I weigh 140-150. I have A TON of fat on my stomach and a muffin top that goes out to the sides. This isn’t how my body naturally is. Some people say how people naturally carry extra weight in their stomach. That’s not what this is. I had a super thin flat stomach that matched the rest of my body last year. This year, I have a ton of fat and a muffin top. It appeared overnight like that. It is very jiggly and goes way out.
Now when I say a muffin top, I don’t mean my pants are too tight. I mean the muffin top is visible naked. I can also wear bikini bottoms or shorts that are very loose and oversized and still see a bad muffin top. Nothing I wear hides it.
I contacted a trainer who says you can’t spot reduce and would have to lose weight everywhere. But what people don’t understand is I have no weight to lose! I am 105 pounds. I can’t lose any more weight. In fact, I’m trying to GAIN weight and build muscle. But apparently you can’t build muscle over fat. So what am I supposed to do?
My weight was extremely low at one point, 95 pounds and I still looked like I weighed 140-150 pounds with the belly fat and muffin top. And I looked very sickly because I was so thin. It doesn’t matter how low my weight goes. It will still be there. But yet everything I read says you can’t spot reduce and have to lose weight and fat everywhere. But my question is...what if you literally have NO fat anywhere on your body and are stick thin everywhere except your stomach area?
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Replies
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I wanted to add, based on what I’ve read online, I think I have a skinny fat body and I’m not sure what to do for it since ALL the fat is in my stomach and you can’t spot reduce.2
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Can you post a picture so some of the people on here can give you the benefit of their experience? Some of the initial thoughts are that I don’t know how old you are - if you’re young it could just be your body developing (lots of women have tummies which stick out a bit - there’s a whole thread about it). It could also be your posture, weak back / abs, you might just need to build muscle elsewhere to balance your physique. Dare I say it, at your weight, you might also be overly-critical of yourself and seeing something which no one else can see?9
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claireychn074 wrote: »Can you post a picture so some of the people on here can give you the benefit of their experience? Some of the initial thoughts are that I don’t know how old you are - if you’re young it could just be your body developing (lots of women have tummies which stick out a bit - there’s a whole thread about it). It could also be your posture, weak back / abs, you might just need to build muscle elsewhere to balance your physique. Dare I say it, at your weight, you might also be overly-critical of yourself and seeing something which no one else can see?
Yes, I will take pictures and post later tonight. I’m 28 and my body was completely different last year at 27. No, I’m not being overly critical of myself. The trainer I consulted with can clearly see it. The trainer doesn’t believe me that I’m only 105 pounds and thinks I need to lose weight. The trainer said I need to lose weight overall since you can’t spot reduce.1 -
I'm like this. I always have been. I will gain weight everywhere, but disproportionally around my midsection. When I lose, it mostly comes off the 'everywhere' first.
There are other possibilities - including PCOS which makes stomach weight gain much work and can be treated. For me it's just that i'm an apple shape.4 -
If you haven't already, I hope you'll go to a good doctor that listens for a complete physical. I'm a retired RN and ask "What if this isn't fat?"11
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And here’s now.
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wunderkindking wrote: »I'm like this. I always have been. I will gain weight everywhere, but disproportionally around my midsection. When I lose, it mostly comes off the 'everywhere' first.
There are other possibilities - including PCOS which makes stomach weight gain much work and can be treated. For me it's just that i'm an apple shape.
My doctor ruled out PCOS. What is especially concerning is the difference over a year.0 -
What kind of workouts do you do and how is your posture?
Resistance work/ weight lifting will improve your overall body composition.
Good posture and working on your abs will improve the way your (for want of a better term ) fat drapes on your body.
Look up vacuum exercises, an all round abs workout, and, if you have poor posture, routines to improve your posture. If you are just doing cardio, add some kind of resistance work.
If you have spent the last year less active because of COVID, it may just be that your muscles have become flaccid.
I have the same problem (skinny arms and legs with fat on my core) and found a more sedentary life this year was not benificial to my body composition. Once I started doing YouTube exercises at home instead of going to the gym things got back to normal.
Cheers, h.5 -
How's your digestion? Are you bloated frequently? That would be my other thought as to why you seem to carry most of your weight in your stomach. I assume your doctor took ultrasounds of your ovaries when you said they did one of that area?1
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[quote
My doctor ruled out PCOS. What is especially concerning is the difference over a year. [/quote]
@kelliihere is there any chance your alcohol consumption has increased over the past year with covid-related quarantining? I ask because I know mine did initially before I made a point to cut back.4 -
[quote
My doctor ruled out PCOS. What is especially concerning is the difference over a year.
@kelliihere is there any chance your alcohol consumption has increased over the past year with covid-related quarantining? I ask because I know mine did initially before I made a point to cut back. [/quote]
No, but I can see why you think that. It does look like an alcohol belly. Believe it or not, I’ve never taken one sip of alcohol my entire life.4 -
Speakeasy76 wrote: »How's your digestion? Are you bloated frequently? That would be my other thought as to why you seem to carry most of your weight in your stomach. I assume your doctor took ultrasounds of your ovaries when you said they did one of that area?
Yes, it showed a cyst on one of my ovaries, but my doctor said it was a normal cyst and wasn’t concerned.
It does “grow” after eating sometimes so it could be bloating. Although my stomach gets worse after eating at times, I do have jiggly fat and a muffin top in the area when I first wake up before eating anything.
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middlehaitch wrote: »What kind of workouts do you do and how is your posture?
Resistance work/ weight lifting will improve your overall body composition.
Good posture and working on your abs will improve the way your (for want of a better term ) fat drapes on your body.
Look up vacuum exercises, an all round abs workout, and, if you have poor posture, routines to improve your posture. If you are just doing cardio, add some kind of resistance work.
If you have spent the last year less active because of COVID, it may just be that your muscles have become flaccid.
I have the same problem (skinny arms and legs with fat on my core) and found a more sedentary life this year was not benificial to my body composition. Once I started doing YouTube exercises at home instead of going to the gym things got back to normal.
Cheers, h.
Good thoughts. Prior to Covid, I wasn’t super active. I’ve never been a gym girl. But I did do a lot of walking. This past year I stopped walking and basically spent all day or most of the day in the bed. I wake up, eat breakfast, go back to bed, wake up, eat lunch, go out for a drive, come back and eat dinner, and watch a movie. The only movement I get is up and down the stairs and from my room to the bathroom and from the living room to kitchen, etc. That makes sense about losing muscle since I’ve basically laid in the bed this year, but why would it go only to the stomach area? Wouldn’t I have lost muscle in my arms and legs too? Maybe that’s just the area where it puts it since the same thing happened to you. Although it sounds as if you exercised prior to Covid. I only did walking.
When you say resistance work, do you mean like mountain climbers, crunches, etc?
I don’t have good posture, I don’t think I ever have. So when I slouch I’m sure it makes the appearance of it worse. I need to work on that.0 -
Welcome to advancing age, where it takes work to achieve what may have occurred previously with little or no effort.
You’ll probably need to be more active to achieve your goals. Cardio and weightlifting should be your friends.6 -
You sound like you could benefit from recomp. There is a whole long thread dedicated to it. It's basically eating at maintanence and weight lifting. The object is not to lose weight but to gain muscle and tighten up your body. Many have done it with great results. However, it takes time and patience. There are people that have posted pics. Good luck.
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kelliihere wrote: »Speakeasy76 wrote: »How's your digestion? Are you bloated frequently? That would be my other thought as to why you seem to carry most of your weight in your stomach. I assume your doctor took ultrasounds of your ovaries when you said they did one of that area?
Yes, it showed a cyst on one of my ovaries, but my doctor said it was a normal cyst and wasn’t concerned.
It does “grow” after eating sometimes so it could be bloating. Although my stomach gets worse after eating at times, I do have jiggly fat and a muffin top in the area when I first wake up before eating anything.
I often wake up bloated, especially if I've eaten a carb-heavy snack a few hours before bed. However, based on your answers above I'm going to guess it's more related to your level of activity over the past year, and possibly your habitual posture as well.
We use our core muscles even just sitting upright, standing and walking. Like any other muscles, if they're not being used they will atrophy. If you posture is not good, either, even while you're sitting you may be using too much of one muscle and not enough of another, which over time can result in a more protruding belly appearance and loss of some of the lower ab muscles. It also can lead to back problems, so it's not just aesthetics that it impacts. I know about the posture thing--because I have poor posture and over time it contributed to some of lower belly pooch. Also, some people also just have the body type where they store all their fat in their stomachs even if they are technically not overweight.
The good news is that 1. You're still young, so there's lots of time to correct it and 2. It actually doesn't take a lot of intense or even a lot of direct ab/core work to get a flatter stomach. I actually remembered recently that one of my favorite female trainers described her former body type as "an orange with toothpick limbs," which kind of sounds as how you describe yours. You'd never know by looking at her now. A healthy diet combined with total body resistance training with a bit of core work is usually what takes. In your case, too, I'd especially pay attention to your posture--engaging your abs with a neutral spine without rounding or over-arching your back.
I agree with the idea that body recomposition is probably the way to go if you're not overweight--not sure why the personal trainer didn't tell you that. You lose fat but gain muscle, so your weight may stay the same or even go up. However, because muscle takes up less space than fat, you'll look leaner.1 -
Here’s the annoying thing - your body will put fat on where it is genetically programmed to, not where you want. So even though I have okay body fat levels, my legs are always chubby with awesome cellulite (husband says I have pudgy knees syndrome 🤣). It looks like your body stores your fat around your mid-section. Have a look at the recomp thread mentioned; it will help you to build muscles in your arms and legs and slowly lose fat. This will be no consolation but I would kill for slim legs! We are all different and the grass is always greener!3
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Here's a great example of successful body recomposition. See how she looks better at a higher weight:
If it's safe for you to go to a gym, hit the gym. If not, ask us about what you can do at home.9 -
kelliihere wrote: »middlehaitch wrote: »What kind of workouts do you do and how is your posture?
Resistance work/ weight lifting will improve your overall body composition.
Good posture and working on your abs will improve the way your (for want of a better term ) fat drapes on your body.
Look up vacuum exercises, an all round abs workout, and, if you have poor posture, routines to improve your posture. If you are just doing cardio, add some kind of resistance work.
If you have spent the last year less active because of COVID, it may just be that your muscles have become flaccid.
I have the same problem (skinny arms and legs with fat on my core) and found a more sedentary life this year was not benificial to my body composition. Once I started doing YouTube exercises at home instead of going to the gym things got back to normal.
Cheers, h.
Good thoughts. Prior to Covid, I wasn’t super active. I’ve never been a gym girl. But I did do a lot of walking. This past year I stopped walking and basically spent all day or most of the day in the bed. I wake up, eat breakfast, go back to bed, wake up, eat lunch, go out for a drive, come back and eat dinner, and watch a movie. The only movement I get is up and down the stairs and from my room to the bathroom and from the living room to kitchen, etc. That makes sense about losing muscle since I’ve basically laid in the bed this year, but why would it go only to the stomach area? Wouldn’t I have lost muscle in my arms and legs too? Maybe that’s just the area where it puts it since the same thing happened to you. Although it sounds as if you exercised prior to Covid. I only did walking.
When you say resistance work, do you mean like mountain climbers, crunches, etc?
I don’t have good posture, I don’t think I ever have. So when I slouch I’m sure it makes the appearance of it worse. I need to work on that.
I would suggest this inactivity is the problem.
Any chance of starting walking again, maybe doing some yoga or pilates?
I've gained a few pounds over this most recent lockdown, all seems to have gone to my stomach.
I've still been running, but no access to swimming or yoga - so none of the effective core stuff and I can see the difference.
The walking will have been doing similar for you, by holding yourself straight while you walk as well other benefits. Whether it's deliberate exercise or not the movement still helps. I
I know mine will go down again once things get a bit more back to normal, its worth trying to see if yours does.1 -
Based on your stats and picture, I also don't believe you're 105lbs. I have friends that are that height and weight 115lbs with flatter stomachs and little muscle.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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kelliihere wrote: »middlehaitch wrote: »What kind of workouts do you do and how is your posture?
Resistance work/ weight lifting will improve your overall body composition.
Good posture and working on your abs will improve the way your (for want of a better term ) fat drapes on your body.
Look up vacuum exercises, an all round abs workout, and, if you have poor posture, routines to improve your posture. If you are just doing cardio, add some kind of resistance work.
If you have spent the last year less active because of COVID, it may just be that your muscles have become flaccid.
I have the same problem (skinny arms and legs with fat on my core) and found a more sedentary life this year was not benificial to my body composition. Once I started doing YouTube exercises at home instead of going to the gym things got back to normal.
Cheers, h.
Good thoughts. Prior to Covid, I wasn’t super active. I’ve never been a gym girl. But I did do a lot of walking. This past year I stopped walking and basically spent all day or most of the day in the bed. I wake up, eat breakfast, go back to bed, wake up, eat lunch, go out for a drive, come back and eat dinner, and watch a movie. The only movement I get is up and down the stairs and from my room to the bathroom and from the living room to kitchen, etc. That makes sense about losing muscle since I’ve basically laid in the bed this year, but why would it go only to the stomach area? Wouldn’t I have lost muscle in my arms and legs too? Maybe that’s just the area where it puts it since the same thing happened to you. Although it sounds as if you exercised prior to Covid. I only did walking.
When you say resistance work, do you mean like mountain climbers, crunches, etc?
I don’t have good posture, I don’t think I ever have. So when I slouch I’m sure it makes the appearance of it worse. I need to work on that.
If you lose muscle mass, but maintain the same weight (or close), your body will have more fat. The fat is not as compact (pound for pound), so you'll look bigger. It isn't that the muscle lost "turns into fat" and stays where it was; it's that you lose muscle weight and gain (add) equivalent fat weight, and that fat lands wherever your body likes to keep its fat. For many of us, the midsection is one of the preferred first storage spots.
If you got lots less active, and kept eating the same way, staying at a similar weight, this could happen. Did this bigger, "bloated" appearance happen gradually? If so, that starts to seem like a likely scenario. If it was sudden, talk to your doctor.5 -
kelliihere wrote: »[quote
My doctor ruled out PCOS. What is especially concerning is the difference over a year.
@kelliihere is there any chance your alcohol consumption has increased over the past year with covid-related quarantining? I ask because I know mine did initially before I made a point to cut back.
No, but I can see why you think that. It does look like an alcohol belly. Believe it or not, I’ve never taken one sip of alcohol my entire life. [/quote]
No, that wasn’t at all what I meant. All I meant was that alcohol has sneaky calories and many have a tendency to over pour a glass of wine is all. When I first started tracking I never measured my glasses of wine and was shocked to find that my “glass” was more like 1.5.1 -
I so dislike this photo as there's so much light and other trickery going on. I'm sure it's mostly real, but she really should not have tried to take a perfect light, tan, bra, etc photo as the last.3
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OP
Some of the second pic looks like end of the day post meal bloat and sticking ur belly out. Plus those type of Jean shorts do give a muffin top.
Recomp. As others have said. Lift weights on a proper resistance training programme, not one you have designed yourself. Look at the thread on recomp. And the beginners programmes suggested in the body building forum.
You could see about dropping a couple of pounds but not really necessary IMO.
Don’t expect quick changes. 2 plus years I’d say of regular lifting.3 -
If you stats are accurate then it will be difficult to provide advice because losing weight would put you in the underweight category. The only way I can see your stats being accurate is if your muscles have atrophied due to what sounds like 0 activity for a long time.
At this point you just need to increase your activity level and eat at maintenance and see what happens. Laying around all day long every day isn't good for your health, even if it didn't result in a muffin top.
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Seems to me you simply have a body that holds some of its weight in your torso. There's nothing freakish about that. You've been bombarded with images giving you the idea that your body must have a trim, flat tummy or else...I dunno you don't measure up? The truth is, you have a nice normal body.
Even if you're at a perfectly normal weight, or even lower weight, doesn't mean you'll look like a bikini model.
By all means, if you want to try recomp or whatever -- go for it. I'm all for that. Really. However, be aware that your body may always be a bit heavier in the middle. You might never be able to really pull off a string bikini -- but that's why there's more than one type of swimsuit.
Be careful you aren't buying into the idea that if you aren't a lingerie model, you're somehow less.1 -
Did you check Thyroid?1
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kelliihere wrote: »middlehaitch wrote: »What kind of workouts do you do and how is your posture?
Resistance work/ weight lifting will improve your overall body composition.
Good posture and working on your abs will improve the way your (for want of a better term ) fat drapes on your body.
Look up vacuum exercises, an all round abs workout, and, if you have poor posture, routines to improve your posture. If you are just doing cardio, add some kind of resistance work.
If you have spent the last year less active because of COVID, it may just be that your muscles have become flaccid.
I have the same problem (skinny arms and legs with fat on my core) and found a more sedentary life this year was not benificial to my body composition. Once I started doing YouTube exercises at home instead of going to the gym things got back to normal.
Cheers, h.
Good thoughts. Prior to Covid, I wasn’t super active. I’ve never been a gym girl. But I did do a lot of walking. This past year I stopped walking and basically spent all day or most of the day in the bed. I wake up, eat breakfast, go back to bed, wake up, eat lunch, go out for a drive, come back and eat dinner, and watch a movie. The only movement I get is up and down the stairs and from my room to the bathroom and from the living room to kitchen, etc. That makes sense about losing muscle since I’ve basically laid in the bed this year, but why would it go only to the stomach area? Wouldn’t I have lost muscle in my arms and legs too? Maybe that’s just the area where it puts it since the same thing happened to you. Although it sounds as if you exercised prior to Covid. I only did walking.
When you say resistance work, do you mean like mountain climbers, crunches, etc?
I don’t have good posture, I don’t think I ever have. So when I slouch I’m sure it makes the appearance of it worse. I need to work on that.
To me spending all or most of the day in bed is a bigger issue than some stomach poof.2
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