Stupid, Stupid Weight Loss Question

c - 13

When I was at my thinnest I still had a gut but my face was really taut and gaunt so I looked like I was bleeding starving. A lot or people reckoned I looked malnourished or something :rolleyes:

So basically i'm in the process of loosing the weight again, and I know theres no way to spot reduce and that the stomach fat is often the most stubborn.

So my stupid question is, is there some way I can make myself look less gaunt ? Or is that just how it is for me (Genes or whatever).

g'em

c - 13 wrote: »

So my stupid question is, is there some way I can make myself look less gaunt ? Or is that just how it is for me (Genes or whatever).

It's not stupid at all, it's a common problem for a lot of folk.

The quick and easy answer is: reduce your carbs and keep resistance training.

The look you're describing is the "skinny fat" look - a slim frame but with a disproportionately large amount of fat to your size. For more info on why carbs contribute to that see this post in this thread.

Maintaining/ increasing your resistance training allows you to hold onto the lean mass that you've built giving you a more proportionate body shape even when you're holding less body fat. It's hard to look gaunt when you've got appreciable muscle mass

amazingemmet

Having a stomach while at low body fat can be a sign of higher then normal cortisol levels and low testosterone. You can't make yourself look less gaunt really as your losing fat from all over so you'll lose some from your face as well and it will take a more angular appearance.

Also how were you dieting?

Al_Fernz

In addition to the above I would also recommend that if you drink give alcohol a knock on the head or seriously reduce your consumption.

c - 13

g'em wrote: »

It's not stupid at all, it's a common problem for a lot of folk.

The quick and easy answer is: reduce your carbs and keep resistance training.

The look you're describing is the "skinny fat" look - a slim frame but with a disproportionately large amount of fat to your size. For more info on why carbs contribute to that see this post in this thread.

Maintaining/ increasing your resistance training allows you to hold onto the lean mass that you've built giving you a more proportionate body shape even when you're holding less body fat. It's hard to look gaunt when you've got appreciable muscle mass

The muscle mass i have doesn't appear to be decreasing, legs, shoulders back and arms (to me anyway), but the old pants are looser so i'm hoping most of my loss is fat.

I've cut out carbs as much as possible. No bread, no pasta, etc. When I cook I use huge amounts of veggies and meat. Most of my carbs would be through fruit and veg (I think).

Once a week I do have a sandwich/roll (Small amount margarine, turkey breast and cheese), because I do love bread. Plus a few beers. Should I cut that.

amazingemmet wrote: »

Having a stomach while at low body fat can be a sign of higher then normal cortisol levels and low testosterone. You can't make yourself look less gaunt really as your losing fat from all over so you'll lose some from your face as well and it will take a more angular appearance.

Also how were you dieting?

Thats something I hadn't thought about to be truthful.

Usually I end up with a face like skeletor but an average looking body.

I'm sticking with the standard 6 meals (although this could often go down to four), while on calorie deficit.

The one problem I do have though is the last meal tends to be the biggest which I do realise is not ideal but its the only option with my work schedule and that over here.

c - 13

Not really worth of a seperate thread and kind of related to this point anyway.

I got the gut measured in the gym today. Its down only .5cm from what it was when I started. Overall I have lost 4.3KG in the same timeframe. Does that sound about right ? It just seems like a very small drop to me and I was wondering if I was loosing muscle instead (That said, the old pants are looser so maybe i'm just dropping fat elsewhere).

My face is starting to take on the gaunt look already. Was talking to the G/f on webcam earlier and she even noticed.

I'm going to try restructure my meals this week too and see if makes a difference. I think I could make better progress if I didnt have my big meal late in the evening. So a sample meal plan might be as follows -

Meal 1
Oats (Made with water), Lob in a few cashews

Meal 2
Apple & few cashews

Meal 3 (Big one)
Okay this one requires a bit of explanation. One day a week I cook up 500g Mince, Onions, Peppers, Carrots, Corn, Peas, Kidney beans and chillis, dump a jar of sauce over it (to make itmore edible) stick it in bowls and freeze/fridge as appropriate. This usually does ne about 4/5 large meals.

So one bowl of that, 2 eggs
or
2 chicken fillets, veg, 2 eggs

Meal 4
Apple & Cashews

Meal 5 (After Gym)
2 chicken fillets (or tuna), veg, 2 eggs

Okay thats only 5 meals but thats about as many as I can get in around work gym. Can anyone give me an opinion on that one ? Is that too much to be eating for weight loss ?