those last few pounds!!!

The_Seal

Hey im looking for some advice,
I have been working out for a bout a year now and really going at it over the last 4 months. I am as big muscle wise as I want now but the problem is im finding it really tough to lose those last little bits of belly fat that just wont budge. I am quite a slender person and I have some definition around my upper abs but its the little bit of belly fat that's really annoying me.
I do quite alot of stomach work and weight sessions and I go running 2-3 times a week. Im just wondering since I have reached my muscle goals should I drop most of the weights and move onto some mega cardio time to try and shift those last few pounds.

air

I've heard it said before that abs are carved in the kitchen, basically you probably have enough muscle down there to give you the definition you want, you just need to improve your diet a bit to drop the fat. Try cutting back a bit more on sugary / fatty foodstuffs & alcohol. You'll need to be patient too, it's a lifestyle change over a prolonged period that's needed to reduce that last bit, I'd imagine 6 weeks min of good eating before you'll see the change.

The_Seal

Well i eat fairly healthy i dont eat fast food or pizzas or any of that crap. I drink usually only once every two weeks. Now i do have a biscuit or two with my tea but that is something i would never give up. What if i just ran my arse off for a month running like 40k a week. Surely that would shift it.

crotalus667

The_Seal wrote: »

Well i eat fairly healthy i dont eat fast food or pizzas or any of that crap. I drink usually only once every two weeks. Now i do have a biscuit or two with my tea but that is something i would never give up. What if i just ran my arse off for a month running like 40k a week. Surely that would shift it.

Sorry I don’t want to sound mean but that screams “I don’t have a clue about the diet needed to get ab’s , as for the drinking twice a week that just reinforces it . Post you diet so we can have a look and help you tweak it

well then you are going to have a hard time getting ab's



Not if your diet is wrong

air

Well it's all down to your own body & how it behaves, but realistically you're probably trying to achieve a pretty low body fat percentage. To be honest, any elite athletes that I've come across would cut out the biscuit and drinking wouldnt come into it at all, comes down to how much you want to achieve your goal.
I've found whenever I do large amounts of cardio that I probably overeat, craving huge servings of carbs. Now of course you need them to refuel but I think it makes it even harder to shave pounds if it's new to you as it's hard to gauge exactly how much you need.
If I were you I'd keep my exercise and everything else exactly the same (assuming you're doing a good amount already) and cut out the crap from your diet. This reduces the number of unknowns & will work as it will create a calorie defecit all else being equal.
If this doesnt work (give it at least 2 months) you could start doing some long slow distance training where you keep the intensity very low (in the fat burning zone). I find that I come in after a long slow session on the bike & I'm hardly any hungrier than if I'd been watching tv, good indicator that it's fat that's providing the energy.

puntosporting

The_Seal wrote: »

Hey im looking for some advice,
I have been working out for a bout a year now and really going at it over the last 4 months. I am as big muscle wise as I want now but the problem is im finding it really tough to lose those last little bits of belly fat that just wont budge. I am quite a slender person and I have some definition around my upper abs but its the little bit of belly fat that's really annoying me.
I do quite alot of stomach work and weight sessions and I go running 2-3 times a week. Im just wondering since I have reached my muscle goals should I drop most of the weights and move onto some mega cardio time to try and shift those last few pounds.

Maybe patience is what you need !

The_Seal

Sorry actually bit of a mix up it was once or twice a month for the drinking not a week.
All i really wanted to know was would increasing my cardio improve my fat burning or should i stick with my my even mix of weights and cardio.
But if people are saying to me that i gotta eat like some machine and cut out thew few things that i look forward too then it just aint worth that. Im gonna stick to my guns and give it a bit more time.

crotalus667

The_Seal wrote: »

Sorry actually bit of a mix up it was once or twice a month for the drinking not a week.
All i really wanted to know was would increasing my cardio improve my fat burning or should i stick with my my even mix of weights and cardio.
But if people are saying to me that i gotta eat like some machine and cut out thew few things that i look forward too then it just aint worth that. Im gonna stick to my guns and give it a bit more time.

If that’s the attitude your going to take (which is fair enough , it‘s your life), try upping the cardio but don’t decrease the weights or you will lose muscle mass , that should bring them out more

Mink

air wrote: »

you could start doing some long slow distance training where you keep the intensity very low (in the fat burning zone). I find that I come in after a long slow session on the bike & I'm hardly any hungrier than if I'd been watching tv, good indicator that it's fat that's providing the energy.

Is this actually true, has anyone had experience where they've lost body fat specifically from this theory? Just wondering as there is a lot of conflicting data out there

air

It is for me anyway, as I understand it there are basically 3 activity levels. The lowest level is at a low enough intensity that your body can use fat as an energy source as it has time to break it down for use. The second zone is where your body combines your blood sugar with oxygen and you can normally do this for 2-3 hours before you need to eat (ballpark). The third zone is anerobic & is basically sprinting where your body is using blood sugar but is using oxygen at a higher rate than your lungs can replenish it & so once the oxygen in your blood is used up you have to slow down or stop.

As for anecdotal evidence, I used to cycle an 80km (round trip) commute on my bike a few days a week & when I took it easy it definitely stripped the weight off me, was probably never leaner than at that point.

In my opinion these women you see off power walking swinging the arms & going hell for leather have the wrong idea. They're burning loads of calories but no doubt they need to eat a lot when they get home to refuel so while they get a bit of a cardio workout they wont drop as much weight as they could. Massive assumption here by myself that most of them are aiming for weight loss of course.

Mink

air wrote: »

It is for me anyway, as I understand it there are basically 3 aerobic zones. The lowest level is at a low enough intensity that your body can use fat as an energy source as it has time to break it down for use.

That's interesting, never came across this before.
Hope I'm not hijacking the thread.
What happens with me is if I try & go all out on the running, I get seriously knackered fast & just can't keep it up & then walk too much of the journey. Last night I jogged slowly & was able to do it much longer without as many walks.

However, I'd had some ice cream a 1/2hr before (long story & no I don't usually do this as part of my diet/fitness regime ) & I was able to run longer without getting so knackered. When I run having not eaten for about 3 hours, I get tired easily. But I guess I'm not giving the body a chance to break down the fat so I can use it while running.

crotalus667

air wrote: »

It is for me anyway, as I understand it there are basically 3 aerobic zones.

Let me stop you there , with out wanting to sound harsh , you dont understand it. for a start you called "anerobic" part of 3 aerobic zones by definition it is the complete opposite of aerobic :rolleyes:

air

Yes of course, i was being lazy, will edit my post accordingly.

Mink, you're going way too fast to burn fat, you want to be going at a rate which you can easily maintain a conversation, this by the sounds of it will probably be a brisk walking pace for yourself. Pick it up gradually as you improve.

air

This might help explain it a bit better, pulled from wikipedia.

Khannie

The_Seal wrote: »

Im gonna stick to my guns and give it a bit more time.

You do that. Your body is reluctant to shift that last bit of fat. Took me ages to shift that little blob around my belly button to get the 6 pack out. In fact (assuming you're dieting now), I'd nearly go one step further and advise eating maintenance calories for a bit. I find that if I've been losing weight for a while, eating maintenance calories for even a few days gives me a real mental boost, then I can go back to dieting to push that last bit of weight off.

Zamboni

It sounds to me like you're at the point where you will make it or break it.

The reason so so so few people have amazing physiques is because
a) most folks never bother attempting
b) those that do have to fight through tons of conflicting information
c) long periods of trial and error with exercise and diet
d) the balls too stick to a long term commitment
e) The final sacrifice of those last few pleasures to get rid of that last bit of flab

So lob the biccies out the window, be a man and grow some abs

Hanley

Khannie wrote: »

You do that. Your body is reluctant to shift that last bit of fat. Took me ages to shift that little blob around my belly button to get the 6 pack out. In fact (assuming you're dieting now), I'd nearly go one step further and advise eating maintenance calories for a bit. I find that if I've been losing weight for a while, eating maintenance calories for even a few days gives me a real mental boost, then I can go back to dieting to push that last bit of weight off.

+1

**Timbuk2**

Sometimes small changes to your diet can work wonders (they are the easiest to maintain, even after you have reached your target weight)

I know you said you don't want to give up biscuits, but at around 60-80kcals per biscuit (considering they don't make you feel very full), they are quite fattening

Khannie

I eat biscuits and wouldn't consider cutting them out. Even when I'm pushing hard to make weight for a fight I'll still have a biscuit with my coffee (although in those cases it might be a protein biscuit that I've made myself, but you get the idea ). I think cutting out every last treat would be a horrible way to live. Mug of coffee and a biscuit = win IMO. Worth every calorie.

edit: Some biscuits are better than others though. Nairns do a decent oat based biscuit at 43 calories a pop. Home made flapjacks with fruit and nuts and lowered sugar are a good option too. I add whey to mine sometimes. etc. etc.

WolfForager

Khannie, what are maintenance calories?

I'm pretty much in the same boat as the OP, got the upper ab definition but the blob at the belly is being a stubborn old fart..

Seal, personaly i'm hoping that when i hit the squats and deadlifts after my LC it'll drop away, if that doesn't work i'm cutting carbs out of my diet as thoroughly as i can.

polishpaddy

Change your diet to 65/30/5 fat protein carbs. It's something new for your body and you will start to lose fat again.
It's a great diet as you can pig out on fri night till sat night and go back to it again sunday, to friday. I'm losing 3 pounds a week on it after being on a 40 40 20 type ...

WolfForager

More fat than protein? eh?

polishpaddy

yes

celestial

the_seal, post up your full diet and we can give better advice.

WolfForager

How much cardio are you doing with that?

Vampireskiss

Thats the Keto diet Polish paddy is referring too. I for one dont think cutting carbs that low is something that can be maintained for a lifestyle or is necessary.You can ask Eileen about it if you like she is the authority on the Keto diet around here

The_Seal

Wow quite a long post this has turned out to be ive had a few requests for my diet so ill give it a stab itys not exactly this every day but you'll get the general idea.

Monday to Friday is usually the same.

Breakfast: a slice of toast (brown) and two poached eggs.
Lunch: a fruit sald and a yogurt (a low fat one)
3 o clock snack: a biscuit and some tea (usually gingernuts)
Dinner: something normal enough nothing bad like pizzas or chips usually stir fries or stew
9 o clock snack: humus on ryvita, tuna, some toast or something like that.

In general i dont eat unhealthy stuff and drinks lots of water and fruit juices (fresh not concentrate).

As i stated in my original post im not looking to put on more muscle i have enough even too much on my chest it sticks out too much i just want to get lean. My general idea was to cut down on weights and focus on cardio more to peal away the last layers of fat. Ive got plenty of muscle there i just gotta show it.

Esse85

To answer the original question: Yes

celestial

The_Seal wrote: »

Wow quite a long post this has turned out to be ive had a few requests for my diet so ill give it a stab itys not exactly this every day but you'll get the general idea.

Monday to Friday is usually the same.

Breakfast: a slice of toast (brown) and two poached eggs.
Lunch: a fruit sald and a yogurt (a low fat one)
3 o clock snack: a biscuit and some tea (usually gingernuts)
Dinner: something normal enough nothing bad like pizzas or chips usually stir fries or stew
9 o clock snack: humus on ryvita, tuna, some toast or something like that.

In general i dont eat unhealthy stuff and drinks lots of water and fruit juices (fresh not concentrate).

As i stated in my original post im not looking to put on more muscle i have enough even too much on my chest it sticks out too much i just want to get lean. My general idea was to cut down on weights and focus on cardio more to peal away the last layers of fat. Ive got plenty of muscle there i just gotta show it.

The fat around the lower abdomen is the last to go really. It's notorious difficult to shift and it just tends to cling there for a while. You might need some patience but more importantly you might wanna shake things up a bit if you've been doin more or less the same thing for the past four months...maybe ease off the weights a bit, up the cardio, cut cals for a while, then increase them again to shake things up.

Also, your diet is not bad but not fantastic either. If you were going out there saying 'right I'm getting a six pack' that diet is not one you'd be running with - it's heavy enough on the carbs and the biscuits..? Even if it is only the one I'd make that one a week not one a day! Other examples would be cutting back or cutting out bread and replacing with other protein choices or nuts/veg perhaps.

Also, fruit juices - pure carbs and sugar, even the natural ones...

floggg

celestial wrote: »

Also, your diet is not bad but not fantastic either. If you were going out there saying 'right I'm getting a six pack' that diet is not one you'd be running with - it's heavy enough on the carbs and the biscuits..? Even if it is only the one I'd make that one a week not one a day! Other examples would be cutting back or cutting out bread and replacing with other protein choices or nuts/veg perhaps.

Also, fruit juices - pure carbs and sugar, even the natural ones...

+ 1