Still struggling with belly fat

rottie 11 · 27-02-2017 7:00pm #1

I used to 19 stone a few years ago, I'm now just over 13.

I've started doing weights and starting to build muscle (I think) but the belly is still the same .

I'm not eating 100% clean but I'm eating pretty well, my ribs are starting to stick out aswel so not looking to lose any more weight.

I'm actually happy with the rest of my body now just the the stomach is ruining it.

I'm not looking for any lectures, just need to know what to do to start toning it up .

I've been doing leg raises and sit ups but not consistently tbf I also have an ab roller

Will I keep doing them or change to something else ? And how do I go about adding core work into my 4 day programme?

Also I'm a bit picky with food but what do I definitely need to stay away from ?

Thanks in advance

Alf Veedersane · 27-02-2017 7:56pm

The exercises will have little, if any, impact.

It's your diet you need to address. Your ribs showing doesn't mean you're going to look like you went on holidays to a concentration boot camp. It just means you're leaner there.

You can't spot reduce fat so no amount of leg raises, crunches etc will reduce belly fat. But tidying up your diet will.

endacl · 27-02-2017 7:59pm

^^

This. Muscle mass is built in the gym and kitchen. Fat is kitchen only.

rottie 11 · 27-02-2017 9:04pm

Thanks for the replies. So there's no need for me to do leg raises at all until the fat is actually lost ?

See the other thing is I'm not sure if it's fat or loose skin?

So what should I be eating and not eating ?

I know the obvious ones like no fast food or sweets etc and bread and stuff but what foods would be good for my case ?

Alf Veedersane · 27-02-2017 9:30pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. So there's no need for me to do leg raises at all until the fat is actually lost ?

See the other thing is I'm not sure if it's fat or loose skin?

So what should I be eating and not eating ?

I know the obvious ones like no fast food or sweets etc and bread and stuff but what foods would be good for my case ?

If I did a 500 crunches or leg raises a day, it would have very little impact.

In order to know what to change, you need to know what you're getting. I know its the standard answer but try using MyFitnessPal...just to get an appreciation of what you're getting from your diet. All of the gory details.

Unless someone knows what you eat and how much of it you eat, they can't say what you need to tweak.

But look, you've lost 6 stone. You've done brilliantly. You're going in the right direction so it's possibly just a case of tweaking something at this stage.

Mellor · 28-02-2017 12:36am

rottie 11 wrote: »

I'm not looking for any lectures, just need to know what to do to start toning it up .

I've been doing leg raises and sit ups but not consistently tbf I also have an ab roller

There really no such thing as toning. Being more tones just means having a relatively less body fat. It could be the case that you your BF is getting low, but you feel untoned because you have slight low muscle mass.

How tall are you?

As mentioned above, ab work will do very little for burning fat over your abs. It will make you core stronger, and build a little mass under the surface.

rottie 11 wrote: »

See the other thing is I'm not sure if it's fat or loose skin?

So what should I be eating and not eating ?

It could be either, but it was loose skin you'd know. They don't look similar imo. If you aren't sure then it probably just fat - which is probably preferred as it's easier to fix.

As for what you are eating, focus on eating real off. Adequate protein and fat. Portion sizes and how much carbs you should eat is dictated by whether you are trying to lose more fat, or build muscle. They are different goals

rottie 11 · 28-02-2017 9:25am

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

If I did a 500 crunches or leg raises a day, it would have very little impact.

In order to know what to change, you need to know what you're getting. I know its the standard answer but try using MyFitnessPal...just to get an appreciation of what you're getting from your diet. All of the gory details.

Unless someone knows what you eat and how much of it you eat, they can't say what you need to tweak.

But look, you've lost 6 stone. You've done brilliantly. You're going in the right direction so it's possibly just a case of tweaking something at this stage.

The whole diet side of it is hard for me to understand tbh ya I'm definitely going in the right direction but it seems like I'm stuck here with a while

rottie 11 · 28-02-2017 9:27am

Mellor wrote: »

There really no such thing as toning. Being more tones just means having a relatively less body fat. It could be the case that you your BF is getting low, but you feel untoned because you have slight low muscle mass.

How tall are you?

As mentioned above, ab work will do very little for burning fat over your abs. It will make you core stronger, and build a little mass under the surface.

It could be either, but it was loose skin you'd know. They don't look similar imo. If you aren't sure then it probably just fat - which is probably preferred as it's easier to fix.

As for what you are eating, focus on eating real off. Adequate protein and fat. Portion sizes and how much carbs you should eat is dictated by whether you are trying to lose more fat, or build muscle. They are different goals

I'm around 5ft 11. Ya I'd be 80% sure it's fat, I know they are different goals but is it possible to do both at the same time ?

Mellor · 28-02-2017 10:49am

rottie 11 wrote: »

I'm around 5ft 11. Ya I'd be 80% sure it's fat, I know they are different goals but is it possible to do both at the same time ?

It's not impossible to do both, but you'll probably reach your destination quicker focusing on one then the other. You probably don't have much to lose before needing to put on weight.
Maybe get the last bit of fat out of the way first.

rottie 11 · 28-02-2017 3:00pm

Mellor wrote: »

It's not impossible to do both, but you'll probably reach your destination quicker focusing on one then the other. You probably don't have much to lose before needing to put on weight.
Maybe get the last bit of fat out of the way first.

Cheers ya il figure it out anyway. Thanks for the help

Caliden · 28-02-2017 3:21pm

Like others have said it's your diet to reveal your abs but at the same time if you don't done ab work they're not just going to magically be there.

You wouldn't expect to have massive arms from only doing chin ups so expecting to have blocky abs from deadlifts/squats isn't going to happen.

Best solution is to start weighing your food and recording your calories.

rottie 11 · 28-02-2017 4:36pm

Caliden wrote: »

Like others have said it's your diet to reveal your abs but at the same time if you don't done ab work they're not just going to magically be there.

You wouldn't expect to have massive arms from only doing chin ups so expecting to have blocky abs from deadlifts/squats isn't going to happen.

Best solution is to start weighing your food and recording your calories.

Oh I know that ya , I'm not bothered about abs right now , just want a fat free stomach.

Just thinking back about what I actually eat regularly enough , there's a lot of stuff I can still cut out..

I eat a scone every morning on way to work , I use a lot of sugar in my tea etc if I cut out white bread and spuds and few other things il surely see some results ?

Donal55 · 28-02-2017 4:45pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Oh I know that ya , I'm not bothered about abs right now , just want a fat free stomach.

Just thinking back about what I actually eat regularly enough , there's a lot of stuff I can still cut out..

I eat a scone every morning on way to work , I use a lot of sugar in my tea etc if I cut out white bread and spuds and few other things il surely see some results ?

You'll see a helluva difference by just knocking out the scones, sugar, spuds and bread.

rottie 11 · 28-02-2017 8:02pm

Il try that then. How bout low fat milk is that OK to drink

FTA69 · 28-02-2017 8:07pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Il try that then. How bout low fat milk is that OK to drink

Like anything it depends. To lose fat generally you have to be in a calorie deficit ie consume less calories than you expend every day by exercising and General body function. Milk can definitely be a part of that diet. It is however worth noting that milk is very sugary and drinking quantities of it isn't going to help your fat situation. Having the odd glass of milk or milk in tea etc is grand, skulling a litre of it a day may well throw your diet out of whack for the goals you want.

28-02-2017 8:09pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Il try that then. How bout low fat milk is that OK to drink

Why don't you post up what you eat in the course of a day and posters can suggest what to drop and what to eat more of.

RobertKK · 01-03-2017 2:33am

Maybe a low carb diet will help.

bladespin · 01-03-2017 12:20pm

RobertKK wrote: »

Maybe a low carb diet will help.

Or have a go at carb cycling, 2 days or so low carb, back to normal and repeat.

Alf Veedersane · 01-03-2017 12:31pm

The OP doesn't know enough about food to count carbs yet.

Which is why they should (a) read the stickies and (b) keep a food diary, possibly using MyFitnessPal, and identify what can be changed by understanding what's in what they eat.

bladespin · 01-03-2017 12:47pm

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

MyFitnessPal

This, it will open your eyes and revolutionize your eating habits regardless of what you want to achieve

rottie 11 · 01-03-2017 6:35pm

Thanks for the replies

This is what I've ate so far today ,

2 sausages from deli and a banana for breakfast.

Protein bar and apple at tea time

At lunch I had a breaded chicken fillet and a veg soup and a banana

How's that so far ?

No idea what to eat for the rest of the day tbh

Alf Veedersane · 01-03-2017 6:50pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies

This is what I've ate so far today ,

2 sausages from deli and a banana for breakfast.

Protein bar and apple at tea time

At lunch I had a breaded chicken fillet and a veg soup and a banana

How's that so far ?

No idea what to eat for the rest of the day tbh

MyFitnessPal.

Download it. Enter everything. Overestimate weights if you're guessing.

Use it as an educational tool.

And read the stickies in the Fitness forum and Nutrition & Diet sub-forum or you'll be forever wondering if x, y or z are ok. Understand the underlying principles and it will stand you in good stead.

I could suggest a better breakfast but without knowing why it might be a better option, you will only think of that as 'the good breakfast'.

What would you normally have to eat between now and the end of the day?

EDIT: Here are the stickies:

http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2055963342/1

http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2055157091/1

rottie 11 · 01-03-2017 7:03pm

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

MyFitnessPal.

Download it. Enter everything. Overestimate weights if you're guessing.

Use it as an educational tool.

And read the stickies in the Fitness forum and Nutrition & Diet sub-forum or you'll be forever wondering if x, y or z are ok. Understand the underlying principles and it will stand you in good stead.

I could suggest a better breakfast but without knowing why it might be a better option, you will only think of that as 'the good breakfast'.

What would you normally have to eat between now and the end of the day?

EDIT: Here are the stickies:

http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2055963342/1

http://touch.boards.ie/thread/2055157091/1

Thanks I appreciate your help but if I go reading all that stuff il just lose interest in the whole thing. I think I'm just going to try cutting out the stuff I said earlier and see how that goes for me

What breakfast would u suggest ? Maybe boiled eggs or something ?

Alf Veedersane · 01-03-2017 7:19pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Thanks I appreciate your help but if I go reading all that stuff il just lose interest in the whole thing. I think I'm just going to try cutting out the stuff I said earlier and see how that goes for me

What breakfast would u suggest ? Maybe boiled eggs or something ?

If you're going to lose interest in it just because it involves a small bit of effort, you're not going to get to where you want to be.

It's two threads and reading them would take less time than posting about what to eat.

Not trying to be smart or anything. Getting a handle on the basics would make a big difference to you.

bladespin · 01-03-2017 9:11pm

Believe me, the stickies are full of gold, there are folks here sharing knowledge and experience most would charge royally for.

Mellor · 02-03-2017 4:13am

rottie 11 wrote: »

2 sausages from deli and a banana for breakfast.

Protein bar and apple at tea time

At lunch I had a breaded chicken fillet and a veg soup and a banana

How's that so far ?

No idea what to eat for the rest of the day tbh

The sausages and breaded chicken fillet aren't particularly good. Ok occasionally when your stuck, but not what you should be planning on eating.

rottie 11 · 02-03-2017 8:17am

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

If you're going to lose interest in it just because it involves a small bit of effort, you're not going to get to where you want to be.

It's two threads and reading them would take less time than posting about what to eat.

Not trying to be smart or anything. Getting a handle on the basics would make a big difference to you.

I know your right , I just find it hard to get into things. Il give a read over them today anyways thanks

rottie 11 · 02-03-2017 8:18am

Mellor wrote: »

The sausages and breaded chicken fillet aren't particularly good. Ok occasionally when your stuck, but not what you should be planning on eating.

I know ya was just nothing else there really. Must start bring a lunch with me

bucketybuck · 02-03-2017 10:17pm

I'm genuinely curious, how did you lose 6 stone without already knowing some of the basic things like measuring your calorie intake?

Donal55 · 02-03-2017 10:56pm

rottie 11 wrote: »

Thanks I appreciate your help but if I go reading all that stuff il just lose interest in the whole thing. I think I'm just going to try cutting out the stuff I said earlier and see how that goes for me

What breakfast would u suggest ? Maybe boiled eggs or something ?

Porridge or a granola with perhaps some almond milk!

rottie 11 · 02-03-2017 11:19pm

bucketybuck wrote: »

I'm genuinely curious, how did you lose 6 stone without already knowing some of the basic things like measuring your calorie intake?

I just gave up everything that I taught was fattening. It worked anyway ha.

Still struggling with belly fat

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