I noticed on ur weight loss progress chart that you currently have lost only 2 lbs and are still in the 240s.
It will take time before you see any real progress on your stomach problem areas. One thing you could do is do pilates or crunches to help improve muscle tone in your stomach area.
The other suggestion is simply to be patient and see where you are as you lose more weight
I have problem areas (including my stomach) and understand I won't be able to make any real decision on those areas until after I've first developed muscle tone for those "problem areas" and then see how I look in terms of excess skin - if any - after I've reached my target goal.
Hope this helps!
Last edited by teawithsunshine; 01-05-2009 at 06:15 AM.
Very often our worst area may be the last place to go. If we've got the most fat there, then it would stand to reason it would take longer for all of it to go from there.
Unfortunately, we can't spot reduce. You'd need to lose fat/weight from "all over" and that will include the stomach area. My huge stomach got smaller and smaller as I lost the weight. I'm sure yours will too!
Doing stomach exercises (like crunches) will definitely help tone up the stomach area, so that when you do lose fat there (and you will) it will be smoother and firmer.
So, bottom line is, HANG TIGHT - STICK with your healthy eating program and watch the lbs drop and your stomach get smaller.
MAN Rockin I've missed you....you are so encouraging no doubt....this is also my problem areas...my stomach...but i am excited to work out now with a friend and work on these problem areas with someone as determined as I am
Thanks Rockin for all your time you still spend on here encouraging others and lifting us up...even sometimes in our darkest moments....
Stomach fat is often the last to go. I am battling it too. Have you ever heard of the flat belly diet? I think there is a forum here for it. Stick to plan and move and you will get there. I wish there was a way to "spot" reduce. Unfortunately, there just isn't.
You know how the typical "beer belly" sticks out, but feels fairly firm? This is because the fat is UNDER the stomach muscles, pushing them out and making the stomach feel hard even as it sticks out. This kind of fat is called "Visceral fat", and is particularly dangerous health wise, as it puts a lot of pressure on your internal organs.
If your stomach fat is this kind of fat, research has shown it is particularly sensitive to cardio (that is to say, doing cardio may signal your body to start burning that kind of fat, meaning you might lose more in your stomach than by calorie counting alone). You won't lose POUNDS any faster, but incorporating lots of cardio into your routine can tend to make that fat go away before fat in other places on your body.
If the fat is subcutaneous (below the skin), it will feel softer and squishier than visceral fat. That kind of fat responds like all the rest of the fat on your body, and will be lost in whatever order your body feels like dropping it. In this case, you may find that your worst problem areas ARE the last to go.
When I first started, I had a mix of subcutaneous and visceral fat. I lost a lot of inches off of my stomach (and not many other places) to start by losing the visceral fat through cardio. But the rest of the fat on my stomach, which was subcutaneous, was the last to go.
Bottom line is that the only way to lose ANY fat is to eat fewer calories than you burn. If you do that, you'll be losing fat from SOMEWHERE, and eventually, that somewhere will be the areas you're not happy with.
Also, be sure to measure yourself. Sometimes just seeing you are down 1/4 of an inch is a great motivator. I cannot believe I never used a measuring tape before this last month or two!
Yup, unfortunately, you can't spot reduce. Get toned all over and your stomach fat will be bound to disappear.
For me, the stomach fat was definitely the last to go. All my fat was subcutaneous, which made friends hug me and tell me I felt like Christmas I was a total apple with a gut, love handles, backfat, sidefat, and every-which-way unflattering fat. I wasn't lucky like some people; I didn't have a big butt with a smaller waist or anything like that (being fat always looks better if it's PROPORTIONATE fat! ) - instead, I had a double chin to accompany my gut, which made me look even fatter.
Do an hour of cardio every day. 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the evening works really well. Spend 5-10 minutes each morning on your abs, so that when you DO shrink, you'll have a firmer, nicer midsection. Start strength training to increase the amount of muscle in your body (the more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism goes, too, and since you are a woman, you will not "bulk up" and turn into the incredible hulkette or something). And if you aren't already doing so, start eating clean. Don't just control your portions; limit your intake of things like simple carbs (white bread, white pasta, sugary cereal, white potatoes) and bad fats (cheese, creamy dressings, etc).
Last edited by NightengaleShane; 01-05-2009 at 01:37 PM.
I also have stubborn belly fat and it def. is frustrating. I am just trying to be patient and I know as I lose weight I will eventually lose my belly fat. For me the belly is always the last place to go. The first places I always notice weight loss is my face and boobs. I wish it was my stomach!!
You can't spot reduce - that is, you can't decide where you want to lose weight from. However, as you follow a low-calorie diet combined with cardio, you'll continue to lose weight, including - at some point - from your stomach. You can, however, do toning exercises which will tighten the muscles around your stomach and will make your stomach look smaller.
I have the subcutaneous fat, but I tend to lose weight from my stomach easiest, and at quite a high weight I am able to have quite a small belly, and I naturally have a sort of corseted look, and have an almost weirdly small waist. But my legs won't lose weight no matter what I do! At 224 and 153 I wore the same size of jeans. I'm a bit scared I'll get down to my goal weight and be a size 8 tops but still a 16 in jeans.
For me, subcutaneous belly fat has definitely been the hardest to lose. I expect that as I drop the last 20-30 pounds my belly will shrink significantly, but even after losing almost 115 pounds I still have quite the gut. It's the last favorite part of my body right now.
The Flat Belly Diet has been heavily promoted by Prevention magazine as a way to target abdominal fat. I haven't seen enough research to buy into it, but the idea is that increasing monounsaturated fats (the "good fat" found in fish, nuts, avocado, flax, olive oil, etc.) and decreasing saturated and trans fats can help reduce belly fat (with all other things being equal).
Drina,
I don't know a ton about the flat belly diet but I definitely am eating the good fats they mention as being beneficial. I also find that I am more satiated eating these small amounts of yummies. When I am eating clean and adding these things into my diet (raw almonds, black olives, dark chocolate, etc) I truly am craving free. I still am dealing with belly fat but I am not following this diet to the letter. I do my own plan.
Just one thing to add to this .... but first to say everyone is right in that you can't choose the areas fat will go from. I wish you could - I have a belly which smiles at me
I have found though by doing yoga my posture improves and i thus tend to pull in the tummy a little more. My parents thought I had lost weight, when in fact i weighed the same, but by standing better the belly, although still flabby, was pulled in a little more and I looked slightly smaller. It's not a big difference, but heck I'll take all the positives I can get
MAN Rockin I've missed you....you are so encouraging no doubt....this is also my problem areas...my stomach...but i am excited to work out now with a friend and work on these problem areas with someone as determined as I am
Thanks Rockin for all your time you still spend on here encouraging others and lifting us up...even sometimes in our darkest moments....
Hey, it's great to "see" you around again! How's everything? Glad you've got a friend to work out with. I hope that goes well.
Hang around, will ya? Looking forward to hearing more from you.
belly weight?
I was a total apple with a gut, love handles, backfat, sidefat, and every-which-way unflattering fat. I wasn't lucky like some people; I didn't have a big butt with a smaller waist or anything like that (being fat always looks better if it's PROPORTIONATE fat! 
) - instead, I had a double chin to accompany my gut, which made me look even fatter. 
