Same old same old belly :P

[delo]

Happy 2024 everyone! I wish you a great year

Long story short, 39 years old, i'm a short guy (5,4). I weight around 175 and it will be my second year going at a gym. I do 3 days a week, minimum an hour, mostly intense cardio like I am used to, musculation and abdominal exercises to end my training. I can't do one or the other. I tried, but the motivation goes away if I slow things down or don't do a mix.

I have some great results, but there's one place. The good old belly and love handles. i tried a couple of things like caloric deficit (Felt like my body had no energy left after my workouts), less sugar (I still going strong like no soda in 7 months), I eat less chips, drink more water etc etc. You know the drill.

But this is the only place where I can't lose weight. I am looking for your own story. Success, it went away after time or you have accepted that part of you.

Me, i'm going all in for 2024, but before, I will talk with a dietetician because honestly, this is the one place where I think I can improve something

 

[dinafrancis]

@delo Calorie deficit is literally the only way to lose weight, and youve likely got at least 35lbs to lose.

WHAT you eat matters as well. If you tried some hyper strict deficit and didn't get your nutrition in, then yeah, you're gonna feel like low energy shit. To a degree, there will be fatigue regardless, but then you just need to lower the intensity of what you're doing. Even deep in the middle of my summer cuts, I still manage to get an hour lifting followed by an hour and a half bike ride. I'm not lifting as heavy and my ride is slower, but I still manage it.

First off, you don't need to do a super deep deficit. 500 cal a day will have you lose 1lb a week. More than likely, you won't even feel any fatigue until 2-3 weeks in, if not a bit longer. Within your daily calories, at bare minimum get 100g of protein in and about 30g of fat in. The former will keep you feeling full and satiated as well as supporting muscle retention, the latter promotes healthy hormone production as well as contributing to satiation. For carbs, eat your veggies, have some fruits. What you don't need are ultra processed foods (bread, pasta, cereal, chips, crackers, sweets, etc). These often are high calorie for what they are and often you'll crave more food. Your diet needs to be primarily meat, eggs, plain dairy, veggies, fruit, nuts and some grains. Fresh, whole foods.

Exercise is great to do, but your diet is the primary mover of weight.

But speaking of exercise, you should have a good focus on resistance training. Not just your abs. Doing core work isn't gonna flatten your belly. Do full body workouts 3x a week, or some kind of split if you want to go more days of the week. If you want, you can finish up with cardio. Check out the r/fitness wiki for a ton more info and some proven workout routines you can use. Weight loss and building muscle with resistance training is what's gonna get you to your goal. Just doing a bunch of cardio as you lose weight is gonna have you lose muscle as well and you'll end up skinny fat (aka under muscled) where you're at a solidly healthy weight, but you still have that belly because you have no muscle mass overall.

 

[delo]

@dinafrancis There's a high probability yes. Sigh, if only cardio was enough

 

[dinafrancis]

@delo There's a 100% possibility, it's literally physics! Once you do get your diet figured out and understand how calories and nutrition work, it's pretty easy! The difficult part will be fighting addictions and cravings. Slowly changing your diet to be a healthier one (all the time, not just to lose weight) will help with the cravings and addictions as well!

Strength training is fun! Get to lift heavy shit and feel like a beast! (And that's coming from a woman!) Being strong is amazing and building up those beautiful muscles makes you look so much better. It's seriously winning all around. I love me some cardio, and I do hours of it a week (on a good week), but just 3-4hrs a week lifting gets you a long way!

 

[delo]

@dinafrancis True. It's a slow process. Just to cut any form of soda since June is a win for me. I tried to remove things like chips, but this will take more time.

 

[cherry_78]

@delo Hey! Happy 2024 to you as well!!!!!Your drive to the workout is impressive. That stubborn belly area can be a real pain, but it's awesome that you're looking into consulting with a dietitian. From experience, They can offer some tailored advice that might do the trick.

Keep up the good work, and don’t stop rocking it.

And remember, that belly fat will be gone by 2025, but dad jokes are here to stay!

 

[pejak]

@delo Have you tried eliminating dairy and gluten? You could have a sensitivity that is causing your stomach to bloat.

 

[delo]

@pejak I did cut a little, but not entirely. No exagerations when it comes to eat

 

[pejak]

@delo Well, that certainly clears things up.

 

[delo]

@pejak Maybe. Kinda hard to tell.

Since my dad has been diagnosed with diabetes, I tend to be more careful since he told me that his mother had it too.

I not very fat (kinda well builded tor my height) but the love handles are the only obstacle left in my path after two years in the sense that i'm taking things a little more seriously now.

 

[pejak]

@delo Unfortunately, we can't spot-reduce fat. The way it comes off is up to our genetics. Your best bet is to eat at a moderate calorie deficit, lift, do cardio, and eventually, it will improve.

 

[theswimboy]

@delo Are you over hydrating???

 

[delo]

@theswimboy Hmmm I don't think so honestly, but I should be careful. Maybe I am closer than I think.

 

[theswimboy]

@delo Remember not to over-consume water retentive minerals. Salts, potassium, hyaluronic acid, creatine ( naturally found in milk) can reduce you're ability to "dry out" and sometimes makes those last bits of unwanted mass stick around.

I'd try decreasing your water intake just a bit, and stay away from too much the previously mentioned for a few weeks.

Good luck