# Getting rid of the last bit of belly



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

As mumbled about at great length elsewhere I'm not half the man I was this time last year.

Overall the bulk of my upper body flubber has gone, there's barely any chub on my legs and I'm very pleased with my progress, apart from one bit...

My belly.

My gut now only sticks out the front (rather than previously when it hung out the sides, round the back etc), and I can hide it fairly well when walking or _trying _to look slim, but lummy it's still blimmin' there.

My calorie intake has been about right (about 2500) for a year now (well maybe a little low, but not very low) and my fitness levels are lovely. I've been building up the number of leg lifts and crunches I do each day and if I tense my stomach it feels pretty firm.

So why the half football on a plank look?

Starving myself obviously won't work, and upping the mileage (usually around 400 miles per month) means upping the calorie intake.

I wouldn't say I'm demoralised, but I would have hoped a year of frantic cycling would have burned this belly off by now.

Any ideas?


----------



## T.M.H.N.E.T (19 Feb 2013)

Has your weight been static for a while?

Update me a little from the Water thread. How often/far do you ride? current weight?


----------



## 4F (19 Feb 2013)

Have you tried cutting out the drink ?


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

Yes, I've been near enough 13 stone for at least six months now. It only fluctuates by a little.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

4F said:


> Have you tried cutting out the drink ?


 
I have cut down on beer, I only have a couple of pints a week usually. I share a couple of bottles of wine a week with my good lady wife though.


----------



## MontyVeda (19 Feb 2013)

do you drink beer?

ah... ok, maybe have a couple of months off the alcohol altogether.

although the beer belly is a bit of a myth, a pint of beer is very high calorie.

and as i understand it, target exercise does get fit of_ that_ fat... how about a male tummy tuck?


----------



## T.M.H.N.E.T (19 Feb 2013)

You could probably afford to drop to 2200 or so providing it doesn't negatively effect your ability to ride. Longer runs, eat a little back and all that.

You're on the hardest part of males losing weight,but you've got this far!


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

MontyVeda said:


> do you drink beer?


 
A couple a week probably. Well I've just made forty pints of homebrew so I guess I'll drink more than usual for the new few weeks


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> You could probably afford to drop to 2200 or so providing it doesn't negatively effect your ability to ride. Longer runs, eat a little back and all that.


 
I'll give it a crack. I've always struggled to reach 2500 a day so cutting back a bit shouldn't be too tough.


----------



## T.M.H.N.E.T (19 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> I'll give it a crack. I've always struggled to reach 2500 a day so cutting back a bit shouldn't be too tough.


Good luck


----------



## fossyant (19 Feb 2013)

Wrong side of 30 ! Hard work getting rid. Give up beer, are you mad ?


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

fossyant said:


> Wrong side of 30 ! Hard work getting rid. Give up beer, are you mad ?


 
I'm so far the wrong side of thirty I'm nearly the good side of forty!


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> Good luck


 
Back to Spark People I go!


----------



## 4F (19 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> I'm so far the wrong side of thirty I'm nearly the good side of forty!


 
There is no good side of forty........


----------



## CopperCyclist (19 Feb 2013)

You can't get rid of that's last bit of belly until you have a body like a Greek God I'm afraid.




This is not the voice of experience.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

CopperCyclist said:


> You can't get rid of that's last bit of belly until you have a body like a Greek God I'm afraid.
> .


 
I already have the body of a Greek god - Bacchus.


----------



## tadpole (19 Feb 2013)

Cut down on the fat in your food, Reduce the amount of calories you get from fat, and start eating more protein and carbs. Abs are made in the kitchen.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

tadpole said:


> Cut down on the fat in your food, Reduce the amount of calories you get from fat, and start eating more protein and carbs. Abs are made in the kitchen.


 
I naturally have a low fat, pulse/ green veg high diet. I tried to eat more fat over winter to stop myself getting nauseously hungry after my commute but just can't stand lardy foods.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

I think 'pedal more' 'eat less' might be the answer.

Has anyone else found themselves in this situation in their late thirties and beaten it?


----------



## ianrauk (19 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> I think 'pedal more' 'eat less' might be the answer.
> 
> Has anyone else found themselves in this situation in their late thirties and beaten it?


 

I'm in my mid 40's and have still not beaten it.
As you know I do a heck of a lot of cycling.
My problem? I like my food too much.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

ianrauk said:


> I'm in my mid 40's and have still not beaten it.
> As you know I do a heck of a lot of cycling.
> My problem? I like my food too much.


 
I'm starting to wonder if I ought to view cycling as food-retention damage limitation


----------



## ayceejay (19 Feb 2013)

Time is probably the answer. If you have lost a lot of weight in a short time your body is still adapting I would think. Although 'spot reducing' doesn't work it would do no harm to tone up your core and check your posture, Pilates is good for this.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

ayceejay said:


> Time is probably the answer. If you have lost a lot of weight in a short time your body is still adapting I would think. Although 'spot reducing' doesn't work it would do no harm to tone up your core and check your posture, Pilates is good for this.


 
Interesting you say that, I've been pondering pilates for a while.


----------



## Lee_M (19 Feb 2013)

I'm 51 and have the body of a greek adonis (he can have it back if he comes round for it),

except the belly which stubbornly sits there unmoving,


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

Lee_M said:


> I'm 51 and have the body of a greek adonis (he can have it back if he comes round for it),
> 
> except the belly which stubbornly sits there unmoving,


 
Well if we're bragging, I used to have the body of two greek adonises, both at once!


----------



## deptfordmarmoset (19 Feb 2013)

Even what I'm at my lightest (around the ave weight for an East African of my age and height according to that BBC BMI test) that lower belly stuff remains. I just live with it.


----------



## Lee_M (19 Feb 2013)

I think tighter lycra is the answer 

not sure what the question is though


----------



## Upstream (19 Feb 2013)

Hi,
This is an interesting one that I've experienced myself...
I'm mid 40's and although I've never ever ventured into a gym, I've always been pretty healthy - Don't drink, Don't smoke, play racquet sports (badminton & squash) and eat healthily. A few years ago I rekindled my love of cycling and on average I'll do 50 - 80 miles per week (mixture of on road and turbo). Weight - wise I've always been on the skinny side and I'm 6ft 2 tall and 78kg. If I stand and look in the mirror straight on, whilst I don't have a six pack I look pretty lean, but from the side, my stomach (diaphragm area, not lower stomach) seems to stick out a bit ;-)


----------



## Fnaar (19 Feb 2013)

Just do loads of sit ups


----------



## Crackle (19 Feb 2013)

You've had it fatso. It's there as a constant reminder of your once slovenly ways. Suck it up and despair. Not only that but it'll expand exponentially if you ever so much look at a chocolate cake. Liposuction is the only way.












PS: If you do succeed, let me know the secret eh, there's a good chap.


----------



## MontyVeda (19 Feb 2013)

have you considered corsetry?


----------



## Mr Haematocrit (19 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> Has anyone else found themselves in this situation in their late thirties and beaten it?


 
Yes high protein, low fat diet with a calorie deficit.


----------



## Birchy (19 Feb 2013)

Targeted exercise is pretty much the only way to shift it. Sit ups, crunches, leg raises.


----------



## montage (19 Feb 2013)

Birchy said:


> Targeted exercise is pretty much the only way to shift it. Sit ups, crunches, leg raises.


 
Said no scientific research ever


----------



## T.M.H.N.E.T (19 Feb 2013)

Birchy said:


> Targeted exercise is pretty much the only way to shift it. Sit ups, crunches, leg raises.


Fat loss cannot be targetted.


----------



## Damaged Hero (19 Feb 2013)

A couple of good Core workouts might tighten the area up a little,and don't take much time to do.Exercises for the stomach area have come a long way since the sit-up,a quick search on You Tube will give you plenty of ideas.


----------



## Birchy (19 Feb 2013)

montage said:


> Said no scientific research ever



If it isn't going from eating right and cardio workouts what's the harm in trying them? They will tighten up the core. Will it give you a flat stomach on its own? No.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

Birchy said:


> If it isn't going from eating right and cardio workouts what's the harm in trying them? They will tighten up the core. Will it give you a flat stomach on its own? No.



I do 20 leg lifts and 25 crunches every night, I'm hoping to carry in increasing the number, but my gut makes getting the breathing correct tricky!


----------



## T.M.H.N.E.T (19 Feb 2013)

Birchy said:


> If it isn't going from eating right and cardio workouts what's the harm in trying them? They will tighten up the core. Will it give you a flat stomach on its own? No.


Then there is something wrong with the food bit eh?

Everyone has abs - they just don't show until bf% is low enough, that part is done in the kitchen.


----------



## mattobrien (19 Feb 2013)

Don't worry Andrew, I will soon get those extra kilos shifted for you. The training I am going to put you through for our fast hundred will leave you a shivering wreck of a broken man. That will surely help to shift the belly.

We'll get you down to a svelt 12 stone before you know it.

I do think that the type of riding you do won't help with your aim of shifting points. You might benefit from adding more longer rides to the routine, rather than the shorter blasts. 

As soon as the daylight is with us we can start to aim for a long ride each Sunday morning before the world has awoken. Hopefully without iced up crotches.


----------



## 4F (19 Feb 2013)

V for Vengedetta said:


> Yes high protein, low fat diet with a calorie deficit.



This is the answer. You could do as many sit ups as you like but unless you reduce the actual body fat level then you will never see your six pack.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

MontyVeda said:


> have you considered corsetry?



I spend vast swathes of my time contemplating lingerie. Just not on me.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

mattobrien said:


> Don't worry Andrew, I will soon get those extra kilos shifted for you. The training I am going to put you through for our fast hundred will leave you a shivering wreck of a broken man. That will surely help to shift the belly.
> 
> We'll get you down to a svelt 12 stone before you know it.
> 
> ...




The commuting miles certainly need stretching out and I need to get back into the habit of using the thirty minutes I get for lunch for cycling.

It looks like I might be about to get one Saturday a month to myself so longer rides are definitely becoming a realistic possibility.

Every other Sunday is looking good. One for Suffok Sunday club and one for a three hour blast.

Bye bye belly!


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

4F said:


> This is the answer. You could do as many sit ups as you like but unless you reduce the actual body fat level then you will never see your six pack.



Yup, I need another week or so on spark people to look closely at my intake.

My evening meals are decent so I need a lower fat breakfast than the breakfast flapjacks 

I'm trying to think of a lower fat lunch than rice cakes with a smearing of laughing cow. I can't eat just the rice cake, my mastication needs at least some lubrication


----------



## jim55 (19 Feb 2013)

T.M.H.N.E.T said:


> Fat loss cannot be targetted.


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ this ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


----------



## Andrew_Culture (19 Feb 2013)

Thanks for your help as always everyone.


----------



## montage (19 Feb 2013)

Birchy said:


> If it isn't going from eating right and cardio workouts what's the harm in trying them? They will tighten up the core. Will it give you a flat stomach on its own? No.


 
Sorry my reply was a bit curt - no harm in it at all, but spot reduction doesn't happen, so you won't lose fat specifically from one area, otherwise we'd have an epidemic of obese teenage boys with ripped wrists.


----------



## Andy_G (19 Feb 2013)

I turned 40 last August and since ive been on a health kick which started around May time, ive lost 4 stone(now 15St)and im starting to struggling now and my Cal intake is 1800 which i thinks to low, seeing that i ride about 400 miles a month.
My problems the weekends, i have a pork pie fetish


----------



## Biker Joe (19 Feb 2013)

Hi Andrew,
You probably know all this already but I have found that adequate water intake is often overlooked.
I thought I should mention that you need to drink plenty of water. Water is filling and calorie free. Increase in exercise equals an increase in toxins that need to be flushed out. Adequate water intake also increases your metabolism slightly.
When you pee the colour of the urine should be from clear to a light straw colour. If it's yellow to dark yellow, you are dehydrated. Very simple.
You should be peeing around every two hours during the day.
Water intake needs to be about 6 to 8 500mm glasses per day. More during vigorous exercise.
Checking the colour of your urine is a simple way to check for hydration levels.

Excess fat over time turns to cellulite which can be difficult, but not impossible, to shift.
Long steady rides interspersed with the odd 15 min interval training,eating the correct foods and adequate water intake will take care of cellulite but expect it to take time and a certain amount of dedication and willingness.

(Personally, I'm not so good at the dedication and willingness bit. So unless I can sort that out I will be keeping my cellulite.)
I wish you well and good progress.


----------



## Albert (19 Feb 2013)

A bit of belly targetted gym work firms things up for me. I use the gym once a week to work on all my non-cycling muscles, using weight machines. Load bearing exercise )(which cycling isn't) is good for bone density in any case, so you'll be doing yourself some good in other respects even if the belly doesn't firm up.


----------



## SatNavSaysStraightOn (19 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> I think 'pedal more' 'eat less' might be the answer.
> Has anyone else found themselves in this situation in their late thirties and beaten it?


my OH did (temporarily at least) in his early-mid forties... by quitting his job and going off to cycle around the world. lost it in no time at all and kept it off until about this Autumn, it is now back  . Will have to wait a couple more years before it is gone again!

PS - he was eating around 10,000 calories a day and still lost the tummy...


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

Biker Joe said:


> Hi Andrew,
> You probably know all this already but I have found that adequate water intake is often overlooked.
> I thought I should mention that you need to drink plenty of water. Water is filling and calorie free. Increase in exercise equals an increase in toxins that need to be flushed out. Adequate water intake also increases your metabolism slightly.
> When you pee the colour of the urine should be from clear to a light straw colour. If it's yellow to dark yellow, you are dehydrated. Very simple.
> ...



This time last year I was drinking at least four litres a day, I don't really know how that slipped away.


----------



## Biker Joe (20 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> This time last year I was drinking at least four litres a day, I don't really know how that slipped away.


I find it very easy NOT to drink enough water. I get busy and drinking water goes completely out of my head. I try to keep a bottle of mineral water near me to sip at every so often but I often don't get round to getting a bottle out. A bit of self discipline is lacking here, methinks.


----------



## Ningishzidda (20 Feb 2013)

Google "Getting ripped".


----------



## Biker Joe (20 Feb 2013)

Ningishzidda said:


> Google "Getting ripped".


Very interesting. Thanks


----------



## Bodhbh (20 Feb 2013)

How big where you at your biggest? - You might have some loose skin? I was 20 stone (now around 13) and while I don't have obvious flaps of skin, I always tended to look a bit pot bellied around there.

As well as situps etc, you could try some plank type exercises. I did a bunch of core exercises after a hernia op and once I started exercising the rear abdominals too the front flattened out quite a bit as well (I've since left things go to pot again!).


----------



## ColinJ (20 Feb 2013)

You may struggle to get that slim waist without looking scrawny elsewhere!

My avatar picture was taken when I was just under 13 stone and I am 6' 1" tall. As you can see from my face and neck, I was getting fairly slim, but I still had a 35" waist then, which was 3" bigger than it was when I first got fat.

In 2001, I had managed to get down to 11 st 10 lbs, at which weight I had sunken cheeks, ribs that stuck out and so little fat on my hands that they looked rather nasty with transparent skin making all the tendons and blood vessels stand out - my waist at 33" *still* had an inch of surplus fat on it!

I decided in the end that the quest for the perfect waistline wasn't worth the damage it was doing to the rest of me. (I was getting ill a lot more than usual, got fatigued more easily, and was losing strength.)

I think my ideal (non-competitive) cycling weight is about 12 st 5 lbs which will probably correspond to a 34" waist with a couple of inches of fat on it. I can live with that. You might have a similar choice to make. (At 13 stone, you are probably still carrying too much weight unless you a very stocky build.)


----------



## Mr Haematocrit (20 Feb 2013)

No amount of exercise targeted or otherwise will exclusively loose fat around the belly !! - This includes the Plank, Sit ups, Crunches or anything else.

To lose stomach fat you have to throw out the junk food! You are what you eat, so don’t eat junk. Do not keep junk food like cookies, chips, sweets and other similar products in your house. Junk food and addiction to sugar is the greatest cause of belly fat.
Refined flours and the foods that they create, such as white bread, pasta, donuts, cakes and biscuits (yes, biscuits cause weight gain) should be avoided. They can cause bloating, poor digestion, and lead to accumulation of fat, which is the opposite of how to lose belly fat!
A diet that takes most of its carbs from fruits and vegetables, as opposed to refined flours, is healthier. Learn how the glycemic index works if you want help you to lose weight.
Ideally granary or wholemeal bread should be eaten instead of white bread, and biscuits / cookies and cakes should be avoided. Consuming too much carbohydrate can bump up your insulin level, which can slow down your metabolism. Your body cannot metabolize too much carbohydrate at once because the body does not need so much energy at once. The excess sugar from the carbohydrates will just turn into stomach fat.
Following a natural food idea is a great way to lose belly fat as if combines the rules above, that is you avoid all junk food and all processed food, sugar and saturated fats
Decrease alcohol consumption. If you drink a lot, you will accumulate fat around your waist. Excess alcohol consumption can really give you a belly. Have you seen people who are slim all over but have a beer belly sticking out? Well, that is the effect of excess alcohol consumption.
Alcohol does not contain any nutrients at all. So, all the energy consumed through alcohol will be stored as belly fat! If you want to lose weight fast then you need to stop drinking.


----------



## Ningishzidda (20 Feb 2013)

To permanently lose excess subcutaneous fat cells, you need a small laser device at the cosmetic surgeon’s operating theatre.


----------



## 4F (20 Feb 2013)

@ Andrew Culture just for you http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/...s-indicate-that-you-are-a-moron-2013022060452


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

Bodhbh said:


> How big where you at your biggest? - You might have some loose skin? I was 20 stone (now around 13) and while I don't have obvious flaps of skin, I always tended to look a bit pot bellied around there.
> 
> As well as situps etc, you could try some plank type exercises. I did a bunch of core exercises after a hernia op and once I started exercising the rear abdominals too the front flattened out quite a bit as well (I've since left things go to pot again!).


 
I think at worst I was around 16 stone, so I might have a bit of loose skin. Not as much as the fella I just spotted on the front of a magazine by the checkout at Morrisons :x


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

V for Vengedetta said:


> No amount of exercise targeted or otherwise will exclusively loose fat around the belly !! - This includes the Plank, Sit ups, Crunches or anything else.
> 
> To lose stomach fat you have to throw out the junk food! You are what you eat, so don’t eat junk. Do not keep junk food like cookies, chips, sweets and other similar products in your house. Junk food and addiction to sugar is the greatest cause of belly fat today.
> Refined flours and the foods that they create, such as white bread, pasta, donuts, cakes and biscuits (yes, biscuits cause weight gain) should be avoided. They can cause bloating, poor digestion, and lead to accumulation of fat, which is the opposite of how to lose belly fat!
> ...


 
I think if nothing else this thread has made me really assess my current diet, it's very easy to 'assume' you eat the right foods and just coast along. I don't tend to eat bread at all during the week but do eat a lot of pasta based meals. I'm not a fan of cake so that won't be too challenging to quit 


So the big question I'm facing is whether I value wine more than a flat belly...


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

4F said:


> @ Andrew Culture just for you http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/...s-indicate-that-you-are-a-moron-2013022060452


 
Love it


----------



## Andy_G (20 Feb 2013)

So how many calories would be correct then if we rode 400 miles a month. 
My net is 1500-1800 which I find hard to stick to, but I still want to drop another 1.5 stone.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

Andy_G said:


> So how many calories would be correct then if we rode 400 miles a month.
> My net is 1500-1800 which I find hard to stick to, but I still want to drop another 1.5 stone.


 
Your net? Do you mean the number left over after you have calculated how many you have burned and subtracted it from the number placed in your cake hole?


----------



## Ningishzidda (20 Feb 2013)

400 miles on a bike is around 10,000 cals. That's about what a 600 km Randonneur would eat. If this is spread over the course of a month, which is 330 cals per day ( or 45 minutes cycling per day ), you may as well forget it and eat your BMR.

PS. Its not until a bike ride gets to two hours does the cyclist need to worry about food.


----------



## Andy_G (20 Feb 2013)

Andrew_Culture said:


> Your net? Do you mean the number left over after you have calculated how many you have burned and subtracted it from the number placed in your cake hole?


That's net. I use my fitness pal ap and it states I should do 1760 but then I minus 250 for the commute.


----------



## tadpole (20 Feb 2013)

Andy_G said:


> That's net. I use my fitness pal ap and it states I should do 1760 but then I minus 250 for the commute.


Depends on your setting, if you got it set to sedentary, then you “should” eat back at least some of your exercise calories, but if you’ve set MFP to active, then don’t eat back as your exercise calories are taken into account.


----------



## Andrew_Culture (20 Feb 2013)

Ningishzidda said:


> PS. Its not until a bike ride gets to two hours does the cyclist need to worry about food.


 
News to me, and I don't mean that in a bad way.


----------

