Flatter stomach, please help

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moshquerade

No Lifer
Nov 1, 2001
61,504
12
56
try grazing. what i mean is eat 6 small meals throughout the day instead of 3 bigger meals.
and don't eat anything after 7 pm.

 

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,795
84
91
calorie reduction
no drinking calories if possible, most wasteful use of eating cals..no belly filling goodness
no spot reduction possible, you just need to lose more weight in general. metabolism has slowed with age, old habits of eating probably catching up with you. and weight loss takes time, just keep doing it, measure in half years or more, not months. it took you 5 years to get where you are after all as you said.
 

IceBergSLiM

Lifer
Jul 11, 2000
29,932
3
81
Originally posted by: Crono
Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
Originally posted by: SViper
Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
Originally posted by: Kaido
1. Go to bed before 10pm
2. Eat 3 healthy meals every day, lots of water, no sugar/smoking/drugs/caffiene
3. Exercise 5 days a week, throw in crunches, pushups, etc.

Check back in with us in 6 months :)

not very good advice. 3 meals may not be enough to boost his metabolism. your body needs sugar.

QFT. You should break up the 3 meals into 6 smaller meals. Make sure your total calorie intake for the day doesn't increase with the 6 smaller meals.

Also, you should do tons of cardio. You will burn the most calories doing cardio. Swimming would be excellent if you have a pool you can exercise in.

only if you dont care about muscle loss.

You won't have muscle loss by swimming. Training in a pool is one of those things that can be anaerobic and aerobic at the same time. Granted, you won't gain as much muscle compared to simply lifting weights (unless you use those aquatic weights), but because water is heavier than air, it requires more effort to move around.

beyond a certain point if your bpm is high enough your body will start burning muscle for fuel regardless of what you are doing to raise your bpm.
 

sourceninja

Diamond Member
Mar 8, 2005
8,805
65
91
I lost almost 45 pounds by trying in BJJ. I"d suggest picking up a competitive sport like BJJ>
 

lyssword

Diamond Member
Dec 15, 2005
5,630
25
91
Originally posted by: sourceninja
I lost almost 45 pounds by trying in BJJ. I"d suggest picking up a competitive sport like BJJ>

yeah my twin bro does bjj, he's really ripped :p

My strategy is to cut down on food. Only eat when you are really hungry, and don't eat for pleasure, just enough to satisfy your hunger :p
 

Wag

Diamond Member
Jul 21, 2000
8,288
8
81
Have more healthy relationships and stop worrying so much about your appearance. It sounds like you're already in good physical health, now work on the other stuff.
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
24,036
21
81
Originally posted by: Wag
Have more healthy relationships and stop worrying so much about your appearance. It sounds like you're already in good physical health, now work on the other stuff.

I just want to get rid of this gut. :confused:
 

RagingBITCH

Lifer
Sep 27, 2003
17,618
2
76
If you have a gut, look at things that's making it bigger - beer, eating too much at one or two meals, etc.
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
24,036
21
81
Originally posted by: RagingBITCH
If you have a gut, look at things that's making it bigger - beer, eating too much at one or two meals, etc.

I only occasionally drink a beer, and its just 1 (and sometimes I don't even finish it).

I avoid overeating at a single meal. I have already cut my portions from my average sized meal.
 

Fenixgoon

Lifer
Jun 30, 2003
33,275
12,838
136
Originally posted by: chr6
i find swimming works great for definition and weight loss

only sport that works every muscle in the body. my friend is a (former) swimmer - every part of him is very well defined. definitely a good option:thumbsup:
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
24,036
21
81
Originally posted by: Fenixgoon
Originally posted by: chr6
i find swimming works great for definition and weight loss

only sport that works every muscle in the body. my friend is a (former) swimmer - every part of him is very well defined. definitely a good option:thumbsup:

I like to swim, but I'm not very good at it. How often and long should I swim for it to make a difference?
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
24,036
21
81
I did some research concerning belly fat. I've been hearing a lot about cortisol, and this is a stress hormone that works with adrenaline. A few interesting facts I found out about it:

- cortisol production increases 160% within the first 30 minutes of waking up.
- caffeine increases cortisol production.
- cortisol converts energy into fat and stores it around the abdomen.
- if you consume caffeine just prior to exercise, it actually improves your ability to burn fat.

I also looked into greentea extract and research has shown it does help with metabolizing fat.

So basically I have come to the conclusion I need to stop drinking coffee. I will drink a decaffeinated grean tea through the day, and then just before my workout will drink some strong green tea (with the caffeine)... or maybe even a shot of espresso. ;)
 

Rogueverve

Member
Aug 21, 2006
46
0
0
pure and simple: fix your eating (cut out all junk/processed) and work out.

abs arent something you can do a hundred crunches and it will fix. your body uses its fat stores from all over when it needs them with your torso usually being one of the last places it turns to. So drop 20 lbs in general and you'll start to see them.
 

jlbenedict

Banned
Jul 10, 2005
3,724
0
0
Originally posted by: krunchykrome
Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
Abs are made in the kitchen.

Yup



Wrong, kind of.. Abs are made by working the muscle, just like any other muscle. The layer of fat that covers the abdominal cavity is what most people work on religiously, yet wonder why they don't have those "abs of steel".

Get that diet down; burn that fat.. but also work those abs. If you build them up, even just slightly, it will give you a better appearance, than just a flat, smooth stomach.
 

Crono

Lifer
Aug 8, 2001
23,720
1,502
136
Originally posted by: SagaLore
I did some research concerning belly fat. I've been hearing a lot about cortisol, and this is a stress hormone that works with adrenaline. A few interesting facts I found out about it:

- cortisol production increases 160% within the first 30 minutes of waking up.
- caffeine increases cortisol production.
- cortisol converts energy into fat and stores it around the abdomen.
- if you consume caffeine just prior to exercise, it actually improves your ability to burn fat.

I also looked into greentea extract and research has shown it does help with metabolizing fat.

So basically I have come to the conclusion I need to stop drinking coffee. I will drink a decaffeinated grean tea through the day, and then just before my workout will drink some strong green tea (with the caffeine)... or maybe even a shot of espresso. ;)

Stress has been shown to be a major player in the release of cortisol, so as much as possible, reduce your stress. Stress relief is important for many other facets of good health, as well.

And yes, green tea does help increase metabolism, but try not to rely too much on it in order to lose weight. It's a good thing (I drink 3-5 cups a day) as an addition to a healthy diet, but by itself it increases metabolism only by a small percentage. Replacing fat with muscle increases you metabolism, and therefore how many calories you burn even while resting, more than any other one factor. Having smaller meals more frequently/consistently and getting enough sleep (7-9 hours, depending on what you need) are 2 other things that will boost your metabolism.

And don't bother drinking decaffeinated green tea. Green tea is low in caffeine, and the decaffeination process possibly takes away some of the beneficial antioxidants, which is one of the great things about green tea. Plus, I'm not sure (and maybe someone can enlighten me on this) how much caffeine affects the release of cortisol, especially the negligible amount in green tea (as opposed to coffee, which has many times more caffeine).

I personally love green tea. It both calms and wakes me up without the "withdrawal" effects people get when drinking coffee or other highly caffeinated drinks. I didn't like the taste at first (no sugar), but it grew on me. There are some tea experts on these forums, so ask around or do your own research. I drink Salada because it's (relatively) cheap and available in all the supermarkets around me.
 

Special K

Diamond Member
Jun 18, 2000
7,098
0
76
See the link in my sig, I'm too lazy to retype everything out again. Bottom line:

1. you can't spot reduce

2. abs are all about the diet

3. you need to track exactly what you eat each day - I recommend using the website fitday
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
24,036
21
81
Originally posted by: Crono
And don't bother drinking decaffeinated green tea. Green tea is low in caffeine, and the decaffeination process possibly takes away some of the beneficial antioxidants, which is one of the great things about green tea.

Based on my reading, decaffeinated green tea actually has a higher concentration of antioxidants.