Stubborn belly fat that just won't leave me alone

[twistedforever]

It's been 5 months since I've been hitting the gym and have lost around 18 kilos. I don't think I've lost as much fat from my belly as I should have.

I am 5'10'' tall and weigh in at 68 kgs. My waist size is 37''.

I've been following a ketogenic diet for a month or so and try to maintain my calorie intake at 1600. I work out 5 days a week, which includes 50 minutes of cardio followed by weight training. I also alternate between abs and sides every day.

So, am I doing something wrong or what else can I do to reduce my waist size? I haven't really measured my body fat percentage but I'm concerned and even scared that given my height, my lean body mass is drastically low.

[DJBrickman]

Read the stickies at the top of the forum. Calculate your calorie intake properly. Hit your macros. Work hard at the gym. It isn't a secret. It is primarily about your diet. Make sure you have the proper information.

The spare tire area is almost always the last to go with any male. You can't spot reduce it by exercising the area. Your body chooses where it takes fat from. If you are doing things correctly, it will eventually go away. Don't stress about it. If you are 5'10", with a 37" waist, you have too much body fat to lose over all to be worrying about your belly area. Just keep at it.

[twistedforever]

Read the stickies at the top of the forum. Calculate your calorie intake properly. Hit your macros. Work hard at the gym. It isn't a secret. It is primarily about your diet. Make sure you have the proper information.

The spare tire area is almost always the last to go with any male. You can't spot reduce it by exercising the area. Your body chooses where it takes fat from. If you are doing things correctly, it will eventually go away. Don't stress about it. If you are 5'10", with a 37" waist, you have too much body fat to lose over all to be worrying about your belly area. Just keep at it.

Thanks for the quick response. I guess I'm just being paranoid. I'll just keep pushing harder and harder.

[wolfdogg]

It's been 5 months since I've been hitting the gym and have lost around 18 kilos. I don't think I've lost as much fat from my belly as I should have.

I am 5'10'' tall and weigh in at 68 kgs. My waist size is 37''.

I've been following a ketogenic diet for a month or so and try to maintain my calorie intake at 1600. I work out 5 days a week, which includes 50 minutes of cardio followed by weight training. I also alternate between abs and sides every day.

So, am I doing something wrong or what else can I do to reduce my waist size? I haven't really measured my body fat percentage but I'm concerned and even scared that given my height, my lean body mass is drastically low.

What's keto for you? Are you getting any carbs? Any refeeds?

Manipulating carbs is one of the best strategies for losing those last few pounds on the belly but you can't do that if you're not getting any carbs.

[djrobins]

It's been 5 months since I've been hitting the gym and have lost around 18 kilos. I don't think I've lost as much fat from my belly as I should have.

I am 5'10'' tall and weigh in at 68 kgs. My waist size is 37''.

I've been following a ketogenic diet for a month or so and try to maintain my calorie intake at 1600. I work out 5 days a week, which includes 50 minutes of cardio followed by weight training. I also alternate between abs and sides every day.

So, am I doing something wrong or what else can I do to reduce my waist size? I haven't really measured my body fat percentage but I'm concerned and even scared that given my height, my lean body mass is drastically low.

That's 3.6 kilos per month. That's not too bad or too good, but it's great if it's been a slow rate of fat loss with very very little muscle loss. Just keep doing what your doing, eventually the fat stores in other area's will have been depleted or minimal and the fat will come from the other areas.

[Brad805]

5'-10", 149lb with 37" waist. Although I can see the temptation to keep losing the fat, I looked at some of your other measurements and I am not sure I would be racing to low BF levels in your case. I think your lean mass is quite low and by the time you get down to say 130lb or less you might not like the image in the mirror even though the belly will have reduced. What is your daily protein target? Muscle preservation is key for you.

[djrobins]

5'-10", 149lb with 37" waist. Although I can see the temptation to keep losing the fat, I looked at some of your other measurements and I am not sure I would be racing to low BF levels in your case. I think your lean mass is quite low and by the time you get down to say 130lb or less you might not like the image in the mirror even though the belly will have reduced. What is your daily protein target? Muscle preservation is key for you.

Agree. This one may lose the belly by slowly increasing lean body mass, and the body will draw from the fat around the midsection. If he gains lean body mass quickly, he will gain fat along with it...

[twistedforever]

What's keto for you? Are you getting any carbs? Any refeeds?

Manipulating carbs is one of the best strategies for losing those last few pounds on the belly but you can't do that if you're not getting any carbs.

I'm a vegetarian, so my diet consists of vegetables, pulses, fruits, milk and lots of cheese. I think I'm keeping carbs at less than 10%. Do you think I should add some to my diet?

[twistedforever]

5'-10", 149lb with 37" waist. Although I can see the temptation to keep losing the fat, I looked at some of your other measurements and I am not sure I would be racing to low BF levels in your case. I think your lean mass is quite low and by the time you get down to say 130lb or less you might not like the image in the mirror even though the belly will have reduced. What is your daily protein target? Muscle preservation is key for you.

Being a vegetarian, I get around 70 grams of protein out of my diet daily.
My main motive right now is to cut down to 60 kgs. and I just hope I hit 10% body fat by then. After I've achieved this goal, I intend to do bulk and cut cycles till I reach 70 kgs. at 10% body fat (my ultimate long term goal). Is this the right approach?

[mjdieth]

Being a vegetarian, I get around 70 grams of protein out of my diet daily.
My main motive right now is to cut down to 60 kgs. and I just hope I hit 10% body fat by then. After I've achieved this goal, I intend to do bulk and cut cycles till I reach 70 kgs. at 10% body fat (my ultimate long term goal). Is this the right approach?

You need more protein than that, you are probably losing a lot of muscle and will continue to lose more if you keep that up. You should be eating about .82g per lb of body weight to maintain as much muscle as possible on a cut.