“Is it possible that I could have a lean body but still retain a reservoir of excess fat over my tum? I ask this because despite continual inches lost and 14 lbs shed to date I still have a sizable glut of fat over this area.
I will continue following all the Fit Yummy Mummy guidelines – nutrition, resistance, intervals etc, but if there is anything else I could be doing to help myself, your guidance would be appreciated.
One thing I am going to experiment with is that from tonight I am going to start doing some Fit Yummy Mummy exercises during the TV ad breaks, because at the moment even though I’ve been doing the programme for a while now the Plank is still a real challenge, and everything shakes after 10 seconds – sad I know!”
~ Sarah C
Solving The Battle of Belly Fat
As far as your concern about having a lean body and still have belly fat – it really is a matter of each individual’s body.
Remember, Fat Loss is a process – an overall body process – and as you stick consistently with the plan mapped out for you in Fit Yummy Mummy, little by little your body will lose the fat, we just cannot choose where that fat comes from.
It is typical that fat from our “problem areas” – for women….hips, thighs and the mommy belly….is the last to go. This has to do with genetics and all that jazz about being able to bear children and nourish our babies.
Now the belly area can have a few different things going on.
1. The typical fat that we store from eating too much and not moving enough.
2. A “mennopot” – what the BFL for Women refers to as Inner Belly Fat (which may increase as we get older)
3. Excess Skin from pregnancies and/or years of too much belly fat.
4. C-Section – allowing time to heal then strengthening from the inside out
5. The BLOAT – this is purely from bad nutritional choices
The remedy to get rid of belly fat….
Eating supportively and exercising effectively – Consistently!
Loss of Belly Fat will vary from woman to woman and some may say this is due to genetics….I suggest we be more realistic and take a closer look at each individual’s ability to be compliant with healthier lifestyle choices.
That being said – as you do make positive changes – yes, what may seem to happen is that as you begin to shed pounds and inches – and you have already lost a lot – places like your upper body will appear more toned and defined, while that belly fat – sure has gone done some – is still there.
But you have to consider, the amount of fat to lose in your upper body is much different than the amount in your lower body.
The fact that inches are begin lost and you are feeling so much better – inside and out is the BEST sign that what you are doing is working and will take time.
After a week of giving a new fat loss plan a try – eating right and sticking to an effective exercise plan, they remeasure and see no change on the scale and nothing looks different in the mirror. So they give up.
Add in the fact that many women are mislead by the notion that hundreds of ab exercises or hours of cardio is the solution to lose the stubborn belly fat. Associating discomfort with results.
Not you! You know differently and will keep at this for you have the resources, the knowledge and the support available to you through Fit Yummy Mummy.
The success stories being shared are also evidence that as you lose the belly fat, you will experience some toning/tightening of lose skin. Some may take a bit longer than others – but little by little it does improve.
The only exception is the case of severely stretched skin – indicated by deep stretch marks. While our skin is fairly elastic, it can reach a breaking point – a point of no return. (this is in severe cases).
No, there are no magic exercises that make the belly fat go away – there are however moves you can do to help strengthen and tighten your INNER core muscles. This is turn will help your belly to look flatter as you do continue to lose the belly fat.
The best moves are the ones where you do NOT “move” at all. You know…everyone’s favorite Plank and Side Plank.
Doing MORE of the FYM exercises will NOT make your results happen faster.
It is very important that you give your body and your muscles a rest for this is when the improvements are made. Doing more will only interrupt this process and delay your results.
Want to do MORE of Something?
~ Increase your overall activity levels!
I know you said you would do exercise on during TV Ad breaks….maybe switch out watching TV with something that keeps you on your feet vs. sitting on the couch? As noted in the Walk Your Way Thin post, you should be getting in 10,000 steps a day.
~ Eat Clean More Often!
If there is ever an area you want to put more focus and energy into – it should be your nutrition plan. What you eat has the greatest impact on the loss of belly fat.
I know and work with plenty of women who look lean as ever but still have a bit of belly fat. Nothing any of us would consider problematic….but it just doesn’t match the rest of their body.
In these cases it may be be helpful to give an elimination diet a go. I did this a couple years ago and found that there were foods that prevented me from being able to see more results.
Keep in mind that I had already fine tuned my nutrition plan and followed my progressively challenging workout plan. So this is an option as well.
Begin your belly fat burning plan and focus on boosting your metabolism with the short burst 15 minute Fit Yummy Mummy workouts and clean up your Nutrition plan.
Next step is to follow through with consistency .
If your getting rid of belly fat, don’t give up 3 days of trying! Allow your body a chance to change based on these strategies…all you need is a good 4 to 6 weeks to see and feel an amazing difference!
For accountability and troubleshooting support,
join the forums at
ClubFYM!
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It sure does help to have Holly and the other FYMs along side of you cheering you on during good times, and there to listen and help during not-as-good times. Consistency isn’t just “lip service” – it really is the key to this process. Set your goals and you can achieve anything!! with Club FYM and Fit Yummy Mummy!
Great response! Excellent points regarding fine tuning the meal and exercise plan.
What you have said above is so true, Holly. I thought that if I followed just your workouts and continued eating “clean” I could get rid of the fat on my own. I was so wrong! I had to be consistent with both my nutrition and my workouts. Nutrition is such an important factor. I am now slimmer and more toned than I have ever been in my life – and I am 41 with 5 children.
One thing that does dictate where and how much fat is stored is your body shape. Some women have it more in their waist area (the apple shape) whereas others tend to store the bulk of it in their lower half (the pear shape). I am a pear and I looked pregnant for many years even though I wasn’t.
Holly, thank you for helping so many women to regain their confidence by giving them what they need to do it. All the testimonials and discussions in Club FYM are proof of all your hard work!
What is an elimination diet?
Holly, this was perfect timing for me. As we are nearing the last couple weeks of the transformation challenge, I just started feeling discouraged yesterday with my results. I almost let myself believe that my age was going to start defining my lack of results. I just turned 46 last week. My workouts and nutrition have been very consistent, which made me realize how much they were not consistent in the past. But, by reading the above advice, it has given me the boost I needed to have more patience with my results, and to also realize I can still tweak some things.
Thank you! you have helped me come a long way, and keep me going!
This has been soooo helpful. I often struggle with my body image as the muffin top is not going away. But this is helping me to understand that patience is key along side with being consistent with nutrition and workouts. I have good days and bad days, but not consistent days, weeks and months. I’m gonna hang in there!!!
This is so helpful! Something I struggle with is too big of portions. I seriously have to weigh and pre-plan.
For instance, yesterday I thought I was doing excellently but checking the nutrition calculator (after I ate it, there’s my problem, I didn’t pre-plan) I had 800 calories more than I meant to! And that’s only one day! Without FYM I would do that every day.
It is hard to exercise off a lazy eating plan. No wonder the tummy fat is the last to go! Consistency is the key.
Holly,
Is there a certain elimination diet you recommend? Or how did you go about finding out which food didn’t “agree” with your system?
Thanks