I have been Been doing Combined IF, (20 hours) ADF,( 500 cal one day n other day 1200kcal) and extended fasting (started a week ago extended one) It’s been 2, months but my weight loss is slow and my belly fat hasn’t changed much and it’s just making me lose hope .the belly fat depresses me the most. What do I do??.I have been following everything well. I break my fast with protein, I had even left eating rice which is actually my main staple food( I m indian )and also have take sugary stuffs to a minimum I am 5 ft 2inch n weigh 66kgs which is not good for me I on the verge of giving up Also I m not new to IF I have done it bfore n lost the weight easier This time it’s taking me to cut carbs,sugar, calorie deficit, counting calories.. Uggggh!!!!!! Still the progress is slow
As everyone else has already said, you can’t target fat loss in specific areas. It sucks and can be disheartening but true weight loss and long term lifestyle changes are a long game. I have a big stomach with a lot of visveral fat. I’m F26, 5’3 and my starting weight was 169lbs. I’ve been fasting since November of last year and have lost 26lbs so far and I’m 143lbs as of today. But I have barely lost anything around my stomach area. I’ve lost 26lbs and my stomach fat is still there.
Its noticeable when I look at before & after pictures that I lost weight and most of my pants are a bit loose now but its not a huge difference in my stomach compared to the rest of my body. I’ve definitely lost weight in my face, arms and legs but barely any came off my stomach. That’s okay though because my entire life has changed from fasting. I eat much better, I feel better everyday and am much more active. I still have about 23 more lbs to lose until my goal weight and I have a feeling that’s hopefully when all my extra stomach fat will go. I don’t know where else I’d lose from at this point! My point is, bodies are weird and never do what you expect it to when it comes to weight loss. If you want to see significant changes you have to play the long game and be patient. It really sucks at first because you want to see changes right away but its definitely worth it!
The reality is, you can’t specifically target belly fat. The areas of your body that will lose fat first, second, etc. are determined by your genetics. You will eventually lose the belly fat — it just may be one of the later places you lose fat.
When you say “my weight loss is slow,” what exactly is your weight loss? In general, it’s realistic and sustainable to lose 0.5-1% of your body weight per week on average. For you, that means somewhere around 0.3-0.6 kg per week on average. Some weeks may be more, some less.
I ask because I see a ton of people here who expected to lose 5 kg/week, and feel like they are failing when they only lose 0.5 kg/week — when in fact, they are doing an excellent job and completely succeeding!
You can’t target fat loss in certain areas. So if you carry most fat in your belly, that will probably be the last place to truly slim down.
Are you exercising at all? Working on your core strength could change how your belly fat ‘sits’ on you, if that makes sense. I’ve done this 8 minute abs workout and felt like it improved my posture and overall appearance even when my weight loss plateaued.
FWIW if I was only eating 500 calories every other day I’d be ready to throw in the towel as well. If ADF works for you, then by all means continue, but the sustainability of a diet plan is also an important consideration. So if eating 1200 calories every day (or even 1500) gives you more energy to strength train and continue IF without burning out, then I’d go that route.
You’re not getting enough calories, which can actually slow weight loss. 1200 calories one day and 500 the next, averaging less than 900 cal a day? Try upping your intake on your non-fasting day, while continuing to concentrate on nutrient density and food quality.
I would separate this out into two points.
If your weight loss is slow or stalling, your caloric deficit is not low enough. Regardless of what anyone here will tell you there is no magic to I F, you will lose weight based on your caloric input and output, fasting windows make sticking to a smaller calorie amount easier. So maybe check and track how much you are actually eating.
Second point, you actually have lost weight on your belly, you just don’t notice it as much because there is a higher concentration of fat on your belly. And we burn body fat, we burn it from everywhere, equally. When you only have a small layer of fat cells lining the backs of your hand and your fingers and your feet and ankles and lower legs, those start to look very lean very quickly because there’s not much there, same as shoulders, neck, etc. Just be patient, keep doing the same things once you are losing at the rate you want to, and give it time and you’ll notice your torso getting leaner.
I’m in practically the same situation! Same height, but my weight is 176lbs and I’ve been doing IF with minimal exercise for a month. I’m a SAHM too and finding time to work out is tough. My biggest workout is walking around our town with baby for a couple hours.
I recently got a Fitbit and have been calorie counting and it’s slowly helping. I might need to give up rice and potatoes though and it’s making me sad!
As others have said you can’t target specific areas. All fat is somewhat tied to hormones, but belly fat in women especially.
You’ll lose last where your gain it first. For many women that’s on their belly area. All you can do is reduce your overall body fat and give you body the support it needs to burn fat. Avoiding stress and getting enough sleep are two of the best things you can do after making sure you are consuming less than you are burning.
I know it’s hard to find the time to exercise with a baby at home, and you’re tired, but there are loads of free apps out there with 5, 10, 15 minute workouts that you can try. Baby can watch from the playpen or jolly jumper :). No equipment needed in most cases. Try HASFit, Yoga for Beginners (or Yoga with Adriene on YouTube), FitOn, Nike Training Club. It’ll help, believe me! Good luck, you’ve got this!
You are not very overweight so the weight loss will be slow - if you only have 25lb to lose, it’s like the last few pounds.
If you are not physically active, that is a bigger health risk than a few extra kg. Recommend you exercise more and hold your eating as is. You can’t lower calories enough to offset inactivity when you are small, not without compromising nutrition.
Even if you have little time, walk, yoga, push-ups, jumping jacks, hopping on one foot, take little exercise breaks to metabolize more calories.
Bring in at least 15 minutes of cardio everyday! At least 5 times a week. There is a great Leslie walking workout on YouTube that can come in handy if pressed for time and space. Don’t starve yourself. Eating is important to lose weight. Yes, eating is critical to lose fat. Proteins, carbs, fat. Hit these everyday. I have a feeling your body might be in starvation mode and conserving everything it can as it isn’t getting enough nutrition. Search Reddit for starvation and IF and that might explain what I am referring to. All the best.
Don’t give up !!! You will absolutely get past this !
A few notes:
Don’t give up, be consistent, when/if you fail, sort why you did and fix the problem instead of getting discouraged.
An additional note would be; in regards to exercise, really really really focus on form at first. Quantity doesn’t matter initially, especially if you haven’t had any form of training before. Look up proper form and work on the biomechanics of the form/motion. While it’s a bit slower to get started (I usually want to charge hell with a water pistol….) – it will help you immensely in the long term.
Patience and keep going. My tummy is the last spot I lose it and the first place I gain it back. I lost it everywhere else, even going down half a ring size on some fingers, before losing it on my stomach. Just gotta trust the process and stick with it. Results are like the turtle and the hare story, you gotta be the turtle. Slow and steady wins the race.
Try water fasting only on fasting day, with only water, plain tea and black coffee.
If you give up you guarantee no improvement.
Try lowering carbs on eating day and eating 2 clean meals with no snacking.
Also, check any meds you take to see if they impact glucose or insulin, Google. Common ones are bp meds, bcp, allergy meds including Flonase, steroids, mood or anxiety meds, etc.
Manage sleep and stress, if you have any signs of apnea, treat.
With being on the shorter side, I think water fasting every other day will help. 48 hour fasts are even better.
The midsection lags behind other areas of the body in terms of fat loss. The body naturally wants to reserve extra fat in the midsection because the fat is responsible for protecting vital organs. Rarely do you see people with a sleek midsection but have rather fat extremities.
From reading the first few sentences alone I guessed that you could be of South Asian heritage. I am of Bangladeshi heritage and I am in a similar position to you. There is some research that suggests many South Asians carry our fat around our bellies as we are still in ‘starvation mode’ from colonial times. https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/amp/entry/south-asian-health-colonial-history_uk_620e74fee4b055057aac0e9f/
I have always had a belly that is proportionally much larger than the rest of my body. My highest weight was 65kg and I am now 55kg. I measure the largest part of my belly and it is only a 2-3 cm less than my highest weight! Most of the weight loss has been a general slimming down.
I am sorry to say that there may be no solution but acceptance. I will repeat other comments that it sounds like you are not consuming enough calories to give yourself the vital nutrition you need - please look after yourself 💜
Bro, 5’8” - 93 Kgs here… Even I have started IF recently …. I am not queit consistent and my weigh loss is quite slow… Last week after no weigh change I almost gave up… I did it for another 10-15 days … Saw I lost 1.5kg today …
Its a tough journey but hang on there …. You’ll get to where you want… Don’t check scale for few months … Focus on your efforts …
i’m the same as you, no matter what i do the belly fat won’t go.
i’ve been on IF close to a year, i’ve lost about 5kg (from 72 to 67kg), belly fat is the last to go, I don’t want to go much lower than my current weight because i know it won’t be sustainable, so i’m learning to adjust my wardrobe to things that will look better on me.
also, are you working out as well?
i haven’t lost a ton of weight but i’ve gained some muscles which help a lot.
Just because it’s the area you want to lose first doesn’t mean it’s the first to go sadly. Usually the first place it goes on is the last to come off. Just keep at it and it will come of eventually, this is why it’s hard.
Are you on any medication that might cause weight gain? I’ve had the same issue with IF and caloric restriction without losing weight.
I asked my doctor about meds I’m taking and turns out it has a connection to weight. I’m actually tapering onto a new drug now so hopefully that will help. Worth considering if it could be a factor for you.
Depending on how long ago you did IF with better results may factor in. Weight seems to come off faster when younger. For example, I am 45 (f) doing IF and progress is very slow as compared to weight loss efforts 5 years ago.
Something I don’t see anyone mentioning is waistline measurements. You should focus on measuring your waistline vs how you look/what the scale says because if you’re consistently dieting, it’s likely you’re decreasing in size and not realizing it.
There are two types of fat– subcutaneous fat (visible belly fat), and visceral fat (fat between your organs). Google a picture for reference.
A lot of the time people burn their visceral fat first and their visible changes are not as noticeable, yet if they measure their waist they would notice they have lost a couple inches. This happened to me when I recently lost 10lbs. In the mirror I looked no different, but to my surprise a lot of my clothes fit looser. Because my outline/belly fat so-to-speak was still there but my internal fat had greatly decreased.
Is there anything different now than when you lost weight before and it was easier? Are you getting enough and high quality sleep? Are there stressors in your life that weren’t there before? Medication? Are you as active as before? Are you weight training, or doing more resistance training? It doesn’t need to be in a gym, using your body weight can be a start. Basically, aside from the fasting, and food, is there anything else different? Are you tired? Is your health falling out? I’m just going through a mental list of things that could warrant your slower weight loss, and also that perhaps you should get checked out for. You may have deficiencies, hormonal changes, or other conditions that could impact your weight loss. Stay strong! 💫
Imagine you are a ball of yarn, and the single thread of yarn is one inch for each pound that you weigh. As an example, imagine someone who weighs 200 lbs having 200 inches of yarn in the ball.
When you start losing weight, for each pound that you lose, imagine that you pull one inch of yarn from the ball and cut it off.
At first, the difference is very difficult to notice, and the bigger the ball of yarn was to start with, the less noticeable that difference is. However, as the ball shrinks, each inch that comes off becomes more noticeable.
If you keep with it and you continue to lose actual weight, you will see the difference.
But the unfortunate truth is that you cannot target specific areas of body fat, and people carry their weight differently. It could be that the last place you lose your weight is in your stomach, and you won’t see the results you want until you’ve reached the end of your weight loss journey.
With that said, you may want to look into recomposition instead of weight loss. You can shift your focus to simultaneously strengthening your core and also maintaining or losing weight, and my guess is that you would see much more of the results you’re looking for.
Good luck!
Pay attention to your sugar intake. I recommend reading Sugar busters. I thought I wasn’t consuming a lot of sugar bc I don’t have a sweet tooth but I was very wrong. Less than 25g for females & 36 g for men a day
Everyone says “It’s CICO and you can’t spot reduce…”
Fwiw, it’s not CICO for me. It’s hormones. And I lose all my belly fat on the potato diet.
There’s more about it at the slime mold time mold site - they did a whole thing on reasons why everyone suddenly started to get heavier in the 1980s, and they cover the potato lobbyist who ate 20 pounds of potatoes a day and lost 60 pounds in three months.
I am not an expert. I don’t know why it works. But CICO doesn’t work for me, and the potato diet does, fwiw :)
Don’t listen to everyone else, you can target belly fat! With sit-ups! Seriously, no amount of fasting will get rid of subcutaneous fat. It fills up the space made by missing muscle mass. Get the muscles back and the fat will go. Your skin will also get a lot healthier
Are you working out any even just cardio someif not i would suggest it. My advice is just completely track what you eat calorie wise see how it affects your weight loss my personal goal is 1.5 lbs a week that way I don’t lose muscle too. Just keep track of stuff and if you aren’t losing still consider going down 100 calories and adjust from there each week. Remember as you go if you work out too that fat loss and muscle gain will speed up your metabolism making your caloric deficit even greater and it just snowballs and you will see a lot of progress.
If you just stopped with the rice and other carbs, it will take time for your body to adjust to higher protein and fat.
My advice is to ditch the carbs entirely and only eat meat and fish. At least for a month. It’s kind of an elimination diet. Keep your carbs under 20 per day, 10 is better. Don’t fast more, in fact you will lose with an 18:6 or 20:4 just fine with this way of eating.
Plenty of water with some electrolytes added.
No need to restrict calories or even count them! You will be quite full after your OMAD and much less likely to need a snack.
This is what I’m doing (5’0) and not only am I losing, I feel better than I have in years. Plan to keep it up indefinitely. Healthy fats are good for you and your body needs them to function well.
Check out Dr. Jason Fung and Dr. Ken Berry on YouTube. Both are board certified physicians who have done a lot of research into insulin resistance and the best way to eat.
Hope this helps!
I have been on a measured whole food/intermittent fasting for belly fat/insulin resistant and after 6 weeks my stomach is half what it was. I need to lose 36 lbs and have lost 12 lbs so far. I follow the GOLO meal plan, no pills or anything. I normally eat a meal for breakfast and lunch and have a shake for a 3rd meal.