Is there any way it's possible to lose weight *just* from the stomach?

[Feedingthebirds1]

DP is 6' 2" and is underweight for his height. However the weight isn't evenly distributed. He's inherited his shape from his mum, so his arms and legs (and backside!) are very thin, and viewed from behind, if you ignore the grey hair, he looks like a gangly teenager. But the front view is very different. He has a majorly significant gut.

He has an annual check up at the GP's, and they only ever focus on him being underweight. But there is so much fat around his stomach, and it's well known how much of a health risk that is.

We eat healthily, and he doesn't drink beyond maybe a glass of wine once a week. He could exercise more, he's not a gym bunny (neither am I!!) and his job is sedentary. The usual diet advice to eat less and move more just results in his arms and legs getting even skinnier, although he does lose some from round his middle.

On balance, it seems that being a bit more underweight but without the stomach is the healthier choice, but I'm out of ideas to achieve it. Does anyone have any suggestions or insight?

I am pretty sure it is not possible to just lose weight from just one area but could he do the eat less and move more to reduce his belly but combine in it with some arm/leg training to build muscle?

If he's underweight, is it possible he's eating something which is causing him to bloat? Does he have any troubles bowel wise?

Everyone's body shape is different, but if he's underweight it could be his tummy is more pronounced?

Maybe he needs a gut test? I can only think that it would be beer belly but you say he doesn't drink.

Tends to be if you want to lose it from round the middle, cut out sugar.

I did the low carb bootcamp 2 years ago and lost 7" from my waist. I did lose some of the rest of me as I lost a stone and a half and wasn't overweight to start with. But it was the pregnant-looking belly I wanted to get rid of, and it's gone.

If he improved his muscle tone all over but concentrated on the abs, that would help.

If I had his issue I would probably aim for some weight training, might shape up his arm and legs and tighten his core, and gain weight in muscle, it doesn't need to be beef cake levels of weight training. My mum describes her shape as an apple, she is short, small hands,feet ,arms and great legs but completely round in the middle/torso. Gave me an image of a green apple with short skinny legs, she is very active at work but makes very little difference.

Is the answer different for men and women?

I ask because I am an apple, and people always squeak about carbs, but that never seems to work for me

Someone on another thread where someone very underweight wanted to flatten their stomach pointed out that if the rest of you is underweight, your stomach with stick out because it contains lots of vital organs.

Maybe he should try to put weight on and see if that puts his stomach back into proportion?

Thank you for the suggestions. It would be lovely to think that it was his organs sticking out, or bloating, because they might be easier to address, but sadly it seems to be fat. You can grab hold of it.

I think we'll go for a combination of exercise and low carb and see where that gets him. The biggest concern is obviously visceral fat, and his middle is getting worse as he's getting older, just when it starts to be even more dangerous.

As above, low sugar diet and weight training.

The diet needn’t be drastic, just regular meals (4-5 a day) with protein and carbs+ some healthy fat. Cut right back on alcohol or added sugar like sweets, sugary cereal, sweetened yoghurt etc.

For the weights, make sure he’s healthy and good to start weight training and then build up to 3 times a week.

If he’s underweight with a big stomach then that is really dangerous as there might not be anything he can do to reduce visceral fat. I am Indian and skinny / underweight man with big belly is the most typical shape of all my uncles with metabolic disorders.

In our case GPs usually say otherwise healtny Indian people can afford to lose weight at borderline underweight levels, by overhauling their diet to be a bit more mediterreanean and taking up more exercise.