To think I'll never get rid of belly fat put on after 30? Does ANYTHING work?!!

[Valeriana87]

I'm really down about my belly. I look pregnant and dreading summer clothes. I think there are a few issues going on. I have some diastasis recti, but I've had that for 16 years since eldest born, so it's not all caused by that. I now have a layer of fat on top of that. It appeared when I hit 30 (metabolism? change to where fat goes on?). I have mild PCOS. Also, bloating which gets worse throughout the day. Also I'm 5ft 1 so it looks worse on me.

If you managed to reduce your belly without exercise (can't cause of DR) - HOW DID YOU DO IT?!

I'm wanting to start getting ready for the summer by at least attempting to reduce it by a little.

My BMI is 24 and I don't want to lose more than half a stone, it's just the belly.

Is it true you can't 'spot reduce' fat? Am i resigned to tent dresses?

Low carb works for me. I have a belly at a BMI of 24, I think around 21-22 is my ideal BMI but it's different for everyone. I'm 42 and still drink some wine (but try not to drink too much!) but also do low carb and I think that offsets the wine drinking! (currently zero wine just for 2 weeks though as I'm doing the low carb bootcamp on here but I'll have the odd glass after this week). Currently 9 stone at 5'3" after having a baby and have another 1/2 stone to lose.

Definitely give up the booze! Sounds like you essentially have the female equivalent of a beer belly.

This diet works for me every time but is extreme (I do it for six weeks every May so I’m ready for summer):

• no alcohol
• only drink still water, herbal or black tea, black coffee
• no sugary/sweet snacks of any type (chocolate, sweets, pastries etc)
• no bread of any kind
• no white carbs (brown rice and sweet potato are fine)
• max 1 piece of fruit per day
• no dairy
• no take-aways, fast food or microwave meals of any type

It’s brutal and needs pre-planning but the time passes and I shed loads every time. I never feel hungry as I still eat loads of vegetables, brown rice, grains like quinoa, beans, etc.

Rest of the year you need to cut down to one bottle of wine per week max (preferably half a bottle).

Good luck!

Yes op its 800 calories a day. Going to try it in March. I would be happy with a stone off. My BMI is 27 at the minute.

Not sure if it will work as I need prunes daily but will start my stomach exercises next time I do my yoga dvd. Been putting it off. Friends keep saying stomach exercises are needed. In fact Dr Moseley suggests we do 10 press ups every time we wee lol.

Absolutely low carb, especially if you have PCOS as you are likely to tend towards insulin resistance anyway.

You don’t have to go full keto. You can start by cutting out (or way down on) high GI carbs - sugar, bread and baked goods, mashed/baked potato, crisps, white rice. Basically the “white carbs”. This will make a big difference just by itself.

I would also recommend low level intermittent fasting, either skip breakfast or have a very early dinner and nothing after.

For your DR Pilates is what you need but ideally in a live class, not a video, with an instructor who will tell you what to skip and check you are doing it right.

Having said that there may be DR specific exercises on youtube? I haven’t looked.

Oh yes low carbing would also involve cutting back on booze… lots of sugar in booze…

I've been having fat dissolving injections and the difference is amazing! I've had four treatments so far and my belly has halved in size. Once the fat cells are gone I'll have some skin tightening treatments which will get rid of the awful weird pouch I've had since having my first baby 26 years ago. I can't even begin to explain how happy I am with the results of the injections.

Sorry not sugar in booze - carbs. And it depends what you drink of course.

I have finally stopped bring apple shaped for the first time, by doing low carb high fat a la Dr Jason Fung, who wrote The Obesity Code.
I’m 55 and my waistline is still decreasing😁

Give up the booze! Works a treat and you feel amazing for it
I wish that was true for me. I had no alcohol for 8 months last year and I didn't feel any different or look any different.
I kind of feel cheated about all the times I turned a gin or glass of wine down now! :(

I've found a mixture of cardio exercise and yoga/pilates is best for belly fat. Get moving and develop a strong core and body.

Good idea to keep highly processed carbs and anything sugary to a minimum for anyone but potatoes shouldn't be lumped into the same category as white bread, pasta, white rice, cereal and other baked goods.

Giving up booze or caffeine v moderate consumption makes no difference for me either sadly. In fact I just crave desserts when I don't drink alcohol, whereas normally I'm not bothered about sweet stuff.

Get a dog! Joking . But after getting our dog i have lost about a stone and mostly from my belly. I walk at least 2-3 hours each sat and sunday (with at least 1-hour before breakfast). And 45-60 minutes each week day.

I can understand it would be hard to force yourself to walk that much without a dog, but it has made a huge difference. I have a waist now!

@Valeriana87 yes MUTU is about £100 (I bought it a really long time ago so it was less). They often do a special offer around Mother's Day so it might be worth waiting.
You could also look up Michelle Kenway on youtube as she has some DR specific videos too. I just get on better with a programme with 'tick boxes' as I am not very well motivated otherwise!

Thanks everyone. I have so many tips from here. I need to put them into practice!

The original 5:2 and Very Fast 800 worked for me very well in terms of weight loss. But I can never successfully move into maintenance, also my hair fell out and I could hardly do any exercise with eating so little so have become disillusioned with them- or at least the faddier aspects.

I'm just making up my own plan, keeping calories and processed carbs down but without the faddiness- more like the maintenance plan, with slower weight loss. Dramatic weight loss seems to make me crave unhealthy foods and binge- I started emotional eating again after knocking that on the head for years after doing Very Fast 800 and also started drinking a lot more alcohol after being a moderate drinker.

Following as I have the same problem. I’ve put on 2kg in two months

What worked for me (and I was in my 40s) was physio for the DR, regular Pilates and swimming, and a low carb diet.

I have actual abs now.

Elfton Mashed or baked potato is definitely high GI - but agree it’s got a lot more nutrients than say, cake!

Btw there's nothing unhealthy about a lower carb diet. You still get some carbs, but from healthier sources like green veg.

I understand that stress (cortisol) can also cause you to hold fat esp on your upper belly. How is your sleep / stress / etc? Not all about the exercise or food if you don’t get those right too. I’m guessing it’s pretty hard with small children so this isn’t meant as a criticism in any way!!

PCOS is linked to blood sugar/insulin issues, so a low GI diet would be good in that respect.

Look up bioprint. It's £££ and works alongside diet changes but in my experience it works.

It’s the wine, op.
Very little point in messing with your diet, which doesn’t sound too bad in any case, if you carry on drinking over twice the recommended safe limit.
I suggest cutting down from 3 bottles to 1 for now, which should be manageable.

Sweet potato is lower GI. But potatoes have vitamins, potassium and fibre.

People do all these faddy diets cutting out potatoes and end up taking fibre supplements. If you don't eat cereals or much bread sweet potatoes are bloody brilliant - when I eat them I easily get 30g of fibre a day.

I think not being able to eat sweet potatoes was the final nail in the coffin for the Very Fast 800 for me.

I'm in the same situation re belly so following with interest !