Help me get rid of my icky fat belly!

[RevoltingPeasant]

Okay, so I am pretty active and eat decently but I cannot shift belly fat at all. Does anyone else have this???

I do exercise:
Mon - 35 min Xtrainer at gym
Tues - spin class
Weds - Xtrainer again plus 90 min yoga
Thurs - generally some cardio
Fri - pilates

Also do 'mini-yoga' sessions in spare time.

I am pescetarian so no meat, plenty of fish and fruit, and drink masses of caffeine-free herbal tea.

So where am I going wrong?? I am going on honeymoon in 3 weeks and DP kindly says I look lovely, but I know I look like Eric Pickles fat. :(

You need to do some core exercises like planks and crunches. I started going to a Core class just over a year ago and it has made a massive difference to my stomach.

Ditch the fruit and replace with vegetables. No booze and eat plenty of eggs (brilliant form of protein).
I think you could also some weights into your exercises to burn more calories.
I am not skinny btw, but the above works or me when I want to drop weight fast.

What size are you? If you are very apple shaped it might just be the last place you lose weight.

Have you always had it, or just since DCs? Quite common for major abdominal separation from pregnancy to go un-noticed, and some physio will help get everything back together again.

I really recommend te Master Your Metabolism book by Jillian Michaels - lots of info there on how different hormones make one prone to gaining belly fat rather than in other, healthier places (stress is a big factor, from what I remember, and not getting enough sleep).

Thanks guys! Already do pilates so mucho planks + abs stuff. It pulls my stomach in - I have quite strong abs - but doesn't get rid of the fat! The fat just kind of moves closer to my navel :(

Rancer you are right, I need to eat more veg. At least 3 of my 5 a day are always fruit. Too sugary. I don't drink much anyhow as have kidney probs but might go teetotal till the wedding. Good tip!

Hopefully I'm a 12 and sometimes 10 (in Monsoon e.g.). I should really be a proper 10 though - my sisters are all 8s!

Might sound simple but you are prob just eating too many cals still. To lose 1 lb you have to have a daily cal deficit of 500, for a week.

Exercise without cutting back on food may not be enough.

There are loads of online tools which will show you how many cals you need a day for your weight , height and age.

PeterPan you are probably right I am going to do a weight management programme at work. I can't believe it - a year or two since I was a toned young thing and I have woken up a porky middle-aged woman.

When did it happen???

It's very easy to over estimate how many cals you use through exercise.
Most moderate work outs might just use 200 cals -ish- and that's the same as a couple of biscuits.

Maybe look at what else you are eating on top of the fish and fruit and veg. Lots of carbs or snacks? Or even alcohol?

Is it definitely fat, and not a bloating/digestion problem?

Wheat/onions/nuts always make me look pregnant regardless of calorie content or exercise I've done.