Stubborn Belly Fat
I hear it all the time — “Coach Wayne, I’ve lost a lot of body fat everywhere except the lower abs. What do I need to do to get rid of that stubborn belly fat?” They want the washboard abs!
Believe me, we ALL want them. That’s what sells! 90% of those gimmicky infomercials you see on TV are selling some sort of machine to give us the abs we’ve always wanted. But guess what? You can do ab exercises till the cows come home, but if your awesome washboard is covered with fat, it won’t look any different!!
And how do you get rid of that “stubborn belly fat”? The same way you get rid of any fat — NUTRITION!!! That’s right! I’m back to nutrition again! “Abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym”. Have you heard that quote? Well, it’s true! Your abs will start to show up once your body fat drops below about 10%, and you will see more and more as the body fat continues to drop. You will go from a KEG to a 2-PACK to a 4-PACK to a 6-PACK, and even the illusive 8-PACK if you get your body fat very low. It’s really that simple! No crazy machines needed.
So in summary, there is no way to “spot lose” body fat — we all have it, we all store it, and some areas of our body store more of it than others. For guys, it’s usually the lower belly, under the belly button and the love handles. For ladies, it’s hips and thighs. So as we lose body fat, those areas are losing as well, but since we have more fat stored there, it will take longer and more body fat loss before those areas look “ideal” to us. And it’s a lot easier to lose the first 2% of body fat than the last 2%, so it will seem harder to get that last bit of fat to melt off than it was when you first started losing body fat. But it can be done. It just takes 100% dedication to the Ab Belt (haha just kidding — making sure you are still reading!). It takes 100% dedication to the NUTRITION! Lower body fat means you can see the underlying muscles better. If you want to see your abs, you MUST be very committed to the nutrition because that’s the only way to get your body fat down to the elite level where abs pop out!
And of course I must also remind you that it’s still very important to work the abs and core muscles as part of your workout routine, because core strength is the key to balance and control while doing other lifts / movements. So don’t think you can just skip that Ab Ripper X or Cardio Abs in exchange for skipping a meal!
How often should you workout the abs? This is a GREAT question, and I’m asked it quite often. I think Tony Horton nailed the answer to this question on his 1-on-1 video called “Killer Abs”. In that video, Tony is asked by Mason (his cameraman):
Mason: “How often should you do an ab workout like this?”
Tony: “Once or twice per week. That’s all you need.”
Mason then responds with a quesion: “You don’t need to do abs every day?”
Tony: “That’s stupid! Do you do chest every day? Do you do back every day? Do you do calves every day? NO, NO, NO! So why would you do abs every day!”
Mason: “Well, I shower every day!”
Tony: “Thank God!” … and then he proceeds to begin the second half of the Killer Ab workout!
Classic! It leaves me laughing out loud every time!
That conversation pops into my mind every time I am asked about how often to do ab workouts, and it’s PERFECTLY TRUE!! Plan on 2-3 ab days per week. No more, no less. More is overkill and won’t give you better results. Less will lead to a weak core.
I love how Tony makes things simple for us … and funny too!
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Thanks Coach!!
For my abs i have all the time in the time in the world coach!! getting glimpses of them so its pushing me to keep going to see the goodies underneath!!! Thanks again Coach you and your website have really helped me :) now time to press play!!!
Cheers Paul
Coach,
I’m 5-’10″/160lbs. Did Insanity/P90X/and am half way thru your P90/Insanity hybrid. Abs are showing, still have a little belly/love handle fat/loose skin. I’d like to start putting on some weight. Body fat is at 8.7%. I’m not sure if it’s time change it up or finish this round and then start again and try to gain some weight/mass. What do you recommend?
Thanks Derek
Hey Derek, you are getting close with the body fat in the 8% range. You can switch to a balanced diet at your maintenance level (rather than running a calorie deficit), but only go to a bulking diet if you are totally happy with your body fat where it is now because on a bulking diet you won’t lose any more body fat.
Thanks Coach….I’m going to stick with what I’m doing for now. Still have a little “loose belly/love handles” that need to go first. Thanks again for your help and informative website.
Derek
coach, i am on my last phase of p90x, and my abs are starting show, but i noticed its only on my left side of my abs, is this normal or is there something i can do to fix it, thanks, cody
Hey Cody, it may have to do with the shaping of your abs, but all you can do is keep losing body fat until you see them all evenly. Keep it up!
Hi Coach,
I know that 6 packs abs make at kitchen, and I loss a little belly fat a week. But I wounder can I loss belly fast without loss weight and get 6 packs abs. Sory if my English is wrong.
Thanks..
Hey Nguyen, read my article “body fat vs. bulk”. If you want to lose body fat, then that needs to be your focus (not maintaining your weight). You can technically lose body fat without losing weight, but it takes a LONG time.
Hey Wayne, I’ve done P90X for a year now, but I still have a tiny bit of body fat to lose. If I combine insanity with P90X will I lose muscle? I’m currently on a 2,000 calorie diet, do I need to increase it on my insanity cardio days to preserve my muscle?
Hey Luke, if you are doing a hybrid, you won’t lose muscle. Insanity will help you burn more fat but the lifting will preserve your strength. Stick with teh 2,000 cals to help you drop the belly fat faster.
Hey Wayne, I appreciate the advice! I just got through with max interval plyo, I can feel the burn in my abs, however, I worked my abs yesterday. I’m not overworking them am I?
Hey Luke, abs/core are in a different category of sorts since you work them anytime you do ANYTHING. So no, you aren’t overworking them by doing abs one day and max plyo the next.
Coach Wayne,
Jillian Michaels of Biggest Loser/The Doctors said in order to lose the last ten pounds, one shouldn’t burn more than 500 calories a day (???) I’m nervous to try but my belly fat doesn’t match my new physique, and it feels like I’m wearing a fanny pack stuffed with rubber and putty. What’s ur take on this coach?
Thank you.
Hey Kimberly, there are many opinions on the extent of calorie deficit that one should run, and I’d say it varies from person to person. I was at a 1,000 calorie deficit and clearly that worked well. Others have done the same and also had awesome results. A 500 cal deficit is fine too, and probably a good target for a lady.
I haven’t watched Jillian Michaels, but if she’s referring to doing no more exercise than 500 cals worth in a day, the reasoning behind that is that your body goes into a catabolic state after about an hour of intense exercise and will secret cortisol (which is counterproductive to body fat loss). If you keep your workouts to an hour or less, you are fine and can get back into the anabolic state with a recovery drink afterwards.
I have always burned upwards of 1,000 cals with my intense workouts, and haven’t had a problem losing my stomach fat. It just took consistency and 100% adherence to the nutrition plan.
Thank you for the insight, Coach! This might sound strange but I am somewhat addicted to my morning workouts and evening joggs so hearing your side of things is great news for me, and I’ll be sure to adhere to the nutrition to the tee as you say!
God bless.
Coach Wayne, I’d like to ask: Let’s I am eating five times a day and then I workout in the morning (6:00 am to be exact) do I need to drink a post-workout shake or should I opt for a breakfast instead since it’s still morning. Because that is what I do, I jump in eating breakfast. I need your thoughts on this. Thanks!
Hey Angelo, it’s best to have a true recovery drink immediately after your workout, and then have breakfast about 30-45 min later. That’s what I do. But if you don’t have time for the 30-45min time, then it’s okay to just go into breakfast (but not as ideal as a recovery drink).
I see, thanks coach for the info.
hey coach wayne, how many calories does plyo and kenpo burn if you really bring it? Also how can you measure the calorie deficit?
Hey Michael, who’s your TBB coach? I got kind of confused when you said you didn’t know how to email me, so I checked and don’t see you on my roster.
How do I switch coaches? I dont think I am on your roster, but would like to switch!
Hey Michael, the instructions for doing a coach switch are in the “join our team” tab :-)
Ok I made the switch!. CC you an email as well.
I was just wondering how to calculate calorie deficit, as well as the total number of calories burned if you bring it on plyo and kenpo?
Awesome Michael, looking forward to having you on the team!
The best way to know the amount of cals you burn with each workout is to have a Heart Rate Monitor, which will calculate (or at least give you a very good estimate) based on how hard you work, how high your HR gets, and how big you are.
Without that, all you can do is use the “guesstimates” that Beachbody gives you, which is 500-700 cals. As a big guy who works really hard on the workouts, I know that I burn over 1,000 cals on Plyo.
And calorie deficit is simply the amount of calories you take in per day compared the amount of calories it would take per day to maintain your current body weight. My maintenance level is in the 3000-3200 cal per day range. When I need to drop some body fat or weight, I run a deficit to make that happen. When I want to add mass, I go higher than that.
Coach, as same as some of the members who posted comments here I have done P90X, P90X+, Insanity, The Asylum and up to a week ago the first month of Pump. Although I changed my physic substantially and got my abs to show, I never got rid of the “stubborn” fat around my stomach. I gave up milk, sugars, rice, bread, etc. as the nutrition guides recommended, my only problem is that I travel every week so I do not have the option of cooking my own meals. All the nutrition guides are great for what I call a “not-so-normal” person since, unless you have enough time in your hands, you still have to prepare and purchase the correct ingredients, but going to the main subject: what would you suggest for an individual who is forced to eat at hotels and restaurants? How can I track the amount of calories I eat? How can I get rid of the stubborn fat under these conditions?
I totally agree with you Mario! That’s why I don’t follow the nutrition guide. Traveling is no problem if you plan ahead and take your own foods with you. I’ve done it several times. Check out my sample diets, and look at my articles on tracking your nutrition (rather than following the meals from the guide). It’s all in the “nutrition all in one” section = http://teamripped.com/my-nutritionsupplements/nutrition-all-in-one
Hey coach, I’m skinny (in clothes) but I’m soft and I was wondering if I need to do a fat shredder diet to melt off some of the excess goo or if i should just start a maintance diet and go from there? My only concerns are if I’m on a fat shredder diet will I still be able to improve in the workouts and gain muscle?
Hey Anthony, first get the body fat where you want it, even if you think you are “skinny fat” right now. Then you can more effective build muscle. Read this = http://teamripped.com/big-ripped-or-small-ripped
Thanks coach, i understand now. Body fat needs to be low, then I can build up.
Following your advice about stuburn belly fat, I set myself for a 2000 cal diet and I am tracking what I eat using an iPhone app. Every day I ingest around 1900 calories, but once the app subtracts the Asylum workout calories burned (according to my HRM, 800 to 1400 depending on the workout) I am left with only a few hundred consumed. Is that the way it should work?
I also noticed that I am eating more carbs than protein. Should I change that?
Hey Mario, I don’t input exercise or factor in extra cals to make up for exercise. And yes, if you are eating more carbs than fats, you are way off on your fat shredder %!!! You want 50% protein and 30% carbs like my sample diets outline.
Coach Wayne,
On week 3 of foundation phase, after my hybrid round of p90x/insanity and at 7% bodyfat. I had to take measurements two days in a row, as I didn’t believe it. My only issue is the “stubborn belly fat”, as my highest mm reading was in abdomen. I can see my abs, but not where I want to be yet, as I want Coach Wayne abs!!
At about 163 lbs running fat shredder at about 1700-1900 calories (over 5 months or so) and 1700 on non W.O. days, 1900 on W.O days, to mix up and help confuse my body. I cannot figure out how else to reduce that area, as I think running below those calories will do more harm than good at this point.
I know nutrition is key, but any suggestions, as I want to go to building mass soon, but what my bf% to about 5% or so, where my abs should be defined.
It amazes me how 9 months ago I would have laughed at tracking calories! Now it is my daily routine.
Thanks Coach!!
Hey Rafael, you are doing great! The lower abdomen is where I get the highest readings too, and it’s the area I monitor most closely because it’s the last to go and the first to come back.
I don’t think you are doing anything at all wrong. It just takes a LONG time to get the body fat from 7% to 6% (a whole lot longer than it takes to get from 15% to 10% for example).
But keep it up! I feel ya! I’m the same way. Remember how my body fat was up after the vegan round. I am still working to get it back down to where I want it :-)
I was reading Rafael’s comments. I think for me, it’s genetics. I am down to 5% and I know at that point most people’s abs are completely chiseled. Not me. Plus, I actually don’t have a 6 pack. I only have a 4 pack and my lower abs are just one solid piece.
I have been going crazy over this and asked my girl to measure and re-measure and I even measured myself many times.
But I agree with Coach Wayne, it took me longer to go from 8-5 that it did from 15 to 8%.
My biggest challenge as I go through the fat shredder phase to get to 8% is the mental aspect of my changes. I see changes in all areas except around my belly and I have to keep telling myself that 13.5% (my current %) is going to look a lot different than 8%. I just need to keep going and get to the 8%.
Exactly right Mayt!
Hey Coach –
I continue to be stuck at a certain weight and I’m not sure what to do. I started P90X almost 2 years ago, doing 2 Classic Rounds, 1 round of P90X Plus and a Hybrid Round. When I started, my weight was 254 and today I weigh 236, so I almost lost 20 pounds! My goal is to get into the mid to low 220′s, but can’t seem to get there. My diet is good, as I’m taking in 1900-2100 calories a day at a good carb to protein ratio – any suggetions? Additionally, I’ve added a round of M100′s at the end of each weight day (arms, shoulders, back, tris etc) to help with my cardio.
Thanks in advance
Hey Scott! Congrats on the progress you’ve made so far. But are you sure about the calories? It would be impossible for a person to weigh 225 on a 1900 cal diet for long. If you’ve been at this for 2 years, and you weren’t cheating on your diet, a 1900 cal diet would have resulted in a lot more weight loss.
Someone your size would need about 3000 cals per day to maintain weight, so I’m left wondering how honest you are being with yourself on nutrition. Are you tracking what you eat every day using MyFitnessPal?
Thank You -
I just joined MyFitnessPal and will track my calories over the next 90 days. Looks like I have a target of about 2100 calories a day – I’ve never done a great job at logging my food, so that may be the real issue. I tend not to vector off my caloric intake during the week but the weekends are not as strict.
Thanks again
Coach this may be a dumb question but is it possible to be under 7% body fat and only have a 4 pack? I think I have been using my calipers wrong (thats a story for another day) and I may be a couple of percent lower than I thought. Instead of 9.5 I think I may be closer to 7 but I still have that fat round my belly.
Hey Matt, yes it’s possible depending on where you store body fat and the shape of the abs themselves. If you store the most of your body fat in the lower abs and if your abs are relatively flat (little definition) then you’d have to get really low on body fat (5% or so) to see the full 6 pack. I can see my 6 pack at 7% body fat cuz my abs are big in shape (if that makes sense). They aren’t flat.
Thanks Coach. I will be emailing you Sunday with my round 2, 30 day results and I’ll go into more detail about my possible caliper snafu