OK Guys, how did you lose the belly/love handles?

I'll let you know when I get there. I'm a good distance away from my goal (currently just under 280 and on the way to 235).

I know from my weight lifting days that the closer you get to your goal weight (the lower your BF%) the harder it is to lose that last bit. You usually have to be really strict on the diet. Also, interval training really helps. I would recommend Crossfit/P90X/Insanity/etc... type of training... something with a full body circuit attack with a high intensity. Keep S/B/R-ing but add in the intense intervals. It might be just what you need to kickstart that fat loss.

If you do start the CF or something like it... you might want to pay less attention to the scale and more about what you look like because you'll probably add some muscle while losing that unwanted fat. Good luck!

Edited by Shaved_Wookie 2010-01-26 5:39 AM

lower bodyfat the only way.

You have to get to around 10% and below to really lose all the belly fat/love handles.

Let me know if you figure it out.  I have hit my goal of 175 and after looking at myself know I need to drop another 10 but it is not moving.  Got a nice little pooch on each side of my lower back.  Yuck.

I'm wondering the same thing as I lost about 40lbs a year ago and now fluctuate between 175 and 185.  I'm making a concerted effort to get below 170 and stay there through race season.  I think I'm on the right track with the 'Zone' diet (small meals with smart snacks, no grains or pasta, get carbs from fruit/veggies).  I won't say I'm seeing a six pack but the sides of my pot belly are getting concave a bit.  I've lost a belt notch and everything.  The frustrating thing is that if I indulge in a big italian dinner, my gut seems to double in size. 

on most guys thats the last place to go (as with many women its around the hips). you simply need to keep doing what you are doing, and lower the BF a bit more.

it took me getting to about 9% for it to really go away, and under that to have it be 100% gone.

same thing you are doing now, slightly in the negative with cals and keep at it.

great job so far!

For the record, I'm 32, 6' and currently 183 (goal of 170).

First of all congratulations on your determination. I am also 6' and hovering right under 180 with low teen fat %, and I feel very fit(no love handles or belly) and strong at this weight. Last year training for a marathon I was down to 171-172 and feeling tired and lathergic all the time.
So, depending on your body composition 170 might or might not be your ideal weight, because if you put some muscle with training, you might weigh the same without the love handles. (muscle weighs more than the fat).

Agreed. IMO, the closer you get to your asthetic goal regardless of body weight... it is best to utilize BF% as a better determination of progress. If focusing only on body weight there is a high probability that we'll sacrifice lean muscle in our endeavor to make that morning scale read the magic number.

Skin fold calipers are pretty cheap and can be purchased at most drug stores. Its not 100% accurate but neither is your bathroom scale. It is however a tool that we can use to monitor our progress.

Congrats on changing your life!

I went though what you are going through... I am 5 7 and weighed nearly 200lbs two years ago.  I am currently 170lbs, during the tri season I will be about 162 or so.

X2 on what Bio and Newbz have said.  When I am around 10% I have some noticable belly fat (and that is where I am now) as I progress under that 10% mark the lower abs start to show back up.

SO keep doing what you are doing, you will get there, burning more than you take in is the simple side of it. 

Something that works for me - is to schedule a 6-8 week cycle of plyometrics and demanding/high intensity intervals with 2/3 sessions of high intensity work outs.  When I do them I will mix in say 10 X 3 rowing with a 5 minute break in between but instead of resting during the break do push up, pull ups, planks during the next break vary it by doing box jumps, lunges and jump rope when you're done with the high intensity do an active revoery jog for 10 or 15 minutes, you should be spent and if you've been just endurance training you find you like the change.  For me this shift in training focus is how I really get that last little bit to cooperate and go away -

As a side note I am not a competitive triathlete, I do it for fun and fitness and enjoy the people involved...  

Good luck!

Good job on your progress.  What I've heard time and time again - abs are made in the kitchen.  I like to eat, I like to drink - this is why I'll never have a 6 pack - but obviously, I'm ok with that.

I'm 31lbs down now, and currently 6' and 170lbs, aged 39. I have almost lost the love handles, but with a compression t-shirt on they are still visible a little... After sorting my diet and getting my training properly on track again, its been the addition of some weight training, and specifically frequent kettlebell sessions, that has helped me put on some upper body muscle and lose a little more off the middle. I still need a couple more months I suspect before I'll get my BF% down far enough for them to disappear properly. Whats frustrating is that my waist measurement has shrunk massively, and even jeans I bought recently at my new slim size are now much too big again, but the spare (spacesaver) tyre is still there

I'm new here but from everything I've read you need to get to a BF % to 7% even then genetics, diet and other things come into play.

Even when I was in HS 22 years ago and in wrestling shape I couldn't get a 6 pack. I was 5'5" and about 130.

You cannot spot reduce. Calorie deficit, eat well (lean meats, lots of veggies, not a lot of fat), keep working out, and you'll get there. That's what "they" say anyway. I'm working on it myself

Congrats to all of you above this who have been working hard to reach that kind of goal!  I was over 200 (at 5'9") and made it to 155 in a year (08-09).  My BF is at 13% right now and I have pockets on my lower back, hips and a bit on the front.  It really started to melt away when I was working on the 100 push-up challenge this past fall (I stopped because of a wrist injury- made it to 50).  I've been doing push-ups since then, but not as often.  I also do planks and side planks for 60 seconds each after doing a set of push-ups (usually 30-35) to help with general core work along with random pull-ups (walk by the bar, do 2-5 probably average 2x a day- sometimes more, sometimes none).  There is a ton of good advice above, just keep at it!  Oh, eating wise, I eat very little sugar, lots of veggies, fruit and nuts, a little meat and absolutely no sweets (about 17 months on that!).

well Im actually concerned that I do get my BF where it needs to be, and then I cant tighten the skin around the gut/lower back.

Im seriously concerned about this.

it's never a bad idea too to consult a trainer at the local gym, even if it's just for a few sessions. everyone's build is different, so for some of us that last ten pounds is going to be way more difficult to pull off than others. i'm 6'1" and currently bouncing around at 200-205 with my goal to be 175-180ish. my shoulders are pretty wide for my height so i know that if i go much lower than that i'll just look freakish. one thing i have noticed is that i need to stop depending so much on the scale to tell me how i'm doing since the whole "muscle ways more than fat" thing can be deceiving. i'm already feeling good from dropping the 20 pounds i have already. i feel more lean and spunky, so it's pretty encouraging to already see where i've come from. being 27 and able to kick some high schoolers butts in some of these runs and hiking i do isn't bad motivation either! while i want to look slim, trim and be able to wash clothes on my abs, the accomplishment i get from knowing that i was able to lose the weight will feel pretty good on its own!  

For loosing belly/love handles Cardio exercises is good but is was more stretchable or high intensity exercises any one guide what is
best way to lose love handles fast.

To find out
how to get rid of love handles for men

Edited by RickSpencer 2014-04-23 5:19 AM

Just saw this and decided to respond even though I am not a guy. My husband and I are Beachbody coaches and he has used all of the P90X programs religiously. His favorite is the P90X2 program and he took his BF% from 18 down to 6% using that program and sticking fairly close to the diet plan. He ate high protein but still plenty of carbs. He had ZERO fat on his sides or stomach and had an 8-pack abdominal region. He was actually on the commercial. Sort of funny, but he was successful. We both use affiliatespam every single day and love it. I struggle with that same area you are talking about as a female and it's so frustrating. I can do 12 hours of cardio per week and abs and still nothing seems to hit that area unless I cut out carbs, which is not possible with triathlon training. After my IMFL I'd really like to spend some more time doing a P90X or Crossfit program. I agree that weightlifting and diet are both key. Just so hard to get it all in!

Not what you asked for, but from your pic you look very healthy and trim. Better to not measure yourself by altered pictures of men who didn't eat carbs for two weeks and then dehydrated to get the skin tight.

I'm in exactly the same boat. 6'2", 173lbs, 16% bodyfat, and I just bought a pair of 30" waist pants. Still have the love handles and stomach paunch, but it is slowly disappearing. My high was 296, and it's just about getting down low and losing it. It comes off, slowly, bit by agonizing bit. First I saw a smoother belly, then the first hints at ab lines, and now every pound shows just a tiny bit more definition.

It really sucks though, since the line between adequate fueling and weight loss is razor thin right now, especially training for IMWI. One big meal can set me back a week. I haven't had a milkshake in 9 months, or a regular soda. Salads for lunch (lettuce and protein, yay). I don't so much as cut carbs as just eat to meet the protein goals and the rest falls in to place.

Good luck, and keep the faith. The abs are there, you just have to find them

First, nice job so far.

I started running a few years ago to get my butt off the couch and then a couple of years ago got my bike back out after a lot of years off. I hadn't put on a ton of weight, topping out at about 165lbs, but was in poor condition. Starting to exercise again and then counting calories has meant I've been losing weight.

My problem is in knowing what weight to aim for. My best guess was to look at what higher level endurance athletes weigh at a given height, that at least I thought would give me an idea of at what point to quit worrying quite as much about the scale number and more on other metrics of fitness. Just poking around the internet I found a number of articles along these lines:

http://home.trainingpeaks.com/blog/article/why-is-weight-so-importa...

So for elite endurance athletes, at least from that survey, 2.15 +- 0.130 pounds per inch of height. I'm roughly 66" tall so the center of the distribution would be 142 pounds. By diet and exercise (thanks, Fitbit!) I'm 143.4 pounds this morning. But despite the fact my weight is basically where I want it to be I can still reach down and grab a little belly fat, and if I look down I can give myself I nice second chin. Obviously I'm not an elite athlete, but I think it shows even if you get your weight where you think it should be, things like body composition, hydration, and genetics are probably important. At this point if my goal was 6-pack abs I could probably get there by working towards that as a goal, but I don't know that it would make me feel any better physically (probably not) and I doubt I'd really be fitter because of it.