HELPPPPP!!! Please please please please

Ok!  So on the start of my weight loss journey I weighed in around 224.  I am now currently 196-197.  I went from a size 18 (tight) to a now 14 (kinda tight).  OK.. this is the tricky part.  I've lost almost 30lbs.. and my stomach hasn't seem to shrunk!!  MY jeans fit great in the legs and bum, but around the stomach-ugh!  I could swear my stomach is still a size 18, but the rest is a 14.  I've noticed TONS of weight loss in my legs and face.. My arms are still big, but much more muscle.  my stomach is the same!!  HOW?!  30lbs gone and no change there?!  I go to the gym pretty often.  I do 20-25 minutes of cardio and the same in weights.  I don't know if I'm building muscle underneath the fat and it's just pushing it out or what.  I think that's what is happening, because my chest went up a size during my weight loss, and I'm pretty sure its from weight lifting.  Should I stop using the ab weight machines and focus more on cardio??  I just need help!  Please!

Firstly, congratulations on the loss.  Good going.

We all lose weight in different places at different rates.  I have personally lost almost 60 pounds (I started a lot higher than you) and only lost about 1 1/2 jeans size.  But, my thighs are smaller, my arms are smaller, and I have less of a double chin.  Only lost about 2 inches on my hips and waist.  And, I feel a million times better.  My theory is last on, first off -- my belly has been there for a long time, and will probably be there until I am pretty close to goal.

I think if you stay focused on eating healthy foods in appropriate quantities and getting enough exercise your body will gradually become the best it can be.  You will be healthy, and maybe you can learn to love the shape you have rather than some media-driven image of perfection.

You're right, I do feel a LOT better about myself.. I just feel like I'm becoming an awkward shape, rather than nice and curvy like I've always been.  I mean I was overweight before, but I was proportionate...now I feel like a lolly pop!

well i'm rly not an expert or anything :S ...

but i feel like my stomach's always rly big or bloated when i go through phases when i eat too much sugar or too much carbs or simply just too much food at one point. like say i eat a lot at night and very little during the day... then my stomach gets bigger

nuts (especially almonds) help shrink stomach fat i read somewhere :)

hope that helps :)

First of all congratulations on loosing 30 pounds.  That is an amazing accomplishment and should be celebrated. 

I started out at 221.8 and have lost 28 pounds as of this morning.  I have the exact same issue.  I am also in 14's and still have the stomach thing but I realized reading your post that if my stomach didn't get smaller (even a tiny bit) there is NO WAY I could get into a 14.  You probably don't realize it because you are always looking down on your stomach and it is the one thing that you really see the most and it seems like to you that you haven't lost there but you have I am sure.  It is just a weired perception that most people have of their bodies and truthfully, the stomach is always the very last place you are going to see the biggest loss.  The muscles in the stomach have stretched the most with weight gain and they are going to be the last to shrink unfortunately but don't worry you are loosing from there and you will start to notice very soon when your 14's are getting to big and then you have to move down a couple more sizes.  Keep up the good work and you will get to your goal before you know it.

I'm pretty much the same stats as you, 194.8 as of this morning yay. 
And if I didn't take my measurements I wouldn't believe that I had lost weight in my stomach either, but I have.  I always have had a chunky tummy.  You could start taking your measurements, then you would have proof for yourself down the road of how many inches you have lost.  I helps to keep me upbeat about my progress.

Me too! I gained a lot in my stomach..and it is so hard to lose it.  I think I lose weight the same way.. I bet you have lost some in your tummy.. I wish it too was the first to go..  I do a lot of cardio and palates.. my legs are feeling the effect and my face too.  I need to research... exercises to strengthen my core.. just not quite ready for sit ups.. eek!!! lol

Congrats on your accomplishment! That is awesome! a true inspiration!

You cannot spot-reduce or have any influence over where in your body you lose fat from, unfortunately. It just doesn't work that way - your body chooses where the fat is going to come off from first.

Just keep going with the fitness and healthy eating and as you lose more weight you will probably start to see greater loss from your stomach. It does even out in the end but like I said, you can't choose where to lose the fat from! Disappointing I know... but now you know that, you can stop worrying about it and enjoy your hot new body as it is.

Also - DON'T STOP THE WEIGHTS! Lifting weights is fantastic during weight loss because it means you maintain your muscles and lose fat (good) instead of losing muscle (bad). You may have some newbie gains but it is hard to gain much muscle at all on a deficit. It also means that when you get to your desired weight you will have a higher metabolism, be able to consume more calories daily and have a much leaner appearance than someone who doesn't lift weights. Your mix of weights and cardio is the right approach.

It's easy for me to say, but unless you are planning on stopping your weight loss where you are now, don't worry about it.  The weight went on where your body's genes decided it will go and it will came off the same way...wherever your genes decide it comes off.  You can't change it, you can't spot reduce so why worry about it?  Stick to your routine, it's working like a charm (congratulations!) and you'll get to where you want to go and look even more fabulous than you do now!!!

For your workout, make sure you do the cardio at the end of the session or on separate days from your weight lifting.  Also, ab work, while toning or building abs is no different than any other muscle.  If you think you're going to get rock hard abs by doing 100 crunches on an ab roller, think again.  Would you get rock hard biceps by lifting a weight you can lift 100 times without stopping?  No.  Work your abs like any other muscle, sets of 5-10 depending on your training style work best for all muscles, for most people.

Eating right is what determines whether you have a flat stomach or not! We can excercise all we want, but if we don't eat healthy foods it's alot more frustrating.  It's taken me nearly 30 years to figure this out.

Don't bother with fad diets because when you go ON a diet you have to come OFF, and all the hard work you put in disappears.  It's not rocket science so don't despair.  If it's natural and healthy, eat it. Processed and unhealthy, don't bother! Just stay within your calorie requirement.  But it's important to allow your self the things you love.  Have you ever tried a cheat day once a week?

I tend to lose weight from the edges in.  So it's starting to get there.  Keep up the good work.  It will get there.

Great job and congrats on the loss!

I agree with others: we can't choose from where we lose weight and you can't spot reduce (but how I wish!).

To tone abs, for most people it requires a combo of cardio and weighted ab moves. It typically does the trick. Also keep in mind that some of this may not be fat, but excess skin---I have some of this in the lower abdomen, and it's just par for the course from when I was heavier. I would try to get in 350 minutes of cardio, lots of water, and start adding resistance to my ab training. See if you notice a difference after 2 weeks.

Also, beware of foods that can bloat you and make you "feel" like your stomach is bigger. Gum also causes a lot of excess air in the tummy.

Hope that helps.

Im kind of in the same situation, I started at 242 (July) and now im down to 224, my stomach is still bloaty and huge (keep in mind I have 3 children) but people say they can see the weight loss, I don't I see it a bit in my arms the forearm part and the wrists but not closer to the shoulder, and I see it a little in my face but not a whole lot. I was thinking about a colon cleanse! maybe a 30 min session, so I emailed my Dr and he said "Absolutely NOT" that method hasn't been proven safe nor effective! so I dont know! all I know is it's frustrating im exercising everyday, and I try to eat right, and in most the part I do, with an occasional cheat here or there.