Feel like you’re seeing some more definition in specific areas…
That you’re even getting leaner and stronger…
But that the fat around your middle just won’t budge no matter what you do?
The sucky truth?
That stubborn belly fat is often the last to go despite it being the first place we want to lose from.
And to finally lose it, we have to be consistent past the point we want to quit.
We have to recognize all the other clues success is leaving us to keep going when it feels like results aren’t building.
That’s why I want to discuss what those clues are so you don’t quit before you finally achieve results and 3 mistakes you may be making to avoid them.
But first, I do want to touch on the 2 reasons why most people don’t lose belly fat….
#1: They quit before results have had time to snowball.
And #2: They get too focused on the scale.
Basically we sabotage our own success with unrealistic expectations and wanting results to happen faster.
And when they don’t happen fast enough, we give up.
Or we then try to do more to out exercise and out diet time, which only backfires.
Trying to rush the process and see the scale change faster leads to us creating unsustainable habits that make us feel like the effort isn’t worth the outcome.
We restrict and starve ourselves. We try to spend more and more time in the gym.
And ultimately we only create habits we not only can’t keep repeating, but that also create hormonal and metabolic changes which fight against our goals even more.
We truly do sabotage ourselves mentally and physically. We are the reason we don’t end up reaching that next level of body recomp.
So instead of trying to do more, instead of trying to work harder, we need to recognize the progress that is happening and embrace that most often we simply need to give our habits more time.
Yup.
We don’t need to make a change or do more. We need to just embrace the journey and keep going.
But this is hard if we are only measuring success in one way.
That’s why I wanted to share these 3 other clues success is leaving you to help you push through that dead zone – that period where it feels like nothing is happening and you want to quit.
These show you that recomp is happening even if we haven’t lost that stubborn belly fat yet and the scale isn’t changing…
CLUE #1: You’re seeing more definition in other areas.
Often the areas we want to lose from most are the last to change.
In the process though, we’re losing fat from areas we don’t care about.
So don’t only focus on the areas you want to change.
Look at your arms, legs, back, chest not just your abs.
Assess the changes you see in these other areas.
Because more definition in these other spots shows you fat is being lost, especially if the scale isn’t changing.
And if you keep going, you’ll finally lose from those stubborn areas.
You even have to recognize that, when you lose from these other areas, areas you care about may look WORSE.
Yup. You heard that right.
You may feel like you look worse in the process of leaning down.
Why?
Because you’ve lost off of areas you don’t care about which can only make the areas you haven’t lost from stand out more to you.
For example, if you’ve lost from your arms and legs while your middle hasn’t changed, you may feel like your belly even looks bigger.
But it’s not.
This is why we can’t only focus on that place we want to see fat loss from.
We need to compare other areas and the changes occurring there.
These all hint that fat loss is happening and will slowly reach the places we want to change if we keep going!
So take progress pictures from multiple angles and measurements of multiple areas of your body to watch trends over time.
CLUE #2: Your clothes fit looser in areas.
Ever feel frustrated the scale isn’t changing only to button those shorts without even realizing how much more easily they buttoned?
Or how they feel that little bit less snug?
That’s recomp happening.
The scale may not change as we’re losing fat and even building muscle.
And so often we can’t see the small changes compounding in the mirror because we look at ourselves every single day.
But overtime, those changes are adding up.
And one day it feels like things just fit differently.
Recognize those changes in how your clothing fits. That is showing you that changes are happening.
Even keep a piece of clothing that’s too tight currently to try on at points and see your progress!
CLUE #3: You’re seeing performance, sleep and health improve.
The more ways we measure success, the more ways we give ourselves to be successful.
Our habit changes for recomp pay off in so many other areas of our life. But too often we gloss over these other changes.
Don’t.
They show that your habits are optimizing how your body functions. And the better your body runs, the healthier your metabolism, the more easily recomp will happen.
So track your performance in the gym.
Watch for changes in your sleep.
Monitor those health markers.
Improvements in these other areas show you that your healthy habit changes are paying off so keep going!
Use them to help you embrace the process and see the momentum building.
Now that you know what clues to watch for, what mistakes might you be making that aren’t allowing true recomp to happen so you can lose that stubborn belly fat?
MISTAKE #1: Only focusing on calories.
Often we focus on eating less when we want to lose weight.
But this is why we lose weight yet never feel like we lose the stubborn belly fat.
It’s also why we end up feeling like we have to starve ourselves to see progress only to end up regaining the weight months later.
It’s why we can feel like our metabolism has slowed down as we’ve gotten older.
So stop focusing just on calories and start to track macros.
Macros matter most.
How we adjust the portions of protein, carbs and fats we consume helps us control more for losing fat while retaining and even building lean muscle.
Adjusting our macros help us truly fuel for metabolic health and to feel and perform our best.
Tracking can also allow us to find our balance so we don’t feel like we’re constantly starving, low energy and deprived of all of the foods we love.
Remember how I mentioned the effort doesn’t feel worth the outcome so we quit?
By tracking macros you can strike your balance and truly understand the impact your food has on your results to adjust and adapt as you progress toward your goals and your lifestyle changes.
This allows us to also find a balance that is sustainable and reduce the effort at points to meet us where we are at.
We aren’t just feeling constantly restricted like foods have to be off limits, making it easier for us to want to keep going!
MISTAKE #2: Focusing on “hard” over being intentional.
Working harder feels good to some extent. It makes us feel like we’re making progress. Like we’re more in control.
But hard work only pays off if it is done with purpose. If every ounce of effort is intentional and focused on our goals.
Yet so often we’re simply working hard and doing more without everything we’re doing having a clear intention to it.
This sabotages us, making us feel like the effort isn’t worth it. Like we don’t have the willpower or self control.
We burn ourselves out with habits we can’t maintain long-term.
And if you want to lose that stubborn belly fat, you’ve got to create habits you can do consistently for…well…ever.
This is a forever process.
That’s why at times less is more.
Yet so often we struggle to back off.
We even celebrate when we’re feeling in pain – eating less, eating cleaner, training longer and harder – while ultimately giving up because we burn out.
STOP the no pain no gain attitude.
Embrace small changes that allow you to keep going. Don’t make yourself hit that wall and want to quit.
Realize that your desire to do more is your desire to try to work time. Which simply won’t happen.
So instead realize that you only want to include things that have a specific purpose. Design everything with intention and focus on your goals.
Don’t include something just because it feels hard or because you want to try to do more and see results faster.
MISTAKE #3: Not having a clear workout progression.
No you can’t out exercise your diet. And trying to will sabotage your success.
But how we design our workouts has a huge impact on the muscle we build and how effectively we lose fat.
Our training also impacts how we need to fuel. And only when systems are dialed in together can we see the best results possible.
Too often we just randomly string together moves to make ourselves feel like we worked hard and this leaves us just feeling sore or tired – not actually moving forward building that lean muscle.
Honestly it can even make our hard work be working against us so that we just burn out.
So create a clear workout plan and schedule.
And then repeat that weekly schedule for 3-6 weeks.
While I know we want to do fun and new things, even things we like, we need that clear weekly schedule we repeat to see progression build and force our muscles to adapt and grow stronger.
Include diversity in your movements, intensity and type of training over the course of the week so you aren’t bored.
But then repeat those same workouts while trying to progress moves week over week in some way.
Add weights. Slow down tempo. Do a harder variation. Push through another rep.
But push yourself to see progress.
Remember everything should have purpose and what gets measured gets managed.
A plan gives us a roadmap to follow and adjust off of if progress isn’t happening.
So remember to watch for the clues success is giving you and give yourself a clear plan to follow so you can be consistent and adjust when you want to quit because results aren’t happening fast enough.
And one last warning and reminder…results toward the exact goal we want will never happen fast enough.
It’s why it is so key we measure progress in multiple ways and have a clear plan in place that we can accurately measure and adjust off of!
Dial in your diet and workouts to work together with a custom plan and support to stay the course through the ups and downs…
