"pregnant belly" syndrome

[1ntense]

Well, Ive been bulking/maintaining for years (never done a cut) and have developed a pregnant belly look which never seems to really go away, even if I get leaner.

My guess is that it its visceral fat but Im really not sure, Im not even sure it would go away if I got down to 7% bf.

Has anyone else got this problem? Can anyone shed any light on how best to tackle it?

 

[Cito33189]

Why do you want to permanently bulk? Not to be a jerk but it just sounds like your one of those delusional guys who thinks there big, but really is just fat and bloated.

You probably have a big gut due to fat and over eating.

Go on your first diet and get shredded with abs and then see how your gut looks

 

[1ntense]

No offence taken pal.

I don't want to permanently bulk, I suppose Ive just been overly looking to add weight and had a weight in mind before I wanted to cut. Thought process was, I didn't want to cut and look like a weed lol, I also hate cardio so that doesn't help either lol.

It just seems that there isn't that much fat on my stomach yet it still sticks out like Im pregnant lol

 

[graybass]

No guess work, no questions! Just get under 10% BF and you will lose the gut. I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but how can you be on a bodybuilding forum and not have done even one diet? Especially if you train like one of us. Precontest diet no matter how big or small you are. Girls don't care how much you can bench. Tons of info on here how to.

 

[0893]

Get leaner my man, you will look much better and that "pregnant" look will go away

Drop carbs and add 30 min cardio daily

 

[Ashop]

Well, Ive been bulking/maintaining for years (never done a cut) and have developed a pregnant belly look which never seems to really go away, even if I get leaner.

My guess is that it its visceral fat but Im really not sure, Im not even sure it would go away if I got down to 7% bf.

Has anyone else got this problem? Can anyone shed any light on how best to tackle it?

If you dieted down right you would probably be surprised how you could get that gut in check. Try to avoid heavy ab movements too.

 

[Vol. 4]

I have this problem also.
Last time I measured my bf% it was 8-9% yet that lower belly area just sticks out like a half balloon.
There's not much fat there and doesn't feel bloated at all.
I definitely don't think I'm truly at 8-9% since I'm still holding fat around my waist but the way this belly looks now I'm not too pleased about it cause I'm not fat by any means.
Edit : Maybe I should avoid lower ab exercises since I've been doing those mostly thinking I'll get my abdominal area looking great that way .

 

[little slice]

it's because you're fat

 

[1ntense]

Well I had better get my fat ass lean then. Im a true ectomorph so it shouldn't be too hard.

Ive been doing 30 mins steady state cardio @ 120-130 bpm after training 3-4 times per week and have tightened up my diet, Im also going to add CJC with DAC @ 4mg per week.

Will be great to see whats actually under this layer of lard

 

[sammy555]

You've probably developed a good bit of insulin resistance over time. Just a good clean diet, small calorie deficit, cardio and give it time. I promise you it will go in time as your body resensitises to insulin. Your just holding a shit ton of viscal fat. If i eat shit and over bulk I stay lean and very vascular every where including back and traps but just get a big stomach and lucre handles. My visceral fat drops talk fat though as my indulge sensitivity stays good even on abusive diets but not every one is so lucky. Calipers will probably put me 8% when im 15 plus as they can't measure the hidden stuff

 

[muscle96ss]

Some people have their gut stick out more than others and look pregnant simply based on the curve of their lumbar spine and the tilt of their pelvis. Some of that is genetic and some of that can be tightened up with exercise.

 

[NY Muscle]

As others said it's visceral fat and a bitch to reduce. Its the shit around your organs. Been my nemesis since I was a kid.

I've gotten so lean recently that I've gotten it down a ton since last year but still more to go. Low carbs and fasted AM cardio work wonders. Also the longer you go without eating the night before the better it will be. Ie; nothing after 6pm.

Getting smaller every day even if by only a tiny bit a day will add up over time. You just have to have the mental fortitude to stick it out. Could take a year to wipe it out on a strict diet. I've been dieting essentially since my shoulder surgery one year ago. Small breaks here and there.

Slow and steady wins the race with visceral fat.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk 2

 

[alfresco]

my opinion

I have no clue what you are ‘taking’, have taken; been eating, are eating but you are totally f%&*ked
if you keep doing what you have been doing. (Your training routing is irrelevant.)

To start . . . cut everything in half; everything. That means drugs, food and training. Please report back
when you get your ass in shape. It won’t take long of you can participate . . . wrap your brain around
this concept.

You can hire somebody, listen to ‘everybody’ (little good advice) . . . but eventually it will come down to
simplicity . . . it always does. To think otherwise or do otherwise is foolish.

There are no secret drugs, routines, protocols, formulas, routines for your transformation. The single
most important ingredient here is your brain. That is the voice you hear . . . not the voice you listen to.

Post a foto. It will do tons for your motivation / accountability. You can do this. I know you can. Quit
procastinating (2009?)

Posted from my PC.

 

[sammy555]

As others said it's visceral fat and a bitch to reduce. Its the shit around your organs. Been my nemesis since I was a kid.

I've gotten so lean recently that I've gotten it down a ton since last year but still more to go. Low carbs and fasted AM cardio work wonders. Also the longer you go without eating the night before the better it will be. Ie; nothing after 6pm.

Getting smaller every day even if by only a tiny bit a day will add up over time. You just have to have the mental fortitude to stick it out. Could take a year to wipe it out on a strict diet. I've been dieting essentially since my shoulder surgery one year ago. Small breaks here and there.

Slow and steady wins the race with visceral fat.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk 2

You know it's weird but it's the first fat I lose when i diet. I can lose 20lbs and look no different exept my stomach has gone real flat. T shirts sit better by the day. For me very high carb diets obliterate viscal fat daily. Takes me about 5 weeks to obliterate it then the lower belly and love handles can be targeted.

 

[NY Muscle]

You know it's weird but it's the first fat I lose when i diet. I can lose 20lbs and look no different exept my stomach has gone real flat. T shirts sit better by the day. For me very high carb diets obliterate viscal fat daily. Takes me about 5 weeks to obliterate it then the lower belly and love handles can be targeted.

Thats nuts. Especially since everything points to lower carbs helping reduce visceral fat. Your metabolism is unique for sure.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk 2

 

[Jizzmo]

Some people have their gut stick out more than others and look pregnant simply based on the curve of their lumbar spine and the tilt of their pelvis. Some of that is genetic and some of that can be tightened up with exercise.

this
if its only the really lower belly area then its most likely lordosis...

theres a huge debate on how to fix this though,
some say stretch hip flexors, some say stretch hamstrings, some say strengthen lower back etc
all pretty contradictory

 

[1ntense]

You've probably developed a good bit of insulin resistance over time. Just a good clean diet, small calorie deficit, cardio and give it time. I promise you it will go in time as your body resensitises to insulin. Your just holding a shit ton of viscal fat. If i eat shit and over bulk I stay lean and very vascular every where including back and traps but just get a big stomach and lucre handles. My visceral fat drops talk fat though as my indulge sensitivity stays good even on abusive diets but not every one is so lucky. Calipers will probably put me 8% when im 15 plus as they can't measure the hidden stuff

Tbh I've heard insulin sensitivity mentioned a lot but have never understood what it meant, I suppose I had better get reading up on it.

I have no clue what you are ‘taking’, have taken; been eating, are eating but you are totally f%&*ked
if you keep doing what you have been doing. (Your training routing is irrelevant.)

To start . . . cut everything in half; everything. That means drugs, food and training. Please report back
when you get your ass in shape. It won’t take long of you can participate . . . wrap your brain around
this concept.

You can hire somebody, listen to ‘everybody’ (little good advice) . . . but eventually it will come down to
simplicity . . . it always does. To think otherwise or do otherwise is foolish.

There are no secret drugs, routines, protocols, formulas, routines for your transformation. The single
most important ingredient here is your brain. That is the voice you hear . . . not the voice you listen to.

Post a foto. It will do tons for your motivation / accountability. You can do this. I know you can. Quit
procastinating (2009?)

Posted from my PC.

Thanks for the encouragement bro. I know I can do it as well, tbh its something that Ive wanted to prove to myself that I could do (cut to a reasonable level circa 8-10%) for a long time. I think that time has now come.

Regarding cutting everything in half, Im not sure thats the answer as I currently train 3-4 times per week, I have added a bit of extra volume lately as have started training at the gym more than at home so am like a kid in a sweetie/candy shop haha. Gear wise, Ive always been pretty conservative and am currently running 500mg Sust and have just upped my tren ace from 175mg per week to 210mg so am kinda happy with what Im doing gear wise. Food, Im just going to cut out the crap and try and use a gradual approach to keep the fat loss coming, i.e. cut carbs and calories slowly. Im generally eating very clean atm anyway so just cutting out the burgers, soda and odd bits of junk should bring things along nicely to start with. Im purposely leaving things that can be tidied up though such as options like changing up cooking steaks, chicken in canola oil instead of grass fed butter, removing the sugar from my coffees etc so I can keep adjusting instead of going in too hard and having nothing to remove if that makes sense.

 

[graybass]

You go Bro! You can do this. I was a fat and lazy power lifter till I hurt my shoulder bad. I'm also a personal trainer for the last 20 years but got lazy. My attitude was "Hey I'm a teacher now" Till I started dating my beautiful girlfriend who competes in figure. I went totally the other way. Went on a professional precontest diet and lost 50lbs. I didn't think I needed to lose that much but I just kept going till I had abs LOL. Looking back I was a fat fuck!
You can do this.

 

[Massive G]

Huge debate on this of course but as you get older you put on fat primarily as visceral.
My gut was always bloated and distended when bulking, but it got worse as I got older.

The good news is that if and when you diet, it does go down even at an older age.

 

[sammy555]

Thats nuts. Especially since everything points to lower carbs helping reduce visceral fat. Your metabolism is unique for sure.

Sent from my SM-N900V using Tapatalk 2

I know. I used to be very big on the whole keeping insulin quite thing as it made a lot of sense to me but in practice the oposite was true for me. I'm a big beliver in the old saying fat burns in the flame of carbohydrate. It's a vegan saying I think. I noticed a long time ago that if im bulking and add about 100g of carbohydrate I tend to lean out. I lean up on insulin too which is odd. Your advice will be correct for a lot of people though, especially if Insulin resistance is the problem. In eating 700 carbs on traing days and 500 plus rest days and won't budge above 225lb and no bloat in face at all so it's all to do with how your body partitions them. My morning blouse glucose is about 3.2 which is about 60 the way you guys measure it I think.