Fat loss

[dancing1234]

What’s the fastest way to lose ‘pinch an inch’ around the mid section? I’m a pre professional dancer and therefore am very active, I also eat very healthily/ normal but wondered if there is any specific food macro that causes extra weight store and any specific diet to lose this extra fat fast!! I am needing clear abs however this fat layer is covering atm! Any help please!!

[BridgeGirl Administrator 2 stone]

If you are eating healthily and very active (which we know from your previous posts you are) then you will have a healthy physique. Whether that is the physique that's required for a professional dancer is another matter.

I'm looking at some of the things you've written previously

I am 17 years of age, and have seem to of stopped growing. I dance everyday straight after eating lunch at school, at school in lesson and also twice in the week after school and all day Saturday. I do ISTD exam board i also am pretty active and do over 10000 steps a day! Yes I usually complain about feeling exhausted during school to the point I can’t walk home some days because so tired and usually end up dozing off in lessons!

And

Once I’ve eaten things I feel bad for eating I have the desperation to go running etc? Is this normal for people desperate to look thinner?

I understand that you want to be a certain shape in order to be a professional dancer but that doesn't mean it will be a healthy shape. At your age, you're laying down the foundations for your future health. I know that, for you, dancing is more important but I think (hope) that members of this forum won't encourage you down that path

[FairyTales]

If you know about Surya Namaskar - Yoga, that will help you with inch loss. I tried that and I got results. Google Surya Namaskar to know more about it.

[S11m]

Do you have "pinch an inch" or "pinch a mm"?

I am 97kg, and my supra-iliac fat calliper measurement in a cm!

[TheAwfulToad Visitor]

Getting visible abs is very hard indeed, especially for women. It helps that you are 17, but realistically it's something most people can't achieve without doing fundamentally unhealthy things.

As BridgeGirl said, it would be best to focus on your general health and good sports nutrition. From her quote, you are clearly not eating enough, or not eating the right things (there is a lot of misinformed folklore about what's "healthy" and what isn't). If you do this, your body will discard a lot of excess fat, and you will probably lose that "inch", but it won't necessarily go down to the low level you're expecting.

What are you eating exactly? Can you give an example of a typical day?

[dancing1234 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Yes of course, so yesterday for example I was dancing 9-5 with four 1.5 hour classes, and I ate a slice of toast with banana, then lunch salad with quorn sausage, apple, nuts and raisins, then dinner pasta, tomatoes, celery, turkey mince, and a pear.

[TheAwfulToad Visitor in reply to dancing1234]

wow ... frankly, I'd be collapsed in a heap on the floor with that sort of punishing schedule

Your meals are far too small to support your activity level. I'm guessing you either feel permanently hungry, or tired to the bone with a dull ache in your stomach. Your body is probably in deep energy-conservation mode. You also have a very high proportion of carbs in your diet and almost no fat, hence the fat around your middle (you've probably heard the term "wheat belly" or "rice belly").

Given your age and your activity level, you should be aiming for at least 1g/kg protein to facilitate muscle repair - that is, if you weigh 50kg, you need 50g protein per day, minimum. Practically, that means you need a serving of meat, eggs or dairy at every meal. You don't need to gorge on steaks and five-egg omelettes like a bodybuilder - let your appetite guide you. But do include quality protein wherever possible. As a rough guide, 100g of meat, eggs or dairy translates to 20-25g protein.

Since dancing is basically endurance cardio, you should be fuelling it primarily from dietary fat (which represents "slow burn" energy), not carbs. As a bonus, doing this will reduce your bodyfat level, help you build muscle, and improve your general mood. You don't need to exclude carbs entirely, but you do need to cut back on them very sharply.

Of course you'll want to modify this for your own tastes, but I'd go with something along these lines:

- Breakfast: three eggs, scrambled, with butter and cream, on half a slice of toast (bake your own bread if you have the time and the inclination - shop-bought bread is garbage). Small serving of proper Greek yoghurt (not the low-fat type) with a dash of honey, muesli, and a few berries (you can buy cheap bags of mixed berries, frozen).

- Lunch: stick with something light if you will continue to dance afterwards. The salad sounds perfect, but I'd add something like a roast chicken portion (skin-on), a proper sausage, a scotch egg (see Lytham 's Larder!), or a grilled meat skewer. Use an oil-based dressing, eg., Ranch, mayonnaise, or balsamic vinaigrette. You will need to make your own dressing. All the shop-bought versions these days are low fat (ie., high in sugar and chemicals).

- Dinner: I'm assuming there will be no more workouts after dinner, so make it a big one. Eat until you are very, very full, but eat only non-starchy vegetables and animal products. Use some sort of fat for cooking - if you have a fatty cut of meat, that will be adequate; otherwise use butter, coconut oil, or olive oil. No rice, pasta, bread or the like. It sounds counterintuitive, but eating to satiety is critical for fat loss. The reason is fairly simple: bodyfat exists as energy backup, and if your body is receiving regular doses of quality energy, matching your appetite, it will discard that backup because it has no use for it.

Oh, and go easy on the fruit while you're aiming for bodyfat reduction. Different people have radically different reactions to fruit, but it's quite common for even "natural" fructose to put the brakes on fat loss.

[dancing1234 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Thank you so so much, this has opened up that boundary of not knowing how to change things!! Makes so much sense, so thank you for helping me out

[TheAwfulToad Visitor in reply to dancing1234]

Good luck - I think you'll find that eating like this takes a lot of stress off your shoulders, too. You will lose fat effortlessly without worrying about "eating too much". Let us know how you get on!

Since you've been eating a very high carb diet until now, you might feel a bit ... weird around day 3. Don't panic. It's just your body adjusting to a radically different way of eating. Make sure you're getting enough salt in your food (under no circumstances attempt to do a 'low salt' diet) and it'll sort itself out in a few days.

[Lytham 3 stone in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Here's the link to Lythams Larder containing the most fabulous scotch egg ! x

healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh...

[Beatingthis in reply to Lytham]

Just one other thing i was exercising daily sometimes twice a day i also reduced my exercise regime and still lost weight i know it is hard to believe because my mind has always to exercise and more was good for you but not in my case. Moderation with everything.

[Lytham 3 stone in reply to Beatingthis]

Moderation is key! x

[Beatingthis in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Hello awfulToad i am in total agreement with you about going easy on the fruit the pounds dropped off me did not realise at the time why then the only reason i could think of i ate less fruit. You learn something new all the time.

[Eleanorba Maintainer]

Hi there, I very much agree with what's being said by others here. If dance culture is making you feel desperate to be thinner, then it's the culture that needs to change, not you. Could you seek some support to help you feel that less depends on looking thin? The charity Beat can be really helpful with body image issues. Their Youth line is 0808 801 0711 and their Student line is 0808 801 0811.

I would give one bit of advice, though, which is to change one of your workouts/training sessions to Pilates. The guy who invented it was a dancer who developed it to help with dance injuries. It is all about core strength. See if you can find a teacher who runs a small class, you need someone who can give everyone in the class attention. The beginners classes are pretty boring btw - as you're fit already you'll be thinking 'how is this doing anything?' But if you persist with it I think you'll see results and it should help you stay strong and help prevent injury.

Note that I'm saying /replace/ one of your training sessions here, not add another one!!

I wish you all the very best for your health and happiness.

[luz58]

Be careful with anorexia, maybe you have an eating disorder, you should go to a psychologist to try this.

[S11m]

Hi, dancing1234 ...

You are concerned about muscle definition, strength and body-fat percentage rather than weight?

If you are a ballerina, and you are expecting a ballerino to lift you, weight is significant - if not it is not.

Remember that you need energy to dance.

[JazahHealth]

Hi, I found this "Carb-Pairing trick" to reduce the weight interesting.

“Carb-Pairing” Trick Melted Away 22lbs in women in Just 13 Days

If you want to find out more, please follow this link and stay fit.

bit.ly/loweryourweight