I have been working out for a couple of months now. I am the weight I want to be, and I have the muscle I like. But... I cannot seem to remove the love handles, and I really don't want to lose any more weight.

My weight varies a lot between 159-162, which I think is a pretty ideal weight. But, I'm still really disappointed with my lovehandles! I like the rest of my body, except this one part, and they aren't going away at all.

Any tips?

liposuction is the solution!!
Believe me

Hi Stephen,

Sadly, with the exception of Gustavo's proposal, there's no way to spot reduce. If losing even more weight isn't appropriate, what you can do is firm up your abdominals and obliques through targeted core stability training.

Building up a stable core through exercise and weight training can tighten up those muscles, help burn calories, improve your posture, aid you in carrying your weight more easily, and provide a strong foundation for additional exercise training.

Ron

Sorry, man. You're not going to lose the love handles without losing weight. Imagine how much fat is there, and that's how much of pure fat you would have to lose. I'm in the same boat. It is very frustrating.

Up the cardio, find a "cutting" diet, and keep working. Tighten the muscles in the abdomen so when you do lose the fat the 6 pack is there.

Not much else you can do, short of surgery.

If you can cut the fat and gain weight in muscle your weight won't technically change, but hard to do both at the same time. Eat cean workout hard.

Yep, it's the sad truth - the place you want to lose fat the most is the last place it comes off

I agree with everything you've said. Is it normal for a guy to be below 160? I'm thinking of that number as almost underweight. I'm not sure how much more I can lose and stay at a healthy weight level.

There's no simple yes/no answer to that question. It depends on your height, muscle mass, etc. When I was at my most "fit" (i.e. a long-distance cyclist), I weighed 127 pounds and still had a little bit of a belly. Even Lance Armstrong, at 5'11", weighed only 158 during his peak racing years.

Don't worry about the number on the sclae. Whatever your "ideal" weight may be, is completely subjective and is only YOUR ideal weight.

If your bF% is good, youlike the results, don't worry about the lbs.

Is there any easy way to work out body fat percentage? i think mine would be high although i am within the ideal weight range

being a pear shaped girl I am thinking about liposuction on my thighs as it is soooo stubborn and doesn't want to go away!

Lou

I agree with Nathan -- as you near your fitness target, weight and BMI are almost meaningless. Body fat should be your true measure.

Lou, you should try the U.S. Army's body fat measurement technique. It's surprisingly accurate, and all you need is a tape measure and the lookup tables.

I use 3-point fat caliper measurements (courtesy of my gym) and a Tanita IronMan scale that does bio-impedance measurements (also available in the Traineo store). The Tanita measurements can vary wildly during the day, so it's a bit of an art to get an accurate reading -- but I like it anyway because I'm lazy.

I just got a cheap ($12) Myotape that makes it ridiculously easy to take accurate body measurements by myself, so I may change my mind after a few days and start swearing by the U.S. Army method.

Regarding liposuction I'm in the same boat.

Fat cells are not distributed evenly on your body -- a sad fact of genetics. If you have 100 times more fat cells in your abdomen and lower back as compared to your chest and arms, then gaining fat will be 100 times more noticeable around your abdomen. There are reportedly slight gender and ethnic differences in how fat is gained/lost depending on its general classification: visceral, subcutaneous, and cellulite (fat extending into the epidermis, creating a lumpy appearance). This is a pretty good run down on how people's fat responds to exercise and diet.

The bottom line is that once you get closer to your target you really have two choices: be happy with the type of body you have, or go for liposuction. I'm struggling with this decision myself, though I'm trying to convince myself to delay going for liposuction until I've at least gone another round with changing my diet.

Rincewind - that US Army link is very informative, thank you!

LOU,
I use the body fat calculator
http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/bfb

It will give you a good estimate of body fat, but due to human error on measuring it won't be a good as a Hydrostatic Body Fat testing.

ok im in college and as my new years resolution i want to drop some poundage soooo i signed uo for a life wellness class mostly because i need the credits but any who they have a body fat chart on the wall and based on your height and weight i found out that i have 25% body fat because im 5' 7" and 158 pounds i need to drop 22 pounds to be in a normal b/w range. thought that might be helpful. if any one just happens to be the same amount.

oh yea by the way i could really use some motivators im not doing so good staying away from the fast food. and all that other nonsense.

Hi Heather,
breaking the fast food trend can be difficult for 2 main factors, the salty taste and the convenience.
You will need to find healthier choices that appeal to you and stock them, if you like to cook prepare your lunches snacks in advanced so they are readily available.
I grill my chicken once a week and keep cans of tuna and lots of salad greens and tomotoes and whole wheat bread so i always have quick foods available.
Also found that freshly made guacamole is a great mayonaise substitute!

@heather

As an aside, determining body fat is considerably more complicated than just taking some ratio of your height and weight, so I'd ignore that chart on the wall entirely. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that the chart is actually showing Body Mass Index (BMI) and not body fat. BMI has been quite widely discredited as being incomplete because it doesn't take into consideration how much muscle mass you have. If you're really interested in getting your body fat, the best way is to find a gym or health center that can measure it for you.