Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I'm around 10% body fat, and trying to continue leaning out, but I still have a bit of a spare tire (maybe a bike tire) on my stomach going about 2-3 inches below my navel. Some days, my skin will be tight to my muscles and the fat will feel "solid;" on others, it's squishier and I can pull the skin out a couple inches. The changes happen too fast to be fat gain/loss, and I'm not sure what else to call it.

I usually notice these changes (mostly from "solid" to "flabby") when I consume a lot of calories, or a good amount of high-GI carbs (raisins, cranberries). Has anyone else experienced something like this, or seen anything addressing it? Is the change dietary? Am I simply imagining it?

flag	asked Apr 17 2012 at 0:29 Corbab 2,851●3●15

greymouser · Accepted Answer · 2012-04-17 14:13:19Z UTC

Good rule for leaning out: if you can pinch more than what you can pinch on the back of your hand, then it's subcutaneous fat.

If you are ~10% BF, you unfortunately might have a little more to go. Some men seem to be super-lean at 10%, other's not until 8% or so.

My vote is that it's not water retention if you can pinch any substantial thickness of skin there -- beyond 3-4 millimeters, then it's probably subcutaneous fat.

trjones · Answer 2 · 2012-04-17 00:51:59Z UTC

1

Could be water retention?

answered Apr 17 2012 at 0:51

trjones
5,149●5●23

	Highly doubtful. I drink at least 4 liters of water a day, finishing a liter inside of 10 minutes (gotta love nalgenes!), and I don't notice this in any relation to that. I've also played around with salt intake, and it doesn't seem to be affected by that either. – Corbab Apr 17 2012 at 1:10
	Just an aside, maybe this will cause somebody to think of something. Every gram of glycogen gets stored with 2-4 grams of water (depends on who you read). So your high gi foods could cause some water retention that way but I don't see how that would effect your spare tire. – Valai Apr 17 2012 at 1:26
	Nalgene? Yuck! Please switch to glass, or stainless steel. If you want a free glass bottle, buy a 750ml S. Pellegrino, drink it, wash it out and refill it. – raydawg Apr 17 2012 at 10:31
	Water retention can also be affected by protein consumed, not just salt and fluid volume. – JeJ Apr 17 2012 at 23:43

Susan · Answer 3 · 2012-04-17 01:22:07Z UTC

I'm with trjones and say water retention. For me higher calorie/carb/salt/whatever = water retention = more flab. And I almost always gain a couple pounds (or more) the next day and my uniform is a lot tighter. In order to keep myself sane and prove to myself its just water, I do the wedding ring test - my wedding rings are always harder to take off/put back on after one of those days. If it bothers you, drop the calories/carbs and you'll be good in a day or two. If not, I wouldn't let it bug you. At 10% you're doing great!

Subcutaneous fat consistency and diet?

3 Answers