Body Fat Gain (Abdomen)

Bigger Stronger Leaner
1

Haven’t posted for a while, and in that time I’ve managed to misplace my passwords, so I’ve had to create a new account.

I started lifting weighing about 131lbs, I am now 154lbs. I’m following ‘stronglifts 5x5’ program. My lifts are, squat(atg) 100kg, deadlift single (with chalk) 140kg, deadlift (with straps) 160kg, overhead press 47.5kg, barbell row 80kg, bench-my bench is everywhere I’ve been up to 80kg for a couple of reps, but I’ve come back down to 60kg and I’m going to build up again. I’m also adding pull ups and weighted dips (15kg). I’ve noticed recently (within the past 3-4 weeks) that I am gaining fat around my abdomen. I was warned about this and told not to be too worried by it. So I used the search function and came across a few points about carb timing (the window of a couple of hours after training), and also about carb choice. I was mainly sourcing my carbs from white rice and pasta, I was also eating this with protein every meal. From my reading I have seen that I should be sourcing my carbs from veggies and some fruit. So, my question is, could eating pasta and rice with every meal and also my choice of carbs be the reason for this abdomen fat gain, and would it ease off if I sourced my carbs from veggies and also only ate carbs for breakfast and in the hour or 2 after I return from the gym? Thank you for reading and any advice given.

2

Eating only veggies and fruit for carbs works for fat loss. In your case, it’d be best to keep the pasta and rice - just eat a bit less of both.

3

Completely off topic, but try adding in some grip work. if you’re pulling an extra 20 kg just because of straps your grip needs a lot of work.

As to the fat gain, IMO it could be due to a range of things. I can’t deal with pasta and I’m not the biggest fan of white rice so most of my carbs come from wholegrain bread, polenta, potatoes and brown rice. For me, fruit isn’t the best carb source as well.

Has anything in the last month changed in your diet or training? It could be that your body has adjusted to your training so you use less energy than before, or simply your metabolism adapting. My system used not to deal so well with fructose and glucose in terms of efficiently using it but since I’ve started doing intermittent fasting (just 12 hours a couple of days a week) that has changed a fair bit.