Best exercises to lose extra skin and fat on lower abdomen.

kgeyser

Wow. Those were all such great suggestions for exercises to add to my current routine. Seriously. Way to comprehend what you read and respond with an actual answer to the question.

Try table pushbacks and fork put downs. Seriously, if you have 50 lbs to lose, start there. And don't blame your "2nd son" for this.

You sir have never been prego and obviously don't know what you're talking about. I'm not trying to blame my 2nd son. Just stating what caused the muscle damage and skin stretching. Any woman who has had more than one child can tell you that every pregnancy is different. Size of baby, where you gain weight, how the baby sits, and more can all be different and can cause various changes in a woman's body. My sons are my world and I have no remorse over the changes having them has caused in my body. That doesn't mean I don't want to repair what can be repaired, though. As for your petty comment about maybe I should try not eating, not eating was part of the problem. I came here and started tracking calories to help gat back in the habit of actually eating 3 meals a day. Forgetting to eat until late afternoon most days has slowed my metabolism down quite a bit. I have still been under my calorie goal everyday since I started tracking it.

He may not have been pregnant, but I have, twice, and I'm still nursing the second kid 2 years later. His advice is 100% spot-on. Weight loss comes from a calorie deficit, and the best way to do that is by staying within your calorie goal. Exercise is for fitness, and there are no exercises which are going to target that area. Your body will lose fat from where it wants to when it wants to. You can do ab exercises all day long, but all you'll have is strong abs that no one can see underneath all the fat.

My second pregnancy was so horrible that I ended up on bed rest and I'm still dealing with residual issues from it. But my baby had nothing to do with the amount of weight I gained during the pregnancy; that was all about the amount of food I stuffed in my face. Pregnancy does do wicked things to our bodies, but it's important to give credit where credit is due if you want to be successful in losing weight and not just use the pregnancy excuse, especially when all the weight actually related to gestation (baby, placenta, fluid) has been gone from your body for awhile.

Sherbear1109

I know for a fact you cannot target weight you lose it from your feet up and your head down, until you meet in the middle and abdominal, and back fat is LAST TO GO... however I think loose skin goes away with conditioning and toning... also not losing weight to quickly... like don't drop 20lbs in one month kind of thing.. if you do it in progressive steps, few lbs by few lbs it should re-adjust with time.... As for exercise like I said do conditioning and toning. weight lifting, muscle building.... stretching, yoga, etc.

This I can totally agree with. I guess conditioning and toning excercises that work the lower abs are what I'm after. Those are the muscles that need the most help. Took me a long time to recover from the c-section and I'm trying to focus on the lower abs to rebuild those muscles. I am getting bored with the same excercises and would like to rotate in some new excercises to keep it interesting. I can do cardio or work my arms and legs all I want, but the only way to get definition back into my stomach is to build muscle there and that only happens by working that muscle. If I bench press for three hours a day everyday, I might lose weight everywhere, but I'm certainly not going to get any muscle defiinition in my abs or rear that way. It just doesn't work that way. If you don't use a muscle, it doesn't build. If it did people who broke an arm or leg would be able to keep that broken limb tone by working the other one. Thanks for being willing to actually talk about things like conditioning, toning, and muscle building instead of saying it's just a matter of calories and cardio. They are significant, but they are not everything.

sassyjae21

Wow. Those were all such great suggestions for exercises to add to my current routine. Seriously. Way to comprehend what you read and respond with an actual answer to the question.

Try table pushbacks and fork put downs. Seriously, if you have 50 lbs to lose, start there. And don't blame your "2nd son" for this.

You sir have never been prego and obviously don't know what you're talking about. I'm not trying to blame my 2nd son. Just stating what caused the muscle damage and skin stretching. Any woman who has had more than one child can tell you that every pregnancy is different. Size of baby, where you gain weight, how the baby sits, and more can all be different and can cause various changes in a woman's body. My sons are my world and I have no remorse over the changes having them has caused in my body. That doesn't mean I don't want to repair what can be repaired, though. As for your petty comment about maybe I should try not eating, not eating was part of the problem. I came here and started tracking calories to help gat back in the habit of actually eating 3 meals a day. Forgetting to eat until late afternoon most days has slowed my metabolism down quite a bit. I have still been under my calorie goal everyday since I started tracking it.

He may not have been pregnant, but I have, twice, and I'm still nursing the second kid 2 years later. His advice is 100% spot-on. Weight loss comes from a calorie deficit, and the best way to do that is by staying within your calorie goal. Exercise is for fitness, and there are no exercises which are going to target that area. Your body will lose fat from where it wants to when it wants to. You can do ab exercises all day long, but all you'll have is strong abs that no one can see underneath all the fat.

My second pregnancy was so horrible that I ended up on bed rest and I'm still dealing with residual issues from it. But my baby had nothing to do with the amount of weight I gained during the pregnancy; that was all about the amount of food I stuffed in my face. Pregnancy does do wicked things to our bodies, but it's important to give credit where credit is due if you want to be successful in losing weight and not just use the pregnancy excuse, especially when all the weight actually related to gestation (baby, placenta, fluid) has been gone from your body for awhile.

While you both are right, he was ugly about it.

Carrieendar

I have no studies or anything to back this up, but I can share my story. I have 4 kids, and, even though I only gained the recommended 25 lbs or so each pregnancy, I still ended up with loose tummy skin from all the stretching. I still have some of it today; however, running has really helped. I got my body fat measured with calipers at the Y (they do it for free) and, over the past year of running, I have seen significant improvement in the amount of fat measured there. I don't do a ton of lifting, 25 min or so twice a week. But I do an additional day where I go back and forth between a back exercise (pull ups, heavy pants, superman, etc) and core exercises (planks, etc).

edit- I do these exercises at home with dumbells and a removable doorway pull up bar (I still use a chair even after a year I can only do a couple reps without the chair).

Sherbear1109

His response is not spot on because I AM eating at a deficite. I also do cardio daily, rotate working abs and arm & legs, and do yoga most days. In the last two weeks I've lost an inch on my waist, so what I'm doing is working, thanks. I just don't track my weight. I track my size. Again, I'm not saying my son is at fault for the weight gain, just that the way I carried him really stretched out my stomach skin and that having to have a c-section destroyed my lower abs. That's just facts. The only way to recover from that is to build muscle. The only way to build muscle is to work that muscle. Working your legs or your arms will not build muscle, and therefore definition, in your stomach.

Sherbear1109

Bottom line is you can build muscle under the layer of fat, so that when the fat does eventually come off, there is some muscle there to essentially fill out some of the loose skin. As far as the loose skin, it depends on the elasticity of your skin. Some women have thicker skin that can rebound pregnancy after pregnancy, some do not, and the only cure would then be a tummy tuck. Lifting does help immensely, but you cannot do anything specific about that one area.

Thank you for seeing what I'm getting at. This is why I do an ab routine 3 times a week. Getting bored with the same routine, though and would love some new excercises that work the lower abs to switch things up.

ninerbuff

I know popular belief on here seems to be that you can't target where you want to lose fat. So, this query is directed at those of you who use exercise to target specific body parts. My lower abs are wrecked from pregnancy and an unavoidable c-section. After carrying my very large son, in a very low position for the last 3 months+ of being prego, my lower stomach is literally stretched out and hangs down in this horrible way. It is getting smaller, but I would love to fix this faster. What exercises work best for targeting this area and losing the extra skin, too?

It's not a popular belief, but actual science. And just like trying to target fat, one cannot target loose skin with exercise. If it doesn't retract on it's own, then surgery is your next option.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Sherbear1109

Thanks carriendra for sharing what worked for you and for throwing out a few excercises to rotate into my routine. Truly appreciate a real answer instead of a snarky reply.

ninerbuff

One suggestion I would make is to maybe consider a TRX suspension system. Since you don't go to a gym, this apparatus can work the whole body without taking up any space in your home. And since practically every move requires core stability, you kill 2 birds with one stone.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

kika_mckee

Try dry brushing your skin (google it and watch the video). It's not an excersise but my skin has felt amazing after doing it and I think it's helping. (even if it's not my skin is so soft!)

melindafritz1976

They say crunches
y a there is none

Chieflrg

I've had a surgery that was quite a bit more invasive than a C-section. As many have stated it takes time and patience.

I know you stated you don't do heavy lifting in a gym, but it will do more for your entire body including abs than any crunch or Iso exercise.

As others have stated eat at a deficit, doesn't matter one bit if you eat three meals a day or eight...its all the same. Do cardio if you wish to improve heart and lungs and give you a few extra calories to eat. There is no exercise that will help you lose skin.

Have plenty of patience and enjoy your journey & kids.

JTick

His response is not spot on because I AM eating at a deficite. I also do cardio daily, rotate working abs and arm & legs, and do yoga most days. In the last two weeks I've lost an inch on my waist, so what I'm doing is working, thanks. I just don't track my weight. I track my size. Again, I'm not saying my son is at fault for the weight gain, just that the way I carried him really stretched out my stomach skin and that having to have a c-section destroyed my lower abs. That's just facts. The only way to recover from that is to build muscle. The only way to build muscle is to work that muscle. Working your legs or your arms will not build muscle, and therefore definition, in your stomach.

Well, you're not going to be building muscle at all if you're in a deficit. You can strengthen the existing muscle, but you're not adding new tissue.

Also, you'd be shocked at how much squats and deadlifts work your core. So "working your arms and legs" DOES add definition in your stomach once you're at a low enough body fat % to actually see the definition. The vast majority of people on this site with great abs do little to no ab exercise...rather they target the whole body and their abs are a nice side effect.

1princesswarrior

Since you work out at home you can always do 30 day shred or find an online bootcamp like this one http://shrinkingjeans.net/bootcamp/

They incorporate complex full body exercises that will work your core as well as core exercises.

MrTolerable

Wow. Those were all such great suggestions for exercises to add to my current routine. Seriously. Way to comprehend what you read and respond with an actual answer to the question.

Try table pushbacks and fork put downs. Seriously, if you have 50 lbs to lose, start there. And don't blame your "2nd son" for this.

lol maybe could have left off the latter sentence but this ^ is solid.

Can't spot reduce fat.. Lord knows I tried... wasted months doing it as well.. its diet, or its full body exercise or if you want to look ideal its both.

MrTolerable

His response is not spot on because I AM eating at a deficite. I also do cardio daily, rotate working abs and arm & legs, and do yoga most days. In the last two weeks I've lost an inch on my waist, so what I'm doing is working, thanks. I just don't track my weight. I track my size. Again, I'm not saying my son is at fault for the weight gain, just that the way I carried him really stretched out my stomach skin and that having to have a c-section destroyed my lower abs. That's just facts. The only way to recover from that is to build muscle. The only way to build muscle is to work that muscle. Working your legs or your arms will not build muscle, and therefore definition, in your stomach.

Well, you're not going to be building muscle at all if you're in a deficit. You can strengthen the existing muscle, but you're not adding new tissue.

Also, you'd be shocked at how much squats and deadlifts work your core. So "working your arms and legs" DOES add definition in your stomach once you're at a low enough body fat % to actually see the definition. The vast majority of people on this site with great abs do little to no ab exercise...rather they target the whole body and their abs are a nice side effect.

^ this is true.. abdominal exercise is literally 10mins of a 1.5-2 hr workout.

hr of strength training & 30mins of cardio or vice verse.

good input. target the whole body, and I think the best thing to do is exercises that work tons of muscles at once.. dead lift and squats should be your new best buddy.

Sherbear1109

I'm not arguing against a full body workout. Squats are great! Not sure what deadlifts are, but I'll be looking into those. The reason I target my abs alone, as well, is to rehab my lower ab muscles. I don't really get why most people on here seem to have such a problem with a person wanting to target a particular muscle group in addition to counting calories and doing cardio, etc. Bodybuilders and many athletes target particular areas all the time. That doesn't mean they only work one area. Just that they do extra work on particular areas to strengthen the muscles in the target area more.

MrTolerable

I'm not arguing against a full body workout. Squats are great! Not sure what deadlifts are, but I'll be looking into those. The reason I target my abs alone, as well, is to rehab my lower ab muscles. I don't really get why most people on here seem to have such a problem with a person wanting to target a particular muscle group in addition to counting calories and doing cardio, etc. Bodybuilders and many athletes target particular areas all the time. That doesn't mean they only work one area. Just that they do extra work on particular areas to strengthen the muscles in the target area more.

Its the time management.. there is only an hour you should be putting into strength training, and its not getting the most bang for your buck wasting it on abs when you could target a great deal of other muscle groups all at once.

There is nothing wrong with targeting your abs, but everyone I know serious in the gym only targets it once their body fat is 6-12%

I'm excited to be there, but not even close..

..not to mention I hate working my abs for some reason :grumble: ... its so much easier working everything else..

but one thing thats vital - for how much you work your abs I recommend working your back literally 3x as much.

Sherbear1109

Wow. Those were all such great suggestions for exercises to add to my current routine. Seriously. Way to comprehend what you read and respond with an actual answer to the question.

Try table pushbacks and fork put downs. Seriously, if you have 50 lbs to lose, start there. And don't blame your "2nd son" for this.

lol maybe could have left off the latter sentence but this ^ is solid.


Can't spot reduce fat.. Lord knows I tried... wasted months doing it as well.. its diet, or its full body exercise or if you want to look ideal its both.

I eat at a deficit, I do cardio daily, I do yoga most days, and do strengthening excercises 5 times a week. If I choose to target my abs and work at rebuilding those muscles during 3 of my 5 strengthening days, that's my prerogative. Before you tell someone they need to not eat, maybe you should see if they're already addressing that. I really don't get why so many people assume you're not doing anything else when you ask about some new excercises to work a particular muscle group.

ninerbuff

I really don't get why so many people assume you're not doing anything else when you ask about some new exercises to work a particular muscle group.

Your thread topic is throwing them off. You asked for exercises to reduce loose skin and fat. There aren't any. Now if you're looking for ab exercises to strengthen core and abs, then there are so many you can choose from:

http://www.ab-core-and-stomach-exercises.com/abdominal-exercises.html

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition