That stupid belly pooch

loril13
loril13 Posts: 320 Member
I am at my goal weight of 128 and have been for a while now. Everything seems to be toning up nicely. Except that da*m belly pooch. I workout 5-6 days a week for 45 - 60 minutes. I run, do zumba, take a couple of cardio sculpting classes and yoga. I keep a close eye on my fat and cholesterol intake as well as sodium. I know "abs are made in the kitchen not the gym" and I know you cannot target lose.

What have you all done to shrink that pooch?

Replies

  • zoukeira
    zoukeira Posts: 313 Member
    Mine has gone down considerably doing Jillian Michaels workouts, but they probably aren't as intense as your workouts! I still have a small pooch and I'll be hitting the heavy weights to get rid of that.
  • deeksha_s
    deeksha_s Posts: 79 Member
    I have the same problem. I do not overeat and exercise moderately. Definitely not as strenuous as your but my paunch seems to have become permanant. Even the crunches do not help!
  • kellystr8
    kellystr8 Posts: 22 Member
    Try to keep your sugar intake in the 20's and maybe limit your starchy foods (if you eat them). I have the same issue, though I'm not at my goal weight yet.
  • tommygirl15
    tommygirl15 Posts: 1,012 Member
    This might sound bad but I gave up on trying to flatten my pooch. It's been there for as long as I can remember, it was the first thing I notice even as a young teenager. I've pretty much accepted it as a normal part of me. Instead I've just decided to look to my other achievements; reaching my goal weight, being healthy and fitting into all the clothes I love.

    One of the things that DOES help it appear flatter is avoiding things that make me bloat, because when I bloat I look a few months pregnant, lol.
  • downtheadders
    downtheadders Posts: 26 Member
    hah. I pretty much joined MFP because I was so irritated that I was looking bad in pencil skirts. I never used to have one! But I think after I hit 26 or so I started getting one. I'm hoping enough Bob Harper DVDs and cardio will take care of it.
  • Emtabo01
    Emtabo01 Posts: 672
    I'm on stage 3 of NROL4W and the only time I notice my belly looking good is when I've been strict with calories and am weighing on the low end of my typical range. It seems to get right back to its fluffier state if I even fluctuate to my high end of usual range. I'm hoping by the end of the program it'll look better, I feel like the abs are developing but as soon as I slack on my diet and put on a pound or two it's flabby again. I really understand the meaning of the abs made in the kitchen firsthand now.
  • jellybird
    jellybird Posts: 37 Member
    It's all about working to lose BF % instead of weight. I am on the journey you are talking about and am noticing good progress. I am doing HIIT workouts and yoga. I am also eating lots of lean protein and watching calorie intake. It's hard work, but I'm enjoying seeing the results!
  • NikkiSixGuns
    NikkiSixGuns Posts: 630 Member
    Weight training worked for me. Any kind of serious body-weight training as well as lifting free weights will help immensely! Sounds strange, but it really does work.
  • glittersupernova
    glittersupernova Posts: 91 Member
    I agree with weight training, but I also (aside carefully watching my diet--particularly dairy and sugars), do criss-cross crunches. I will turn on one of my favorite rock/heavy metal songs and push through the whole song doing criss-cross crunches because they help to target those lower abdominals! Plus...I find them way more fun than some other methods, lol.

    Swimming--also another amazing and fun workout for the whole body. Try this if you haven't.

    In high school, I worked my butt off for swim team. I can say honestly that I had a very flat stomach and this is what we did, 6 days a week:

    2 mile run followed by 30 minutes in the weight training room followed by 2 to 3 hours of swimming (various swim techniques of varying difficulty). I am telling you...that routine kicked my *kitten* but made me my absolute best!