Best exercise for toning abs

711lucia
711lucia Posts: 11
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi there,

I need some advice. I have been doing so well with my weight loss and exercise. However, it seems like my tummy never tones up. I have 5cm's to lose and never seem to see any progress.

I do have a sever back injury - so sit ups, weights etc is totally out of the question.

Any suggestions as to what I can do to tone the stomach muscles. I hear water jogging is good, apart from getting fitter, will it tone my stomach muscles too? :sad:

Hope to hear from someone soon, before I throw in the towel.

:noway:
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Replies

  • khall86790
    khall86790 Posts: 1,100 Member
    I'm interested to know this too.
    My stomach has gotten a lot smaller but it needs some serious toning!
  • Cyclink
    Cyclink Posts: 517 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.
  • SenseiCole
    SenseiCole Posts: 429 Member
    http://printableworkouts.com/


    anyone can add me
  • abrahamsitososa
    abrahamsitososa Posts: 716 Member
    Abs are carved in the kitchen.
  • khall86790
    khall86790 Posts: 1,100 Member
    I read on a post here a while back that apparently it is 60% diet and 40% exercise.
  • Summer_Lunatic
    Summer_Lunatic Posts: 543 Member
    Preparing green vegetables seems to do it.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    this!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Preparing green vegetables seems to do it.

    i hope you logged that to get your exercise calories
  • jamielynas
    jamielynas Posts: 366 Member
    Deadlifts!
  • BeccaBollons
    BeccaBollons Posts: 652 Member
    Hi, I too have a back problem, and while I know you can't spot reduce, I have found that after losing about 14lbs my tummy was smaller, and my abs are peeking through the fat that is left! So. I have found that bodyweight squats are fine and don't aggravate the back, and, done properly, they strengthen the core and you can really feel it working lots of muscles, including those longed-for tummy muscles. A strong core will really help you look after your back too.
  • SamanthaClarexo
    SamanthaClarexo Posts: 353 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    This.
  • 711lucia
    711lucia Posts: 11
    Thank you. I'll take this into account.

    :glasses:
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    Preparing green vegetables seems to do it.

    agreed
  • hippypippy84
    hippypippy84 Posts: 22
    Hula hooping is low impact and tones the whole core. Fab for burning calories too.
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    this!

    Another vote for this.
  • Sheila_Ann
    Sheila_Ann Posts: 365 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    this!

    Another vote for this.

    I 3rd!
  • Lysander666
    Lysander666 Posts: 275 Member
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    Once again, this.

    I'm sick of the amount of times I've heard women say they want to tone their abs. It means absolutely nothing. Your skin is an organ, you can't lose fat from one area only. Also, doing sit-ups makes no different if your stomach is covered with a layer of flab.
  • Pheonix2012
    Pheonix2012 Posts: 61 Member
    Pilates is wonderful, and very easy/good on the back. Try Rael Pilates system. It starts you with 7 basic moves, and progresses you up to 27 strengthening moves.
  • NakedLunchTime
    NakedLunchTime Posts: 559
    Burn more cals than you eat
    Add some cardio
    Planks/Pushups
    Kettlebell exercises

    This is what works best for my body.
  • ChgingMe
    ChgingMe Posts: 539 Member
    I read on a post here a while back that apparently it is 60% diet and 40% exercise.

    More like 80% diet... They are definitely made in the kitchen.. That is my weakness. I love to eat. So while the rest of me is looking good, and even my abs look better, they are not as 'toned' as I'd like. Eat well, exercise and you will see results
  • NakedLunchTime
    NakedLunchTime Posts: 559
    Pilates is wonderful, and very easy/good on the back. Try Rael Pilates system. It starts you with 7 basic moves, and progresses you up to 27 strengthening moves.

    Yes Pilates too!!! I love pilates!
  • carissar7
    carissar7 Posts: 183 Member
    I don't really gain weight in my midsection, I always gain it in my thighs/butt. But I will say that since I severely cut my refined carb intake, my stomach got a lot slimmer and any fat on my abs just seems to be melting off (I'm also assuming that since I don't gain weight in my stomach anyway, the fat there comes off a bit easier for me than other parts of my body). The other posters are right in that it is your DIET that will do most of the talking with this one. You can do pilates/crunches/cardio til the cows come home but nothing will spot reduce the fat on your stomach. The best way to lose overall body fat is to eat at a deficit and depending on how your body handles certain foods, clean up your diet. You will only start to look more 'toned' after overall body fat % is down. There is no other way.
  • britkip
    britkip Posts: 49
    There is no exercise that will cause you to lose fat around your stomach (or any other specific area)

    The only thing that causes your stomach to appear toned is a very low body fat level, which you get by losing fat from all over your body.

    Exactly!!! You can loss the fat off your stomach by doing crunches or anything abs are made in the kitchen!!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    As others have said...

    1) You need to lose body fat to expose the muscle. That happens with diet.

    2) You also need to build/strengthen the muscles. Things like squats, single leg deadlifts, weighted lunges are great exercise, but they won't do a damn thing if the muscles are covered in fat (see my first point).
  • contingencyplan
    contingencyplan Posts: 3,639 Member
    There is no "best exercise" for toning your tummy. Having a toned "anything" involves two things:

    1. Having an abundant amount of muscle

    2. Having a very low amount of fat covering it.

    For #1, the stomach/core is one of the easiest places to build muscle. It's so easy in fact that you don't even need to do any exercises to target it. Why? Because assuming the training program you're following is even halfway decent, your core is already getting the hell worked out of it when you do exercises that primarily target other body parts. If the training program you're following revolves primarily around isolation exercises, however (exercises that work a single body part at a time, basically) then you're kind of screwing yourself over because it's highly inefficient and misses a lot of key muscle groups.

    #2 is where things get hard. Because there is absolutely NOTHING you can do to control how quickly the fat on your tummy burns away in comparison to any other part of your body. And, in many cases, it is the LAST place fat will disappear from. So the only thing you can do is work toward continued fat loss.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    Lower your body fat and you'll discover those beautiful abs underneath!

    In addition to other people's comments, I want to mention that running really helped my stomach muscles.
  • Rlc8478
    Rlc8478 Posts: 6
    Core training. Everyone needs it. Working your muscles and doing cardo are all great excersises and diet only does so much but core training, strengths stomach muscles. back muscles and hip flexers.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    having a messed up back limits your exercise options because your back is the other half of your "core," as the abdominal muscles and lower back work in concert to stabilize your torso. So anything that works really well for your ab muscles will also be an effort of some kind for your back. Is rehabbing your back not an option?

    You can diet away forever and still never get a visibly defined abdominal area due to a lack of muscle to "show." I dieted down from 250 to 168 before I realized that I was just getting "skinny fat," and then realized that I had catabolized most of the muscle that I had by failing to do any resistance work to support muscle retention. If you can't build or at least preserve muscle, it's very hard to get a lean look regardless of what your scale says.
  • Bekahmardis
    Bekahmardis Posts: 602 Member
    Once the body fat has lowered enough, a strong core is the best way for those of us with back issues. I'm working on avoiding back surgery at this point after having 4 herniated discs in half as many years. I find planks and pushups to be really helpful. Anything Pilates related is going to be awesome and typically isn't too stressful on your back. Once you get your core up to speed, you may find your back problems are diminished as well because those core muscles can really help keep your spine in check!
  • JoanB5
    JoanB5 Posts: 610 Member
    As others have said...

    1) You need to lose body fat to expose the muscle. That happens with diet.

    2) You also need to build/strengthen the muscles. Things like squats, single leg deadlifts, weighted lunges are great exercise, but they won't do a damn thing if the muscles are covered in fat (see my first point).

    This seems like a balanced answer. I'm glad to hear it--I can do most of these without a barbell set. Thanks!

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