help me tone up pudgy stomach please :) newbie here

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jennifermads1
jennifermads1 Posts: 37
in Health and Weight Loss
hey guys sooooooo, I have joined fitness pal as I graduate in two months and have piled on the weight since uni. Its my own fault for not eating healthy.I have two jobs as well as starting up my business last year. But I am finishing uni on a sad note in a sense as I feel really unhealthy now :/ I am a uk size 16 and 5'6 and weigh about 14 stone. My legs are still toned for when I used to go to karate as a teenager from the age 11-17. But my stomach is too pudgy. Best exercises to tone my stomach? :)

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  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Gotta lose weight, which means diet, not exercise. Exercise can be part of your routine if you want (in which case it doesn't much matter what you do), but your focus should be on your intake.

    it's easy to out-eat a good exercise plan, but you can't out-lazy a good diet.
  • jennifermads1
    jennifermads1 Posts: 37
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    Sorry I forgot I am dieting as well :) hence why I have joined mfp been very lucky in a sense a friend of a friend is a dietitian and has written me up a meal plan x
  • KateRunsColorado
    KateRunsColorado Posts: 407 Member
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    Unfortunately you can not spot reduce fat....you can tone the muscles underneath it, but you have to excercise and eat healthy to lose the fat that's on top of those abs!

    That being said, I'm at the thinnest i've been my entire adult life, at 125 lbs (5'-6"), and my pudgy stomach is still a problem for me. It 's my one area that I am still not comfortable with....so I'm open to suggestions as well!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Keep a reasonable calorie deficit to lose the fat and do core exercises to tone up the muscles underneath. Don't focus on just the belly, work your entire core. This can change how you carry what fat you have.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
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    Losing stomach pudge is 90% about changing body fat composition. If you eat healthy at a deficit you should start to see abs at < 20% body fat.

    For me it started with slight ribs showing at 105 pounds, and some oblique definition and reduced lower belly around 100 pounds. I still have a small pooch though, so you have to work with genetics.
  • jennifermads1
    jennifermads1 Posts: 37
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    Had the same problem all through my teens I was slim and I did karate three times a week for an hour and a half but still had a pudgy belly as I call it x
  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
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    it's easy to out-eat a good exercise plan, but you can't out-lazy a good diet.

    I love this - I'm totally stealing it!
  • crystalflame
    crystalflame Posts: 1,049 Member
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    Eat at a deficit to lose the fat, and start doing compound lifts with heavy weights to retain and firm up muscle. Heavy lifting makes a HUGE difference.
  • sweetpea03b
    sweetpea03b Posts: 1,124 Member
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    I have great abs... too bad they're hidden by all this fluff :) Eat clean... cardio... lift... they will reveal themselves in time :)
  • Mrsfreedom41
    Mrsfreedom41 Posts: 330 Member
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    I was born with a pudgy tummy so it will never go away!!:ohwell:
  • jennifermads1
    jennifermads1 Posts: 37
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    I love that name 'fluff' i am so stealing this :) x
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
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    you cant spot reduce you can start lifting and doing some cardio and eat better you will see a lot of changes all over you body
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
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    it's easy to out-eat a good exercise plan, but you can't out-lazy a good diet.

    I love this - I'm totally stealing it!

    ok that's just awesome
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Had the same problem all through my teens I was slim and I did karate three times a week for an hour and a half but still had a pudgy belly as I call it x

    Was it fat, though? I've never had a perfectly flat stomach despite being thin for most of my life. But it wasn't fat. I don't know what it is, the way my organs sit maybe (??) but I've always had a slight protrusion below the belly button. I've seen many women who seem to have the same thing.
  • tRiNaBeAnZz
    tRiNaBeAnZz Posts: 114 Member
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    Hey there!

    I was able to loose 10lbs just by changing my eating habits, and I do not consider it a diet, as I am changing my habits for life. A diet is a short term fix. A lot of people say that exercise isn't as important, but to me, it is everything. My biggest problem as a college student and working at desk jobs was my lack of movement.

    I completed 10 day Zumba challenge, 3 weeks of Hip Hop Abs, 90 days of TurboFire and am currently on Week 3 of Insanity. I have lost 20lbs total and have 3lbs left before I am at goal. As others have mentioned, my body has toned up considerably but my stomach is still the area I wish would shrink! There are exercises you can do to help this area, I recommend Hip Hop Abs (it's fun and I went from a size 7 juniors to a size 5 juniors in two weeks!).

    SW: 133
    CW: 113
    GW: 110

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