So you want a nice stomach

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  • bookworm_847
    bookworm_847 Posts: 1,903 Member
    Great post! Thanks OP! :drinker:
  • learnerdriver
    learnerdriver Posts: 298 Member
    Great post, thank you OP.
  • KarinFit4Life
    KarinFit4Life Posts: 424 Member
    Awesome Post!! Thank you so much! :flowerforyou:
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    The MOST important factor to removing the fat is simply to have a calorie deficit. The reason I suggested not doing a lot is that a significant calorie deficit will increase hormones like leptin and cortisol that will slow progress.

    As long as you have a plan to manage these effects, big deficits are not a big deal and are in many ways preferable.

    Even on little deficits you will need a plan to deal with the hormones eventually, though more infrequently.

    Small-moderate deficits are better though for most people new to this thing

    I'm a big believer in regular cardio too. You don't need a lot, but the pros of regularly doing some greatly outweigh the cons.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    The MOST important factor to removing the fat is simply to have a calorie deficit. The reason I suggested not doing a lot is that a significant calorie deficit will increase hormones like leptin and cortisol that will slow progress.

    As long as you have a plan to manage these effects, big deficits are not a big deal and are in many ways preferable.

    Even on little deficits you will need a plan to deal with the hormones eventually, though more infrequently.

    Small-moderate deficits are better though for most people new to this thing

    I'm a big believer in regular cardio too. You don't need a lot, but the pros of regularly doing some greatly outweigh the cons.

    For people like you and me who have been at this a while we understand hormones and can regulate them better. This guide was written essentially for beginners, which is why I suggested not having a huge deficit. They can maintain that deficit and fat loss for longer without needing to problem shoot or regulate hormone fluctuations. It's also going to do more for them to preserve lean mass if they are being conservative because if you do a search (or you read the boards) you'll see tons of beginners who complain they can't eat 100g of protein in a day or that they are way under their calories.

    As I said several times in the first few pages and again in these last few pages, if you want to do more cardio please do. I personally do not enjoy cardio at all and remember thinking when I started trying to lose weight that I had to do tons of it. I wanted to inform people that they do not have to do tons of cardio. I wasn't trying to make it sound like they can't do cardio every day, just informing them they didn't need to (and per the previous discussion state that significant amounts of cardio can be counter productive).
  • JAJinAK
    JAJinAK Posts: 16 Member
    What an awesome post. Thank you so much!
  • broox80
    broox80 Posts: 1,195 Member
    This is it!!!! Period. ...paragraph......done!!!! This could have saved me 15 years of failure if I had only known it sooner!! Great post!!
  • benefiting
    benefiting Posts: 795 Member
    freeze-frame-high-five.gif

    This!
  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    bump to read later
  • jgkoutr
    jgkoutr Posts: 8,105 Member
    bump
  • Ruthann2
    Ruthann2 Posts: 232 Member
    Thanks
  • dpwellman
    dpwellman Posts: 3,271 Member
    I wholeheartedly concur. I think I speak for all of us in the midst of our weight loss / fitness journeys when I say:

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  • Ceilidh_H
    Ceilidh_H Posts: 65 Member
    Gonna bump this :) Thanks!
  • Nicholec2003
    Nicholec2003 Posts: 158 Member
    bumping to look at this later
  • Dgydad
    Dgydad Posts: 104 Member
    Being in recovery from a "mild" heart attack and under the continuing care of a board-certified cardiologist, I too have reservations about #4. The amount of cardio the OP suggests is not even sufficient to meet the minmal recommended activity level for the "average Joe". Strength training is a good thing, and absolutely essential if one of your objectives is to re-sculpt your body. But strength training and cardio are not interchangeable. Your pulmonary and cardiovascular systems benefit to a much greater degree to the cardio training. Since these systems are the "infrastructure" your musculature relies on, maintaining and developing them can't be an after-thought; nor can it be dismissed because you don't like it. When you get down to brass tacks, what we're all striving for here is balance. Diet, cardio, and strength are the legs that support that balance. Tale any of them away, and the balance is lost......................
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    Being in recovery from a "mild" heart attack and under the continuing care of a board-certified cardiologist, I too have reservations about #4. The amount of cardio the OP suggests is not even sufficient to meet the minmal recommended activity level for the "average Joe". Strength training is a good thing, and absolutely essential if one of your objectives is to re-sculpt your body. But strength training and cardio are not interchangeable. Your pulmonary and cardiovascular systems benefit to a much greater degree to the cardio training. Since these systems are the "infrastructure" your musculature relies on, maintaining and developing them can't be an after-thought; nor can it be dismissed because you don't like it. When you get down to brass tacks, what we're all striving for here is balance. Diet, cardio, and strength are the legs that support that balance. Tale any of them away, and the balance is lost......................

    We've covered that one ad nauseam in the previous pages. I specifically stated that amount of cardio is what I personally do. You can do more or less. My point was that you do not HAVE to do cardio to lose fat. Many people are lead to believe that you have to do tons of cardio to lose fat. Feel free to scroll through the previous pages on the other reasons I suggest not doing tons of cardio. You lose fat through diet. You maintain muscle through resistance training. You improve cardiovascular health through cardio.

    While I agree that cardio exercises improves your cardiovascular system to a greater degree than resistance training, you do get cardiovascular benefits from resistance training alone.
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16307157
    resistance training significantly increased the VO2max from 26.674 ml/kg/min to 30.981 ml/kg/min

    Also, you stated that my suggestions do not meet the minimal recommended activity level for the average person. In adults 18-64 here are the suggestions:
    http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/guidelines/adults.html
    1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., jogging or running) every week and
    weight training (muscle-strengthening activities) on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).
    Two sessions that last 30 minutes is just 15 minutes shy of the cardio minimum. If you had asked what my suggestions for strength training are I would say 4-5 sessions a week (preferably hitting all body parts twice a week). Since the study above states that resistance training does improve cardiovascular function I think it is safe to say that the additional 2-3 resistance training sessions a week would more than cover the 15 minutes that were not met doing cardio.
  • lizzyclatworthy
    lizzyclatworthy Posts: 296 Member
    I don't have time to read whole thread but people questioning #4 need to watch zombieland !
  • theycallyoumister
    theycallyoumister Posts: 222 Member
    Bang on! Did the same thing and got the results of a lifetime! :smile:
  • 04hoopsgal73
    04hoopsgal73 Posts: 892 Member
    It’s working, thanks again.

    I’ve been doing 3 HIIT Elipitical conditioning days…. added 2 at home activities that pump get my HR working in mid-high range with a time limit of 45 minutes for total body workouts that do both strength & cardio.

    I do my 3 regular hard Strength workouts, and added 2-3 other conditioning programs from free on demand channel. I work upper & lower 2x weekly each, and the other condiitoning is sculpting, agility, balance, & overall core form work.

    I’ve bee eating lean & clean for 56 days now with exceptions for holidays, birthdays, life celebration moments, and if I really wanted something I had it. Key to the last one is you can’t always give in to the WANT factor else the process won’t work.

    I drink my water & get my sleep zzzs.
    My mantra is consistency and it’s ll coming together now. Patience is a must have.

    I’ve been frustrated and all those things, too. Perhaps it will happen again.
    I’m not quitting and never going back to the lazy, unhappy person with that weak body I had two years ago.
    Hard to believe I even allowed myself to get to such a terrible state in the first place. But that’s the past..

    I’m living the present….loving each moment.. Hoping others here will find the same hope and happiness that I have found.
    Hang in there everyone… you can do this!!!!:happy:
  • knra_grl
    knra_grl Posts: 1,566 Member
    Thanks for this post and I like number 4 - and response when questioned was you can choose to do more cardio if you like it but some peeps don't so yay #4

    That being said some people could really benefit from more cardio especially if they have been sedentary for a long time but agree that strength training is what is needed to actually get nicely defined or smooth abs - at my age I am thinking I will NEVER be there but there is always hope! :flowerforyou:
  • agronx
    agronx Posts: 42 Member
    Great post!
  • tamcrit
    tamcrit Posts: 340 Member
    Great info!! TFS!!
  • Lld320
    Lld320 Posts: 81
    Patience is the hardest part
  • werobins
    werobins Posts: 25 Member
    I am going to read this once a day...until...hahahaha...great post
  • Kimsoontobe
    Kimsoontobe Posts: 110 Member
    Bump
  • Lee716
    Lee716 Posts: 150 Member
    Loved this post! Thanks so much
  • tiggerlgh
    tiggerlgh Posts: 73 Member
    Great post! Thanks for writing it.
  • One2Run
    One2Run Posts: 63 Member
    Bump for later.
  • Bejede
    Bejede Posts: 191 Member
    Bump
  • SillaWinchester
    SillaWinchester Posts: 363 Member
    We aren't going to be perfect all the time. Enjoy birthdays and holidays. It is life and things will happen. Don't stress, learn to love the process.

    This is probably the most important thing. People believe they've ruined everything if they enjoy cake on a birthday or eat extra mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving... but I think the only thing being ruined is life fulfillment when you decide to ignore these festivities for the sake of not being negative in your calorie count once in a while.

    Love this post! Thank you for sharing!

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