Flatter Stomach?

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2

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  • creativechick22
    creativechick22 Posts: 12
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    I don't know what stones are, so I can';t calculate for you, but you can easily eat 1600 and still lose.

    A stone is 14lbs - so I currently weight 134lbs, with a goal of 120lbs.
  • bkjk997
    bkjk997 Posts: 106 Member
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    I was just reading this... see the 2nd section called, "Stop Doing That Exercise!"

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/12/19/stop-doing-that-seriously/

    Excerpt:
    "Stop doing crunches and sit ups. I know you want a flat stomach, but you won’t get there with 1000 crunches and sit ups every day. It doesn't work that way. Believe it or not, sit ups can mess up your lower back, as can crunches. They’re also an incomplete exercise, as they don’t work out your entire core (stomach AND lower back). But that’s missing the point: a flat stomach is made in the kitchen, and 90% of your results will come from clean eating.

    My favorite “ab exercises?” Squats, deadlifts, pull ups, and eating right. Yoga, handstands, planks, push ups, and other full body exercises all contribute to a strong core. In order for you to see those stomach muscles though, you need to lose the fat on top of them!"
  • kjo9692
    kjo9692 Posts: 430 Member
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    Hi,

    I have lost 10lbs so far (since 26th Feb 2014) - however my stomach (around my belly-button) measurement has only decreased by 0.5inch. I was wondering if I should expect this until my weight decreases more, or if there are any particular exercises I could do to help. I would be looking for low-impact exercise really, but any advice is more than welcome (current main exercise is walking).

    Below is my information:
    Height: 5ft 6
    Starting Weight: 10st 4lbs
    Current Weight: 9st 8lbs
    Goal Weight: 8st 7lbs

    Bust: 35inch
    Waist: 26.5inch
    Stomach: 32.5inch
    Hips: 39inch

    I am eating around 900 cals per day, however my exercise varies between 100 and 600 cals burned.

    Thank you

    I spit out my water when I read that you are only eating 900 calories per day.

    Use the link to the calories calculator given to you above. Definitely eat more and when you exercise eat those calories back too. Hope you follow the advice given to you in this thread!
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    May I suggest you trade in your scale for a tape measurer or some bodyfat calipers and aim for a % bodyfat goal rather than a scale weight goal. That scale is clearly not doing you any favors in terms of your health.

    See this person.

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/images/2012/karina-baymiller-after.jpg

    here is another, at your current weight.

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/images/2012/kelsey-byers-after.jpg

    This person is your height and weighs almost as much as you do right now. Scale weight has absolutely nothing to do with how fit or in shape you are. When you picture someone who is super fit and your height, yeah they are not 120 pounds. You put an extra 10 pounds of fat on those two women and bring their weight up to around 140-145 and they would still look really fit. You need to start caring about your muscle and health more than your scale weight.
  • WayfarerHWM
    WayfarerHWM Posts: 10
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    Hi,

    I have lost 10lbs so far (since 26th Feb 2014) - however my stomach (around my belly-button) measurement has only decreased by 0.5inch. I was wondering if I should expect this until my weight decreases more, or if there are any particular exercises I could do to help. I would be looking for low-impact exercise really, but any advice is more than welcome (current main exercise is walking).

    Below is my information:
    Height: 5ft 6
    Starting Weight: 10st 4lbs
    Current Weight: 9st 8lbs
    Goal Weight: 8st 7lbs

    Bust: 35inch
    Waist: 26.5inch
    Stomach: 32.5inch
    Hips: 39inch

    I am eating around 900 cals per day, however my exercise varies between 100 and 600 cals burned.

    Thank you

    I spit out my water when I read that you are only eating 900 calories per day.

    KLQIB.gif
  • WayfarerHWM
    WayfarerHWM Posts: 10
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    ETA...nothing. sorry for dup post.
  • Boogage
    Boogage Posts: 739 Member
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    I agree with the above posters. I lost a lot of weight eating low calorie but 20lbs of that was muscle. I now weight 107lbs and I don't have a flat stomach. Currently eating 1650 to 1750 a day and trying to fix the mess I've gotten myself into. Wish I'd done things properly from the start and not made myself ill.
  • tanfit4life
    tanfit4life Posts: 43 Member
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    the least I eat is 1200 calories-because the less you eat your body store the fat-I do planks-I do side to side situps=pullups squats and I can on-I have competed-it is mainly how you eat and what you eat-when you workout you should always tighten your stomach whetever excersie you do-I am know expert but I can only say what works for me-I have strong stomach muscles but it takes a lot of work-and doing it everyday like that will not make it happen any faster-I do workout 5 days aweek-2 days I rest-so to me its to each their own-but 900 calories is my focus to you that is truly not enough-and if you workout the way you say you need to fuel-for me I do stomach crunches-and sit ups and side to side crunches-I also do pull downs-you can add me if you like:smile:
  • crystalflame
    crystalflame Posts: 1,049 Member
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    I don't know what stones are, so I can';t calculate for you, but you can easily eat 1600 and still lose.

    A stone is 14lbs - so I currently weight 134lbs, with a goal of 120lbs.

    With your goal, you want to aim for 0.5-1lb per week loss. 1.5lbs is too high. You should calculate your TDEE as has been suggested, but just to give you an idea, I'm 5'5.5", burn an average of 250 cals/day with exercise, and I lose weight eating 1500 calories a day. Oh, and I eat ~2000 on weekends, so I average 1650 per day for the week. I lift weights so I don't lose muscle while losing fat. Doing that (and not even being very consistent, because I'm lazy about logging and I like to eat) got me from a 26" waist to a 25" waist in less than 2 months.

    I'll also mention that once upon a time I was anorexic, eating ~900 cals a day, and not doing any exercise other than walking. I got down to 112 lbs, but my waist was never as small as it is now. Eating enough and lifting are the keys to getting your body to look the way you want it to, NOT low calories.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    900 cal a day is a path to becoming ill and in terms of physique being skinny-fat where you are low weight sure but the weight you have is all fat and no muscle. You will feel tired, low energy, lethargic and if you ever dare to eat more you will put on weight much more easily than you had in the past. Not where you want to end up being.

    Eat more, do some weight training to maintain your muscle...you can still lose weight doing that but more importantly you will lose fat only and you will be healthier for it.
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    You lost your period because you were not netting enough. Eat more for a few days and it will come back.
  • calliegirl1973
    calliegirl1973 Posts: 23 Member
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    get a hula hoop for adults, like a weighted one. I have lost 1 inch on my waist in 1 1/2 weeks by adding that to my exercise. haven't lost pounds but have lost an inch.
  • SugaryLynx
    SugaryLynx Posts: 2,640 Member
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    get a hula hoop for adults, like a weighted one. I have lost 1 inch on my waist in 1 1/2 weeks by adding that to my exercise. haven't lost pounds but have lost an inch.

    Lol...
  • kjo9692
    kjo9692 Posts: 430 Member
    Options
    Hi,

    I have lost 10lbs so far (since 26th Feb 2014) - however my stomach (around my belly-button) measurement has only decreased by 0.5inch. I was wondering if I should expect this until my weight decreases more, or if there are any particular exercises I could do to help. I would be looking for low-impact exercise really, but any advice is more than welcome (current main exercise is walking).

    Below is my information:
    Height: 5ft 6
    Starting Weight: 10st 4lbs
    Current Weight: 9st 8lbs
    Goal Weight: 8st 7lbs

    Bust: 35inch
    Waist: 26.5inch
    Stomach: 32.5inch
    Hips: 39inch

    I am eating around 900 cals per day, however my exercise varies between 100 and 600 cals burned.

    Thank you

    I spit out my water when I read that you are only eating 900 calories per day.

    KLQIB.gif

    FIFY :happy:
  • kjo9692
    kjo9692 Posts: 430 Member
    Options
    Hi,

    I have lost 10lbs so far (since 26th Feb 2014) - however my stomach (around my belly-button) measurement has only decreased by 0.5inch. I was wondering if I should expect this until my weight decreases more, or if there are any particular exercises I could do to help. I would be looking for low-impact exercise really, but any advice is more than welcome (current main exercise is walking).

    Below is my information:
    Height: 5ft 6
    Starting Weight: 10st 4lbs
    Current Weight: 9st 8lbs
    Goal Weight: 8st 7lbs

    Bust: 35inch
    Waist: 26.5inch
    Stomach: 32.5inch
    Hips: 39inch

    I am eating around 900 cals per day, however my exercise varies between 100 and 600 cals burned.

    Thank you

    I spit out my water when I read that you are only eating 900 calories per day.


    Yeah, I ate 990...FOR LUNCH.

    IMPRESSIVE!

    tumblr_m961tmUFcj1r3qnxf.gif
  • creativechick22
    creativechick22 Posts: 12
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    Thank you for all the feedback - what amount of calories would you recommend I eat per day? 1200 as MFP says you should not go below?? I want to lose weight at a good pace, but obviously don't want to mess up my body / metabolism.

    & should I then eat any calories I burn from exercise too, or is 1200 cals per day enough as well as burning lets say 300 cals per day (walking). Would not eating the calories I have burnt from exercise be healthy?

    You need to calculate your TDEE (http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/), subtract 20% (and no more) from that number, and eat that many calories a day. You can manually change your goals in MFP. If you insist on using MFP's 1200 calorie limit, then YES, eat ALL of your exercise calories back (provided they are accurate). 1200 would be your NET goal, not gross. I strongly suggest the TDEE method, though, because I think MFP's is too low. MFP recommended I eat 1200 calories per day, too, but my TDEE - 20% is 1400, which is what I eat and I'm losing.

    I am not sure what to put in under the 'FORMULA' section - do I pick a particular one, and should I enter my body fat - I do not know my body fat measurement?
  • dlkingsbury
    dlkingsbury Posts: 90 Member
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    i know you can't lose weight in one specific area, but doing crunches always helps my stomach to shrink a bit temporarily.
  • Nice2BFitAgain
    Nice2BFitAgain Posts: 319 Member
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    I am not sure what to put in under the 'FORMULA' section - do I pick a particular one, and should I enter my body fat - I do not know my body fat measurement?

    Mifflin-St Jeor
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    Thank you for all the feedback - what amount of calories would you recommend I eat per day? 1200 as MFP says you should not go below?? I want to lose weight at a good pace, but obviously don't want to mess up my body / metabolism.

    & should I then eat any calories I burn from exercise too, or is 1200 cals per day enough as well as burning lets say 300 cals per day (walking). Would not eating the calories I have burnt from exercise be healthy?

    You need to calculate your TDEE (http://iifym.com/tdee-calculator/), subtract 20% (and no more) from that number, and eat that many calories a day. You can manually change your goals in MFP. If you insist on using MFP's 1200 calorie limit, then YES, eat ALL of your exercise calories back (provided they are accurate). 1200 would be your NET goal, not gross. I strongly suggest the TDEE method, though, because I think MFP's is too low. MFP recommended I eat 1200 calories per day, too, but my TDEE - 20% is 1400, which is what I eat and I'm losing.

    I am not sure what to put in under the 'FORMULA' section - do I pick a particular one, and should I enter my body fat - I do not know my body fat measurement?

    Again this underlies a problem with your approach. If your goal is to be fit, healthy and look good asthetically bodyfat percent is the exact thing you should be concerned about and yet you have chosen to focus on your scale weight. Learn about bodyfat percentage, learn how to measure it with either a tape measurer or a cheap pair of skinfold calipers and track your progress by your waist size and how well your clothes fit and NOT on the basis of how much you weigh.

    Honestly if you weigh around 135 as a 5'6 woman your scale weight shouldn't be going down much at all if you want to be fit, you just need to trade fat for muscle and you aren't going to be doing that at 900 cal a day. My girlfriend is your height, your weight and her stomach is completely flat. She eats probably close to 1800 cal a day and she exercises 3 times a week. Part of that 1800 cal is things like cookies.

    You are making this harder than it needs to be and its going to not get you to where you want to be.

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