LARGE/Wide Rib Cage. Can I ever get a flat core/torso?

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  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    don't mind me, i'm just stopping by again to check out those pics. the second girl, did she use all of the baby oil or ALL of the baby oil? and do you think she needs a spotter? i'd be happy lend a hand.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
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    I have a very wide rib cage (thanks to having boys who lived inside of my ribs the last few months of pregnancy). It's possible to have a nice core and part of presentation is just how you bend/lean/stand. Even judges at competitions comment on my rib cage being big.

    IMG_20130803_135317_zps3ef17f41.jpg

    you looking ****ing amazing, the judges must be blind.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
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    I have a very wide rib cage (thanks to having boys who lived inside of my ribs the last few months of pregnancy). It's possible to have a nice core and part of presentation is just how you bend/lean/stand. Even judges at competitions comment on my rib cage being big.

    IMG_20130803_135317_zps3ef17f41.jpg

    This is bringing nitpicking to a new level. I'm sorry, but I just don't see it. I get that people are here to look better but finding fault with one's most basic and unalterable attributes is a line that is better not crossed.

    Put another way, you looking ****ing amazing, the judges must be blind.

    Thank you! I don't mind my big rib cage. I get accused of sucking in my gut all the time (it's not sucking it in if I'm flexing).
  • elyelyse
    elyelyse Posts: 1,454 Member
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    No, you won't look like the women in the photo as they have different skeletal proportions than you do.

    also because Photoshop.

    Before I get jumped on for saying that, I am sure that they look absolutely freaking fabulous amazing and I have the utmost respect for the amount of work that goes into what they look like in order to even look like they do in the photos before manipulation...however, it's also good to acknowledge reality.
  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
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    I have a wide ribcage, but it's only unusually wide in one direction (across the front/back). My main abs kind of fit inside it, lol. It just makes me look like I'm sucking in when I'm not.

    It does make it hard to have a very small waist, though. My hips are wide enough across and close enough to my ribs that there isn't room to get down to a teeny number at the waist.
  • in_the_stars
    in_the_stars Posts: 1,395 Member
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    http://www.nalyfashion.com/vertical-body-page-2.html
  • BossLadyDSimp
    BossLadyDSimp Posts: 257 Member
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    I dont have much to add sorry ... I feel your pain though
    I have been told for a long time that I have a large ribcage ... great for swimming not so great for weightloss!

    LOVE WHAT YOU HAVE!!!

    50540473.png
  • mxrgans
    mxrgans Posts: 1
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    I'm only a teenager but I have exactly the same problem. I got it from my dad like many others said and if I'm honest I absolutely hate mine, I've been researching how to get rid of it for a while now and the only solution seems to be to get a strap from the doctor which will inevitably flatten it over the space of 2 years, however this would probably be no use to you as you are fully grown. I'm really self conscious about my "pigeon chest" as my family call it and it makes me feel like I'm not normal, but by reading all these comments I can relate to all of you, so I'm not alone. If you find any good solutions please reply as I'm desperate of getting fid of it. Thanks x
  • ggilbert95
    ggilbert95 Posts: 33 Member
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    bump
  • victorialatham330
    victorialatham330 Posts: 3 Member
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    I found this great link with advice on exercises / breathing techniques you can use to help with rib flare:

    http://mollygalbraith.com/2012/08/weekly-reader-question-3-breathing-techniques-for-a-smaller-waist-and-tummy/

    The questioner provided her feeback and photo results:

    http://zmoore.com/huge-announcement-my-interview-on-weighttraining-com-and-awesome-reader-results/

    Looks good and worth a try to me! Hope this helps.
  • Angelalouise7
    Angelalouise7 Posts: 1
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    I have a big and protruding ribcage too, I'm 5'6 ft and have long arms and legs with skinny wrists and ankles (even when i have weight on). Its defo genetics coz i remember a friend at school years ago mentioned how big my ribcage was in P.E once, also when i was pregnant with my son he caused my ribs to flare out at the bottom too, as he was very big. I think of myself as a thoroughbred; elegant with really good posture :)
  • isabeautie94
    isabeautie94 Posts: 2
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    I know exactly what you are talking about because mine do the same thing. Contrary to some answers, your can expand and collapse because if they didnt, we would see large sets of cages on those extreme weight loss stories of women and men who lost over 100 pounds. Buthe expanding has to do with the fat not just over, but under as well. When you lose weight, some fat under will be lost and help collapse it a little. But genetically, we are prone to certain bone structures so it may not go down as much as we would hope. I got this information from my college biology class.

    Also, though. I read somewhere that some models get surgery to remove the bottom to ribs to achieve that flat look. This means two things, 1, that skinny girls can have the same problem, and 2, that many of the flat torsos arent even natural. This gave me some comfort knowing that many of them resorted to this type of surgery just to satisfy a sad, 21st century ideal of the "hpt body". My body will look good when im skinnier, and it will look nothing close to a victoria's secret model,, and im okay with that.

    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    Hope this helped. It came from a textbook, and not the ones that were on my stomach at night. :)
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
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    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    :noway: No. Just no. By that logic I would have always had a flat stomach.
  • skullshank
    skullshank Posts: 4,324 Member
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    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    Hope this helped. It came from a textbook, and not the ones that were on my stomach at night. :)

    post-33337-it-just-seems-dumb-gif-Duck-Dy-hr1O.gif
  • firstsip
    firstsip Posts: 8,399 Member
    Options
    I know exactly what you are talking about because mine do the same thing. Contrary to some answers, your can expand and collapse because if they didnt, we would see large sets of cages on those extreme weight loss stories of women and men who lost over 100 pounds. Buthe expanding has to do with the fat not just over, but under as well. When you lose weight, some fat under will be lost and help collapse it a little. But genetically, we are prone to certain bone structures so it may not go down as much as we would hope. I got this information from my college biology class.

    Also, though. I read somewhere that some models get surgery to remove the bottom to ribs to achieve that flat look. This means two things, 1, that skinny girls can have the same problem, and 2, that many of the flat torsos arent even natural. This gave me some comfort knowing that many of them resorted to this type of surgery just to satisfy a sad, 21st century ideal of the "hpt body". My body will look good when im skinnier, and it will look nothing close to a victoria's secret model,, and im okay with that.

    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    Hope this helped. It came from a textbook, and not the ones that were on my stomach at night. :)

    Citation pls.
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
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    I have a very wide rib cage (thanks to having boys who lived inside of my ribs the last few months of pregnancy). It's possible to have a nice core and part of presentation is just how you bend/lean/stand. Even judges at competitions comment on my rib cage being big.

    IMG_20130803_135317_zps3ef17f41.jpg


    holy moly, that's hot. you're hot.
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,220 Member
    Options
    I have a very wide rib cage (thanks to having boys who lived inside of my ribs the last few months of pregnancy). It's possible to have a nice core and part of presentation is just how you bend/lean/stand. Even judges at competitions comment on my rib cage being big.

    IMG_20130803_135317_zps3ef17f41.jpg


    holy moly, that's hot. you're hot.

    :blushing: Thank you! :flowerforyou:
  • calibriintx
    calibriintx Posts: 1,741 Member
    Options
    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    Hope this helped. It came from a textbook, and not the ones that were on my stomach at night. :)

    What.gif
  • IronPlayground
    IronPlayground Posts: 1,594 Member
    Options
    And finally. Bone structure can be bended and changed over time by this powerful force we all know as gravity. Some people actually grow shorter as they get older because of all the years gravity was pulling them closer to the earth. With that being said, i read an article that said sleeping on your back can help you achieve a flatter stomach because gravity pulls you to the ground for 7 hours a day, every day. So i tried it one dedicated, young summer in high school when i was very weight-conscious. After 3 months i saw a difference, so (and thos is gonna sound REALLY SILLY) i started sleeping with a textbook on my stomach, to "strengthen gravity". It worked more with flattening my stomach and ribs, although i know now that gravity has the same pull no matter the weight. It helped though, having the textbook there to remind me I cannot turn to my side.

    11F1F4A2-C0D1-40EA-A3E4-7799890FDFC3_zpsrftkoufc.jpg
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
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    I just want to comment on your top picture.

    A lack of core strength and lack of shoulder mobility is causing your ribcage to flare forward to compensate for a lack of shoulder mobility with your arms over your head.

    Most people can see this in action very easy. Stand straight back against a wall, feet a couple inches in front, shoulder blades touching the wall, arms at your sides. Flex your abs hard so that your lower back is also touching the wall (tilting your hips back). Now slowly lift your arms over your head. At some point, unless you have awesome shoulder mobility, you will be unable to maintain lower back contact with the wall; your back arching, lower ribs jutting forward, will be the only way you can lift your arms higher.

    This is exactly what you are doing in the top picture.

    Were your arms by your sides and your core engaged (instead of the somewhat stomach vacuum that you are doing), your ribs would look a lot different.

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