MY TUMMY

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mamatjtr
mamatjtr Posts: 20
in Health and Weight Loss
HELLO,
DIET FRIENDS. I HOPE ALL ARE WELL AND DOING WELL, BEST OF LUCK TO YOU ALL!!!
I'M HAVING ANOTHER PROBLEM
I'M DOING OK AND WELL ON MY DIET I'M LOSING THE POUNDS THAT I WANT :happy: FROM EVERY PLACE BUT MY TUMMY. I'VE TRYED SIT UP, ROLL UPS, WALKING, USING A BALL, TAE BO, I'VE EVEN USED A TUMMY BELT TO HELP KEEP IT IN WHILE WORKING OUT OR JUST BECAUSE. I'M NOW UPSET AND CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE I WANT MY TUMMY TO GO DOWN :sad: WHAT CAN I DO???????????

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  • mamatjtr
    mamatjtr Posts: 20
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    HELLO,
    DIET FRIENDS. I HOPE ALL ARE WELL AND DOING WELL, BEST OF LUCK TO YOU ALL!!!
    I'M HAVING ANOTHER PROBLEM
    I'M DOING OK AND WELL ON MY DIET I'M LOSING THE POUNDS THAT I WANT :happy: FROM EVERY PLACE BUT MY TUMMY. I'VE TRYED SIT UP, ROLL UPS, WALKING, USING A BALL, TAE BO, I'VE EVEN USED A TUMMY BELT TO HELP KEEP IT IN WHILE WORKING OUT OR JUST BECAUSE. I'M NOW UPSET AND CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE I WANT MY TUMMY TO GO DOWN :sad: WHAT CAN I DO???????????
  • irreligiouspiety07
    irreligiouspiety07 Posts: 45
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    Oh hell.
    Dont do sit ups! It will only make the muscle under the fat bigger ( meaning your tummy will start to look bigger)

    you should try a little jogging, the cardio helps to melt off the tummy-ness.
    :)

    Good Luck!
  • LovelyLady1977
    LovelyLady1977 Posts: 428
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    I am just the opposite. My midsection shrinks rapidly, while my lower body always lags waaay behind! :laugh:

    Unfortunately, though, there is no such thing as spot reduction. Fat is burned from body areas in genetically pre-determined patterns. Just keep doing what you're doing and hopefully your body will get around to melting that unwanted belly fat soon. Hang in there! :flowerforyou:
  • LovelyLady1977
    LovelyLady1977 Posts: 428
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    ...Dont do sit ups! It will only make the muscle under the fat bigger ( meaning your tummy will start to look bigger...

    I disagree with this. I don't see how such exercises can make your abdominal muscles bigger. It is my understanding that building your abdominal muscles may even help you look a little thinner because you can hold in your belly fat better.

    An added advantage to doing both strength training and cardio together is that you tone up and burn fat at the same time.
  • Poison5119
    Poison5119 Posts: 1,460 Member
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    ONe of the things I'm working on right now is what I call oblique dead lifts. It works the obliques.

    I stand with my arms at my sides, my feet about 12-14 inches apart (aligned with the hips and shoulders). I hold a 20 lb weight in one hand, and bend toward the side with the weight til the weight is almost at mid-thigh. Then I bend back up to standing straight. This works both oblique areas on both sides - adducting and abducting (pushing and pulling). It is QUTE the workout and quite effective. I do about 3-4 sets of 15 reps.

    It looks silly, almost ineffective, but if you try it and/or add it to your reg ab crunches, it's quite different. This will draw your waist in from a different angle.
  • elliott062907
    elliott062907 Posts: 1,508 Member
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    I have to honestly say, when I stick to it that is, When I have trouble with the tummy, I use my ab rocker and walk with my dogs. My neighborhood is hilly too. That helps!!!

    With the ab rocker, I have discovered that you are burning the fat on the muscle, not building the muscle to appear bigger, and when you walk on uneven grades, you are more apt to use you tummy muscles and burn the fat as well.
  • Phoenix_Rising
    Phoenix_Rising Posts: 11,417 Member
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    Dont do sit ups! It will only make the muscle under the fat bigger ( meaning your tummy will start to look bigger)

    I've heard this too, and also that if you aren't pulling your stomach in while doing sit ups/crunches/ab work that the muscle will protroud a bit, making your stomach look larger.

    Any truth to it? No clue! Just thought I'd add that I've heard that too.
  • GinaB30
    GinaB30 Posts: 725 Member
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    Dont do sit ups! It will only make the muscle under the fat bigger ( meaning your tummy will start to look bigger)

    I've heard this too, and also that if you aren't pulling your stomach in while doing sit ups/crunches/ab work that the muscle will protroud a bit, making your stomach look larger.

    Any truth to it? No clue! Just thought I'd add that I've heard that too.

    I don't know- back in the day when ALL I did was the ab roller and ummm that there thing....(kinda like an elliptical) Oh! Air walker! lol I lost it from my stomach FAST!
  • Anna_Banana
    Anna_Banana Posts: 2,939 Member
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    It will eventually go away, you just have to stick with it. When there is no fat to lose anywhere else you will have to lose it on your tummy.:wink:
  • TexasAngelBeth
    TexasAngelBeth Posts: 315 Member
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    I lost 4.75 inches off my stomach with excercise and with going to a seriously hard abs class 4 nights a week... In that time frame I lost hte weight and managed to keep it and the inches off my waist line
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    Dont do sit ups! It will only make the muscle under the fat bigger ( meaning your tummy will start to look bigger)

    I've heard this too, and also that if you aren't pulling your stomach in while doing sit ups/crunches/ab work that the muscle will protroud a bit, making your stomach look larger.

    Any truth to it? No clue! Just thought I'd add that I've heard that too.

    No. The muscles you use to 'suck in' are not the same ones you use to bend your body in half. You have 4 abdominal muscle layers:

    Rectus abdominus is the vertical line of musculature we can see beneath the skin in lean individuals. I brings our chest to our pelvis.

    External obliques are beneath the rectus and run diagonally from our lateral ribs to our pubis, and pull our pelvis diagonally up to our chest.

    Internal obliques are beneath both of those and run diagonally from our lateral pelvic crest to our sternum and pull our chest diagonally down to our pelvis.

    The transverse abdominus is the deepest layer and runs horizontally like a belt from our lumbar vertebra to our linea alba, or the vertical line that runs down the center of our abdomen. This holds our insides in, and what contracts when we 'suck in'.

    The abdominal muscles are made for slight movements. Crunches utilize the rectus abdominus. Sit ups largely utilize the hip flexors, or what some people call 'lower abs'. However, there are no 'lower abs'. Any time you bend your body inward, your whole rectus will contract. The hip flexors originate in the lower back and insert in the front of the femur and pelvis and are not connected to the abdominals.

    The transerve abdominus isn't used in crunches or sit ups, so doing them won't make your insides suddenly bulge out and give you a pot belly.

    Most of us do so much ab work that we wouldn't even give the muscle time to hypertrophy if the conditions were right.

    Folks, let's not forget how INCREDIBLY HARD it is to gain muscle even in a caloric excess.

    And let's really not forget that it's PHYSIOLOGICALLY IMPOSSIBLE when we're in a caloric deficit.

    We should also remember that muscle is more dense than fat, and therefore takes up *little space* even when we can add some.
  • KrisKabob
    KrisKabob Posts: 1,250 Member
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    ONe of the things I'm working on right now is what I call oblique dead lifts. It works the obliques.

    I stand with my arms at my sides, my feet about 12-14 inches apart (aligned with the hips and shoulders). I hold a 20 lb weight in one hand, and bend toward the side with the weight til the weight is almost at mid-thigh. Then I bend back up to standing straight. This works both oblique areas on both sides - adducting and abducting (pushing and pulling). It is QUTE the workout and quite effective. I do about 3-4 sets of 15 reps.

    It looks silly, almost ineffective, but if you try it and/or add it to your reg ab crunches, it's quite different. This will draw your waist in from a different angle.

    I completely agree with this... try something new. Oblique dead lifts are great (I was just recommending them in another post). Your body is probably used to what you are doing so change it up. Also, since you stand to do the dead lifts it is better on your back AND it strengthens your CORE muscles which makes you mid-section very strong. Be sure that when you are doing them that you keep you abs contracted/tight through all your reps and don't rest too long between the sets (30-45 seconds should be enough). You will see results if you stick to doing the exercises along with your cardio each week. Once your body gets used to the weight, reps, and sets you are doing then just increase one, two, or all three components.

    O' and I totally disagree with the post to NOT DO SIT UPS. Muscle is much leaner than fat so it is smaller than fat is AND it burns more calories than fat does (which means it increases you metabolism - YAY). That's what you want to happen! Keep up the ab-work out! In fact, be sure your incorporating weight training on all parts of your body... as long as you keep the weight amount low and the reps high you will not get bulky results.

    Good Luck!!! :drinker: :flowerforyou: :bigsmile:
  • DjBliss05
    DjBliss05 Posts: 682
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    I have the same exact problem!

    I have lot 12 lbs so far and can see it in my face and on my legs. My pants are super baggy now!

    Up until this week, I hadn't even lost a centimeter from my waist (which is what really needs to go). I've heard that where you gained most recently is the last to go. It is true for me!

    Keep at it! It will come off eventually and I know it is really frustrating. I would keep up with the ab workouts, b/c I dont think it can hurt. Eventually, your tummy will start to shrink too. I am thrilled about the 1 inch that came off my waist and can't wait for more of it to go! :flowerforyou:
  • JessicaT2007
    JessicaT2007 Posts: 553 Member
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    I do lots of interval cardio to help burn the fat with the changing of my heart rate. I also do my crunches and ab work outs with a light medicine ball. Doing these workouts with weights can triple the effect. Also, if you do the crunches correctly you can help burn the fat, not just build bulky muscle under your fat. The key is doing ab work to tone, not to build muscle. Don't use heavy weights, or do too many situps in one setting. Toning is doing the crunches slow and hold positions longer. Hope this helps you :happy:
  • arewethereyet
    arewethereyet Posts: 18,702 Member
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    ONe of the things I'm working on right now is what I call oblique dead lifts. It works the obliques.

    I stand with my arms at my sides, my feet about 12-14 inches apart (aligned with the hips and shoulders). I hold a 20 lb weight in one hand, and bend toward the side with the weight til the weight is almost at mid-thigh. Then I bend back up to standing straight. This works both oblique areas on both sides - adducting and abducting (pushing and pulling). It is QUTE the workout and quite effective. I do about 3-4 sets of 15 reps.

    It looks silly, almost ineffective, but if you try it and/or add it to your reg ab crunches, it's quite different. This will draw your waist in from a different angle.

    Thanks! I am bored with crunches. I am trying this tomorrow.
  • arewethereyet
    arewethereyet Posts: 18,702 Member
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    I was frustrated with the lack of movement in the center region. I told my very fit BFF that I was going to stop doing my crunches, obliques and leg lifts, as it was not helping.

    She told me to lay down, then get back up again. She reminded me I could not do this 4 months ago. Before I had rolled over and pushed myself up with my arms.

    Also my lower back does not hurt any longer.

    I am doing my stomach work because it makes me stronger. When the fat is finally gone, the lean muscles will come shining through!
  • LovelyLady1977
    LovelyLady1977 Posts: 428
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    ...I am doing my stomach work because it makes me stronger. When the fat is finally gone, the lean muscles will come shining through!

    Yup yup!

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