Losing the pooch

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Emilyrichardsx
Emilyrichardsx Posts: 6 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello all, I am looking for tips on losing the terrible "pooch". I am 5'4" and weigh 112, but I can't seem to touch the weight on my lower abdomen. Any tips? I have been doing a good mix of weights and cardio for exercise. Has anyone had any great results from a certain exercise that targets this area? I hate it!!! Thank you :)

Oh, and for abdominal exercises I have been doing leg raises and sit-ups, planks, and turning from the plank position to work obliques (don't know the name of this move). These don't seem to be working... Yet anyways ):
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Replies

  • abigailduntley
    abigailduntley Posts: 4 Member
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    Focus on diet more than anything to target your abs and make sure not to under eat. Try doing more full range exercises with core. Jillian Michael's has a great core/ab DVD I used when I was shredding but I would focus more on a high protein diet to get that definition you're looking for.
  • Emilyrichardsx
    Emilyrichardsx Posts: 6 Member
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    I'll look into that DVD thank you! Never thought that under eating may be the problem :o
  • emdeesea
    emdeesea Posts: 1,823 Member
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    When you say "weights" how heavy are you talking?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    At 5ft4 and 112lbs I'm not sure how 'terrible' your stomach can be? Is it actual fat or loose skin?
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
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    Good info here: So You Want A Nice Stomach
  • hansmdude
    hansmdude Posts: 111 Member
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    You can't target a particular area when it comes to fat loss... your body decides where it comes off of first... so you just have to get rid of body fat in general until the belly fat is gone... targeted exercise will build/ strengthen the muscles but the fat in front of it will not be affected.
  • ShellyBell999
    ShellyBell999 Posts: 1,482 Member
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    AmyRhubarb wrote: »
    Good info here: So You Want A Nice Stomach

    +1

    Whew, I thought someone was looking for their dog.
    It makes me sad when pets get lost.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    Higher protein in your diet and you will lose fat by cutting!
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
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    I am curious about this as well. Particularly because i didn't have one until i woke up with it on january 5th post surgery and i'm wondering if there's even anything can be done about it exercise wise considering its not the lack of it that caused the giant alien baby bump or anything, soooo i wonder if its even fixable without more surgery....irritating....they go on and on about the scar..."you'll have a scar...are you still sure you want to donate?" never once was potentially permanent disfigurement mentioned :P
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    At that height and weight, I would wonder more if you should be focusing on building muscle by eating a bit over maintenance, rather than trying to lose more fat.
  • clabq0914
    clabq0914 Posts: 16 Member
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    You don't get to decide where fat comes off your body. You're not overweight, but you could be skinny fat. Get a bodyfat analysis done, don't worry about the scale too much, it's all about the percentage of lean body mass.

    Then focus on eating at a deficit and watch that pooch melt away.
  • Ginaaa71
    Ginaaa71 Posts: 61 Member
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    I've had 4 major abdominal surgeries (tumors and hysto)and my belly will never look normal. But when I weighed 150 it looked so much better. It seems that the muscles can never fully recover from being cut so much. I think the pooch is hereditary just like birthing hips on some people. They can get smaller but will always be there. People like me look at people with just a pooch and would love to look like that!
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Ginaaa71 wrote: »
    I think the pooch is hereditary just like birthing hips on some people.

    I see a lot of women who post pictures of their "pooches" and it's more a matter of bad posture and a low amount of muscle. Though heredity definitely plays a big part in where your fat tends to accumulate.

  • Ilikelamps
    Ilikelamps Posts: 482 Member
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    I thought a pooch is another name for a dog? :/
  • SonofNorthernDarkness
    SonofNorthernDarkness Posts: 64 Member
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    gia07 wrote: »
    Higher protein in your diet and you will lose fat by cutting!

    dxv4pwmeziw6.gif

  • SonofNorthernDarkness
    SonofNorthernDarkness Posts: 64 Member
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    Ilikelamps wrote: »
    I thought a pooch is another name for a dog? :/

    Right I thought this was a thread about dogs
  • justcat206
    justcat206 Posts: 716 Member
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    jemhh wrote: »
    Ginaaa71 wrote: »
    I think the pooch is hereditary just like birthing hips on some people.

    I see a lot of women who post pictures of their "pooches" and it's more a matter of bad posture and a low amount of muscle. Though heredity definitely plays a big part in where your fat tends to accumulate.

    This is true. Try doing some hip flexor stretches - it's always amazing to me how much more 'poochy' my tummy looks when my hips are tight and I'm not standing properly. Do some yoga (especially if you lift a lot which tightens things up) and see if some of that corrects. Look into variations on the pigeon pose.
  • Emilyrichardsx
    Emilyrichardsx Posts: 6 Member
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    Thank you all for the advice! I am trying to gain muscle primarily. I lift what I can, with free weights I'm up to 15-20 pounds on the bar but with machines I can do more. It is discouraging to have a specific problem area and not be able to do much about it except for wait. I'll look at some of the links shared and really focus on increasing my protein intake.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Emilyrichardsx wrote: »
    Thank you all for the advice! I am trying to gain muscle primarily. I lift what I can, with free weights I'm up to 15-20 pounds on the bar but with machines I can do more. It is discouraging to have a specific problem area and not be able to do much about it except for wait. I'll look at some of the links shared and really focus on increasing my protein intake.

    How many calories are you eating if you're trying to gain muscle?

    You can't really gain muscle and lose fat at the same time unless you're doing recomp?
  • Rafase282
    Rafase282 Posts: 14 Member
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    hansmdude wrote: »
    You can't target a particular area when it comes to fat loss... your body decides where it comes off of first... so you just have to get rid of body fat in general until the belly fat is gone... targeted exercise will build/ strengthen the muscles but the fat in front of it will not be affected.

    That is true, if you go crazy with abs workouts you will have hard rock abs pushing your belly fat up and making it more noticeable. Diet is the key for flat belly.

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