Waist Shrinking Exercises!!

malx21989
malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
edited September 27 in Fitness and Exercise
I have been doing the "normal" ab exercises like crunches, side crunches, stretches... etc. and I also have the "ab circle" but I haven't had any luck with losing inches not even 1!! . I feel the burn and have been doing them for about a month consistently . does anyone have any exercises that would be good at losing inches around my waist?? I have a 44" waist (that I am not excited about) maybe I just haven't waited long enough? I hear people losing at least an inch in a month, is that normal? too much? Any suggestions?

Replies

  • pinkchick2006
    pinkchick2006 Posts: 14 Member
    Are you also doing cardio because you have to burn the fat around the muscles for them to show and lose inches!
  • janinePitts
    janinePitts Posts: 1
    Also eating lots of greens, like salads helps.
  • denitraross
    denitraross Posts: 325 Member
    I love oblique bends - stand with feet shoulder width apart, weight in one hand (I use a 20 lb weight)...bend sideways (dont lean forward or backwards) and slide the hand with the wiegth down your leg to your knee or as far as you can push and back up.....I do 20 reps per side 3 times - gets rid of love handles and great definition in the waist (and I am always sore from these no matter how many times I have done them)....youtube it if my description wasn't that great :)
  • anubis609
    anubis609 Posts: 3,966 Member
    Ab routines only make the muscles stronger. Diet and cardio are the main components to proper weight and fat loss.
  • Jessaamine
    Jessaamine Posts: 111
    The P90X ab workout did good things for me. Super difficult to do, though.
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    i've been using a weighted hula hoop for a couple weeks and have recorded nearly a 3" loss. this is not exclusively due to the hoop, but in conjunction with a green smoothie every morning for breakfast and sometimes for dinner and commuting by bike anywhere between 15-20 miles a day, 5 days a week and 5-10m/day the other 2.

    i don't watch what i eat too much, but i do record it all. mostly i'm not as hungry as i used to be. my weight hasn't shifted for a while, but my body certainly has.

    i just put on my size 16 pants which is the smallest i've been in about 10 years. i owe a lot to the hoop. i do it for almost an hour a day, not always at one time.
  • malx21989
    malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
    Are you also doing cardio because you have to burn the fat around the muscles for them to show and lose inches!
    Yes I do a mile or more a day.... my calves look amazing! :tongue:
  • jmgj27
    jmgj27 Posts: 531 Member
    For me, it's running. I've dropped from 31" to 28" over the last three months or so and my waist's always been the most toned part of me so that's a big loss. I use the ball to do sit ups and I find the plank on an unstable surface (like a ball or balance board) is also very good for engaging my abs.
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
    Are you also doing cardio because you have to burn the fat around the muscles for them to show and lose inches!
    Yes I do a mile or more a day.... my calves look amazing! :tongue:

    Then it's your diet. "Abs are made in the kitchen" and it's true. Doing crunches does not effect your waist, btw. It's targeting your abs/stomach. Your waist will get smaller with cardio. You may need to speed up your work out or add more time to it to allow your body to get into the fat burning zone, versus just burning off the carbs & sugar. Supposedly it takes 20 minutes to get to where you're burning FAT so you should do at least 30 mins.
  • valbar61
    valbar61 Posts: 183 Member
    I don't know how long you have been trying to lose but I agree that cardio and food intake is what helps the most. I have been with MfP since 1/4/11 and have lost 48 pounds and 6 1/2 inches off my waist with no exercises targeting waist, just walking, biking.

    Hang in there and good luck!
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    i don't watch what i eat too much, but i do record it all. mostly i'm not as hungry as i used to be. my weight hasn't shifted for a while, but my body certainly has.

    i should add, i don't watch what i eat too much because i eat a mostly vegetarian diet which is really based in a whole-foods approach. that's the only reason i don't watch it too much, because it's pretty healthy overall. :)

    edit: my diary is open to the public.
  • malx21989
    malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
    Are you also doing cardio because you have to burn the fat around the muscles for them to show and lose inches!
    Yes I do a mile or more a day.... my calves look amazing! :tongue:

    Then it's your diet. "Abs are made in the kitchen" and it's true. Doing crunches does not effect your waist, btw. It's targeting your abs/stomach. Your waist will get smaller with cardio. You may need to speed up your work out or add more time to it to allow your body to get into the fat burning zone, versus just burning off the carbs & sugar. Supposedly it takes 20 minutes to get to where you're burning FAT so you should do at least 30 mins.

    I intake between 1200 and 1400 a day and I usually workout for about 45min. I run a half mile in the morning and around 2pm I run anywhere between a mile and a mile and a half, plus ab exercises and weights..... :cry: perhaps a have a thyroid problem?
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    you should consider opening up your diary so we can see if there's something tricky in there.
  • lizzycomp
    lizzycomp Posts: 64
    Be patient with yourself. "You didn't get the size you are now over night...so you won't lose it over night either". (I hate that saying even if it is true.) I started MFP in mid February of this year at 200...I'm 177 now. I concentrated on getting active when I started by walking a little over a mile every day...On one day a week I push myself to walk anywhere from 3-10 miles... a couple of days a week I'd do 20 minutes of yoga. The belly has gone down...not to where I can proudly show off a bikini, but I don't look pregnant anymore! Now I'm working on strength training more and adding Pilates (great for working out your core). So my point is...it's taken me 3 months to get to a point to where I'm seeing my progress in the belly area. Be patient...You WILL get there!
  • malx21989
    malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
    you should consider opening up your diary so we can see if there's something tricky in there.
    Fine, it's now public. I forgot I changed the settings.
  • tjradd73
    tjradd73 Posts: 3,495 Member
    everyone is pretty much right...there is no way to lose fat specifically around your waist (or anywhere for that matter) just keep losing fat and lbs by diet and cardio and then when you are ready to firm up your abs start core target exercise (pilates, crunches, toe dips, oblique bends)! good luck!
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    you should consider opening up your diary so we can see if there's something tricky in there.
    Fine, it's now public. I forgot I changed the settings.

    the last 3 days show only quick add calories, there's no way to tell if you're getting proper nutrition. one thing i did see was a taco bell item, which is loaded with sodium, so you may want to take a look in the area of salts zapping your nutrition

    my guess is that you're probably not getting the right kinds of calories and likely not enough fiber. that's typically the problem, so there's no reason to think you're outside of that. maybe increase your fiber intake with more whole foods and remove any fast food from your diet for a month at minimum (forever if possible - it will do you far more harm than good).

    good luck!
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    What worked for me is drinking water.. water and more water! The more water I drink, the smaller my waist/stomach looks.
  • malx21989
    malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
    you should consider opening up your diary so we can see if there's something tricky in there.
    Fine, it's now public. I forgot I changed the settings.

    the last 3 days show only quick add calories, there's no way to tell if you're getting proper nutrition. one thing i did see was a taco bell item, which is loaded with sodium, so you may want to take a look in the area of salts zapping your nutrition

    my guess is that you're probably not getting the right kinds of calories and likely not enough fiber. that's typically the problem, so there's no reason to think you're outside of that. maybe increase your fiber intake with more whole foods and remove any fast food from your diet for a month at minimum (forever if possible - it will do you far more harm than good).

    good luck!
    I put benefiber in my water every morning and I eat fiberone bars as snacks so trust me i have enough fiber, and quick add is easier because i usually use my phone to update my diary, and that was the only fast food I had in like 2 months.
  • ReneeOfTheFae
    ReneeOfTheFae Posts: 117
    If you are concerned that it could be your thyroid, I would have that checked right away. That's what my issue all of these years was. Go figure! Better to cover all bases, right?
  • Febgirl
    Febgirl Posts: 68 Member
    What sort of body shape are you - do you generally hold your weight around your middle? Hate to say it but I think genetics plays a big part. I naturally have a small waist in proportion to the rest of my body, and I find it relatively easy to lose inches off my waist, it seems to be one of the first places to go. My butt on the other hand - well that's the last place I start seeing results!

    If you tend towards being bigger in the middle it will probably take longer before you see results, but other parts of your body will probably reduce in the meantime. Hang in there...
  • malx21989
    malx21989 Posts: 39 Member
    What sort of body shape are you - do you generally hold your weight around your middle? Hate to say it but I think genetics plays a big part. I naturally have a small waist in proportion to the rest of my body, and I find it relatively easy to lose inches off my waist, it seems to be one of the first places to go. My butt on the other hand - well that's the last place I start seeing results!

    If you tend towards being bigger in the middle it will probably take longer before you see results, but other parts of your body will probably reduce in the meantime. Hang in there...
    Thank you I will, and since I had a baby 7 months ago yea I hold the weight around my middle (of course:tongue: ) before I got pregnant it wasn't as bad, I held most of my weight in my chest and butt.
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