For women that have children
BeccaLoves2lift
Posts: 375 Member
Does the tummy pooch ever completely go away? Will there always be a bit of loose skin? I'm 33 and I have 3 children. My youngest is 3. My prepregnancy weight with him was 126lbs and I was a size 8 (I'm in the US). I think I gained about 25 lbs in that pregnancy. After the initial loss of having him I stayed around 137 for a long time. My life was busy and I didn't have good eating habits and I didn't workout regularly. So in January this year I started at 136 lbs. I have been eating much better and working out very regularly. Today my weight is 120.6 and a size 6 is a little big on me. My goal weight is 115. I'm 5'2" for reference. But I still have a tummy pooch. How can I get it to go away? I'm doing tons of crunches. I can feel my abs but they are under that pooch. Help
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crunches work the abs muscle but it wont burn the fat on it. the tummy fat will be either less or all gone by the time u get to 117 or 115. fat from problem areas r the last to disappear because thats where our body like to store fat n has the most fat cell.
keep exercising n eat at a caloric deficit n get another few pound of fat off then it will go away. as for the loose skin only time can tell coz we all have different genetics.
lastly, HIIT n lifting will help u to get to ur goal if u havent try them yet.
PS CONGRATS on the new you
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Hopefully genetics is on your side.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p12 -
crunches work the abs muscle but it wont burn the fat on it. the tummy fat will be either less or all gone by the time u get to 117 or 115. fat from problem areas r the last to disappear because thats where our body like to store fat n has the most fat cell.
keep exercising n eat at a caloric deficit n get another few pound of fat off then it will go away. as for the loose skin only time can tell coz we all have different genetics.
lastly, HIIT n lifting will help u to get to ur goal if u havent try them yet.
PS CONGRATS on the new you
Thanks! I'm doing some HIIT workouts and I am doing resistance training as well. So I guess I just need to be patient, which is really hard!0 -
If you had him naturally then eventually it *may* but yeah, genetics play a big role in that. I had a c-section, I will forever have a pooch regardless of how much I work out. My mom was a skinny Minnie and always had hers.0
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If you had him naturally then eventually it *may* but yeah, genetics play a big role in that. I had a c-section, I will forever have a pooch regardless of how much I work out. My mom was a skinny Minnie and always had hers.
I had a C-section with my first and VBACs with my other two. My C-section was a bikini incision, why would that prevent the pooch from going away?0 -
Mine did after my first two. My third is 2 years old now. I just started working out again.
I didn't have a c section so I'm not sure if that plays a role.
I'm also 5'2.3 -
I'm 5'3.5" and had a csection 6.5 months ago. I'm swiftly approaching my lowest adult weight and am hoping to get to 130ish pounds. Who knows maybe my mommy tummy will be gone then but if not I'm okay with it.
The pooch may or may not go away depending on genetics and your muscles. Congrats on your success thus far!1 -
I had a pooch before I even got pregnant, I think it's just my body type. I was quite thin ( 134, 5'6'', size 4) but I never did have a smooth stomach. Now 10 months postpartum my stomach looks pretty much the same as it did before. My friend had a baby around the same time and her stomach is flat again. I think it's genetics, life's not fair
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I'm still blessed with my kangaroo pouch!1
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I agree with mentioned hopefully genetics is on your side, and you're already working out which will help. I would also recommend staying fully hydrated water is amazing. All of these are just suggestions maybe surgery could be the final answer.
My sisters were both thin but they also mentioned this pooch but for them they mentioned it was due to the stomach expanding and stretching with pregnancy.0 -
Haha OP we have a lot in common. I'm 32 with three kids, youngest is 2.5 years old and had one c-section and 2 vbacs. With me I have a feeling that it was my last baby that have me the loose skin even though with him I gained the least amount of weight (25 lbs). As I lost the weight I noticed that the leaner I got the more noticeable the loose skin is. I don't have a pooch atm but my stomach is now the first place I gain weight, so the pooch comes and goes. It's funny before kids esp my third ehem, I use to gain weight on my butt and thighs first.
OP just keep doing what you're doing, you're on the right track.1 -
Not for me.. genetics is NOT on my side for that. I hold all my weight in my middle.1
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I'm very petite (5'2 & under 100) and, after my daughter, I thought my stomach would always stay a little "rounder". Then, a few months ago, it just went away. I have no idea why. I didn't change anything...I just defeated (not complaining). It was odd. So, hang in there. Sounds like you're doing everything right.0
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I don't have a pooch, but I have a bit of loose skin...and abs. It just is what it is.
I've seen quite a few naked moms in the locker room...even the very fit, athletic moms have loose stomach skin.0 -
I have loose skin. 2 kiddos, both c-sections, and I was pretty obese after my first.
My recommendation is Strength Training with progressive overload.
**I look mad in the pic on the right, but I'm actually in a lot of pain. That pic was yesterday morning and last night I found out that my pain is being caused by mirena which after almost 3 years has made it's way into my abdomen.**
Edit: Oh and I'm 5'4.5". Currently around 132 lbs. The purple shirt pics, I was around 135 lbs.4 -
shadow2soul wrote: »I have loose skin. 2 kiddos, both c-sections, and I was pretty obese after my first.
My recommendation is Strength Training with progressive overload.
**I look mad in the pic on the right, but I'm actually in a lot of pain. That pic was yesterday morning and last night I found out that my pain is being caused by mirena which after almost 3 years has made it's way into my abdomen.**
Edit: Oh and I'm 5'4.5". Currently around 132 lbs.
Ouch! I hope you get that taken care of soon. Your tummy is a bit smaller than mine, my skin looks very similar.0 -
I'm 5'0, 113.5 lbs (have lost 33). I still have a c section pooch unfortunately. It's the reason I'm continuing to work to lose weight, holding out a slim hope that it'll go eventually!0
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I've been wondering if the muscles are just too long from being stretched out. I'm at my high school weight but this is not my high school body. It's not that I want to have visible abs, I just don't want my belly to stick out so far. If I could 'tighten an inner corset', the small bit of fat I have on top wouldn't look weirdly out of place.
ETA: My arms are firm, my legs feel like they are almost completely muscle, I don't look so bad from behind, but it is like I have a half stuffed pillow in front.1 -
Yes. I had my son at age 23 and actually went down to a Size 1 (not intentionally...from taking a 12 hour, high activity job right after his birth) and never developed the "belly pooch" until about 11 years later when I had to do more sitting in a Surgical Admin position. I also gained General weight and the dreaded pooch. Apparently, posture from desk jobs and stress creates that pooch, too. It's visceral fat and hardest to lose.
But if you lose enough fat, you can definitely lose the pooch (or most of it). But good core strength and posture and stress management are equally important in losing it/avoiding it.
Those workouts that "target" certain areas are pure BS. You can't burn fat in just one area. You casn build muscle in a targeted zone, but until the fat is lost all over...those muscles will stay hidden. But building them is good for burning more calories daily, of course.0 -
shadow2soul wrote: »I have loose skin. 2 kiddos, both c-sections, and I was pretty obese after my first.
My recommendation is Strength Training with progressive overload.
**I look mad in the pic on the right, but I'm actually in a lot of pain. That pic was yesterday morning and last night I found out that my pain is being caused by mirena which after almost 3 years has made it's way into my abdomen.**
Edit: Oh and I'm 5'4.5". Currently around 132 lbs. The purple shirt pics, I was around 135 lbs.
You look AWESOME!0 -
<--my stomach after having VBAC at 42, now I'm 48. Everyone is different and I think it depends a lot on if your stomach was flat before pregnancy. Mine was and it took work but is again.1
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<--my stomach after having VBAC at 42, now I'm 48. Everyone is different and I think it depends a lot on if your stomach was flat before pregnancy. Mine was and it took work but is again.
You look great! My tummy was never flat. But my one of my goals is to have a flat tummy. I'm going to keep working at it.1 -
MrsBeccaM5 wrote: »<--my stomach after having VBAC at 42, now I'm 48. Everyone is different and I think it depends a lot on if your stomach was flat before pregnancy. Mine was and it took work but is again.
You look great! My tummy was never flat. But my one of my goals is to have a flat tummy. I'm going to keep working at it.
You can do it! Even though I had a flat stomach before pregnancy I always carried more fat on hips/glutes. Through keeping a deficit and following a progressive lifting program I lost inches off my lower body.
Hard work does pay off!
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I think it depends. My best friend is the fittest person I know. Regularly runs 10 miles a day. Her body is amazing, but she still complains about her little pooch. But who freaking cares? I mean, she had 3 kids...she earned that pooch.3
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Deleted due to duplicate post!0
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I guess it depends if it's loose skin or fat - fat I think would be more likely to go than loose skin. I have some loose skin after having my little boy 2.5 years ago then losing weight. It has shrunk a bit but I don't think it'll ever be as tight as it was pre-pregnancy without a tummy tuck!0
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I look the way I did before I had kids, but with loose skin. Not a six pack, like the kind of stomach you'd show off in a crop top, but not a problem area, either. It doesn't stick out and I look fine in clothes. The loose skin makes me pickier about bikinis, though. I have had 3 kids, all c-sections.0
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I think it's a crap shoot. I have a friend who had twins vaginally 14 years ago. She was young and is terribly athletic. But she always looks like she's about four months pregnant. On the other hand, I have a friend who had triplets by C-section, and even though she isn't in the least bit athletic, she returned pretty rapidly to slim and absolutely no tummy pooch.
I had my one and only child at 42, by C-section. When he was about four years old, I had gradually lost about 20 pounds. I didn't have a tummy pooch at all even though I was still 10 pounds over my ideal weight. Right now, I'm 30 pounds over my ideal weight. I have a bit of a Dunlop, but I anticipate it will significantly reduce again when I've dropped another 10 pounds.0
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