Sit-ups. Belly fat

meagan8376
meagan8376 Posts: 94 Member
edited November 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I'm 5'2 140 pounds on a good day..a lot of belly.
When I do sit ups, the next day I swear my belly looks so much more flat oppose to the days I do not do sit-ups. It's not my imagination.... However I do know only cardio can burn fat sooo....???..

Replies

  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,340 Member
    edited August 2018
    You don't burn fat from a particular area of your body by doing exercises which target it. You're targeting the muscles, not the fat. Fat has no contractile properties and can't be exercised, and the muscles beneath it do nothing to directly burn the fat above them.

    You lose fat by consuming less calories than you expend, by whatever means you accomplish that. How and where the fat comes off is dictated by your genetics and you can't affect it by diet, supplements or exercise.

    Here's a study - six weeks of doing daily abdominal exercises resulted in no weight loss, no reduction of body fat, no reduction of waist circumference: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21804427
  • moogie_fit
    moogie_fit Posts: 281 Member
    meagan8376 wrote: »
    I'm 5'2 140 pounds on a good day..a lot of belly.
    When I do sit ups, the next day I swear my belly looks so much more flat oppose to the days I do not do sit-ups. It's not my imagination.... However I do know only cardio can burn fat sooo....???..

    When working a muscle group you get a pump, watet and carbs are drawn into your abs which is what your experiencing. I find when I want to wear crop tops etc, I like to do a few sit up and it makes my stomach look nicer
  • Keto_Vampire
    Keto_Vampire Posts: 1,670 Member
    edited August 2018
    Bro/broette, spot reduction is a myth for the most part. Kcal deficit enough
  • meagan8376
    meagan8376 Posts: 94 Member
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    Sit ups are and crunches are bad for your lower back.

    They are of no benefit for weight loss and there are far better exercises you can do to increase ab/core strength w/o risking injury to your back.

    I actually do the ones where you lay down and go up and down with your legs just don't know the technical term so I said sit ups. Lol.

    Although I've done sit-ups before years ago and never had a problem with my back.
    moogie_fit wrote: »
    meagan8376 wrote: »
    I'm 5'2 140 pounds on a good day..a lot of belly.
    When I do sit ups, the next day I swear my belly looks so much more flat oppose to the days I do not do sit-ups. It's not my imagination.... However I do know only cardio can burn fat sooo....???..

    When working a muscle group you get a pump, watet and carbs are drawn into your abs which is what your experiencing. I find when I want to wear crop tops etc, I like to do a few sit up and it makes my stomach look nicer
    Yes, I find that my stomach just looks way better when I do crunches.
    sijomial wrote: »
    Perhaps your posture is better when you are exercising? More conscious of your abs so you hold yourself better?

    It not a particular exercise that burns fat - it's your long term calorie deficit. Your body fat isn't varying enough day to day to be the cause of what you are seeing.

    That could be one theory.
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