So you want a nice stomach

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Replies

  • friedpet
    friedpet Posts: 20 Member
    I’m sorry that came across as me doubting your seriousness.

    It does take consistently showing up at the gym 3 to 6 times a week and following an effective progressive overload programme, for most people it’s years and years of work to get a great physique. So you need to work out a way of making training a pleasure rather than a struggle. You need to enjoy the journey of training imo.
    In all sincerity, if you have any tips for making exercise a pleasure, I'm open to them. Weight training is the least abhorrent method for me, but it's still far from enjoyable. I've been consistently going to the gym 3-4 times per week for over a year now because I hate how I look more than I hate working out. I was making regular progressive overload increases with my program until a few months ago, but I can't regularly hit my set/rep targets anymore. Losing this feeling of progress without seeing a corresponding nice/flat stomach in the mirror has made working out even less of a pleasure, so I posted my questions to see if I was missing something. I appreciate the responses, and since my current approach isn't working anymore, I'm going to give the PHUL program a shot at maintenance/recomp intake. Hopefully, I'll have a success story to share later.
  • cupcakesandproteinshakes
    cupcakesandproteinshakes Posts: 1,091 Member
    friedpet wrote: »
    I’m sorry that came across as me doubting your seriousness.

    It does take consistently showing up at the gym 3 to 6 times a week and following an effective progressive overload programme, for most people it’s years and years of work to get a great physique. So you need to work out a way of making training a pleasure rather than a struggle. You need to enjoy the journey of training imo.
    In all sincerity, if you have any tips for making exercise a pleasure, I'm open to them. Weight training is the least abhorrent method for me, but it's still far from enjoyable. I've been consistently going to the gym 3-4 times per week for over a year now because I hate how I look more than I hate working out. I was making regular progressive overload increases with my program until a few months ago, but I can't regularly hit my set/rep targets anymore. Losing this feeling of progress without seeing a corresponding nice/flat stomach in the mirror has made working out even less of a pleasure, so I posted my questions to see if I was missing something. I appreciate the responses, and since my current approach isn't working anymore, I'm going to give the PHUL program a shot at maintenance/recomp intake. Hopefully, I'll have a success story to share later.

    I did PHUL for 3 months and enjoyed it. I found the sessions took over an hour which was a bit long for me so I chanted programme I don’t know what to suggest, other than if you don’t enjoy lifting weights then maybe find another way of training they can give you some muscle. Maybe a bodyweight gymnastics programme?. Cross fit if you like group training? I don’t really know what else to suggest. When I started out I had a training partner and that helped as I had someone to talk to between sets.
  • jseams1234
    jseams1234 Posts: 1,216 Member
    friedpet wrote: »
    I’m sorry that came across as me doubting your seriousness.

    It does take consistently showing up at the gym 3 to 6 times a week and following an effective progressive overload programme, for most people it’s years and years of work to get a great physique. So you need to work out a way of making training a pleasure rather than a struggle. You need to enjoy the journey of training imo.
    In all sincerity, if you have any tips for making exercise a pleasure, I'm open to them. Weight training is the least abhorrent method for me, but it's still far from enjoyable. I've been consistently going to the gym 3-4 times per week for over a year now because I hate how I look more than I hate working out. I was making regular progressive overload increases with my program until a few months ago, but I can't regularly hit my set/rep targets anymore. Losing this feeling of progress without seeing a corresponding nice/flat stomach in the mirror has made working out even less of a pleasure, so I posted my questions to see if I was missing something. I appreciate the responses, and since my current approach isn't working anymore, I'm going to give the PHUL program a shot at maintenance/recomp intake. Hopefully, I'll have a success story to share later.

    Just keep at it and try to be as patient as you can - doubly so if you are going to approach this as a recomp. It's a really slow process and plateaus are all part of it. Linear progression only happens with very new lifters or people returning after a long hiatus. I've heard an idea before that makes a lot of sense - that real progress and adding lean mass really starts after your first hard plateau. What they mean by this is that initially most of the progress new lifters are seeing is basically your body learning how to properly use what it already has -- central nervous system adaptations. Once those are tapped your body has no choice but to add more mass. It's a very simplified explanation and not entirely accurate but there is enough truth to it that hitting a plateau should just give you extra motivation to push harder and break through. Keep in mind, this is a process that can take years. Just don't give up and eventually if your programming, effort, and diet is adequate you will see results.
  • friedpet
    friedpet Posts: 20 Member
    I did PHUL for 3 months and enjoyed it. I found the sessions took over an hour which was a bit long for me so I chanted programme I don’t know what to suggest, other than if you don’t enjoy lifting weights then maybe find another way of training they can give you some muscle. Maybe a bodyweight gymnastics programme?. Cross fit if you like group training? I don’t really know what else to suggest. When I started out I had a training partner and that helped as I had someone to talk to between sets.
    My OH is my training partner, but she hates it as much as I do, so we have a hard time motivating each other. Regular progress with overloading is usually enough to make it tolerable for me, so I'm hoping this new approach will provide some.
    jseams1234 wrote: »
    Just keep at it and try to be as patient as you can - doubly so if you are going to approach this as a recomp. It's a really slow process and plateaus are all part of it. Linear progression only happens with very new lifters or people returning after a long hiatus. I've heard an idea before that makes a lot of sense - that real progress and adding lean mass really starts after your first hard plateau. What they mean by this is that initially most of the progress new lifters are seeing is basically your body learning how to properly use what it already has -- central nervous system adaptations. Once those are tapped your body has no choice but to add more mass. It's a very simplified explanation and not entirely accurate but there is enough truth to it that hitting a plateau should just give you extra motivation to push harder and break through. Keep in mind, this is a process that can take years. Just don't give up and eventually if your programming, effort, and diet is adequate you will see results.
    Adding LBM wasn't a goal of mine when I started out; my entire fixation has been on getting rid of my belly. Once I accomplished that, I could focus on building muscle. Genetics and biochemistry (I'm on an antidepressant that can increase alpha-2 agonist levels) are forcing me to reconsider that approach. I just hope I don't confuse "no progress" with "slow progress" and fail to make needed adjustments to programming, effort, and/or diet. The ambiguity and complexity of this whole process are difficult to accept at times.
  • alexmose
    alexmose Posts: 792 Member
    bump
  • Someonerandom1
    Someonerandom1 Posts: 13 Member
    Bump
  • alexmose
    alexmose Posts: 792 Member
    In the 114 pages of this, I’m sure it’s been discussed but let’s chat food selection aka quality. Whole Foods vs processed. Does it make a difference?? Any science?
  • MidlifeCrisisFitness
    MidlifeCrisisFitness Posts: 1,106 Member
    So you want abs...

    There isan exercise called a Stability Ball dumbbell Pullover. I honestly do not understand why more people don't do it. The first two video examples are trainers. I wrote this post months ago for someone who did not want to do crunches and planks anymore because they were causing severe back pain. Which they do...

    https://youtu.be/NmOXqeXnbPM
    https://youtu.be/6os8lrYrMto

    This is the best exercise I've found for lats and core. Specifically obliques and lower abdominal abs. The Hypertrophy is crazy good. Go slow and concentrate on the lats, rib cage pulled in, and your abs tight. Be sure to keep your abs and ribs sucked in for the whole motion, breathing out on the way up. Lower the dumbbell as close to the floor as you can and raise it to over your belly button or as close as you can. Unlike the videos, use the full range of motion. Use a weight that challenges your shoulders but does not injure you nor causes you to drop it. Your better to start light and work up in weight. Do 20 - 30 reps. 2 - 4 sets. Because the motion is natural, unlike sit-ups you can rep out many sets of these.

    Below is Athlean-X Jeff Cavaliere doing almost the same exercise. Fast forward to 4:30 in the video

    https://youtu.be/yPrsuV3E-Dc?t=270

    Variations of Leg positions:
    To hit different parts of your abs try different leg positions.
    1. Table top: Legs together, knees at 90 degrees, feet flat or on your heels toes up.
    2. Leg V: Plank straight, legs spread apart. Tuck in your glutes.
    3. Leg Plank: Legs together as close as you can in a plank, board flat position.
    4.Wrap the ball (Like Jeff did): Hips dropped, Knees bent, Wrap your back around the ball to maximize contact and really stretch your abs.

    I do 50 of these every second day.
  • alexmose
    alexmose Posts: 792 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    alexmose wrote: »
    In the 114 pages of this, I’m sure it’s been discussed but let’s chat food selection aka quality. Whole Foods vs processed. Does it make a difference?? Any science?

    😬

    This thread has been a really useful, nice thing . . . and the "effects of processed foods" topic often heads quickly toward "why we can't have nice things" behavior, historically.

    There's been a lot of debate about it over in the debate forum, with plenty of science, as is usual for that area. I think the most recent related thread was this one, and there have been plenty of others:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10744444/processed-foods-cause-more-weight-gain/p1

    ETA: Or this one . . .

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10352914/is-the-amount-of-easy-access-processed-food-harming-dieters-health/p1

    Maybe check out some of the threads there? :smile:

    I knew I could count on you haha. Thanks! I think I intuitively thought processed food=processed stuff in my body. WHO KNOWS WHAT THAT DOES??? And then processed food = processed food cravings.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    bump
  • Fit_Chef_NE
    Fit_Chef_NE Posts: 109 Member
    alexmose wrote: »
    In the 114 pages of this, I’m sure it’s been discussed but let’s chat food selection aka quality. Whole Foods vs processed. Does it make a difference?? Any science?

    Macros make the difference. How the food is produced does not.
  • alexmose
    alexmose Posts: 792 Member
    alexmose wrote: »
    In the 114 pages of this, I’m sure it’s been discussed but let’s chat food selection aka quality. Whole Foods vs processed. Does it make a difference?? Any science?

    Macros make the difference. How the food is produced does not.

    I disagree but tap MFP momma @AnnPT77 for the research she previously posted.
  • Go_Deskercise
    Go_Deskercise Posts: 1,630 Member
    bump
  • Bump.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,443 Member
    Bump
  • cmbalint
    cmbalint Posts: 71 Member
    maz2469 wrote: »
    Love it!

    Need to rid the house of all crappy food and start a fresh, i got so close but my sweet tooth got the better of me, again and again! :-/

    Mine is salty crunchy
  • richardgavel
    richardgavel Posts: 1,001 Member
    cmbalint wrote: »
    maz2469 wrote: »
    Love it!

    Need to rid the house of all crappy food and start a fresh, i got so close but my sweet tooth got the better of me, again and again! :-/

    Mine is salty crunchy

    Throw in sweet and you got me. Chocolate covered pretzels are sooo tempting to me.