STARS 9 WEEK CHALLENGE (CLOSE GROUP) WK 6

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  • nenabug
    nenabug Posts: 156
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    My stomach and abdomen. Mostly my abdomen right now. It's always the first place weight goes and the last to come off. It's annoying, but it's changing slowly. I just have to remind myself that it'll continue to shrink as I work on it. I'm eating right, staying away from things that make me bloat or give me indigestion and trying to train my core muscles to lay flat. It's made a major difference in my confidence. Under all that flab is a really tones set of ab muscles!
  • Tiffany517
    Tiffany517 Posts: 117 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????


    This would be my midsection... i have just been focusing on losing weight but i think it's time to start doing something for it i had tried doing a million sit up and cruches and they did not work for me not enough to see any results, and after 4 babies i need some help!!! and it's like i have a muffin top no matter what i wear you see it even if my pants are too big??? thats what i DISLIKE the most... lol (any sugguestions on that)
  • RhondaLeeRoss
    RhondaLeeRoss Posts: 186
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    I would have to say my jelly belly! It is slowly shrinking but not fast enough as far as I'm concerned. At least my muffin top is no longer a dozen muffins!!!! And to improve it, I'm just working out 6 days a week! I will have a BIG party when I hit the single digits!
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????


    This would be my midsection... i have just been focusing on losing weight but i think it's time to start doing something for it i had tried doing a million sit up and cruches and they did not work for me not enough to see any results, and after 4 babies i need some help!!! and it's like i have a muffin top no matter what i wear you see it even if my pants are too big??? thats what i DISLIKE the most... lol (any sugguestions on that)

    Sit ups and crunches are not the best exercises you can do for that - you need a variety of core/ab strengthening work.

    So first of all -- Squats, Deadlifts, and Pushups (and planks if you can't do full pushups) are GREAT core and ab workouts. Really for real. Make sure you are using proper form - my sister thinks she does squats but she really just bends over at the hip and bends her knees slightly. a real squat is holding your torso firm and dipping your butt down to the ground, weight on your heels.

    In terms of ab exercises that don't require you to use a lot of other muscles --

    1) get in a plank position - pull your left knee up and in towards your right side, so like think of it as if you are trying to touch your left knee to right breast (not that you will actually be able to do it but that's the general direction. Then do right knee. Then left. Rinse and repeat. This works your obliques AND your entire core because you're holding that 3 point (hand-hand-one foot) plank position the whole time. (well sometimes you'll be on all 4, when you switch, but when you pull your leg in you're holding on 3).

    2) get an excersise ball - lay flat on the ground and hold it between your ankles/calves at the middle (this takes a little effort on its own) so at this point your ankles are slightly elevated (since you're holding the ball). Lift your legs up vertical (90 degree angle) and then do a reverse crunch (crunch your stomach so you basically push your legs straight up into the air and your hips lift off the ground). You keep hte ball between your legs the whole time. Return back towards the legs flat position but do not ACTUALLY let the ball touch the ground again. get as close to the ground as you can without touching it then bring your legs up and crunch again.

    3) for a more traditional situp - get a weight or weighted ball and hold it to your chest. sit with your legs straight out. Lie down slowly, your back should sort of roll down to the ground (meaning your lower back touches the ground before your mid back does, mid back touches the ground before your shoulders do). Now come back up, do that motion in reverse. At this point if you have a partner and the weighted ball you can be sitting facing each other and throw the ball to them or lean forward and hand it off to them, if you don't just lean forward a bit extending the weight out over your legs and then pull it back in and roll back down.

    4) another traditional situp -- lie down, hands extended above your head (flat along the ground for now). Raise your arms straight up so they are over your chest vertically. breathe in. now lift yourself into a sitting position, hands extended. lean forward into it then roll back down.

    5) kneel in front of an exercise ball, clasp your hands and put your wrists on the ball. lean your weight into them and roll forward on your arms on the ball (So you will end up with your elbows or upper arms on the ball and you are supporting your weight out over it --- this is HARD, if its not hard you are holding too much weight over your hips still, your weight should be getting supported mostly out over empty air - you sort of end up in a pushup position in terms of the angle of the knees). Roll back. Rinse, repeat.
  • Wfortner
    Wfortner Posts: 77 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????


    This would be my midsection... i have just been focusing on losing weight but i think it's time to start doing something for it i had tried doing a million sit up and cruches and they did not work for me not enough to see any results, and after 4 babies i need some help!!! and it's like i have a muffin top no matter what i wear you see it even if my pants are too big??? thats what i DISLIKE the most... lol (any sugguestions on that)

    Sit ups and crunches are not the best exercises you can do for that - you need a variety of core/ab strengthening work.

    So first of all -- Squats, Deadlifts, and Pushups (and planks if you can't do full pushups) are GREAT core and ab workouts. Really for real. Make sure you are using proper form - my sister thinks she does squats but she really just bends over at the hip and bends her knees slightly. a real squat is holding your torso firm and dipping your butt down to the ground, weight on your heels.

    In terms of ab exercises that don't require you to use a lot of other muscles --

    1) get in a plank position - pull your left knee up and in towards your right side, so like think of it as if you are trying to touch your left knee to right breast (not that you will actually be able to do it but that's the general direction. Then do right knee. Then left. Rinse and repeat. This works your obliques AND your entire core because you're holding that 3 point (hand-hand-one foot) plank position the whole time. (well sometimes you'll be on all 4, when you switch, but when you pull your leg in you're holding on 3).

    2) get an excersise ball - lay flat on the ground and hold it between your ankles/calves at the middle (this takes a little effort on its own) so at this point your ankles are slightly elevated (since you're holding the ball). Lift your legs up vertical (90 degree angle) and then do a reverse crunch (crunch your stomach so you basically push your legs straight up into the air and your hips lift off the ground). You keep hte ball between your legs the whole time. Return back towards the legs flat position but do not ACTUALLY let the ball touch the ground again. get as close to the ground as you can without touching it then bring your legs up and crunch again.

    3) for a more traditional situp - get a weight or weighted ball and hold it to your chest. sit with your legs straight out. Lie down slowly, your back should sort of roll down to the ground (meaning your lower back touches the ground before your mid back does, mid back touches the ground before your shoulders do). Now come back up, do that motion in reverse. At this point if you have a partner and the weighted ball you can be sitting facing each other and throw the ball to them or lean forward and hand it off to them, if you don't just lean forward a bit extending the weight out over your legs and then pull it back in and roll back down.

    4) another traditional situp -- lie down, hands extended above your head (flat along the ground for now). Raise your arms straight up so they are over your chest vertically. breathe in. now lift yourself into a sitting position, hands extended. lean forward into it then roll back down.

    5) kneel in front of an exercise ball, clasp your hands and put your wrists on the ball. lean your weight into them and roll forward on your arms on the ball (So you will end up with your elbows or upper arms on the ball and you are supporting your weight out over it --- this is HARD, if its not hard you are holding too much weight over your hips still, your weight should be getting supported mostly out over empty air - you sort of end up in a pushup position in terms of the angle of the knees). Roll back. Rinse, repeat.

    THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS INFORMATION!!!!! I actually printed it out....lol.....I am determined to lose this jiggly baby belly!!!!!!
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
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    Forgot to add:

    Side plank crunches - get up into a side plank (if you can't hold a full one you can rest on your knee instead of your feet) and lift the arm that isn't holding you up straight up vertically above your shoulder. Bring that arm down across your body - hold it in kind of an arc and tuck it under the side that is facing the floor.

    You will basically be pulling your waist that is towards the floor up and back (so tilting your torso toward the ground, pulling your higher shoulder down and under a bit)

    This is not a really big movement (well other htan your arm moving) for your body, you maintain the side plank the whole time and just sort of do a 'tuck' -- i'll try t find a video later.


    Also good is a side plank, then dip your hip down toward the ground, then pull abck up.
  • NaomiLyn15
    NaomiLyn15 Posts: 388 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    My stomach. Seriously doesn't want to go away. Ugh!

    I do cardio. alot. everything I read says that it will help, but man its taking a while. I also do sit ups, crunches, side crunches, reverse sit ups, planks..... if it works your core, I do it. I have no idea what else to try. Its seriously the last place that I still have noticable fat in. It just frustrates me so much.
  • MamaDee2
    MamaDee2 Posts: 843 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????
    Well I would have to say the bat wings of the upper arms - nuf said there I guess!
  • jnell82
    jnell82 Posts: 136
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    My stomach!!! Even before kids when I weighed 110-115 my stomach was my "problem" area. And now after kids/ forget it! I do more ab work than anything else, but I do quite a bit of cardio too. I love to dancde, and when I dance I try to focus on my abs. Obviously, I'm not doing enough though lol.
  • getitamb
    getitamb Posts: 2,019 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????


    The body parts I struggle with the most are my stamach and my butt. I have accepted my tiny tush but I really want to maximize it bc I tink it trows off my figure. It's definitely last to show improvement. The other is my stomach. My stomach has ruined lots of pics in the past. I really have to watch what I eat and do tons of ab excercises. I am going to start replacing my stregnth training with workouts ciruit training. I am going to see if I see more of an overall change. Nothing specific.
  • prizmaa
    prizmaa Posts: 62 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    My arms :( I've always felt they were big and I've never felt like I've had feminine arms. It will be nice to finally see that!
  • prizmaa
    prizmaa Posts: 62 Member
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    My favorite strength training move is my shoulders and my abs. My shoulders because I can actually see a big difference in them and it makes me like doing the exercises when I can see a change! And my abs because they're pretty strong and I love the way it feels working them.

    My least favorite would be push ups!! I suck at them and it will be so awesome when I can actually do a real one and not a girly one. :)


    Challenge:Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!
  • MamaDee2
    MamaDee2 Posts: 843 Member
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Challenge:Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!

    My favorite are my shoulders and biceps for the same reason - seeing the progress.

    My least favorite are also push-ups. I have no upper body strength so I can do like two in good form then I am shakey. I too suck at it!
  • shydaisi
    shydaisi Posts: 833 Member
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    11/3/11-QOTD: What part of your body do you struggle with the VERY most....you know the part I am talking about...the one that is always the very last to show improvement...the one you have the mental battle about all the time...saying "its never going to change...argghh" AND......what are you trying (and/or have tried) to improve it????

    My stomach... while it has changed, it is still my biggest problem area. I don't know that there is much hope for it as I have an "apron" and don't ever expect to have a flat stomach without the assistance of a scalpel...

    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    I haven't really done much strength training. I have a hard time doing squats, pushups, planks, crunches, etc. It is kind of discouraging to do a strength training class and not be able to do the moves (I tried both a Body Pump and Cardio Fit class). I am too scared of the machines to try those yet...
  • RhondaLeeRoss
    RhondaLeeRoss Posts: 186
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Challenge:Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!

    My favorite are my shoulders and biceps for the same reason - seeing the progress.

    My least favorite are also push-ups. I have no upper body strength so I can do like two in good form then I am shakey. I too suck at it!

    I TOTALLY agree with MamaDee! Same goes for me :)
  • 6eighteen11
    6eighteen11 Posts: 59
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Challenge:Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!

    I've recently begun to love crunches of all types. The burning tight feeling in my abs is great because I know I can push through it and feel myself getting stronger because of it.

    I HATE push-ups. My elbows are double-jointed, and bend forward when I try to lower my weight onto them. I've never ever ever been able to even fake a "girly" push-up because of that!
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Challenge:Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!


    shydaisi -- Look for modified moves you can do to work your way up. You can do it! It is a little hard in the beginning but if you work on it every week it is possible to get there - you just may not be able to jump into using weights right away. Do bodyweight lunges, squats, girl pushups or wall pushups. You can add chest presses and lateral lifts and curls or 21s (21s!) and flys (lying on an exercise ball works good) with whatever small weight you can - 3lbs or 5 lbs or 1lb if you have to.


    Anyway I think my favorite strength training move in terms of actually DOING one is practicing pullups on the total gym (So its at an incline, I can't do a real one). Tied closely with flys and chest presses.

    My favorite in terms of results is absolutely squats/lunges and pushups. They are NOT FUN TO DO but the squats/lunges have amazing results and I love being able tosee my pushup progress. I went from barely being able to do 1 to being able to do 8-10 (but they will really be crappy and hard at the end)




    And as for the mini challenge ---- NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. My trainer came up with this insane idea to do 50 half squats (so 90 degrees instead of all the way down) as fast as possible all in a row. I made it to abotu 35 and then I had to take a little break.

    And THEN she made me do bulgarian squats.

    My legs hurt so bad today, its been a long time since I hurt like this.
  • tessacope2
    tessacope2 Posts: 36
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    QOTD - Friday, 11/4: What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Challenge: Every time you go to the bathroom today, do 5 squats!

    Favorite: chest press while laying on the bench
    Did you read Beverly Cleary books when you were a kid? Do you remember Ramona chanting "we must, we must, we must increase our bust"? Well, I chant "I must, I must, I must DECREASE my bust" when I do the chest press!

    Least Favorite: burpies
    I mean, who invented those? they are horrible!!
  • tameko2
    tameko2 Posts: 31,634 Member
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    Haha, burpees. THe first 2 burpees I do I'm like 'Damn I'm awesome, check out this awesomeness"

    AFter the second jump I look at the groudn and think "what? NO! I'm already awesome! 2 is awesome! 3 is a terrible idea!"
  • NaomiLyn15
    NaomiLyn15 Posts: 388 Member
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    QOTD-11/4 What's your favorite strength training move? Why? Least favorite?

    Hmm... Most of my strength training is done with my own bodies resistance. I think that my favorite are planks. I absolutely hate them, but they make me feel so powerful when I get through them. My least favorite are lunges.... I do them, but man I hate them.

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