How to lose ab fat without a gym

nycstudent
nycstudent Posts: 8
edited November 12 in Fitness and Exercise
I'm pretty happy with my body and don't really want to change anything except to get a flat stomach! I'm going on vacation in may and I NEED to get the bulge off. I'm 4'11" and 110 lbs if it matters. Id like to get down to 103-105 because my clothes fit so well then. But the weight isn't the goal here. I know that eating healthy is the most important thing when it comes to losing ab fat and I know that you cannot spot reduce (crunches will just create muscles under the fat layer) so I dont need to hear that. I'm really looking to hear suggestions on what exercises to do so I can get a flat tummy! I already walk a mile a day just doing my daily activities. I can't afford a gym so this has to be done at home :( I do not own any weights and am not interested in buying them (I'm not going to use them after I achieve my goal because weights are boring! ;) I am open to modifying traditional strength training exercises though and try using bags of rice or water jugs.

I would really appreciate your help! :) Im really interested in doing Pilates but I can't afford that either. Im a natural ectomorph who has never HAD to exercise! I'm in my early 20s so I think my metabolism slowed down and I just didn't adjust my lifestyle as I should have. I really hate all sports except figure skating but I'll suck it up and do it for the sake of the bikini body! Thank you :)

Replies

  • spinqueen72
    spinqueen72 Posts: 406 Member
    Get a weighted hula hoop!
  • Cr357
    Cr357 Posts: 238
    A caloric deficit.
  • Zombierawr
    Zombierawr Posts: 95 Member
    Get a Zumba DVD. I don't have a flat stomach, but I think that really contributed to the inches I have lost off my stomach. Or if you have an iPhone/iPod touch, get the Nike training center app. It is free and has intense exercises with next to no equipment needed!
  • qtiekiki
    qtiekiki Posts: 1,490 Member
    It's going to be your diet more than anything.
  • rowbseat13
    rowbseat13 Posts: 147 Member
    It's going to be mostly what you eat when it comes to belly fat... A caloric deficit (meaning you burn more than you eat) will help, but it also depends on WHAT you eat. Eating clean, natural, and whole as much as possible is the best place to start.

    You're going to need cardio, too, to create a caloric deficit. If you can't afford a gym (I can't either) and don't have an equipment at home, then you'll need to find some kind of cardio DVD/online videos to do, or start running. If you start the Couch to 5K program, you should have plenty of time to make a lot of progress by your vacation.
  • nycstudent
    nycstudent Posts: 8
    I'm trying to follow the Mediterranean diet so I think I'm set with the healthy eating thing. It's a way of eating healthy that I can actually manage-- and I love that red meats are discouraged (I'm not a big meat eater).

    I just know that I need to exercise too for toning purposes and I don't want to waste time and energy doing exercises that will not help me with my ultimate goal.

    I don't like the idea of running in public (heart treadmills though!) but if you really think that will help, then I'll do it. How long and for how many times a week should I go for a run?

    And is it true that ectomorphs shouldn't do cardio or a lot of running? I'm also thinking that running is a full body workout but esp works the legs... I like my legs now! It sucks that you can't spot reduce! I really do like my body minus the belly thing
  • Katie3784
    Katie3784 Posts: 543
    For good abs, you need to eat really well and do a lot of cardio. As far as pilates goes, it does tone your tummy great, and you don't need a lot of money to do it. I have been hooked on pilates for over a year and have seen excellent results. I own about ten dvds and I do a different one everyday at home. All you need is a mat.
  • rowbseat13
    rowbseat13 Posts: 147 Member
    Trust me, I've been a runner for quite a while, and most days, my abs hurt worse than my legs after a run. Any kind of cardio is going to be "full-body," and cardio is the only thing that's going to help. You can't lose belly fat by doing "toning" exercises. You're probably not going to build any definition once you DO lose the layer of fat without doing some kind of strength training (ie. lifting weights).

    If you start out with Couch to 5K (which you can find on a zillion sites if you just Google it), you will be doing the program 3 days a week, for about 30 minutes a day. I really do recommend that you start out with Couch to 5K or something very similar, because it starts you out very, very slowly, and that's exactly what you need if you're going to start running. I know way too many people (myself included many years ago) that thought they were going to start running by going out and running a mile. It doesn't work that way. You have to start very, very small unless you're already in really good shape (and you're almost never in as good a shape as you think you are) with high endurance.

    Of course, there's a million other forms of cardio. Zumba, kickboxing, even walking can be cardio if you do it right. You can YouTube videos for all of those.
  • nycstudent
    nycstudent Posts: 8
    I'm looking at DVDs online right now. What makes me nervous though is that I am really really bad at learning to do stuff! I'm scared that I'm going to do moves wrong and end up hurting myself. I'm pretty uncoordinated and never have good form :( I guess anythings better than I'm doing now but it would be really nice for someone to tell me that I'm doing the moves right. Progress doesn't happen overnight and I think I'll be stressing about whether I'm doing it right the whole time!

    Have any of you felt this way?
  • pdworkman
    pdworkman Posts: 1,342 Member
    Find an activity that you enjoy, and do that. If you enjoy walking, great. Wii? Home DVD's? Whatever you like doing and will be able to keep doing.
  • jillwaller10
    jillwaller10 Posts: 17 Member
    For the most part, losing ab fat happens in the kitchen- eating a healthy diet, with lots of fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins will get rid of tummy fat. Also drinking plenty of water helps! A lot of people aren't hydrated enough, so their water weight can be stored there.
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,292 Member
    Rope jumping is good cardio too. My dog hates it, so I don't do it much, but for me it affects legs, arms and core muscles.
    I'm now doing C25K, starting week 4 this weekend. I like it better because I can see my improvements by how far I get on the trail. Nothing I do at home gives me the same feeling of achievement.
    I also rent exercise DVDs from my local library, more variety, no cost. I like bellydance for example, it also helps your posture :happy:
  • tsh0ck
    tsh0ck Posts: 1,970 Member
    A caloric deficit.

    2194_12893-620x-THATS_A_BINGO.jpg
  • sjv1966
    sjv1966 Posts: 121 Member
    If you want to turn fat into muscle you need to do things that challenge your muscles to the point that they will be sore the next day. If you don't want to lift weights then you need to do things that use your own body weight to provide the challenge.

    For example ...

    1. Push ups! Not only will you get nice defined arms but the effort of holding your body in a push-up position will work your abs.
    2. Crunches of all types -- you are making your stomach muscles pull up the weight of your upper torso and and/or lower torso.
    3. Squats, lunges, calf raises, etc. -- you use your leg muscles to lower and lift your body weight.

    Anyway, you get the idea. Personally I don't think these things are any more or less boring that lifting weight but you can do them with no equipment. Exercise DVD's are one way -- to me at least -- to make it less boring. And most DVD's will give you lots of pointers on form so that you are dong things in a way that is safe and effective.
  • clickmaster
    clickmaster Posts: 54 Member
    I'm really looking to hear suggestions on what exercises to do so I can get a flat tummy!
    If you want a flat belly you need to ascertain why your's is not flat. The possible reasons are...

    1. Spinal lordosis
    2. Visceral fat
    3. Subcutaneous fat

    If you have spinal lordosis - a natural curvature of the spine which is quite common but more pronounced in some than in others - a flat belly may not be possible. I have a slight amount of lordosis which means I have to suck my gut in to have a flat looking front. If you stand erect with your shoulders, heels, and butt against the wall and you can slide your hand between your lower back and the wall without touching your back, you have lordosis. This picture will show you what it looks like in an extreme case --> http://www.healthopedia.com/pictures/lordosis.html

    If you have visceral fat (intra-abdominal fat), you're going to also have subcutaneous fat and you'll have to diet to a low percent of body fat. The abdomen is where we add fat first and lose it last. And, the last of the fat won't be gone until you're into single digits of body fat percent. That requires a serious commitment to diet, not exercise. It's important to remember that the key to fat loss is diet because of one inescapable axiom as follows.

    You can run all day and never lose an ounce of fat or you can burn fat in your sleep. It all depends on your diet.

    If you only have subcutaneous belly fat, your almost to your goal. But, diet is the answer. Exercise is always a good idea if done properly. However, an average person must run 5 miles per day every day to burn the equivalent of one pound of fat per week. That's a whole lot of running when you can accomplish the same thing with about a 500 cal/day caloric deficit.

    It's worth mentioning at this point that low body fat percents are not healthy especially for females. So, it is possible that your dream weight runs counter to your desire for peak health and fitness. If you find yourself obsessing about a small about of ab fat, you may have unrealistic goals and expectations.

    No one is going to be able to help you exercise your way into a flat belly unless your diet allows it. Diet is the key. And, as you know, spot reduction is a myth which means it doesn't matter how you burn your calories. It only matter that you burn them and your diet allows for that energy to come from body fat.


    Good luck and good health!!

    ♠
  • almonds1
    almonds1 Posts: 642 Member
    A caloric deficit.

    ^^^
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,974 Member
    Simplistically it comes down to calorie deficit. Raising your RMR will burn more bodyfat and you can do that with some HIIT.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • chiera88
    chiera88 Posts: 155
    thanks clickmaster!!!!
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