How do you get rid of it!! Ok, so I always thought it was my back end, but got that taken care of through pilates,
now I realize its actually my front side and the belly.
I read doing sit ups and crunches, will make the fat "stronger" and not make the stomach smaller.
Is that truth?
What have you ladies done to get rid o fat from stomach? And its not a a little belly, its a good size belly.
What ab work exercises can I do to make my stomach smaller. I am already eating properly and doing cardio,
i just dont want the fat on my stomach to become harder and muscular. I want to get that area sucked in.
Everything I've read says you can't target a specific area. That you will loose it through diet and exercise. I've never heard of making fat stronger...
I feel for you - the belly is the first place I gain weight and the last place I loose it...
you cant lose weight in a target area. Do cardio and then it will come off...when the weight comes off you can tone that area with crunches, holding your stomach in and bends,, twists...
You can't spot reduce fat with specific exercises. You have to reduce overall body fat, and unfortunately, there are just some spots that hold onto it more easily especially as we get older and after having kids. Several good books that address this belly fat and how to change your diet to get rid of it: Jillian Michaels "Making the Cut" (book not video), "Clean" by Dr. Junger and "The Zone Diet" and the BEST "Shwarzbein Principle." All these have different approaches and focuses. Clean and Schwarzbein are more about overall health than dieting but I really think they have a wealth of information. Jillian and Zone are more focused on weight loss and performance. Clean and Schwarzbein will give you an idea of the why and how of the belly fat. Best part is all these books have great recipes. I don't think any one of these is THE miracle book but I think together they are some pretty great resources!
I am right there with you fighting same fight right now. I know this works, because I've lost my belly many times this way (I'm 42 with 3 kids), but it always comes back so I'm doing it again:
Best thing to burn away belly fat is ALL OVER muscle burning (especially largest groups like butt and thighs) to boost metabolism and burn calories (which is why merely laying on the floor and doing crunches does very little if anything without full work-out regime), but no matter what, your belly will go LAST. So if you have only 15 pounds to lose, it's ALL going to be in your belly....don't give up.
ALSO, fast walking. Long and far. My trainer at the gym, a svelt, wiry 50-something turned me onto that. So walk fast and long around neighborhood-or for at least 30mins on treadmill after workout.
To TARGET stomach muscles (to make them firm for when flub comes off-you cant' actually just burn the flub away this way) variations of planks are best. Holding yourself flat in push up position, etc. there are many different plank variations, ask someone at your gym or google videos: Planks for core.
But the overall calorie burn and fast walking are best to deflate belly.
Mine is huge right now from slacking.
My stomach goes down with cardio. I do Zumba, treadmill, eliptical. Also yoga is making a differance in how my body is shaped. All the stretching, side bends, muscle isolation, etc has been wittling my core. My sides, back, and torso are stronger and leaner. I'm also losing the dreaded back fat.
The Belly Fat Cure
First of all, I have never heard of fat getting stronger. This sounds like myth to me. The truth is your ab muscles will not be visible until you burn off excess fat. You can do crunches until you are blue in the face and it won't do much except strengthen the muscles beneath the fat. But your belly will still be bulging until you burn the butter, as they say.
There are lots of theories about how excess amounts of cortisol, the stress hormone, can cause your body to store belly fat and hold onto it. Try relaxation techniques or adding something like yoga to your exercise routine to help flush your body of cortisol. Also, watching your consumption of sugar and processed foods will also do wonders. No one ever likes to hear that because it is highly inconvenient, but truth is truth. Once you start to see your pants loosen, you can begin to think about focused ab workouts. Denise Austin is my personal favorite. I love her Get Fit Fast DVD, which gives you 3 levels of ab workouts so you can build up your resistance and get stronger without plateauing. It Aldo has arm and lower body workouts too. You will really see definition in your muscles after using these for a few weeks.
Remember, if you really want to do it, you will! I talked about losing weight after my second baby for years, but I really wasn't ready because I wasn't actually doing anything about it. This year that all changed and I've lost 14 lbs since end of February. And thanks to Denise, my ab muscles are really starting to show. Take a seat, J-Lo ; )
I am currently wearing stomach flattening undies...It makes me feel good and helps me stay motivated to do crunches.
If you like pilates pick up a DVD specific for abs. It'll kick your abs into shape!
I don't think you can "spot reduce" - just spot tone... personally I would look at different types of athletic bodies; swimmers, dancers, runners, yoga instructors, martial artists etc... and decide which body type you would like to most emulate... then look up those regimens for diet and excercise and try to follow them (as much as possible)..
While you cant reduce a specific area... you can tone it... so core strengthening exercises that pull in your inner "girdle" should help... although you might not get a six pack as long as there is a layer of belly fat over those muscles... you may lose a few inches.
-M.
You have burn fat all over. Sounds like your body lets go of your body fat around your belly last. There's nothing you can do about that. I am the same way. At one point in my life, I was 110 pounds and about 12% body fat--I was ripped! But, I still had a tiny bit of jiggle in my middle. Lots of cardio got rid of it (and clean eating, of course). My SIL, on the other hand, had a great stomach area, but had saddle bags from hell. We always joked if we could put our bodies together we could be one rockin' fitness model!!!
The more muscle you have, the more fat your body burns while doing nothing, so weight training is important. You also need to get your heart-rate up and keep it up to melt off that belly during a workout session.
By the way, cruches and sit ups will make your abs stronger and harder, but NOT bigger. You'd have to do weighted ab exercises for that.
Bottom line, change up your workout routine--add in some all-over weight lifting and change up your cardio, and watch the belly melt away!!
Good luck. I feel your frustration. YOU CAN DO IT!!!
Pilates will strenghthen your core but it may not get rid of belly fat. Actually according to my personal trainer, things like running and other cardio exercises help to burn the fat and can dramatically alter your belly.
Hated the advice but it really does work. Also what helped me to keep my belly fat down was keeping my colon cleased and my body detoxed with Robin Anthony's Renu Herbs Detox Trio. The liquid for parasites and the blood cleanser taste horrible but they do get the work done. I try to cleanse once a quarter or twice a year depending on how bad I've been eating.
