Toning Stomach

Right there with ya, T.! I too have a toddler and nearly 3 month old and I'm having the EXACT same problem. I'm still wearing the same maternity clothes every single day...UGH. I don't remember it being this difficult with my first but then I'm a few years older now. Anyway, it's good to know that it's not just me. Good luck and if you find the secret trick, please share! =)

Hi ..
I would suggest that you read up a bit about candida/yeast cleanse...
This is of course for when you are not breast-feeding. This is guaranteed to make you drop weight. Also it will also prevent other ailments..
I think you need to exercise at a higher pace.
And doing sit ups alone is not going to tone your body,you need cardio!
I also recommend cutting out processed packaged food and eating as much raw food as possible. Only drink water, no sodas and juice since these contain loads of sugar.
I highly recommend the following book.
"Complete Candida yeast guidebook" by Jeanne Marie Martin
it explains Candida really well and it also contains recipes..
Even though you do not eat a lot you might be eating the wrong things..
Good luck!
Blessings..

I have a toddler and a 4 month old, so I know where you are coming from. Before I went back to work I started doing the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred video. It’s only a 20 minute workout (there are three different workout levels on the DVD), but it’s intense. I was only able to do it consistently for about 10 days, then went back to work so it threw off my workout schedule (I figured getting enough sleep was better than working out until my son is sleeping more consistently!). I noticed a big difference in my endurance and strength and I’m sure if I had kept with it, I would notice a big difference in my shape. She also has a No More Trouble Spots video that I bought but haven’t had time to do. Check out the reviews on Amazon, both videos are rated very highly.

Three months birth after is still soon, so give yourself some time. If you are breast feeding, weight will come off, but some of that weight is needed to feed your baby. Once I stopped breastfeeding at about 1 year, the last of my extra weight came off more quickly. I started and ended at about 120 lbs.

Walking is great, keep it up! Pilates is wonderful for toning the mid-section. I did Pilates 2-3 times per week and the results were great. A DVD I like is "Classical Pilates Technique". Over time I've worked up to "P90X Ab Ripper X" - the whole P90Xseries is expensive, but I found just the Ab DVD for sale on Amazon.com. Or if you can find a class, I found I'm more motivated with someone telling me what to do :-)

Congratulations! Give yourself a little more time. It took you almost a year to get into that body shape, so it might take a little more time to shed it (especially as you have more kids and the belly elasticity goes).
In the meantime, if you want to check out pilates or yoga, I highly recommend it for core body toning. It sculpts your body since it concentrates so much of the work on your mid section. I have lost inches in my waist/belly thanks to it and coupled with some cardio workout. Good luck.

Up your protein, watch your carbs (no white sugar/flour) and do Pilates. If you have On Demand there are some excellent 20 min. workouts that will do wonders for your core. Or get a tape. Also, look into cardio interval training. Experts now say that is the better workout. In a nutshell you alternate fast and slow cardio for a shorter period of time and will get better results than a slow and steady workout that takes twice as long. Google it to get more info.

It sounds like you are already thin so taking off 20 lbs will not be something that happens quickly.

First of all...it has only been 3 months, so there is still a good possibility that things are going to get better! I have 2 children and when my youngest was 5 months I started eating better and exercising. It is 3 years later and I now weigh 10 pounds less than before I had kids. I do cardio, lift weights, and different exercises for my abs. Mt stomach is toned and I can see some definition but I still can't get rid of a little bit of fat on my stomach. I have decided it is just the way it is going to be. That being said...everybody is different. I recomend slowly increasing the intensity of your workouts and adding some toning for both your thighs and your abs.
Do you have a YMCA in your area? They offer free babysitting to their members. That's how I did it when my children were younger.
Good luck...and give it some time!

Try to eat MORE often, not less often, smaller snack-sized meals. Breakfast protien and fruit, morning snack, protien and veggies, lunch, protien, veg and carb( whole grain or potato/yam) , afternoon snack, protien and veg, supper, protien, veg, and carb, and then a bedtime snack of a little fruit.

Eating a little meal every 2-3 hours revs up your metabolism, and makes your body keep burning fat, rather than storing it, in case you don't get but one or two meals a day - "starvation mode" makes you store fat.

Walking is great! do it now while your baby will still lay in the stroller that long, my 3.5 year old and 1 year old won't stay in the stroller for more than about 20 min. so I can't get that amount of walking in.

Maybe Look into T-Tapp - it is an exercise routine with no equipment needed but your own body, and it pumps your lymph system inthe process to help rid the body of toxins and waste products. www.t-tapp.com She even has free exercises on You-tube for you to try before you buy.

Good Luck,

Jessie

Really your tummy won't get a toned until the weight it off. You could do ab work until your blue in the face and all you'll due is tone the muscles under the fat. What I did after my second was counted my calories while breast feeding. I also did slimfast and once I got down to about 115 I started doing a 5 day ab video everyday. by the time my daughter was 10 months I had a toned stomach and was down to 107lbs. So you can do it but your baby is still really young and it will just take time to get the rest of your weight off. But you can do it!

The only thing that will help actually slim the stomach area is diet. Exersize does help tone up the muscles, but its the layer of fat on top of the muscles that makes the pooch.

Make sure that your portions are actual serving sizes... (yes, measure) Make sure to eat 3 servings per meal, 2 per snacks. Eat every 3 hours. This revs up your metabolism... Keep walking, keep exersizing.

well, the thing about 'prepregnancy' pants , or even pre-2nd baby pants, is that your body changes during pregnancy. its not as much about specifically your weight, but your hips and the position of the bones and stuff literally changes. so though its not a sure thing that you wont get into them, i wouldnt stress about it or freak out or anything, just accept where you are and its a lot easier. you might not ever fit into them no matter what you do because of the changes your body makes.

that being said, you have to do some high aerobic activity. in addition, situps, and not just normal ones; ones that use the sides of your abs as well as the middle. do squats (i just read an article that this is the cure for any incontinence too NOT kegels!).
but really, accept that you probably wont have this "perfect" abs that everyone raves about, and you probably wont have a flat stomach. this is not only ok, but normal and feminine. look at classic art; you wont find a single woman with a flat stomach, and they were painted naked for crying out loud. LOL. so, do some extra work; perhaps run for a minute every so often during your walk, and hold in your abs while you run.

your body can get "bored" too and start not showing results, so mix it up a little. ive heard everyone say "try kickboxing" - its high aerobic, and works everything.

good luck

Hi T.
happens alot. See you live in Mpls too.
I'm a wellness coach.
If you ever want to get together- I can run a scan on you-- it's a machine that does lean mass, % fat, and tells you calories burned based on that in a given day & what you need to do to lose weight. It's free too-- email me at ____@____.com to set up a time. Write momsource in the subject line so I make the connection.
Key items:
drink half your weight in water and more on hot/dry days.
one bad starchy carb per day
for now-75 gm of lean proteins at least til you get scan numbers.
5-7 servings fruits and veggies.

Keep at it- I had twins in my early 40's and wear a bikini now.
About me: obviously mom of twins 8 yo girls - turning 50 this year- perfusionist, wellness coach, wife and then some!!

B. J