exercise question
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exercise question
| Wed, 10-26-2005 - 10:28am |
I am 5'4" 120 lbs & I am wanting to lose my belly fat. My husband is getting worried about it, so I def. need to do something about it. What is the best was to flatten my stomach w/o a full blown exercise regimen? I've got a D size chest and a nice booty I don't want to lose. I'm afraid, and have been told, that the fat would go from my butt & chest before it went from my stomach...I don't want to do that-that's why I don't want a full blown exercise program...any ideas?

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1) you should do a "full-blown" exercise program for your health. hopefully this is what you mean when you say your husband is "worried" -- that he's concerned for your health -- or else he's a jerk, and an unrealistic jerk at that because you are a good weight for your height and there is no way that you are a) unhealthily overfat or b) aesthetically fat. doing a "full-blown" exercise program not to lose weight but to improve your fitness and your health will meet your goal of not losing your curves and of quelling your husband's concern for your health. which IS the only thing he's worried about, right? because i don't want to start slamming my head against the wall this early in the day.
2) you can't choose where you lose fat from. it doesn't matter if you do a "full-blown" exercise program or whatever the alternative to that might be, you still won't be able to choose. lucky for you, you don't need to lose fat. a "full-blown" exercise program will help you build muscle (including in your booty) and therefore look better proportioned. you may lose a little fat, and some may come from your chest, but you aren't going to go from a D cup to an A cup, i'm sure you will still be stacked.
oh, and welcome to gym rats, i'm the resident a-hole.
You answered this question beautifully Jen. I am glad you wrote what you did because I was concerned about a healthy, not overweight person trying to lose fat for the wrong reasons.
Grace
Grace
fitness4health@yahoo.com
cl of the Pilates Board
Grace
fitness4health@yahoo.com
Hi, and welcome to gymrats. Jen had excellent advice and I don't think I can add anything to it. You are a great weight and must look like dynamite! Exercising for health is important to do.
You do know that women have extra in there "belly area" for having babies. It is biological and nature knows what she is doing by giving us that. (have to keep telling myself that too) It is protect the babies growing inside. OK, we are not living in caves anymore and don't need the extra fat with all that we have now and don't have to worry about starving to death, but it is still part of us. It is a shame that we cannot spot reduce.
Did you happen to hear or see what celebrities are doing now to have a flat stomach? They are having Csection tummy tucks. So, please, do not aspire to be like a celebrity.
Good luck with the exercise program you choose.
Grace
Grace
fitness4health@yahoo.com
cl of the Pilates Board
Grace
fitness4health@yahoo.com
I feel priviledged to meet the resident a-hole...LOL!
Actually, he's worried that I may become overwieght. My mother has a thyroid problem and weighs about 200 lbs. He told me the other day that a guys worst nightmare is to have a fat wife and he was afraid the little pudge on my belly was going to end up like my mothers gerth. So, yes, I guess he's a jerk, he's more concerned about my physical appearance and not necessarily my so called "health"...I currently maintain a healthy diet, I just don't go to the gym...maybe I should put that dusty total station in my basement to some good use...
Welcome. First of all, you should only start an exercise program if YOU want and think you should. If you are not exercising at all, then regardless of what your husband thinks, it would be in your best interest to start exercising. However, you cannot spot reduce. Not by diet, special exercises or anything else.
Secondly, just because your mother has a problem with her weight and thyroid (which by the way is probably part of the cause of her weight gain), that does not mean that you will. I hope you tell you husband this every single day! If YOU are concerned about her passing on the thyroid problem, go see your doctor and he or she will send you for a blood test to check for this.
Without surgery it is very difficult to change the way your body is predisposed to look. You can be bigger or smaller due to exercise and diet, but you body will tend to hold onto to fat in certain areas. I hold on to fat in my belly and I am very active and have a second degree black belt. That is just the way it is. I can make my belly look firmer by avoiding certain foods, such as salt, carbs and by doing core work and ab work. But, if I don't also do cardio and weights for my whole body then I will not lose the fat on top of the muscles. I have a D chest and that has never changed. You will not lose your curves just because you are exercising unless you starve yourself like stupid Lindsay Lohan or Nicole Richie. Why don't you start exercising for yourself and not worry about targeting that one area.
Jody
yes, a good exercise program including strength training will be good for your health and help prevent weight gain if you start to have some thyroid problems as you age, but also regular check ups with your doctor will be important to recognize and treat any thyroid problems right away.
and tell your husband that the resident a-hole on the gym rats board said that if he thinks that "a guy's worst nightmare is to have a fat wife" he needs to open up a newspaper and think about whether those men who have lost their wives in Iraq, or in the flooding in New Orleans, or in the Pakistan earthquake, would agree with him on that.
Just wanted to add my 2 cents-welcome to the board!
I'm about 5'6, D cup chest, and pretty small-boned. Right now I'm trying to gain some healthy weight because I've been burning some off taking a Fight class at my martial arts center.
I've been seriosuly working out for about a year and a half-I'd lost most of my baby weight (my son is almost 3), but then I gained some back and my tummy remained (I had had a c-section and "carried forward" for the whole pregnancy). I started eating better, going to the gym, and taking Krav Maga, and I started getting stronger and helathier. The pounds came off.
But my point: This past June, I went shopping with a friend, and she wanted me to try on a pair of ultra low-rise jeans. I started laughing because of course with my tummy I can't wear those! Well, I tried them on, and lo and behold, they looked great and my so-called "tummy" was no more. My ABS were back, and they were actually defined! I had not started my healthy eating/exercise regimen with the goal of slimming down my tummy, but it happened anyway as a result of my good habits. Talk about a pleasant surprise! Perhaps the same will happen for you once you put together a plan.
--Syd
Edited 10/26/2005 12:27 pm ET by sydfriend
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