Abs

[Mish]

Hi Cathe,
I am 25 years old. I work out about 4 days a week. This consists of Step arerobics/sculpt(2 days a week), a fat burning class (1day), and weight lift (1day). In my aerobics classes we do abs for 15 minutes in the beginning. But I have noticed that I can not get rid of a slight bulge in my lower ab area. I've never had the abs I've wanted. I'm never been overweight or pregnant so I dont understand why I cant have a tight flat stomach, like I'd like to. How do I achieve the results I want.

Thanks,

 

[JaneC]

I'm not Cathe, I'm not certified in anything (of relevance here!) and my abs aren't flat, so, take this with a grain of salt, but these are the things I've learned over the years - maybe others can comment -

1. Form is extremely important. you must be very very careful when you work your abs not to allow your stomach to push out, as your stomach will have a tendency to do.

2. Genetics are involved. You might be predisposed to carry *any* excess weight in your belly, so even a few pounds will show there. Also, I think waterweight gain, and premenstral gain, typcially show in the lower abs.

3. Variety is important. You might try alternating from your Cathe routines with some of the core tapes, like the Stott Pilates matwork videos, for instance, or maybe some of Clare Dunphy's body bar tapes. And, just generally, variety is key. Try different Cathe abs routines, or maybe Trish Muse's Ab Attack or Tamilee Webb's "I want those Abs"

Hope this helps. I'd be interested to hear what others say.

Jane

 

[Cyndie]

Jane gave EXCELLENT advice. I am a personal trainer and group exercise instructor and I couldn't have said it any better. I would just add one thing. Start trying to do less time wise and make your exercises harder.
Here are some ideas:

Do crundhes on a physical therapy ball. This is great for the abs.

Do crunches with your head, neck, and upper back off the end of a step. KEEP THOSE ABS FLAT! This is one I do all the time.

If you have access to a gym, try bent leg raises either from the roman chair or from the hanging straps. Again, keep the abs very contracted. I can do about 2 sets of 10 reps. These are pretty challenging.

And as always diet is a must for good abs. I have been having a lot of success lately with portion control. I am convinced that this is the way to go.

Best wishes, Cyndie

 

[honeybunch]

Please tell me that a quart of ice cream is a portion!;-)

 

[Cyndie]

Thank you Honeybunch for that post. I have been having a less than ideal day. Think I am hormonal. It provided me with a good laugh. I really needed it. Enjoy that ice cream.

Take care, Cyndie