need all your ideas

[lessmess]

Ok everyone, I need all your ideas here. I have been working out consistently (5-6 days per week) for the last 5 years doing cardio, weight training, pilates and I also do a 1.5 mile walk every morning with my dogs. So here is where I need all of your help.

I have muscles - I can feel them everywhere! Yet (sigh) I can't get rid of the layer of fat hiding these guys! I mean I don't eat huge meals or bad meals (although i will admit I love the bread and pasta!) I drink skim milk, I eat whole grain cereal, I won't say I am a saint as I do still get the cravings for bad things like cookie dough ice cream (Ben & Jerry's need to be shot for that one!).

I have this awful "pooch" on my lower abs. It's like overnight this guy "popped" out at the age of 16 and her it still is 18 years later and no matter how many situps, lower leg lifts, crunches, etc., that I do I cannot get this "pooch" to go away! I've tried cleansing programs - nothing.

Just wondering what has worked for all of you. I am not into the diet pills thing. Just trying to find a good, healthy, lean way to eat that won't make me feel deprived so that all this hard work will finally be seen!

Thanks for any ideas/direction/guidance!

 

[RhiannonW]

Wow, can I relate to this. The only thing I can suggest is super clean eating. If genetics is the underlying reason for the pooch, it may never be 100% flat I'm afraid. At least it's the case for me. I will say that when I eat clean my pooch goes down, but the best I can get is a 4-pack!

Good luck. Hopefully some others will answer and give you some ideas.

 

[honeybunch1]

Got to agree here - we've read so many posts with folks like you lamenting about how much exercises you do but still have too much "mush" in various spots on your bod - you MUST eat better to see the results you want.

"It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt." Mark Twain ;-)

 

[Aquajock]

Leslie, in addition to the eating clean techniques, I've copied and pasted below sections from twTo separate posts I've put up recently about ab performance techniques I've adopted that have made a difference in my entire core region, including the lower portion of the abdominals (i.e. The Home Of The Dreaded Pooch). The second post "Cool Ab Mish-Mosh" I've entered as a separate reply.

First one:

"A New Spin On Old Ab Routines":

As many have noticed, most traditional ab routines are performed supine (face up) on the floor, with the legs also either grounded on the floor or elevated onto your step bench. Varying the elevation of the feet, as well as the degree of extension in the legs (concomitantly, the degree of bend in the knees) can vary the recruitment of the hip flexors especially when you are maintaining a neutral or flat spine.

As a really cool - and effective - variation, try any of the above-listed ab routines (and all others that include supine floor work) LYING ON YOUR LONG STEP BENCH AT AT LEAST AN 8" HEIGHT, with your entire trunk on the bench and your feet on the floor far enough away from the end of the bench that there's only a very modest bend in the knees. Try to keep your feet flat on the floor as well, or you'll find yourself digging in through the heels and taking the workload off the core muscles.

You'll find that your core muscles are working much harder to keep your back neutral and/or flat on the bench, and your legs can't assist as much because of their position. Overall you'll develop a much more concentrated awareness of all of the ab muscles.

Stay tuned:

A-Jock

 

[Aquajock]

"Cool Ab Mish-Mosh"

I did this one tonight, and I swear it looks like someone carved an inch off my sides AND lower belly.

Core Max #2 stability ball rollouts
CTX Kickbox planks (prone and supine) and roll-downs/roll-ups
MIS ab routine ON A LONG STEP BENCH

In fact, you can use any traditional floor ab routine on the long step bench (as I discussed in my earlier post "A New Spin On 'Old' Abs"), not just MIS: CTX Leaner Legs or CTX Allstep; Body Max abs; either of the Pure Strength ab routines; Slow and Heavy Traditional Abs (I forget which workout that one's on). You could also simply complete the CTX Kickbox ab routine in its entirety, and/or use the CTX Power Circuit traditional ab segment after its planks.

As I said, I really felt it, AND I see it now. Yesterday I did a KPC / SJP ab combo, and this was a good follow-up. I'm sure there's something about combining the ball rollouts, floor roll-ups and the bench system for traditional abs (where the legs are more elongated), but whatever it is, it works.

Leslie, also make sure, whatever your ab routine, to do plenty of planks, especially prone planks. Sit-ups aren't the greatest for hitting the transversee abdominus, which IMHO is where a lot of the "pooch" can be; in fact, the transverse abdominus, a cummerbund-like muscle that wraps around the lower core like a sheath, has no motor function but instead assists in stabilizing the core and assisting in forceful exhalation (and elimination, i.e. #1 and #2 in the potty). Stabilization work is crucial with your traditional crunchie, spinal flexion work for ab strength.

HTH -

A-Jock

 

[Biteset]

Hey A-Jock, I just found this post while searching for info about hip flexors. I'm curious--have you continued doing your ab routines on the long step bench?

Gisela