My wife has lost approx. 50lbs. She looks great, but she's still has a very flabby stomach. I know u can't spot excercise, but is there anything she could do about it short of surgery? She went from 178lbs to 125lbs, but just can't get rid of her baby fat. I told her that she needs to keep up her cardio & weightlifting and it will eventually shrink away. She's happy with her weight loss, but hate her stomach. Have any ladies here had the same problem? PLEASE HELP!!

I must say I would much rather her be asking the question.

The whole DH telling her she has to workout makes me a bit uncomfortable.

But she can't target lose... she must just exercise with whatever she enjoys consistantly and the body will continue to modify in its own way.

My DH told me to jog and everytime he said it, I took it as "you look fat and not good enough".

Just a thought.

I agree with Lisa. My husband told me I needed to lose weight and now he is my ex-husband. I'm sure she is aware of the abdominal exercises that she could do to try to firm up her stomach.

OK. Xplora & IkonzelmanI think u guys are way, way out of bounds. I was asking for help, because she, not me, is depressed about her stomach. Did u or did u not read where I..., ME..., THE DH..., whatever u want to call me, said "she looks great"? or when I said "She is happy with her weight loss, but hate her stomach". I'm happy with the way she look & I was happy with her when we both were overweight. I think u 2 probably have had some personal problems with your DH & think all men are like that. My wife & I lost our weight TOGETHER. Somewhere on this earth their are men that are supportive of their wives & will do aything to help them out. I was being sincere when I was asking any lady, who might have went thru the same problem that my wife have to help ME help her. I really like this forum because people here are so helpful & understanding with the struggle of weight loss. If u couldn't answer the question..I understand....but keep your personal problems to yourselves.



So again I ask: Are there any LADIES, (empasis on LADIES).....who don't have any male drama in their lives.....that have had children & had a problem losing the flab around their mid section....tell me & my wife how you got rid of it? Or if anybody have an answer or suggestion I would appreciate it.

Ok... I hear you and I know I have issues... i'm sure lots of us here do.

There is NO WAY TO SPOT REDUCE an area of the body. You can do crunchs and cardio and build muscle behind fat but you can't spot reduce.

The body loses at is chooses to. All exercise is good - the key is consistancy.

pherjo: This is an issue everyone who has a significant amount of weight to lose will face at some point and I don't have an answer. The exercise forum might be the place to go to get information. That is what I plan to do when the time comes.

I believe that you just want to help her!

Try Pilates....I have Winsor Pilates, they make an ab tape...very hard to do. I just bought them off Ebay for like $10.

How much did she gain while prego, when and what did she have? I had a little girl in 2000 and a boy last year. I gained 70 the first time and 35 the second. Now I am just trying to get off the 5 pounds and a few extra, tat I gained on vacation in June.

P.S. Did you really have a DNA test to prove your kids were yours?

Thanx for your helpful input "FromVA". I spend most of my time here on the excercise forum. I can talk & read about working out for hours, but I'm a man, & I don't have the same problem with my mid section as she does. I'm hoping somebody here went thru the same thing & could help us out. Thank u again & keep up the good work. I know u will reach your goal.

"Serena" Thats funny you would bring up Pilates. We went looking for the "Windsor Pilates" tape today. We didn't find it, but we will keep looking. I got the idea for Pilates from being on the exercise forum. I haven't read to many bad things about it. When I see it, I'll buy it for her. to answer your questions: She's had 3 kids. 1 boy 12yr old & 2girls 10 & 4yrs old. The weight gain she had with all three....I don't know. She did retain more weight with each child though. I was joking about taking a DNA test. I usually make that joke because my kids are "wild childs". I can't believe I helped create such crazy kids. "ritalin..ritalin...wherefore art thou ritalin?" But I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world. Besides my Mother quickly reminds me of all the crazy things I did too. So guess I deserve it.

Thanx for your helpful reply "Ikonzelman". I have been telling my wife the same thing for the past few weeks. We'll try this "Pilates" videos & hopefully it will help. Oh by the way to tell you a little something about my wife....She served 8 years in the Army (Desert Storm) & 7 years as a Texas State Trooper, So she is the epitome of an independent woman & she wouldn't dare listen to me badger her about her weight. Especially when I was a bg boy at the same time. Now she works out religiously but can't seem to get rid of her baby flab. Thats why I was asking for helpful input.

Ikonzelman....100 LBS!!! Thats great...You go girl!! One thing that keeps me going is hearing everyday people success stories. I love hearing about people getting fit & improving their lives.

"FromVA" How do I get in contact with Trainer Dan? Do I just ask the same answer on the exercise forum & hope he replies? I have explained to my wife that spot training does not work. Fat leaves the body differently on each person. She's just a little pissed off at her inability to lose the little flab left on her stomach. It's more like loose skin than it is fat. Hopefully losing a little bit more weight & Pilates will help out.

Serena..My wife went out and purchased a pilates DVD today. She said she did only a few minutes of it & can already feel the burn. She sound so excited about it that I think I'm going to do it with her. The DVD has 3 sections to it for fat burning, so hopefully it will help us out, if not, at least we have something else we can do besides Tae-bo, running, treadmill, stairclimber....etc. Thanx again!! BTW what Pilates tape did you get?

I have the 3 tape series...learning the basics, basic workout an dadvanced. I bought the ab workout and thigh and bun workout. I like it, the advanced is almost an hour long though. That's hard with 2 babies. I think I'll be able to make time for the other 2 on alternating days. My little girl (she is almost 3) does it with me, she thinks it's fun.

Let me know how it goes...

pherjo:I noticed that this thread has been moved to the Exercise Forum. I think "TrainerDan" is a forum manager (I read so many threads I have a terrible time keeping them straight because they are so full of information). If you click on the yellow bar (Success Stories) you can read about him. (If it isn't there, it is on the official Atkins site). Ask the Forum Founder and she can give the the absolute straight scoop on "TrainerDan". You can also click on "Profiles" and probably find him there, too.

ALOPEX. My wife has already bought a pilates DVD. She has tried some of the exercises on the DVD. She like the workout it gives her abs, but it will take some time to get used to. I took a look at the Matthews Method workout. OUCH!!!! I haven't done them yet but it looks like a great workout. I don't know if my wife will do them but I will. I've printed them out so I can do them the for y next ab workout. Anybody who reads this thread need to take a look at the "Matthews Method" ab workout. That stuff is sick. How can u not workout your abs,back & core muscles by not doing them. Thank u very much Alopex.

Hi PHERJO! Well I'm 31 and have had 3 daughters. A 12 yr. old, 3 yr. old, and a just turned 9 month old. One thing that I've had problems with is trying to lose and firm up my tummy! After my 12 yr. old I flattened tummy by lots and lots of sit-ups. Worked like a charm! I was also only 21,(easy to loose) 3yr. old, had an in-home day care didn't have time to do anything. This last pregnancy I excercised throughout and still gained 35 pounds. Now I'm trying, Oh so hard, to get rid of it as quickly as possible. I've lost 35 lbs,but now have started to do WINDSOR PILATES for the past 2 weeks and also started THE FIRM. OH MY GOD! I love these videos. With PILATES I've already started to loose inches and THE FIRM is so tough but a wonderful pain, where you feel sooooo good after done. I believe and feel like I'm toning and shrinking! Can't wait to weigh in and measure....PILATES is great for the abs and I feel like THE FIRM AB sculpt, and 5 day abs is great to add to routine. I also walk and jog on the treadmill at least 2 times a week. I hate to excercise but since I've been on Atkins I've had so much energy and these videos make me want to excercise. I want those results and am determined to get them.

Jessica


Good luck to you and wife on future success....
Don't worry work those abs and you will
eventually see the results. CONSISTENCY Is key....

Hi Koko First of all let me say I love your paintings. What are you thinking about when you do your abstract paintings? & how do you know when your finish? I'm not making light of your work, I just always wondered what is going on in the mind of an abstract artist. Art can mean different things to different people. I wish I can paint like that.

After serving 8 years in the Army, my wife & I are sick of sit-ups. Push-ups too.... but I'll be sure to let her read your thread about doing the dreaded sit-ups. She do Tae-bo & crunches a few times a week & their great workouts, but she's a little excited about doing Pilates. She only did half the workout on the DVD & she can feel the burn.

shpgrl03...We didn't get the Winsor pilates DVD. I wish we did. I haven't heard to many negative comments from ladies on Winsor Pilates. I've seen a few people here in this forum talk about 'The Firm'. I don't know what that is..yet. I'll have to look it up. Thank u both