People Who Work Out I Mean Really Work Out

[JeepyJeepGC]

okay those of you who work out, and i dont mean the casual ill go for a run to shed the water weight....i mean those who have a steady routine and who know a lot about what excercise to do for whatever part of the body...


Since I just had my son 3 weeks ago, I decided to start working out little by little...

my delivery was particularly difficult and they said i really should take the whole 6 weeks to recoop but i just feel too crappy to sit around. I went to the gym the other day to start out slow. 10 minutes on the tread mill then various weights (thighs/calfs/biceps/triceps/back) i tried to do sit ups but my abdominal muscles are still too weak to even get through 5.

my lower abs are a wreck and a half the 2nd time around did a number on them. my muscles are lose there is no tone at ALL. what I need to know is what isolates the lower abdomen and gives it a good work out lol. i neeeeeeeeeeeeeed to get my abs back into shape my back is KILLING me because i have almost no support from them so ANY ideas bring them forward!!!!

[Siege911]

well what i would do is use one of those giant balls (no not that kind lol!) and sit on it. They help surprisingly a lot, and if you just sit on it, lean back and move around it works out your whole abdomen... and it's not too stressful.

But then again that's just me

[imported_myculito]

The ball won't be a good start. You use your entire abdomen to balance yourself, and if she can't do a regular situp, the ball will be even worse.

If you go to a gym that has those isolated ab machines, then start with those. Start light, and as you get your strength back, you can start increasing the weight.

Then, you can graduate to the ball.

[hkspowers]

Ok, what you are aiming for is what is called spot loss/gain. This goal you set for yourself is unfortunately impossible. To see your abs again you will need to work out your whole body and the fat will come off where your body wants it to come off and that is generally a little bit from everywhere. Don't get discouraged though, once this process starts it will come off relatively quickly if you maintain a diligent workout routine. Generally (depending on how long since your last workout period) you will see small results the first two weeks. After this initial success you will experience what seems to be a plateau, this is not the case however, your body is simply getting more efficient at the work and getting used to the new routine. Keep up your routine and in six weeks if you were honest with yourself and stuck to the routine you will notice huge improvements. Remember your diet plays a huge role here also. Most people who go on musclegain/weightloss regimens sabotage their own success by eating a high protein, low carb diet. This is not the way to go, You NEED carbs; you just don't need useless bleached refined carbs. A safe bet is to only eat bread that has the words "Whole Grain Wheat" not 7 grain, or 12 grain, you need whole grain, the reason being is that the other "wheat breads" are still refined and bleached, just not as much as white bread. These bleached products are quickly broken down into simple carbs which then become glucose then stored as fat when not used immediately. Complex carbs like the ones found in Whole grain wheat products, like certain pastas, and breads labeled as such, are broken down slowly and are good for giving you long lasting energy for the day also fighting the typical insulin surge associated with sweets and simple carbs.

Diet Sabotage 2: FAT IS GOOD!
You need fat in your diet, just not any saturated fats. Peanut butter and Olive oil are good sources of monosaturated fats which are good for your heart and cholesterol. They also help you keep those hunger pangs away.

Diet Sabotage 3: This is the main downfall of most people looking to loose weight especially people trying to gain muscle and loose weight at the same time. Fiber is very good or you cholesterol and acts as a scour for your arteries. Fiber also binds to sat fat and prevents it from being digested. Fiber also makes you feel full and keeps you feeling satisfied.
A good fiber meal I eat every morning is 3/4 cups of Kellogg?s all bran Cereal with 1/4 cup of Cap n crunch peanut butter crunch mixed with 1cup skim or 1% milk. This cereal taste like raisin bran with no raisins and of course peanut butter.

A good ab workout is the basic trio. Full Sit-ups, crunches, and leg raises. These can be done in your home whenever you like. Try to do all of these as a workout though instead of spread out during the day. Weighted crunches are not necessary, I have abs and I have never done weighted crunches and I only do 3 sets of each ab exercise and only 25 of each. Abs are just like every other muscle also give them a rest in between workouts. So 4 days a week is plenty. If you want I can give you a workout plan and diet plan in detail if you give me your height, weight, age, and fitness level. But before you start I advise you listen to your doctor and give yourself the full six weeks for recovery. Just start by eating right and walking around your neighborhood. Trust me you don't want to rush a body that?s not 100%. The workouts are going to be hard enough. I know from experience, I had a sprained ankle that probably would have taken a week to heal but I did not want to stop running for a week so I kept running and respraining it over and over till I could not walk then I was out for 8 weeks. So it will just save you pain and time in the end. Hope this post helps you out. If you have anymore questions just feel free to ask.


P>S> Sorry for the long post

[imported_Lacuna]

Listen to your doctor, and rest. You can very easily injur yourself by working to hard. Besides you will burn a LOT of fat just by breast feeding. Start by taking walks everyday, than slowly move up to hard work outs. My wife lost a lot of weight after our first baby in the first couple months just by keeping a good diet.

[Turbob20EG]

Also don't forget to stretch like crazy.....I sure ya not doing anything close to what I do..But, I ran anywhere from 2-10 miles every other day. I can tell major diff when I do quick 10min stretch and a good 25-30 min one. And hella water also. I know lota people that work out a lot but don't drink much water...Ya body lives off water so drink up

[Chino Kapone]

pilates, pilates, pilates...... your eating habits should be what you concentrate more on than anything. especially if you need to rest for 6 weeks. i have seen people lift 2 hours a day but they are not getting the gains they want because of their eating habits. after you rest i would do pilates. it is just a great overall strength building and fat burning excersize.

[JeepyJeepGC]

I'm not too worried about the fat loss, i know it will come off these next few weeks. I went in the hospital just shy of 170lbs and 2 weeks later i was down to 145 by now im sure i have lost more. Ideally, I should be 110-115 absolutely no more than 120 for the sake of my asthma. I was a little overweight when i got pregnant to begin with so it was pretty hard on my body this time around. as for breast feeding the first week it did good but b/c of family history-don't ask lol- i couldn't continue, my milk dried out by the end of week 2. happened with my daughter too so i already expected it. i know i should take the full 6 weeks but i don't like feeling/looking so out of shape, puts a real damper on my mood. my upper abdomen is not as bad as my lower. My lower is just a little pouch of muscle thats just blaah. i dont know how to really explain it. the lack of tone is just creating a lot of back pain, because i have no support at all. i know what exercises i have to steer clear from for the moment. i did leg lifts at the gym (weighted) and strained my muscles in my lower abs way too much, i just about screamed after the third set. im just going to have to do what I've been doing, lots of water few small good meals and stay as active as i can, and with an infant thats not a hard thing lol.

[ledzep09]

get a huge inflatable ball thing, stick it between your ankles, lie down flat, and lift your legs up in the air a few feet..keep it steady. works lower abdomen perfectly, as well as lower back.

[Chino Kapone]

knee lifts to kick outs using one of these machines. you really have to pull up your knees in a controlled manner, then kick out your legs to get that extra burn. my favorites.

my fav way to tone abs