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Question
04 Mar 2004
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stomach exercises and weight loss
hi
i know that to shed excess kilos,cardio is the best form of exercise. when i gain weight,it goes straight to my tum,bums and thighs,a womans main problem areas.
i would just like to know what the take is on doing stomach exercises while trying to lose weight.i cant imagine it being a complete waste of time,but is it better to train those muscles when some of the weight is off? or will you be able to feel or see any difference while in the process of losing weight?
thanks for a great forum
i know that to shed excess kilos,cardio is the best form of exercise. when i gain weight,it goes straight to my tum,bums and thighs,a womans main problem areas.
i would just like to know what the take is on doing stomach exercises while trying to lose weight.i cant imagine it being a complete waste of time,but is it better to train those muscles when some of the weight is off? or will you be able to feel or see any difference while in the process of losing weight?
thanks for a great forum
FitnessDoc
Hi Porky
No, it's not a complete waste of time - in fact, I would suggest that you do these specific stomach exercise during your normal training sessions. The problem comes in when you try to focus only on stomach exercises, because this is where the failure to lose weight will happen. So, you are correct in saying that cardio is the main form of exercise, and so I would encourage you to continue to do this, but don't neglect stomach exercises. They very simply do two things - one is to increase your metabolic rate acutely - that is, while you are doing them. They don't do this quite as well as cardio, but any form of exercise is good. Secondly, and more importantly, by doing these exercises, you will increase your lean muscle mass, and the long term effect of this is to increase your metabolic rate, so that whatever weight you do lose will stay off and you'll be able to reach a stable weight.
So, keep it up, and I'm sure that results will come.
Good luck
No, it's not a complete waste of time - in fact, I would suggest that you do these specific stomach exercise during your normal training sessions. The problem comes in when you try to focus only on stomach exercises, because this is where the failure to lose weight will happen. So, you are correct in saying that cardio is the main form of exercise, and so I would encourage you to continue to do this, but don't neglect stomach exercises. They very simply do two things - one is to increase your metabolic rate acutely - that is, while you are doing them. They don't do this quite as well as cardio, but any form of exercise is good. Secondly, and more importantly, by doing these exercises, you will increase your lean muscle mass, and the long term effect of this is to increase your metabolic rate, so that whatever weight you do lose will stay off and you'll be able to reach a stable weight.
So, keep it up, and I'm sure that results will come.
Good luck
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