Question:

I am facing a dilemma, I am 83 kilograms now, I started out at 88 kilograms. Firstly, I seem to have got stuck at 83 kilograms, secondly I am losing in centimetres around each body part when measured using the skin fold thickness test, but now recently my total belly circumference has increased by 2 inches. For the past two weeks I have started doing abdomen exercises but it’s not helping to reduce my abdomen circumference. Your advice would be much appreciated!

Answer:

Some of you may be surprised by this but doing sit-ups is not the answer to reducing the size of your stomach. In order to get a flat toned stomach you will need to do some good old fashion exercise such as walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, sport, and cut your fat intake. It's that simple. When you do sit-ups you are just building muscle underneath the fat that is already there. That is why sometimes sit-ups can make your stomach look bigger. Your abdominal muscles will get stronger but that’s about it !

You will also need to burn off more calories than you are consuming so this means you need to be in calorie deficit!

The only way to do this is by reducing on fatty foods, eating less processed foods and working out for 30 minutes or more at least four days a week. Once you are doing all of the above then you can add in abdominal exercises to add strength and tone to your mid section.

Dean Piazza is a gym equipment expert and online personal trainer at www.getfit.com.au.