Abs -workout/diet help for petite lady

dazzledust

My aim this year is to try and tone up overall.
I'm a petite female & my weight is about 48 kg, have a bit of tummy that I need to get rid of.
I'd really like to see if I'm capable of trying to get tighter abs.

My question is:

What foods should I be avoiding to help achieve my goal?
What could I be taking to help?

And what type of program should I be on:
How many situps, plank, side plank, should I be doing and should this be everyday? And any other core excerises you recommend I could do.

Thanks for your time

BlueIsland

daviesp856 wrote: »

Your weight seems ok so its probably more a matter of toning.

Foods with leaner meat like chicken and fish rather than red meats are what your should go with from a diet point of view but I would focus more on the training.

I would go for a variety of abs exercises like crunches (half sit ups) to work and isolate individual muscle groups thereby turning the fat to muscle. Leg raises, squat thrusts, star jumps - start of with say 3 or 4 sets of 10 reps each and build up.

I would start off slow then build it up as you strengthen - start off once of twice per week then build it up. I think the key is sustaining it rather than going hell for leather then burning yourself out after a month and giving up.

Hope this helps

My first bit of advice is not to follow the advice in bold above!Pretty sure its trolling or a very misinformed post.
Post up a typical day's food intake and your current training regime and people on here will help as best they can!!

john_cappa

daviesp856 wrote: »

to work and isolate individual muscle groups thereby turning the fat to muscle.

Did I just read that?

Yes

Wipes eyes.....and cries softly.

Oryx

You wont be able to spot reduce from your tummy. If you lose weight it will come off everywhere, something to consider as you are already petite.

Pull ups and chins work your core. So do kettlebells, and they have a cardio aspect too. Pilates and yoga are good too. If you can swim well (not just paddle up and down the pool) it does improve overall 'tone'.

Basically, to tone up you need weight. Either doing bodyweight exercises or using actual weights. Sit ups and plank are all well and good, but you will get a better result from a more varied workout.

dazzledust

Thanks for the advise. I can swim - no real reason why I don't do it apart form being lazy. I should maybe consider swimming twice a week maybe after a gym session.
I also started doing a body sculpt class once a week for an hour (2nd week at it so far) - involves lots of squats, lunges with the bellbar,chest excerises,abs workout. Finding it really good.
I currently do 20 mins on the cross trainer level 4, and I'm working my way back up to a 5k run again. I also vary between 10-20 mins bike work and 10-20 mins on a ski / stepper machine.
Small bit of strenght training - to build my knee back up after a injury -which seems ok now.
My main areas I want to concentrate on are my thighs, my arms (wings) and tummy area.

dazzledust

My Diet

Over the past two weeks I've tried adjusting my diet and generally tasting new foods - i.e green tea, natural yogurt, sunflower seeds, mango, new cereal

Here's just an idea of what I eat

Breakfast 11 am

Stable Diet (Toasted Cereal) about a cup full with LF milk
or
Large Bowl of Special K with LF milk
Will consider changing to Skim if it's better

Cup of Lyons Tea with LF milk
(started to drink more Green or Peppermint tea / mint leaves lately)

Lunch (sometimes skipped)
Brown bread tuna and sweet corn sandwich
Or
Fruit - Banana (Snack)

Glenisk Greek Blueberry Yogurt - with fresh grapes, blueberries and sprinkle of granola on top

Afternoon Snack
Usually more fruit and cup of reg/mint or green tea

Evening dinner

Homemade Soup

(Caesar Salad)
I like chicken goujons, cod, salmon
Salad - Red/Yellow peppers, avacado, lettuce, cucumber, cherry tomatos, croutons sometimes with balsalmic vinegar

or

Toasted Brown Bread with ham and grilled cherry tomatos

or

Maybe grilled rasher, cherry tomatoes and sausages with a patato farrel


Late at nights 9/10pm I make smoothies with Frozen Natural yogurt
They can contain some of the following Banana, frozen strawberries, frozen blueberries, fresh mango, Orange Juice, frozen rasberries, etc

I am trying to cut down on carbs Bread, bagels with light philadephia etc
I don't eat patoto daily - maybe one / twice a week if that.

I usually have a chinese at the weekend with rice.

And some chocolate during the week i.e Maltesers 1-2 a week

I just can't think what else at the moment...

Oryx

Not well versed on nutrition by my own admission, but the protein does seem a little low there. Depends on your portions. And ditch the special K. Porridge is good, as are eggs for breakfast. Check the stickies for other options.

Stench Blossoms

Have you input your food into a site like myfitnesspal or fitday.com?

I would ditch the special K and eat porridge or eggs like Oryx said.

I would also get rid of the night time smoothie. Although it's 'healthy' it's very high in calories.

Also cut out the chinese - If you want to lose weight you won't lose it having this once a week.

BlueIsland

dazzledust wrote: »

My Diet

Over the past two weeks I've tried adjusting my diet and generally tasting new foods - i.e green tea, natural yogurt, sunflower seeds, mango, new cereal

Here's just an idea of what I eat

Breakfast 11 am

Stable Diet (Toasted Cereal) about a cup full with LF milk
or
Large Bowl of Special K with LF milk
Will consider changing to Skim if it's better

Cup of Lyons Tea with LF milk
(started to drink more Green or Peppermint tea / mint leaves lately)

Lunch (sometimes skipped)
Brown bread tuna and sweet corn sandwich
Or
Fruit - Banana (Snack)

Glenisk Greek Blueberry Yogurt - with fresh grapes, blueberries and sprinkle of granola on top

Afternoon Snack
Usually more fruit and cup of reg/mint or green tea

Evening dinner

Homemade Soup

(Caesar Salad)
I like chicken goujons, cod, salmon
Salad - Red/Yellow peppers, avacado, lettuce, cucumber, cherry tomatos, croutons sometimes with balsalmic vinegar

or

Toasted Brown Bread with ham and grilled cherry tomatos

or

Maybe grilled rasher, cherry tomatoes and sausages with a patato farrel


Late at nights 9/10pm I make smoothies with Frozen Natural yogurt
They can contain some of the following Banana, frozen strawberries, frozen blueberries, fresh mango, Orange Juice, frozen rasberries, etc

I am trying to cut down on carbs Bread, bagels with light philadephia etc
I don't eat patoto daily - maybe one / twice a week if that.

I usually have a chinese at the weekend with rice.

And some chocolate during the week i.e Maltesers 1-2 a week

I just can't think what else at the moment...

With weight you are at the foods in bold are possibly whats holding you back from gettign rid of that bit of belly fat. All the training inworld not going to help unless you REALLY dial in on your diet.

I like fruit as much as next person but you are possibly eating it too much in a day to loose that last little bit. An apple= 20g carbs or so, 200g strawberries about 15g....I like to eat about 75g a day of carbs from fresh fruit. Fruit never made anyone fat but i actually find limiting it to 3-4 portions a day is good for weight loss.

You arent eating enough protein IMO.Grab eggs for breakfast in any form.

Im pretty sure if you were to make three changes to your diet and that was eating eggs for breakfast, eating 3-4 pieces fresh fruit a day and changing bread for a bed of lettuce the tummy fat wouldnt stick around for long.

BlueIsland

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

Have you input your food into a site like myfitnesspal or fitday.com?

I would ditch the special K and eat porridge or eggs like Oryx said.

I would also get rid of the night time smoothie. Although it's 'healthy' it's very high in calories.

Also cut out the chinese - If you want to lose weight you won't lose it having this once a week.

Its the high carb content Id be worried about rather than the calorie content.
A chinese as a cheat meal, within reason, once a week or once every 5 days will aid fat loss.

Stench Blossoms

BlueIsland wrote: »

Its the high carb content Id be worried about rather than the calorie content.
A chinese as a cheat meal, within reason, once a week or once every 5 days will aid fat loss.

Sorry I meant to say high carb content as well.

I used to have a chinese once a week and it did me no favours. Cut it down to once a month and it moved things along swiftly.

john_cappa

One meal a week will not make or break a diet so dont worry too much about the Chinese assuming it is just an average portion and not an all out 5000 cal job.

BlueIsland wrote: »

Im pretty sure if you were to make three changes to your diet and that was eating eggs for breakfast, eating 3-4 pieces fresh fruit a day and changing bread for a bed of lettuce the tummy fat wouldnt stick around for long.

It doesnt work like that.


Telling the OP to eat less of this and more of that is largely pointless.

She needs to know exactly how many cals she needs a day and then spilt that up appropriately into a carb/protein/fats and then into 3-4 meals a day.

BlueIsland

john_cappa wrote: »

One meal a week will not make or break a diet so dont worry too much about the Chinese assuming it is just an average portion and not an all out 5000 cal job.

BlueIsland wrote: »

Im pretty sure if you were to make three changes to your diet and that was eating eggs for breakfast, eating 3-4 pieces fresh fruit a day and changing bread for a bed of lettuce the tummy fat wouldnt stick around for long.

It doesnt work like that.


Telling the OP to eat less of this and more of that is largely pointless.

She needs to know exactly how many cals she needs a day and then spilt that up appropriately into a carb/protein/fats and then into 3-4 meals a day.

Nah I disagree with you! Not about thr method but with your disagreeing the three changes would reap rewards! Forgetting about counting calories etc judging the current size of the OP if she switched special k for eggs, ate a salad with lunch as opposed to break and cut copious amounts of fruits for 3-4 pieces a day she would loose the belly fat IMO and this is what she asked!

Stench Blossoms

john_cappa wrote: »

One meal a week will not make or break a diet so dont worry too much about the Chinese assuming it is just an average portion and not an all out 5000 cal job.

A typical chinese take away can rack up the calories. Someone else here worked it out once and I think it came close to 3000 calories.

That will make or break a diet since she's not that heavy to begin with.

john_cappa

BlueIsland wrote: »

Nah I disagree with you! Not about thr method but with your disagreeing the three changes would reap rewards! Forgetting about counting calories etc judging the current size of the OP if she switched special k for eggs, ate a salad with lunch as opposed to break and cut copious amounts of fruits for 3-4 pieces a day she would loose the belly fat IMO and this is what she asked!

If she was 3 stone over weight then yeah the above protocol would work temporarily.

Then again in your opinion ab exercises will turn the fat into muscle....

Given how small she is and how little she has to lose then she has to count calories. No other way really.

john_cappa

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

A typical chinese take away can rack up the calories. Someone else here worked it out once and I think it came close to 3000 calories.

That will make or break a diet since she's not that heavy to begin with.

3000 cals! Thats alot of chinese!

Stench Blossoms

john_cappa wrote: »

3000 cals! Thats alot of chinese!

http://www.livestrong.com/article/313421-calories-in-chinese-takeaway/

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055209321

BlueIsland

john_cappa wrote: »

BlueIsland wrote: »

Nah I disagree with you! Not about thr method but with your disagreeing the three changes would reap rewards! Forgetting about counting calories etc judging the current size of the OP if she switched special k for eggs, ate a salad with lunch as opposed to break and cut copious amounts of fruits for 3-4 pieces a day she would loose the belly fat IMO and this is what she asked!

If she was 3 stone over weight then yeah the above protocol would work temporarily.

Then again in your opinion ab exercises will turn the fat into muscle....

Given how small she is and how little she has to lose then she has to count calories. No other way really.

Excuse me at what stage did I say fat turns into muscle??

john_cappa

Oooops! Got mixed up with who said what on in second post!!

dazzledust

Thank you so much for the advise

I think my diet is the most difficult to get right.

I really struggle with eating eggs - really don't like them -basically as often as I've had food poisioning (I get an egg taste in my mouth & my breath) so it's really put me off.

I really need more alternatives to Special K as well .
Carbs - I am missing the crunch factor I guess so I need to come up with more ideas what to make/cook.

I take liquid aminos before a work out and after I have recently started taking 3/4 of a cup of whey protein.