Stomach toning

Mista_Tee

Mista_Tee

New member
Sorry if this has been covered, but i cannot find aything in the search engine on here.
What are your prefered way (or quickest atleast lol) for toning up the stomach at home? Im finding it pretty hard to fit in weightlifting into my hectic shedule, aswell as enough cardio, and tbh i dont think im getting enough toning around my stomach by just powerwalking a couple of times a week - are those electric jobbies simply a con / can they work? Im not looking for a quick fix, as i know thats impossible - but any reccomended methods will be muchly appreciated :)
Thanks
 
Lose weight (fat, specifically).

There is no non-surgical quickfix. Some preliminary studies show that a supplement called CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) can actually produce some spot reduction of abdominal fat, but it's doubtful they will stand the test of time.

Make time. For weight training and cardio, that is. Walking is a good start for a beginner or someone who is very out of shape. Unless you're extremely blessed with regard to genetics, you won't be seeing much definition in your abdominal area until you hit the 10% body fat barrier, and likely won't have the coveted six pac until you're into lower 8%.

Edit: Also, yes, the "electric jobbies" are a con. While the equipment available to physiotherapists and such can have some effect, the models available to consumers do almost nothing and are uncomfortable. Neither is anywhere near as beneficial as simple 2-3x/week full body weight training. Direct ab work isn't even necessary to have nice abs. I'm sorry, but anyone who tells you that X number of crunches (or insert any ab exercise/machine/whatever) a day as if it's going to magic the fat off your abs is ignorant.

You can generally find a cheap or even free set of dumbbells and/or other equipment to start working out at home, if that would be helpful. Or, failing that, you can get a pretty good full body workout with bodyweight exercises alone. If you're serious about it and not just making excuses, I'll be happy to provide you with some ideas and links.
 
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Cheers for the advice! I have a semi-pro home weight set - which ive been hitting hard since the begining of this year - just upgraded the weights and it is going well. But to date ive only lost a couple of inches from my waist and chest, (allthough i didnt measure from the start - so it maybe a little more) i guess ill just have to be patient and see what im like more near the end of the year.
 
No problem.

Do you have a log? I wouldn't mind seeing what exactly you're doing for weight training. Not all exercise is created equal.

And by a home weight set, do you mean adjustable dumbbells, or a total gym type machine?
 
Its a bench with leg extensions that you can add weight too & a barbell & dumbell set where you add weight plates.
I dont have a log - but i can tell you pretty much to the point what i do;

Stretch before excersise of course;
Warmup - usually 10-20 mins home video style exercises (i dont know how else to explain them lol)
Then before i start lifting i do 15 reps of alternate curls on the dumbells, nothing heavy 15lbs on each arm.

Day 1 > Incline Bench Press - 15>20 reps at 50lbs
> Alternate Curls - 15-20 reps at 30lbs (15 on each arm)
> Flat Bench Press - 15>20 reps at 50lbs
> Alternate Front arm raise - 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Upright Rows - 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Incline bench press - up 1 notch on the incline than before - 15>20 reps at 50lbs
> Shoulder Press - 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Bench Press - varied either flat / inclined 15>20 reps at 50lbs
> Curls 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Bench press - this time trying to add another set of plates - i usually max out at 8>10 reps with another 3-4kg extra

Day 2 > Squat 15>20 reps at 50lbs
> Static lunge 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Leg extension 15>20 reps at 25lbs
> Lat raise 15>20 reps at 25lbs
> Leg curl 15>20 reps at 25lbs
> Bent over rear arm raise - 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Lunges - 15>20 reps at 30lbs
> Squat 15>20 lbs at 50lbs

Day 3 > Rest

Day 4 > As Day 1

Day 5 > As Day 2

Day 6> Rest

Day7> Cardio - i try to get in asmuch as i can as this is my only day off work lol

I also try to powerwalk at nights after the weights / on my rest days

I know the weights arent massive, but i have improved no end from when i started - i could only bench a pathetic 25lbs!

Feel free to comment if im doing anything wrong :)
 
Mista_Tee said:
Feel free to comment if im doing anything wrong :)
Click to expand...

Overall, not too terrible but there's still a lot to improve on.

Rather than critique each thing separately I'm going to rearrange what you've written, and give some brief explanations as to why I've made the changes. If you have any further questions I'll be happy to answer them. Also, these are only suggestions, so don't feel like you have to change your whole routine around just because I say you ought to. (Though I do think you'll see much better results should you implement the following). Keep in mind that your rotation (the days on which you do what) is essentially fine. Just be sure to get in a decent amount of cardio whenever you can.

Upper Body (Days 2 and 4)

Warmup - 5 mins of light cardio (walking fast on a treadmill, leisurely cycling, light jump rope, etc).

[60s rest between exercises. No more, no less. This will take some practice]

Bent-Over Row [Do this with a barbell, or dumbbells if you've only the one bar.]
Incline Bench Press [Using dumbbells will make this more difficult. This goes for all bench variations.]
Bent-Over Row
Flat Bench Press
Bent-Over Row [Barbell.]
Flat Bench Press
Military Press [Do this with dumbbells.]
Close-Grip Bench Press[Use the bar. You want a nice close grip, depending on the bar, usually with the outsides of your wrists touching the beginning of the grippy area of the bar. Make sure you bring your elbows in close to your body as you're lowering the weight, to really recruit your triceps. Same for the regular bench, too. You will find it quite difficult at first, but this form is much superior in terms of both strength and injury prevention.]
Military Press
Close-Grip Bench Press
Military Press
Close-Grip Bench Press
Standing Bicep Curl
Standing Alternate Curl
​

Lower Body (Days 2 and 4)

Warmup - 5 mins of light cardio (walking fast on a treadmill, leisurely cycling, light jump rope, etc).

[60s rest between exercises. No more, no less. This will take some practice.]

Stiff-Legged Deadlift [Do this with a barbell, preferably.]
Dumbbell Squat [If you have any trouble with holding on to the weights, buy some "lifting straps". They're $10 pieces of cloth you use to supplement your grip strength. I highly recommend just going ahead and getting them. They'll allow most people to work with much more poundage.]
Stiff-Legged Deadlift
Dumbbell Squat
Stiff-Legged Deadlift
Dumbbell Squat
Straight-Legged (Also called Romanian) Deadlift [Use the bar, preferentially]
Standing Calf Raise
Straight-Legged Deadlift
Standing Calf Raise
Straight-Legged Deadlift
Standing Calf Raise
​

How much you can lift doesn't matter, except relative to how much you could lift last time. No need to make any kind of excuses. To me, or yourself. Just try to do a little more every time. You won't always be able to.

The changes reflect an alteration of emphasis to exhausting larger muscle groups with compounds before doing any isolation (such as curls).... I guess explaining the changes really didn't take long. Damn, that was concise. :D You'll notice it's also now all free weights. Machine work of any kind is unnatural, and therefore dangerous (or just inferior, at best).

Replace what you were doing with what's above, and it's almost certain you'll have better results. Make sure you research the form for anything you're unsure of. Or, ask me about it. And realize that you're probably going to suffer on some of your lifts until things sort themselves. Your bigger lift poundage should go up while your isolation poundage will go down (as they are now being left to last, as they should be). Also, just a warning, lower body day will kick your ass, hard. If it doesn't, you're doing it wrong. ;)

Edit: Forgot to add, each weight training session should take you no longer than 30-45 minutes. 30 once you're practiced. Any longer and you're screwing around and/or resting too much. Happy lifting. :D
 
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Your a Legend!
I will certainly incorporate those into my workout - infact ill print it out now so i dont forget.
I do a 60s rest inbetween lifts at the minute, i just found this a good rest time anyway when i started & havn't changed it, so i shouldnt have a problem there.
I had thought that my lower body wasnt as intense as it could be - so thanks for the great advice!
 
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