Loosing weight in wrong places

[Minxie]

Hi all. Have put on some weight (round my middle actually!) 5ft 8 and now 10 stone. Heaviest I have been, except while pregnant. Put if I try and loose weight I loose it on my face and bust. Which believe me, doesnt need it! Would appreciate any advice on exercise tips

[snook]

Minxie, you can�t really �spot reduce� regardless of what you might hear. Your body will shed weight as it sees fit, and without any regard for where you�d prefer to lose it from.

You can, however, tone up certain areas, which will make a huge difference (e.g. your abs). Though I must point out that without changing your eating habits, any exercise will prove to be a bit of a waste of time. I�m not suggesting you diet � far from it. All you need do is develop sensible eating habits, which includes cutting down on low-nutrient foods (soft drinks, crisps, etc), while increasing your intake of fibrous foods, including lots of fruit and veg. But, be honest, you knew that already, right? :o)

As for ab exercises, vary them a lot. For example, do crunches, lying, knees bent, curling your upper body up slowly and forcefully, concentrating on the abs. You can do them while leaning on one side, so you�re working your side abs (obliques) as well. Sometimes vary it, doing the same exercise, but fairly rapidly, going for high reps. Do it til you're breathless, and your muscles ache!

Also do them standing. Just take a deep breath, hold it (only a few seconds) while flexing your abs as hard as you can. If that feels a bit soft (round your belly area), feel the difference in a couple of weeks � you�ll be amazed! Do ten reps of that every morning, and you�ll be energising your whole system and starting the day right. The deep breathing alone is invaluable for your health. There are plenty more ab exercises, but stick with these few for a few weeks and see if you can feel the benefit. You can always add more later.

Remember, it's not just about losing weight, it's about being healthier, and looking and feeling better. Throw the scales out and just focus on doing your routine really well. And enjoy it!

[pugwash52]

minxie, I would think that at your height and weight you are certainly not overweight, so just enjoy a bit of exercising and concentrate on the good things in life. I am the same height as you,definitely heavier, and probably much older, but I spent an awful lot of time when I was younger, thinking that I was fat and horrible, but when I look back at photos, I realise that this was not true.Be fit and happy! X

[gessoo]

I would say that you don't need to lose weight at all. 10 stone is a healthy weight for your height and indicates that you are slim. Exercising is the only way you can trim your middle, but don't be too fanatical about it. Unfortunately, as we get older inches do creep on round our middles, especially if we have had babies.

Looking back at photos I was 5'9" at 25 and weighed 9st 12lbs and looked incredibly skinny!

[gucciman]

i disagree, i would say at your height your about a stone overweight. i'm not saying that you should lose weight, it all depends on whether your happy with yourself or not.

the first answer was an excellent and comprehensive one. you cannot spot reduce fat or lose it from certain areas, often the part you want to reduce the fat on is the last to go unfortunately.

all you can do is follow a healthy balanced diet and exercise regulary.

[Minxie]

Thank you all for your replies. A big thank you to you snook for taking the time and giving me sound advice. I do actually follow a very healthy diet. Been vegetarian since I was 21. And have always exercised, thats why I was surprised the tyre was appearing round my middle! Will start on those exerises tomorrow!

Thank you pugwash and gessoo. I dont think I look overweight as I am tall. Am just putting it on in the wrong place! Thank you also gucciman. At my lowest weight I was under 9 stone, and didnt look healthy on it.

[gessoo]

This chart shows the healthy weight range for 5'8". You will see than 10st is in the middle of the range and 9 stone is almost being underweight.

[gessoo]

Forgot the link, oops

Height/weight