Sit ups

[Cycling Naturalist]

There is no correlation between exercising a part of the body and reduction of fat in that place. It's a myth propagated by the sellers of exercise machinery. Increased muscle tone may make it look less flabby, but in your case (being typical of the older man) it would be a futile hope when faced with that much excess lard.

Reduction in the midriff will only happen if you either reduce the number of calories you are shovelling down your neck or increase the amount of calories you are burning. Getting the balance right becomes that much harder with each passing year.

If it's a real issue for Mrs S, she may want to think about trading you in for a younger model as it's a problem that will only get worse with decrepitude.

So speaks the voice of experience.

<Patrick grimly looks for rope and wonders if office door handle is strong enough>

 

[bonj2]

I'm in the same boat, Patrick - Beer + middle age = paunch despita plenty of excercise and healthy eating.

I don't have the will to go to a gym; won't give up beer so I make a token effort every so often to cut down on carbs or snacking.

Let me know if the boot camp approach works and I may have to give it a go.

I have the will to go, but I don't have the tolerance for boredom to remain there for very long

 

[bonj2]

Get a power plate...all your dinner will be shaken onto the floor and you'll get slim in no time.

that'll just mean you eat lots of carpet, which i'm sure isn't healthy.

 

[bonj2]

the only thing using weight for sit ups will do is build muscle

my bro claims to use resistance exercises for cardio purposes. he calls it 'HITS' - high intensity training schedule. I say it's like trying to drink whisky to quench your thirst, but hey ho.

 

[walker]

Also sit ups will make your stomach look bigger than it is at the moment. As I said before sit ups will not lose you weight, it will not burn fat.

the only way to burn it off is more cardio. weight work will only burn fat off over a longer period as muscle speeds up motabilism, but to have enough muscle might make you too heavy to get up those hills

 

[Kirstie]

my bro claims to use resistance exercises for cardio purposes. he calls it 'HITS' - high intensity training schedule. I say it's like trying to drink whisky to quench your thirst, but hey ho.

Or, alternatively, Schedule for High Intensity Training...

 

[Cycling Naturalist]

arnies encyclopedia of bodybuilding goes into great detail about the abs, as they want good tone and definition whilst keeping the waist as small as possible to make the chest look bigger

I don't think Mrs. S requires me to become a bodybuilder.

<suddenly remembers her watching "300" with interest>

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I was doing sit ups...but they made no real difference to my belly and gave me a bad back ache and a serious case of boredom. My plan is still to ge tback in the pool...but I need a serious kick up the rear to do so.

 

[Arch]

<Patrick grimly looks for rope and wonders if office door handle is strong enough>

Do you have self-closing doors? The mechanism of one of those is strong enough, I can assure you.

As for situps, the number of those I do every day varies depending on how many times I have to get up to change the channel on the TV... I'll be stuffed when I finally get one with a remote.

Someone told me those big blow-up balls are good for exercises for the stomach muscles, and I've been vaguely tempted to get one, but I wouldn't know what to do with it. Basically, I'd like a flat stomach with no actual effort if that's possible. Ever the optimist...

 

[dbg]

crunches not sit ups are more beneficial. I do 50 every morning in my office and I've got the stomach of a Greek God.

 

[Crackle]

and I've got the stomach of a Greek God.

Apparently those Greek Gods can get seriously pi@@ed off. I'd give it back if I were you.

 

[starseven]

If you can do something 500 times I wouldnt bother.

Pilates as Kirstie calls it or "core muscle strength excercises" if you dont want other fellas to laugh is the way to go.

Not that Im presently much of an example , but in the past ive found it very good.

 

[mikeitup]

Mrs. S complained about a roll of fat round my waist and having read several scare stories in the papers ("Your fatty partner has only days to live") urged me to do something about it. I've been going to the gym about 3 or 4 times a week and getting bored out of my mind doing sit ups with one of those abs rocking cradle things. I was doing 500 with zilch effect save for the aforementioned boredom.

So, I've varied it by doing sit ups on a bench holding a 9 kg dumbell over my head. I did about 120 last night, intermingling it with various upper body exercises.

Is this the right way of going about it? I'm unwilling to do anything drastic like stopping drinking beer.

at my Lau Gar Kung Fu class we do loads of sit ups etc.

try these :

either with a partner or use one of those sit up things that fits under the door for your feet or hook your toes under the settee (that's what I do)

from off your back do a sit up but hold it when you are up, go down half way and hold for 10 secs then go down 3/4 of the way and hold it for 10 secs then back to the floor. repeat 10 times the slower the better. hurts like hell but you will have a rock hard stomach like me (hidden behind 2" of flab )

 

[Chuffy]

So, what is Mrs S doing about her fat arse then?

 

[snorri]

Mrs. S complained

Sounds like time to trade her in for a younger model.