How do I tone my abs?

[Anonymous]

I'm not really fat but after 4 kids my stomach isn't as tight. I weigh about 115-120 pounds. So my question is can I tone up my abs with daily 30 mins of exercise but still see results without changing my diet?
I know the results would come faster but I'm not big on calorie counting and stuff. And also its not like I pig out on junk food but I do love my pasta and hamburgers. And dessert
Would portion control and exercise get me what I want to accomplish?

[orphan]

abs are the most resistant muscle to muscle growth. so doing 1000 situps isn't gonna make a visible difference.

if you notice, no one has really massive abs. the definition is achieved by bringing your body fat percentage down to around 10-15%. that can only be accomplished w/ strict meal preparation doing your best to avoid carbs which aren't fibrous.

it's NOT EASY to stay on consistent diet of bland nothingness (vegetables, chicken, and water). fat around the midsection is the very last to go. hence the strict dieting. if there's fat elsewhere on your body, it'll be burned before your body opts to take fat from your core. in my opinion this is the result of our primitive days, needing insulation surrounding our vital organs during the colder months.

good luck.

[Phoenix98]

You need to eat right so that you lose body fat which will make it easier for them to show but at the same time you also need to work your abdominal, they are after all muscles and like any other muscle in the body you need to work it and train it hard in order to force them to grow larger and become more defined and the added benefit of training them is that weightlifting and working out also causes you to burn fat.

Weight/fat loss alone will not give you defined abs or a six pack you need both proper nutrition and exercise.

Source: ISSA Institution

[Asker]

I don't wanna be real defined. Just be able to have a nice flat stomach. So to get that I would still have to change my diet drastically?

[Phoenix98]

You'd still do the same thing I said to do, eat right and have proper exercise and I really couldn't say I don't know what your diet consists of.

[kittykatg]

Unfortunately abs are made in the kitchen. You can get a flat stomach by eating less than the calories that you're burning but you won't get a super toned tummy without changing your diet

[kittykatg]

Thanks for most helpful

[udit9191]

Abs do not show because of a high body fat. To decrease body fat you must be in a calorie deficit. It is easier to get into a caloric deficit when exercising. So to answer, it is both the diet (what you eat/daily calorie consumption) and exercising that will get you abs. Starving yourself like many girls do will not get you abs either, it will screw your health, it is consistent daily healthy eating and that will get you there.

[Asker]

Unfortunately I am guilty of that. But it seems like a day or 2 of fasting helps at least makes me look thinner.
So you don't think portion control and exercise will do the job? I just want a flat stomach I don't want to be real defined

[udit9191]

A day or 2 of fasting makes you look thinner because of depleted glycogen stores in your body, not because of fat loss. True fat loss takes lots of time to happen. Whilst fasting every once in a while is OK doing it regularly is NOT good for your body/health. Please eat some food, and don't get the impression that people with little body fat do not eat. Your body needs nutrients.

[GingerGuy]

Sit ups, anything that works the abs. Even staying straight and bringing your legs up to your chest (like a reverse sit up) will work the abs.

[Asker]

But like the others are saying I would have to change my overall diet correct?
I don't want to be real defined but just having a nice flat stomach is mainly my goal.

[GingerGuy]

It may take a bit of both. That's the hardest area to tone.

[ShocknAwem]

Exercise won't do anything to your abs. It's all about eating right. You can do 1000 situps daily and your abs won't change. It's all in the kitchen.

[Phoenix98]

Actually that's not totally true the abdominal muscles are still muscles while losing fat defiantly helps you need proper exercise to make them grow larger and more prominent. Weight/fat loss alone won't give you defined abs or a six pack.

[ShocknAwem]

@Phoenix98 Everyone already has abs though. The #1 thing is to lose the belly fat, which is done in the kitchen. She didn't say she wants toned/defined abs. She just wants to get the 6 pack to show.

[Phoenix98]

Yes everyone does have abs but like any muscle you have to work them in order to make sure show and if she wants to get the sex pack to show then exercise is the right way to do it, combined with a proper diet.

[Anonymous]

Do ab ripper x from p90x and eat healthy