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Tummy-flattening

cloakofsnow

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I've been wondering for sometime now but didn't really want to ask. But, anyway, what the heck:

Does constantly holding in the stomach muscles help at all in keeping the abs flatter? Even just a little?

:peepwall:
 

disregard

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I would think not. You will tone the muscles, but there will still be fat on top. Cardio should take care of that fat.
 

Jack Flak

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I would think not. You will tone the muscles, but there will still be fat on top. Cardio should take care of that fat.
Yeah, true. Burning more calories than you take in is the only way to lose fat, and it's not specific to any area on your body. If you're already at 10% body fat and just want a six-pack, do incline sit-ups or something.
 

kyuuei

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HOLD on now. When you do pilates, yoga, and everything, they ALWAYS tell you tighten your core. You get more of a workout from it.. Also, plenty of chick magazines tell you that easy sitting-at-your-desk workouts include drawing your stomach in and holding it while functioning normally.

I think that it's not what will keep your stomach flat, but the effort put into this DOES work out the back of the ab muscles which DOES aid some in flattening it out. ^_^b
 

RiderOnTheStorm

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HOLD on now. When you do pilates, yoga, and everything, they ALWAYS tell you tighten your core. You get more of a workout from it.. Also, plenty of chick magazines tell you that easy sitting-at-your-desk workouts include drawing your stomach in and holding it while functioning normally.

I think that it's not what will keep your stomach flat, but the effort put into this DOES work out the back of the ab muscles which DOES aid some in flattening it out. ^_^b

Shame on you! Reading chick mags. They fill your head with junk imo. Superficial ideals and such. :p
 

Usehername

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Yeah, true. Burning more calories than you take in is the only way to lose fat, and it's not specific to any area on your body. If you're already at 10% body fat and just want a six-pack, do incline sit-ups or something.

x2 (if the OP is male).

A woman's hormonal functions and ability to bear children mean that her body fat percentages are decidedly higher. If you're female and just aiming for a flat belly, it's cardio as mentioned several times above (input less than output; basic chemistry). If you're female and you want visible abs, this may not be possible without steroids.
 

Usehername

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Any female that has 10% body fat is ridiculously incredibly thin.
(Wikipedia)
According to Health Check Systems,[2] The American Council on Exercise[3] has categorized ranges of body fat percentages as follows:
Description Women Men
Essential fat 12–15% 2–5%
Athletes 16–20% 6–13%
Fitness 21–24% 14–17%
Acceptable 25–31% 18–25%
Obese 32%+ 25%+

Note that the essential fat values in the chart above are lower than the recommended minimum body fat percentage levels
. A small amount of storage fat is required to be available as fuel for the body in time of need.[1] It is unclear whether falling in a particular category of these body fat percentages is better for one's health than any other, but there seem to be enhancements in athletic performance as one nears the ideal body fat percentage range for one's particular sport. The leanest athletes typically compete at levels of about 5–8% for men; however, it is 10–15% for women.[4]
 

ptgatsby

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HOLD on now. When you do pilates, yoga, and everything, they ALWAYS tell you tighten your core. You get more of a workout from it.. Also, plenty of chick magazines tell you that easy sitting-at-your-desk workouts include drawing your stomach in and holding it while functioning normally.

I think that it's not what will keep your stomach flat, but the effort put into this DOES work out the back of the ab muscles which DOES aid some in flattening it out. ^_^b

It won't make a visible difference.

The reason to work the core is 1) to increase your core strength, naturally, but is important to note because it increases the body's ability to do nearly any activity and 2) form the muscle groups for appearance.

However, in order for 2) to be show up, the fat in that area must be minimal enough to show the muscle. No amount of core workout will show the muscle definition, and definition in itself does not occupy enough space to make a visible difference (to generalise, it is normally the opposite).

They are not bad excersizes, but they will do little to nothing for physical appearance. The only relationship would be an extremely slight increase in calories consumed by doing those excersizes, plus the additional burn from having more muscle mass. Both are minimal at best and won't make a tangible difference.

As far as cardio, do all types of excersize, including Anaerobic and strength training. Over training in one is not a effective all around, including various risks. In the long run though, only the consumption of fat (ie: aerobic/cardio + less calorie) will be the direct way of doing it.
 

swordpath

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Visible abs = low BF% and/or good genes. Some people just can't keep that small layer of fat off the stomach unless they were to become unhealthily skinny because that's the first place any trace of weight is stored.
 

CzeCze

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Wiki chart on body fat

Thanks for that. And yes, what everyone says here is true. Everyone technically has muscle and a '6 pack' some just have more developed musculuture than others and especially lower body fat.

Professional body builders have a systematic way of crash dieting before competitions to drastically reduce their body fat. That's how they show off the muscle -- not pumping more iron but just shedding the fat that sits on top of muscle so you can actually see the muscle underneath.

I'm aiming for 20 percent body fat and I'll see how I look. Genetically, I've always had a higher body fat percentage, so I feel I look bigger than I am. Annoying!
 
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Usehername

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Wiki chart on body fat

Thanks for that. And yes, what everyone says here is true. Everyone technically has muscle and a '6 pack' some just have more developed musculuture than others and especially lower body fat.

Professional body builders have a systematic way of crash dieting before competitions to drastically reduce their body fat. That's how they show off the muscle -- not pumping more iron but just shedding the fat that sits on top of muscle so you can actually see the muscle underneath.

I'm aiming for 20 percent body fat and I'll see how I look. Genetically, I've always had a higher body fat percentage, so I feel I look bigger than I am. Annoying!

My brother has a 7 pack. He's had it for years. It's really funny.

(Really he has an 8 pack with one side not visibly showing the 8th ab.)
 
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kyuuei

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It won't make a visible difference.

The reason to work the core is 1) to increase your core strength, naturally, but is important to note because it increases the body's ability to do nearly any activity and 2) form the muscle groups for appearance.

However, in order for 2) to be show up, the fat in that area must be minimal enough to show the muscle. No amount of core workout will show the muscle definition, and definition in itself does not occupy enough space to make a visible difference (to generalise, it is normally the opposite).

They are not bad excersizes, but they will do little to nothing for physical appearance. The only relationship would be an extremely slight increase in calories consumed by doing those excersizes, plus the additional burn from having more muscle mass. Both are minimal at best and won't make a tangible difference.

As far as cardio, do all types of excersize, including Anaerobic and strength training. Over training in one is not a effective all around, including various risks. In the long run though, only the consumption of fat (ie: aerobic/cardio + less calorie) will be the direct way of doing it.

In my disclaimer I added that it's not the only thing that helps in flattening a tummy.. but the OP asked if it was even a liiiittle bit helpful. Everyone was slapping it down with "NORAWR !! Body fat, in the kitchen, with the knife!!" The fact is any effort you put toward working a muscle group helps period, and is better than nothing.. was sorta the point I was trying to make.

Beat = Also correct. The flattest my tummy has ever been, I still had a bit of fat on it, and my muscles were only slightly visible, as I'm incapable of losing that much weight without being unhealthy. My legs also have trouble losing weight.. and I'm called by 'friends' :dry: "Frog Legs" because even when I was in great shape, my legs were the same size.. just the difference between the amount of size was muscle to fat.
 

mlittrell

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if im correct holding your stomach in technically will work your transverse abdominis. crunches are always good. planks/bridges are freaking amazing. sprinting will cut fat and strengthen abs. i like to do chin ups while holding my legs parallel to the floor. you could do cable crunches. v situps. reverse crunches. there are a ton of different ab exercises. abs are mostly diet though also.
 

01011010

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Yeah, true. Burning more calories than you take in is the only way to lose fat, and it's not specific to any area on your body. If you're already at 10% body fat and just want a six-pack, do incline sit-ups or something.

Incline is definitely the way to go. I think it keeps the muscles from becoming bulky looking. The other way is to hold the lower half of your body off of an incline and bring your legs up to your chest. You will need some strength for that though.

Abs will never show if fat is covering the area.
 

mlittrell

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sprinting will strip fat away much faster then long distance. and it will build up your core quite nicely. and if you do end up with a six pack, it will look much more athletic then it will bulky.
 
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