Vanity Schmanity... How long and what will it take for mini-abs?

I'm not looking to get "ripped" Maybe just a little toned? I'm not really shooting for abs in all of their abby glory. I think that they are great for some people but I do want to stay a little softer... so what I want is more of a contouring in that area. Not super sculpted just toned...ish. This I am certain will take plenty of time and that's ok I don't mind earning it, but I like to have a time frame or reference points. I'm 158.5, 5'4, 24 years old and Female... my tummy boobs and face are the first things to slim out, and I don't know what to do for mini abs. My goal is 120 and I'm doing crunches to begin but I don't go to a gym and need advice for working them at home. Is this something I will start achieving after I reach my goal weight or could I earn results sooner than 120? I'd love to hear from anyone who has had a similar experience or knows. Especially the time reference. If I have an idea of how long it will take I can expect it to move slow and not give up.

Thanks

"Abs are made in the kitchen, not in the gym"
 -old bodybuilder saying

 Having abs of any kind is mostly a function of your diet. You can do crunches 'till the cows come home, but it takes about 5 hours of crunches to equal the calorie burn of 30 minutes of jogging, so while you can certainly train your abs a bit you're unlikely to see a lot of benefit from doing a whole lot of abdominal exercises.

 There's a lot of things you can do to get a good workout in without joining a gym - check out Paige Waehner's Total Body for Beginners, the more structured 12-week plan or this home workout as places to start; pick one and just go with it for a few weeks to see how it works for you ;)

Like you, I originally started in the 150's (i'm 5'5), and my goal is 120-125. I started working out in mid September, when I got to 147.

Life's hectic so I don't get to go to the gym as often/consistently as I would like. On average, I workout for 30mins to 1 hour when I get the chance. I started seeing "abs" about 2 weeks ago, so this should give you a time frame of about 2.5 months to see results if you work out consistently. Of course, this depends on your body composition, etc.

To really see abs, you have to remove the layer of excess fat that's covering them. So cardio is essential. Crunches are good to tone the muscle, as well as any other activities that work your "core".

Hope this helps. Good luck:)

Thank you both so much! I'm doing 3-4 miles on the treadmill each day for cardio and am also counting calories, I'm going to look into the program and I'm glad to have a reference point of around a few months. I'm really excited now. Hope you guys have a great week :)

Megan

I say do intervals on the treadmill and not just straight running distance....run hard for 30 seconds, then jog for 30...repeat this for 3 miles...

if you just want to see your abs...then by all means lose the fat...but if you want them to pop a little bit...you gotta get out the kitchen and do your ab workouts with weights.

I definitely agree with eddie. Try HIIT (I think there's a link somewhere on the site) and add weights to get that definition. Once you start seeing mini abs, you might end up wanting abs in "all their abby glory".

Original Post by eddiepotter:

I say do intervals on the treadmill and not just straight running distance....run hard for 30 seconds, then jog for 30...repeat this for 3 miles...

if you just want to see your abs...then by all means lose the fat...but if you want them to pop a little bit...you gotta get out the kitchen and do your ab workouts with weights.

 

Eddie please elaborate.  Can you tell us what exercises (with weights)? I'm curious (as the OP most likely is).

Thanks Dawg!

MJ

Standing Cable Crunches: 100lbs…13x2

Kneeling cable Crunches: 145 lbs…15x3 with 12 medicine ball crunches in-between and a 45LB plate on chest or stomach.

Oblique Weighted crunches 15x2 each side 25LBS  

(2 times a week) Medicine ball drop (Stomach): 4LBS,6,8,10,12…x10each weight (fighters only)

Back extensions: no weight: 30x2

These are the basic stomach exercises I do...the two highlighted ones are the most important IMO.

thanks EP!  Wanted something to do after P90X concludes.  I'm considering putting my own "circuit" together.MJ

I did P90x as well...I think it's a great program for advanced people....

I did it twice, and followed the diet, and before long I had a really solid body.  It helped my fighting a lot.  keep it up.

Thanks eddie!  I plan to.  I'm on my 6th week and feel great!  I may do a second round when this round is through--I haven't decided yet.  I've turned a couple other guys in my department onto it so they've just started.  It would be fun to do the 90 days WITH them.  I may do that once they've completed their first round!

Peace!

MJ