[MsCollins2B]

hello ladies, i have been doing crunches everyday for the past few days fr about 15 minutes at a time each day, my abs are incredible sore today and a friend of mine told me that doing it everyday is not beneficial to building muscle etc. so i was just wondering if anyone knows how often you should do crunches or any type of excersise ie, should they be done every day every other day etc please any info would be helpful!

[katy trail]

alot of people say we need 'rest' time. so doing the ab exercises every other day. or 2-3 times a week would be good.

for me, it was more about consistency. i'm better off doing squats every day before bed, than doing nothing bc i forgot. it's like the exercise routines. we find what works best for us.

if the goal is to build up the muscle more, then giving it time to repair and rest should be beneficial. this also allows for longer/more intense workouts.

also, if the intent is to work the abs, there's lots of exercises that work the abs other than crunches. holding in your core while you do another activity- biking, running, walking, boxing etc.

tip: to make the crunches more effective, do a crunch and 'hold' do as long as you can. then do crunches. i don't have to do as many this way. and always on my bed. much more comfortable.

[MsCollins2B]

i try to hold them in them in at 6 sec each but asi do more and more its harder lol but i guess its working or i wouldnt be so sore right? i think i will do them every othe day from now on and just continue my cardio everyday and i will try the walking etc while focusing on my core as well thanks for your help

[katy trail]

and don't forget the lowfat diet. 20-30% of cal from fat for the day. and lots of cardio.

combine them, and we get fat loss.

[katy trail]

it may help to stretch afterwards. lay on your tummy, push your chest up keeping tummy down on bed/floor. go slowly, only as far as you are comfortable.

these are called DOMS delayed onset muscle soreness. i celebrate these! they happen when you use the muscles in a different way than its used to.

[katy trail]

your pic is gorgeous! that's awesome motivation!
are you doing the 20's biggest loser challenge? it starts in a few days.

[MsCollins2B]

thanks katy i try to stay between 1200 and 1400 cals a day and i am on alli so my fat intake is never above 10g of fat per meal even tho they allow 19 i do not want those side effects lol i will definetly do the stretches thats a good idea! and thank you for the compliment! i didnt even know my pic showed up, only a few peoples show up on post at least on my pc but mine doesnt i thought the upload did not go thru but i guess it did! but anyways thank u!!!

[MsCollins2B]

oh yea and im new here so i did not know of the 20 somethings challenge i am def. in!

[katy trail]

i added you to my buddy list. we are almost same height. and now that i've lost weight, we're almost same wt too.
i'm stay at home mom too. my kids are in school now, youngest in kindergarden. i'm sure i have lots of ideas to help, or just motivate each other. i'm planning on doing the 5# challenge again. and the biggest loser challenge starts on 24th. if you decide to do it, need to sign up by the 19th.