I started my current weight loss journey at 160, today I weighed in at 134, putting me at 26 pounds down and I know that is awesome. I lost tons of inches and went from a 10/12 pant size to 6/8 and with the way my pants are fitting I might make a 4 soon. I'm very happy with where I am, but...my stomach and hips area is still so flabby. My goal for April is to go on our cruise and wear a bathing suit and be able to sit down on it and not have my belly sag down to make that pooch on my belly.

For a little background, I feel I eat very healthy, I keep at 1500-1600 calories a day, I eat all whole grains, lean meats, fruits and veggies. Of course I splurge on a meal out and here there, but again that's maybe once a month, usually less often. I very very very rarely eat sweets. I exercise about 5-6 days a week for about an hour or hour and a half, I do some form of cardio everyday and mix in abs and weight training throughout the week. I just finished P90X about 2-3 weeks ago so I haven't really gotten into a good routine yet.

I am really looking for any advice on what type of exercises to fit in to my workouts, how to balance cardio vs. weight training vs. abs, foods to avoid, foods to add, that will help me with toning up my stomach and hips. I hate to feel discouraged when I have worked so hard to loose this weight, but I know that I will feel so much better about myself when my stomach and hips are toned. Any advice is appreciated

I'm working on the stomach thing myself. I'm hoping that once the fat melts away all the ab work I've done will pop out.

If you were just starting out with both diet and exercise I'd suggest a balance of fairly equal cardio and strength. Since you're mostly looking to tone, however, I'd think I'd focus more on strength. Maybe 3 days of strength and 2 of cardio? Though flipping that would be fine too, doing 3 days of cardio and 2 strength. It's really the quality of the workout as much as the quantity.

I like to do 2 days of strength. One day I do upper body and one day I do lower body. If I had 3 days to play with I'd separate it back/shoulders/chest one day, biceps/triceps one day and lower body one day. In addition, I do ab work the other three days.
M/W/F: Spin class, ab work
T/TH: lift, 20-25 minute run

For recommended exercises, I suggest body weight exercise most especially and work with dumbbells and/or an exercise ball. In my opinion this is all you really need.

Squats, lunges, bicep curls, overhead tricep, dips on a chair, push ups, pull ups (if you have access to a bar), basic crunches, leg lifts with a ball, squat pulses (squat and pulse 20 seconds, relax 10 seconds, repeat 4:00), wall sits, and planks are a few of my favorites.

First...!!!!

Second..you FINISHED P90X and still feel flabby? That program is soooo hardcore! Did you BRING IT? We're talking pull ups, pushups, plyo, without "modifications", etc.? The ab dvd alone brought me almost to tears!!! The reason I say this, is that usually, most people can't keep up the first time (I know I couldn't), maybe give it another try as your probably in better shape now and will be able to BRING a bit more of IT..hahaha...sorry but that Tony Thornton imbedded that in my mind!

Short of this, I agree with 3 days weight/2 days cardio. Your diet will continue to keep your weight in check, and if you hard and heavy 3 days/wk, you'll definitely see results FAST!

Can't wait to be at this point....it will be fun sculpting what's left behind after all this cardio! haha!

Lol, yes, I brought it. I followed the lean program for all 90 days and did every video all the way through from the beginning, of course I had to use some modifications at first (not many), but by the end I was doing it all. And I was in pretty good shape to begin with, the program really wasn't too hard for me after the first week or two which makes this more frustrating because I worked my butt off, I've always had a strong core and I honestly could do the entire ab workout without modifications by the 2nd week! So I know I worked my abs good. I will probably do another round of it at some point, but after 13 weeks I needed a change! I am starting to wonder if it's more loose skin that needs to tighten up with time or something? I will be sure to focus more on the weight training though, I still do the ab ripper once a week, then another form of abs 2 other days a week for variety. I just need to get a good schedule going.

WOW...that's impressive! I guess I'm just in lousy shape..lol! That would explain why my body responds so well to any little thing I do...it's in SHOCK..haha!

Yeah...weights sound like your ticket...heavy and hard. Even if it is some lose skin, the weights will help tighten it...weights and a little time! Much success!

Thanks. I am definitely going to try and focus more on weights and strength training now. I am keeping with the cardio, but probably only 2-3 days a week with weights/full body workouts/yoga the other days. I have a cruise in April and I am determined to get my stomach bikini ready by then. Lol

Any other tips would be lovely

If you have P90x, why not try doing the non lean version and increase your weight so you possibly do less reps?

Oh and I'd say P90x bored me personally and whenever Tony was busy talking, I'd keep going. You could also look at different strength programs like New Rules of Lifting for Women (its a book).

Are you sure it's pudge or just extra skin? You may not have anything to lose. Can you pinch and feel fatty deposits or does it feel smooth when you pinch and roll your belly?
I'm just thinking it may be a little extra skin and you will always have a small pouch unless you have a small tuck. Congrats and good luck