hi everyone, i started dieting after christmas after weighing myself and looking in the mirror. im 23, 5.11 tall at my heaviest i was 17.3 stone. i have got down to 14.11 stone since christmas just from giving up beers and eating more veg and less junkfood my goal is to get to 13 stone by the end of june and be in nice shape for the summer.

but now i think to get into the shape i want too i need to start excersizing. i have still got a beer gut i want to shift. is situps the best way to do this?

i smoke and am still very unfit, could anyone suggest any kind of suitible workout plan? at home i have a weight bench and plenty of free weights, a decent exsersize bike and a lateral thigh trainer. half of it was bought by other family members and never really used but im wondering out of the equipment i have is this enough to get in great shape or is a gym membership in order?

any advice is much appreciated

Well, I'm far from an expert, but I think any exercise you want to do is going to help you get in shape. I don't think you necessarily need to have a lot of equipment to get a good workout, theres plenty of exercise videos on the market that require nothing but a little room for you to move, so you're already ahead on that with your exercise bike and weight equipment.

I'd only bother with a gym membership if you find that working out with other people is a motivator or you get bored of working with the stuff you already have available to you. A lot of gyms offer free trial memberships for a week or two, if you think you might prefer to go that route you might as well do that and see if you like it. That way you're not spending any money, and it will give you a chance to see which equipment or types of exercise you enjoy.

As for reducing your stomach, I dont think there are any exercises that will reduce fat in a particular area of your body, so I would just stick to whatever types of exercise you like. If you're out of shape I would recommend taking it slow and letting your body tell you how much it can handle.

At www.stumptuous.com Krista has a workout that called "all dumbells all the time" among others. You might try that. Walking is wonderful.
Anything, just anything that gets you moving and gets your heart pumping ... is great!

I have an ab roller - it really helps with sit ups and supports my neck. But it's debatable whether this is doing any good as it's impossible to target weight loss off a particular part of the body. I have been losing weight for about 8 wks now - the weight is dropping off, but it doesn't seem any is coming off my belly! (grrr) Everyone keeps saying it will probably be the last thing to reduce - which seems logical as I think it was the first bit to go podgy.

If I were living in Bournemouth - I'd be taking advantage of walking or cycling along the beach everyday.

I forgot to add. I do this 20 minute exercise workout - if it's too easy for you, move up to the intermediate level. At the moment the beginners workout is tough enough for me! It including two sets of ab exercises - one for the lower and one for the upper abs.



http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/...2_video1.jhtml

Susan,
I do not see the all dumbell workout..Can you tell me how to find it on the site? Thanks

Let me look ... I'll come back.

Does this link get you there?

http://www.stumptuous.com/cms/displa...le.php?aid=144

Yes! Thank you! It really is an interesting site..And she sure does have an interesting personality!

I think she's great. I always spend waaay more time there than I had planned. Did you see the workout with no equipment? Household stuff only.