I never really started out with measurements, but I'm guessing being in the high 170's I must have been pushing 42". I've had three kids, but still, that's big. My measurements around 145 were something like, 36, 31, forget hips, but not that big. Now my chest and stomach are almost the same. I was thinking, man, I really got to do some pilates or something.

My step daughter said I lost in my hips. I do a lot of cross country running and started mountain biking, you would think my stomach would be somewhat smaller. My husband and I ordered belts, and I ordered the same size as him and he's 20 pounds more.

And the clothes sizing is a joke. I bought size 8 and 9 in juniors and they fit my waste. I think its the style of the jeans, but still. And there's no change in my tops. I was wearing 10/12 before.

Maybe I should eat less carb? I have cut back on alcohol and I am trying to quit. I do tend to crave sugar. My overall calories are 1700 to 2000 a day, and I know I have to bring that number down, but I am active.

now you are shorter than me... and my waist is about 36"

are you an apple shape? losing weight on your stomach is often difficult, is it firm or squidgy?

Alcohol could very well be a factor. It can cause you to retain huge amounts of water in your abdomin. You don't say how much you normally consume in a week but, living where I do, alcohol is quite a factor in both social and business situations so I had to come up with a few tricks. First, I switched the type of alcohol. Got rid of beer altogether (that hurt ) and I no longer drink anything mixed with soda (even diet soda). When I was first getting rolling on the cutback, I tried picking things I'm not terribly crazy about (like Scotch) so I would sip it more slowly and have fewer in the course of an evening. Then, the really big thing, I made a hard and fast rule that I stick with no matter what - for every "adult beverage" I have, I MUST finish 8 oz of water before I can order another. So far seems to working out OK as long as I make sure I have the alcohol planned into my menu so I don't go over my calories.

Might want to give it a try for a few weeks and see if it helps.

Pretty I am an apple shape, and my stomach has some firmness to it, I really don't see it hanging in the mirror, but you can see fat.

Yeah yoyo it probably is alcohol related, but my stomach has always been the problem area, but the alcohol made it worse. I guess its gonna take some time. I notice I usually have to have nothing to drink for at least two weeks to lose bloat, but then I switch to sugar, although the sugar doesn't seem to make me bloat. I just thought with an almost 20 pound loss it would be better. I have cut back, and am trying to drink in smaller amounts or not at all. I did consume a lot. I am also on wellbutrin, which is helping.

kinda like a beer belly?

in that case STOP drinking immediately... its obviously having a very bad effect on your internal health!

Yeah, I'm trying.

I really needed to read this, today. Thank you. Great tips.

I will try them.

What is a 'good' waist measurement to have? Mine's about 30-31" now (can't remember what it used to be but obviously more) but my hips are 40"!!! I can't believe it's a ten inch difference

BTW - love your doggie pic for your avatar rosemarie. One of my girls looks just like that and I bet she'd love the snow. She gets really hot here, poor baby (must be all that black hair). I have to leave the AC on high in the summer and keep her in the house all day.

Fat in your stomach area is often visceral fat, which is fat that surrounds your internal organs (as opposed to subcutaneous fat, which is the fat just below your skin).

If you do a google search on visceral fat, you'll come up with 100 different articles with 100 different suggestions of what to do to lose it. But a few themes seem to emerge:
1. Do cardio exercise. I'm not sure the pilates is going to do much to help you lose fat in your stomach area. But cardio exercise--running, fast walking (fast enough to elevate your heart rate), elliptical, stair master, bicycling, aerobics, dance, etc. will help. Based on a cursory perusal of the various articles that came up on my google search, this seemed to be the top tip. Intervals, in particular, have been shown to be effective in losing belly fat (and that's been my own personal experience as well).
2. Limit alcohol consumption. You already know this.
3. Limit consumption of refined carbs and sugars. Sugar that occurs naturally in fruit, veggies, and dairy isn't the problem, but many experts seem to believe that refined sugars and carbs get stored as belly or visceral fat. Try to eat whole grains (whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, brown rice, oatmeal) etc., instead of their refined counterparts. And try to avoid foods with lots of added sugars. There are some experts who believe you should avoid all foods with a high glycemic index (refined sugars and carbs plus certain fruits and veggies, including corn, beets, pineapple, and bananas)--see the sugarbusters forum for more information on this.
4. Limit consumption of saturated fat (typically animal fat, except fish, and fats that are solid at room temperature). Try to eat unsaturated fats: olive oil and fats that are liquid at room temperature, avocados, nuts, fish.

There is a good article in the exercise forum on losing belly fat: From Muffin Top to Six-Pack: A Guide to Getting the Abs Everybody Wants.

I think stress and lack of sleep are also supposed to contribute to belly fat.

I have read somewhere, I wish I could remember where, that a woman's waist should be 30" or less. Also the ratio of waist to hips for a woman should be 80% or less. 31/40 = 77.5%, 30/40 = 75% So you are there!

Hey! Just wanted to point out that all of these "should" measurements are averages--or just someone's concept of "ideal." "Individual results may vary."

I do lots of cardio, I don't drink alcohol at all, and I have a 35 inch waist. Doing abdominal exercises and core exercises help, but my body pretty much is what it is...

I don't think I'm ever going to have a 30 inch waist--I may have had that measurement for 10 minutes when I was 17... and weighed 112. But I think there's no going back.

Jay

JayEll - That's actually encouraging to me. However, what about the 80% ratio? Right now I"m losing fat off my hips faster than my waist. I know I need to get my exercise program in higher gear for all kinds of health reasons. But at the rate I'm going, I'll be a cylinder soon. Not the shape I was working toward.