Any fitness gurus here?

[TNDemo]

I am female, in my 40s and have the typical 10 extra pounds that goes with middle age. I would like to wear sleeveless dresses and shirts in the summer without being embarrassed. My upper arms are flabby (bat wings) and my sides, under and behind the pits, are poochy too. Another problem that has arisen in recent years is the pooch just below the belt line on the sides, toward the back side. I am afraid I have turned into my mother. I know weight loss would help but toning would too. Anybody had any good luck trying to tone up those areas? Any good exercises to recommend? And how long does it take? Any help for a flabby mama would be appreciated.

[11cents]

1. Lift weights!

It's good for all sorts of reasons, but "toning" is definitely one of them. I'm also female, in my 40's, and weight-training has made a huge difference for me, not just in giving me biceps to amaze my friends and frighten my enemies along with triceps in place of upper-arm flab -- but it also improves your posture and your overall sense of being.

The downside is that it's a really good idea to start out with a trainer. If that's not feasible for you, get a few good books -- "Weight Training for Dummies" is pretty good, as is "A Woman's Book of Strength" if you can get past some very Marin County verbiage -- and follow the directions for the suggested exercises. There are a lot that you can do at home, with dumbbells, elastic bands, or no equipment at all.

[ant]

2. ditto

Lifting weights is AWESOME. You're going to have to do some cardio to get rid of the fat (remember: spot reduction is impossible), but building some muscle will help give you definition and give your metabolism a boost. I hate cardio - it bores the crap out of me - but I love lifting. I can't recommend it enough.

Anyway, here are a few websites that I found helpful when I first got started:

http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html - this is a fabulous site

http://www.exrx.net/Exercise.html - go to the templates section (right hand side) of this site and it'll help you put together a routine. They've got lots of exercises and you can pick and choose depending on the muscles you want to work.

Good luck!

[Elidor]

3. And after that weight training...hiking, hiking, hiking!

Join Tennessee Trails or Sierra Club or just grab a friend and drag them along. And if you get tired of hiking, Tennessee has almost 9,000 known caves to explore. I do a fair amount of hiking just to get in shape for caving. And caving will leave you feeling like you lost 5 pounds in a single afternoon. Good fun. Who needs treadmills and stairclimbers when you can be outside?