Situps

[Traymond]

Do they make your stomach smaller or bigger?...

Different reports say either...its bugging me...can anyone shed any light somewhat?

[bushido_man96]

Sit-ups will not take weight off your midsection, if that is what you mean. Contrary to what some companies will tell you, you can't spot-lose weight with diet and exercise. The weight comes off where it will, and we don't really get to choose.

Now, what sit-ups will do is strengthen your abdominal muscles, so they will probably gain some size. But you won't see that six-pack if you have too much fat around it.

[white owl]

I would actually recomend crunches to full sit ups.

[Traymond]

but will it turn fat into muscle so it wont be flabby but solid?

[tallgeese]

Fat and muscle are two entirly different tissues. One does not turn into the other. If you train muscles, they grow. If you don't, they shrink.

If you eat more calories than you burn, you're body will store it as fat. If you burn more than you eat, it will take it away; and if you eat and burn in the saem amount you'll be in homostasis and noting will happen.

So, if you're doing a ton of crunch work (and I agree with white owl, I'd do crunches) you'll hypertrophy (or grow) the ab muscles. But like bushid man said, you won't notice them if you have fat over them. That's where the burning calories comes into play. And he' right on the spot reduction as well. I have yet to see a study that suggested it was possible.

[Kuma]

Waist fat is reduced by cardio and diet. Situps only strengthen your midsection, they don't tone it down.

100 situps burns approximately 9 calories. A pound of fat is 3500 calories. So to burn a pound of fat with situps alone would require almost 39,000 situps.

[DWx]

100 situps burns approximately 9 calories. A pound of fat is 3500 calories. So to burn a pound of fat with situps alone would require almost 39,000 situps.

That is a whole lot of situps! Better get started on them

[bushido_man96]

100 situps burns approximately 9 calories. A pound of fat is 3500 calories. So to burn a pound of fat with situps alone would require almost 39,000 situps.

That is a whole lot of situps! Better get started on them

Yikes! That is a scary number!!!

[Traymond]

Hmmm....so im only burning 45 calories a day off of situps...whuh...

[Kuma]

Situps are still good to do, but they're going to strengthen your midsection, not reduce it. For that, you want to do cardio and diet a bit.