# Best way to get a flat stomach



## Vikingwarrior (Feb 6, 2020)

I am in urgent need of diabetic advice as I exercise 3 hours a day and do 20-30 minutes cardio, by running on a cross training machine, and also walking 2 miles to my gym and back and walking my dog first thing in the morning and in evening; I do plenty of muscle exercises as well especially ab crunches and I cannot get a flat stomach unless I starve myself which is dangerous. I have been a type 1 diabetic since I was 6 and am 27 now and I’m on 3 units of insulin at meal times and I have cut my portion down by half and I still cannot get a flat stomach and it’s bloody infuriating. I need urgent advice from diabetics who have been in the same situation.


----------



## grovesy (Feb 6, 2020)

Personally I have never had an absolute flat stomach no matter how little I have weighed. Some of us are not built that way.


----------



## Eddy Edson (Feb 6, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Personally I have never had an absolute flat stomach no matter how little I have weighed. Some of us are not built that way.



Me either. Sux!


----------



## Vikingwarrior (Feb 6, 2020)

grovesy said:


> Personally I have never had an absolute flat stomach no matter how little I have weighed. Some of us are not built that way.


I know it’s difficult but I am too stubborn to give up and I thought it would be best to get advice from actual diabetics instead of getting advice from nurses who don’t have the condition and don’t know how to actually treat the problem we have.


----------



## Tee G (Feb 6, 2020)

hi and welcome.   It seems to me you have complete control over your diabetes, that's great a very positive thing for your long term well being, the problem is your stomach shape?  As I understand you do loads of exercise already, and do specific tummy crunches amongst all that gym work, and it hasnt helped?   Have you talked to anyone at the gym about the technique you're using?, its just a thought, because i remember when i was younger our aerobics teacher was very hot on us pulling in our tummy doing ANY of her exercises because she said, if you dont you will develop a little paunch!   On the other hand it may be that you will just have to accept thats the shape you are!. Im pretty sure no eating pattern will ever target a specific area of the body, no matter how little we eat, so please dont go too low with portion sizes or starving yourself if the only issue you have is a little tum,, that can cause bigger problems than a little belly fat!  My advice, if you dont mind me giving it is to try to focus on the positives about yourself, im sure you have great tenacity and drive, admirable qualities, use these to focus on the future, your life goal, its a big world out there, have fun and enjoy what you have.   Either way I wish you well in your endeavours but dont get to hung up on this, you are doing great things looking after yourself and life is about living and enjoying.


----------



## Vikingwarrior (Feb 6, 2020)

Tee G said:


> hi and welcome.   It seems to me you have complete control over your diabetes, that's great a very positive thing for your long term well being, the problem is your stomach shape?  As I understand you do loads of exercise already, and do specific tummy crunches amongst all that gym work, and it hasnt helped?   Have you talked to anyone at the gym about the technique you're using?, its just a thought, because i remember when i was younger our aerobics teacher was very hot on us pulling in our tummy doing ANY of her exercises because she said, if you dont you will develop a little paunch!   On the other hand it may be that you will just have to accept thats the shape you are!. Im pretty sure no eating pattern will ever target a specific area of the body, no matter how little we eat, so please dont go too low with portion sizes or starving yourself if the only issue you have is a little tum,, that can cause bigger problems than a little belly fat!  My advice, if you dont mind me giving it is to try to focus on the positives about yourself, im sure you have great tenacity and drive, admirable qualities, use these to focus on the future, your life goal, its a big world out there, have fun and enjoy what you have.   Either way I wish you well in your endeavours but dont get to hung up on this, you are doing great things looking after yourself and life is about living and enjoying.


I can’t give up other wise I will more than likely top myself. I know how I got to this stage and it was down to a consultant not giving me enough advice on insulin control, he told me what to do but did not tell me what not to do. I am also seeing a diabetic dietician soon and getting my blood test done to see if I have an inactive thyroid but I cannot just accept it, I have to keep fighting it.


----------



## Tee G (Feb 6, 2020)

I can see how desperate you are about all this.  Can i make a suggestion.... you obviously need some advice about your T1, foods,  and your lifestyle with training and gym work,  can you make a new post under a different heading?, asking for advice for a 'flat tummy' may not be attracting the right audience on here for you and I dont want to see you get frustrated.  We do want to help.  There are literally loads and loads of really knowledge T1's on here, so supportive, so up to date with current thinking and have very sensible views, im sure someone can give you some assistance, please dont despair, we are here to help you, and im sure we will.   have you posted in the newbies or general topics? Maybe title is 'Help' or I need help....       try that Vigingwarrior you may get a better response.  good luck.


----------



## trophywench (Feb 6, 2020)

Well personally being female, as I hadn't started trying to get a flat tum before I hit puberty - it was never likely to happen let alone actually occur.

As well as crunches, do you do the exercises to develop the 'diagonal' tummy muscles?  Lie flat, arms behind head with fingers linked.  Raise one leg approx. 3 to 4 inches - no more, now try and reach your toes with the opposite elbow without using any other muscles than your tum.  Aaargh.


----------



## diabssd (Feb 6, 2020)

We all have a great set of abs, but most of the time its not visible unless you go to very low body fat levels. I'm not an expert, but it seems you are doing quite alot of cardio and maybe need more focus on strength training. Best to get advice from trainers.


----------



## everydayupsanddowns (Feb 7, 2020)

Welcome to the forum @Vikingwarrior

Congratulations on your impressive exercise routine. How do you manage your diabetes generally? Is it with pens or an insulin pump?

The first thing to say is that almost certainly all of your friend and family would say that you have a completely flat stomach and they don't know how you do it. We tend to be far more critical of our own appearance than others are, and particularly where we have one thing that bugs us, we artificially amplify it. Try to see yourself through others' eyes.

The second thing is that this is a bit of cultural weirdness. A completely flat stomach isn't actually natural. It's supposed to swell out a little. So it may be that your current level of flat-ness is much closer to an ideal natural bodyshape than you are thinking.

Having said all that, I was thinking about my stomach the other day as it's showing a little more of a 'relaxed' appearance as it often does at this point in the winter and after the treats and extra feeding at Christmas.

When I was on MDI I was a bit lazy with injection rotation and while I tried to use different areas it was so much easier to use my abdomen that I defaulted there (because it was so easy to just lift up my shirt wherever I was and gain access) and just 'moved injections around a bit' more often than I perhaps should have, particularly on my left side as I'm left handed. As a result, over the decades I did see a little bit of fat gain under the skin in that location (so this is an area I've tried to target before). 

I'm still more or less the same weight I was then diagnosed 30-odd years ago, but just that one area shows evidence of a smidge of 'lipohypertrophy'. So if you are using your stomach and abdomen for injection or infusion and have been for a while, it might be a good idea to shift and rotate your sites to pastures new.

I also think it's a good idea to consult with trainers at your gym (or even do a bit of YouTubing) for a wider variety of abdominal exercises to ensure you are tightening all the muscles in that area. Crunches are good, but you also want to target lower abs with leg lifts, and ensure you are doing both straight and diagonal crunches. Something like planking to exercise the whole core is almost certainly also worthwhile.

You might also find that you get a significant difference by working on posture. There are simple pilates routines that don't feel like you are doing much, but really help you to stand better, and hey-presto bits of you that used to slump or stick out are suddenly pulled into line.

Hope that gives you some ideas. Generally when I decide I need to do a little maintenance, I can make some changes, but some of the lipo swelling always remains, and possibly always will unless I did some drastic starvation/dehydration type thing that movie stars mention when training for a role, and frankly I'm not going there


----------



## ColinUK (Feb 7, 2020)

Have you consulted a decent personal trainer?
Find one with the type of training regime and physique that at least initially appeals and talk with them. 
You may find that you’re exercising for hours but not effectively. Perhaps it’s more of a diet issue. Maybe with help of a trainer you’ll be able to more effectively train to reach the shape you desire.


----------



## MikeTurin (Feb 7, 2020)

It's the same of G sharp stomach.


----------

