STUBORN BELLY

First off, welcome!

Second, how old are you? Age definitely has something to do with how effective dieting and exercise are. The older we get, the harder it is to maintain tone, and the easier it is to get and stay out of shape.

Also, some of it's just the way your body is. I've weighed many different weights - I've been up and down and all over the place for my entire adult life. And, throughout it all, I've had a small waist and a large belly. Even when I was underweight - it didn't seem to matter - the waist and the belly just did whatever they were going to do, no matter how many situps I did.

There really isn't anything such as spot-reducing. The reality is, it's all in how much you weigh. 200 pound people and 100 pound people can both have large hips or small arms or whatever.

However, weight training and exercising are effective in terms of tone. Muscle mass is smaller than fat mass, although it weighs more. Essentially, it's more densely packed. So you can weigh 200 and have smaller arms (in terms of circumference) than a 150 pound person because your arms are toned. A 100 pound person will have even smaller arms though, and not necessarily because of toning but more because a 100 pound person is smaller all over.

Also, what you believe is moderate eating might not be moderate at all. A lot of people misjudge portion sizes on a regular basis. A standard portion of chicken is 4 ounces - about the size of a standard deck of cards. But many people see an entire plate of chicken (probably more like 10 ounces) and think it's one portion, when it's really 2 1/2. Weighing and measuring food is truly the best way to know exactly how much you're eating. Keeping a food diary is also helpful. Even if you're not dieting, per se, it's helpful to know what's going in your mouth, and when. Do you snack in front of the TV? Do you indulge at dessert? Do you eat out a lot (large portions, and often fat creeps in in all sorts of places, such as butter used in cooking)? Do you overeat when you're starving? Do you make poor choices? You could, conceivably, eat a moderate amount of food, but still gain weight or be unable to lose it because of poor choices.

the bottom line is what is your bodyfat% and your BMR as well as your bodytype. ab workouts will not make you slim, it will strengthen your stmach muscles but you need cardio to cut weight. check out my recommendations in the weightloss club thread

Aerobic isn't likely to develope the muscle mass needed to raise the metabolism. It will improve your appetite. Try the weights as Jespah suggests.

you do both cardio and weight training togather. metabolism will be increased by proper eating and exercise. muscle mass is only part of the equasion. what is really needed is proper diet to increase metabolism.

In terms of diet, the best way to get the metabolism going into a fat-burning mode is eat less, but eat more often. Don't let yourself get hungry, but don't stuff yourself. Concentrate on lean proteins, leafy greens, lots of vegetables, and not a lot of starch. Cut out white flour, and all refined sugar.

However, in terms of BMI (Body Mass Index), you are not overweight. You are quite normal actually. For the pain, have you seen a specialist, or a physical therapist?

drink water ever cell in your body needs water. eat 5-7 times a day in smaller portions.

STUBORN BELLY
First of all I thank you all who tried to reply my questions.I'm 48 now and I need motivation to do exercise on a regular basis.It is not that I don't know the value of exercise but that doesn't help.You can't do something regularly for a long time unless you can actually see some benefit \ relief which you beleive is really out of your chosen efforts! otherwise you simply cannot stick to your programme.Weight was never a problem and my waist is not bad.

I was able to reduce my belly by nearly two inches in three months about a decade back.But, today I can't do even half an inch! I've also heard that Spot Reduction is not possible.My question is if I can gain inches by eat&laze around why I can not loose inches by going in the opposite direction?

As regards to the pain issue,I have not consulted the neuroligist only yet.I hope you understand my frustration when everyone else and every test is unable to find what's wrong with my body.

do high intensity interval training as your cardio and you will lise the extra inches. It is not just your workout but your mindset too. It takes dedication. read my links in the weightloss thread to explain body types and the reason you have problems losing weight. You have to eat strict while cutting as well (strict does not mean you cant have that snack sometimes) Everything has to be dedication...mindset, workout, diet.