how often and for how long should 'I' exercise..?

Question

I am 13 yrs old, 5'2 and 98 pounds. Everbody says I'm skinny but what they don't see is that I have some fatty body parts that needs to be worked on (eg. waistline; used to be 24 inches; now 27). For short, I have gained weight.

I do exercise 6 times a week (pilates & cardio), 60-120 hours per session. I just wanted to ask how often should I exercise with my case for faster results.

P.S.
If you don't have something HELPFUL to say,
then don't say anything at all!

P.P.S.
Please don't tell me to accept for what i am right now.
I really don't need sentimentality..

Answer 1

twice a day for ten minutes

Answer 2

This is helpful, but you won't think it is...
You are probably becomming anorexic, at 5'2, 98 pounds is a healthy weight (if not already underweight) You appear to be having body image problems. Exercising 6 days a week for 1-2 hours is a lot of exercise for a teenager. You should seek help from a psychologist or even your family.

On the other hand, it is recommended that people get about 20-30 minutes of exercise 3 times a week, you are already working out a great deal more than that.

Answer 3

Okay... I want you to look at the numbers you've up there. You're 13 years old. You're 5'2. You only weigh 98 pounds. If you want to keep growing, ignore your weight for a while. Depending on your body frame, 98 pounds should look great, or a little bit underweight.
There is NOTHING WRONG with weight gain. Its a normal part of life. The important thing you might want to think about is staying healthy. Your excersize program sounds pretty good. So, make sure you get 8+ hours of sleep every night, eat three balanced meals a day, and drink plenty of water.
God knows, when I was 13, if I had been 98 pounds, I would have loved it. Just take care of your body. If people tell you that you look skinny, listen to them. Aim to be healthy, not skeltal. That's what the boys I know like.

Answer 4

I am guessing you mean 60-120 MINUTES per session. If you are 13 and are exercising 2 hours a day, six days a week, that is pretty aggressive. You sound pretty small, so you probably just need to tone the areas you are concerned about. If you want to work on your stomach, crunches and side bends are very helpful. It sounds like you are excercising plenty, maybe even too much. If you like sports, just go out and play instead of spending all your time on pilates (unless you really like pilates) and then spend about 20 minutes focusing on your midsection. If it is your sides you are concerned about, standing up straight and twisting your torso from side to side is a great way to strengthen and burn fat. Side bends are also helpful. Crunches and sit-ups are good for the stomach. Side crunches are also good. You don't need to work out for 2 hours, just spend 15-20 minutes focusing on those areas.

I can't finish without saying that you sound like you are pretty healthy. Whatever you do, don't stop eating or do anything crazy eating disorders. Eat healthy food and plenty of it. If you are young and active, you are going to need the calories because you have a high metabolism. If you stop eating, your body is going to start storing fat because you are starving it. Also, keep doing cardio. The important thing is not to have abs like a body builder, but to be healthy, happy, and enjoy being who you are.

Answer 5

You're doing the right amount of Cardio, 60-120 minutes (not hours) per session. Do not do more than one session per day though. Cardio burns fat all over, so as long as you're doing that you're working on your waistline and everywhere else that there's fat on your body. I know you don't need sentimentality, but don't stress yourself out about it too much. The body you have today won't be the body that you have as an adult. That's like trying to get excessive work done on your baby teeth when they're going to fall out anyway.

Jade

Answer 6

You've got enough cardio, that's for sure. You could drop the time down to 30 min. a day, three days a week if you wanted. Change up your exercise routine and schedule. You don't want your body getting used to the same workout because then your efforts would be useless. Now, you need to incorporate weight training. That will help you tone up as well as gain more muscle which will help you burn calories faster. Also, make sure you follow a heathly, balanced diet. Weight loss isn't going to happen unless you eat the appropriate portions of food that are good for your body.

Answer 7

Hon-please listen to this. I understand how you feel, but given the stats you have just quoted, and the amount of exercise you are doing, you are almost certainly overdoing it. Without meeting you, it's hard to tell for certain, but I think you may be pushing into Body Image Disorder territory. And I do understand how you feel, because your post reads like something I would have written at 13. And I ended up stunting my growth slightly. Just because you still have "flabby bits" does NOT mean you are overweight.We all have different body types, including the amount of fat we are supposed to carry. Think of it this way--if you owned a Labradore, and you insisted that it look like a Whippet, not only would this be impossible, but you would be arrested for cruelty.
Part of the illness is the absolute denial that anything is wrong, made worse by the fact that we are often encouraged by comments from others about how much slimmer we look. The culture as a whole is slightly out of whack, when it comes to this whole issue, I believe, so it's hard to get a "take" on what's realistic and healthy. But I strongly suspect you are leaving the shores of "realistic and healthy". That much exercise is already a huge tax on a growing body. Please re-consider what's going on for you.There's lots on the web about BID. Feel free to contact me any time, if you want to. Although I suspect you will ignore everything I've just said, but the offer's there. Good luck hon.

Answer 8

I am assuming you mean 60 - 120 min pers session? Hours would be hard!

If you are already doing this 6 times per week - a total of 6 - 12 hours of exercise a week you certainly could not do anymore

I am surprised you manage to gain any weight at all on this programme - at 98lbs you are not at all heavy

have your skinfolds done and work on the basis of bodyfat - it may be the change is added muscle - you can then work on improving your shape via lean muscle change

Answer 9

Here are the amounts of activity necessary for the average, healthy person to maintain a minimum level of overall fitness. Included are some of the popular exercises for each category.

WARMUP - 5-10 minutes of exercises such as walking, slow jogging, knee lifts, arm circles or trunk rotations. Low intensity movements that stimulate movements to be used in the activity can also be included in the warmup.

MUSCULAR STRENGTH - a minimum of two 20-minute sessions per week that include exercises for all the major muscle groups. Lifting weights is the most effective way to increase strength.

MUSCULAR ENDURANCE - at least three 30-minute sessions each week that include exercises such as calisthenics, pushups, situps, pullups, and weight training for all the major muscle groups.

CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE - at least three 20-minute bouts of continuous aerobic (activity requiring oxygen) rhythmic exercise each week. Popular aerobic conditioning activities include brisk walking, jogging, swimming, cycling, rope-jumping, rowing, cross-country skiing, and some continuous action games like racquetball and handball.

FLEXIBILITY - 10-12 minutes of daily stretching exercises performed slowly without a bouncing motion. This can be included after a warmup or during a cooldown.

COOL DOWN - a minimum of 5-10 minutes of slow walking, low-level exercise, combined with stretching.

Answer 10

At 13, your body is still growing!!

What you think is a bit of "excess fat" is your body trying to store some energy for your growing process...

You need to fill out. Your body needs to ascertain what it needs and as long as your eating a balanced diet, of minerals and foods that you need, your body will assimilate what you need and expel the rest.

What you dont need to do is follow the "fad diets" because your girl friends are doing it, or, you think the boys will like you if your so thin that you can be in a shower and not get wet!!

That is unhealthy and totally disruptive to your body. Let nature take its course and who knows, you may even shoot up, in a growth spurt, with the little bit of body fat that you accumulate..(yes, the body DOES need some energy in which to grow, or you will be short changed)...

At 5'2" and 98 pounds, you seem like the ideal weight! (maybe a bit thin, but check with a Doctor and they will best advise you).

Your waist will not be skinny all the time. Your body is changing, ready for Motherhood, when you get older, yes, your still growing inside and you need to be relaxed about what your body is trying to do, when you are 22, then your body will have stopped growing, and you will have to determine what is best for it "then", not now)..

I wish you well...

Jesse

Answer 11

well i think u should only exercise 30 min.2-3 times a week because one of my friends was going through the same thing as u and well she exercised too much and got really sick and was in the hospital cus of it so just take it easy ull get ur waistline back dont worry im sure ur pretty the way u are.. but everyone always wants to look better