Could my stomach be getting bigger from situps?

Question

I do about 150-200 side crunches every night and 15-20 leg lifts every night.

I don't know if it's just me or if it is getting a tad bigger.

Could that be why?

If so, how many should I be doing a day to not have flab, but not get a bulge?

Thanks =0)

Answer 1

Are you sucking your tumming in when doing your exercises? I heard somewhere that its a must, or you will see a bulge.

Answer 2

sit ups and crunches only build muscle they dont burn fat and thats why your belly looks bigger - now there is more muscle underneath the layer of fat.
the only way to lose belly fat is by overall weight loss
find calorie/fitness calculator on the net, enter all your stats and it will tell you how many calories you need a day to maintain, take off 300-400cal off that number and thats how much you need to lose.
eat 5-6 small meals a day (eat every 2-3 hours)
5-8 servings of fruit and veggies a day
8 glasses of water
have complex carbs for breakfast - they give you energy
have lean meat (protein) for dinner - repairs muscle
cardio exercise 4-6 times a week for 30-50min, light weight training
dont consume foods that are made of white flour (white bread, cakes, past etc.), sugar loaded foods (cookies, icecream, candy etc) and nothing fried, oily.
ofcourse you can spoil yourself once in a while with a little treat:)

Answer 3

They could be, they are muscles. But if you're not using resistance they won't get real big. When you work muscles they tend to swell because what you're doing is getting microscopic tears in the muscle tissue. The swelling goes away in a day or so and usually isn't all that noticeable. Without an increase in resistance they will eventually plateau and stay the same. Plus, the more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolism will be and you will start to burn fat in your stomach area and it will get flatter. Your workout sounds about average though.

Answer 4

I doubt that the sit-ups are making your stomach bigger. However sit-ups are not the most effective way to flatten your stomach. Sit-ups actually build muscle under the fat. That is how sumo wrestlers can be so strong and big at the same time. If your trying to flatten your stomach I'd recommend some kind of exercise contraption or running.

Answer 5

No, but if you need an ab routine go to http://www.boeafitness.com