Mums with a flat tummy - do you hold it in?

[User112]

That really. How on earth do women with kids have flat tummies? What kind of workouts do you do? Do you always hold it in? I’m 1st away from my healthy weight range (upper boundary) and I have a B tummy. Do I even have a chance if I lose that 1stone?

I have a flat stomach but always have really, the weight always went elsewhere. I'm not big by any means, healthy BMI, but my legs are where the weight usually goes. I put it down to stomach muscles, my midwife said I had good ones🤔 but I don't have a car so do a lot of pushing a pram up and down hills and have since DD's birth so it dropped off pretty quickly!

Just good luck, I do strength training and cycle a lot but I don't pay a great deal of attention to my diet, just good genes I guess

Genetic. I have three kids and a flat tummy. But I also have thunder thighs that I cannot slim down for the life of me

I run 5k 3 times a week.

Paid a lovely surgeon £8k for mine incl lipo 😁
Had an awful csection overhang and for me was worth every penny and I have zero regrets.

Mine was fine until I had my second and now I have a mum tum. I quickly lost all baby weight apart from the tummy. I hope it goes once she’s weaned.

Genetics! My mum has a flat tum and so do I - 3 kids ( 1 c section) eat what I want, don't go to the gym at all but do walk the dogs most days. It really pisses my dp off as he is very into fitness and the gym. However I have varicose veins-I would exchange my flat tum for a good unveiny pair of legs any day!

I still have a relatively flat stomach despite putting on too much weight during lockdown. It’s the last place I put on weight. I also do Pilates and am very aware of posture - makes a huge difference.

I'm v jealous. I've not had a flat stomach since pre kids. BMI 20-21 so not overweight and I've run half marathons and marathons (admittedly not recently) and ive only had a flat stomach if I'm unwell, sadly!

Oh and two c sections as well.

I have a flat stomach and visible abs when I tense it, however, I do still have small, faint stretch marks on the lower part under my belly button. That skin is stretched beyond repair, so when i sit down or bend over in something that sits around that area (pjs or my kickers if I'm getting dressed) it sags and 'bulges'

I do also hold my stomach in without really thinking about it, but have done that for as long as I can remember. If I relax it, it does curve out a bit.

Mine is flat when I don't eat bread.

Bread =7 months pregnant belly.

It's a tough choice. Often the bread wins

I've always held mine in a little bit. It feels uncomfortable to go without it now!

@Beansontoast45

It’s mostly genetic, I think have a super flat stomach and if I tense you can see quite defined abs. I have had four big babies and do no exercise at all. Obviously some people have that through hard work too.

I agree. Mine is flat post c section and the most exercise I do is carrying my son...

I’m an apple shape but got quite a flat stomach after both kids since I can’t keep weight on when breastfeeding. Great stomach and legs but being skinnier was not flattering at all for my face, arms and chest where you could see ribs sticking out in low cut tops. So some of us have a ‘perfect’ weight where everything looks good, for others it’s a trade off!

I choose my clothing carefully! Wear high waisted jeggings. My tummy looks flat to others but isn't really.

@cherrybonbons
Flat tummy is definitely not achieved by a diet.It's all about the strength of core muscles.
I have good diet,exercise quite a lot,cycle and walk everywhere.
My post pregnancy weight after first 2 was 8-9 stones as always was on skinny one but had big babies and developed diastasis recti and on really bloaty days (thanks to pretty awful PMS) I looked 6 months pregnant. I am slightly heavier now,thanks to thyroid issues but still within healthy BMI and friends/co workers are commenting that I look really athletic bar the abdominal region.No spare tyre,just round
tummy.When travelling on public transport,people are offering a seat all the time
Unless I can have a surgery to close that gap,my tummy will never be flat,no matter what I do.

It's different body types. Mine is flat with hipbones sticking out when I lie down, 9 years PP (only one child). It is flat when I wake up and stand but prone to bloating. I can go from skinny to looking 6 months pregnant if I eat the wrong thing. I'm short and thin but when it's flat it certainly doesn't make it less stretch marked, more's the pity.

For me I think it was having DS relatively young and only having one child.

First pregnancy it went back reasonably flat although I've never had any 'abs' as such. Second pregnancy five years later and my belly was stretched, the skin got so thing that if I walked into a door by mistake I'd bleed. I've lost 4 stone since due to bf and I'm left with a saggy load of skin so in trousers I look like I have a flat stomach but when I'm naked I look like an old wrinkly bag of skin.

I do naff all exercise as such but I have a horse and we develop a really strong core.
I didn’t gain any extra weight apart from bump when pregnant though either which probably helped (was on strict diet for GD-I’m not virtuous).
It’s not washboard flat, it is rounded but not bulgy. I’m 43, baby at 41 and eat shite. Also 5ft 4 and a generous 12 so hardly skinny.
I imagine middle aged spread will hit me eventually though but I’m not fussed if it does.
I had big fat thighs and bum if that makes you feel better

Totally flat and not a single stretch mark. Sheer luck.

Also although my stomach is flat my boobs are non existent since stopping BF. You win some you lose some!

I have had 2 c-sections and now have a small overhang over the scar. The overhang is less and my tummy flatter when I lose weight. I also do sit ups every day but it is not point doing sit ups to get the definition if the muscle is covered with fat.

For me, if I lose weight, I get a waist and a flat stomach.