Abdominals and Shoulders

I just started working on my abdominals this week and am in pain! Just wanted to know what the best exercises to try to firm up my excess skin might be. I've just started doing sit-ups for now, I've never really done much else, on the incline at the health club and just on the floor at home. It hurts my tailbone to do it on the floor (even with a pillow under me) but I hope if I fight through it for a couple weeks I'll get used to it. Any suggestions on the best ways to tighten up my sagging skin around my waist? (I REALLY don't want to have plastic surgery when I'm done losing). Also, one other question: what are the best exercises to build big shoulders (traps)? I've been doing shrugs and lateral raises with dumbells, but haven't been satisfied with the results. Chris S.

My .02 is you can tighten underneath but the skin will do what it will do, nothing you can do about it. I do not do sit ups, I do crunches with and with out weights usaually on a swiss ball, reverse crunches, cross crunches, alternate heal touches, bent leg leg lifts, I throw other stuff in from time to time. Mens health.com has some great ab stuff as does body for life and muscle&fitness.com Shrugs are the best thing in my opinion for traps, roll shoulders back at top of move to bring more muscle into it. work all the shoulder (Three heads) plus the traps, rear delt raises, lateral raises and fron raises with dumbells, dumbbell arnold presses, and the military press should hit it all with the shrugs.

Chris, As far as I know, there is no way medically proven to reduce sagging skin. Exercise will firm the muscle under neath the fat and skin, will change the shape, but you cannot affect the fat or skin. The best exercises for the trap are shrugs, aronold presses and military presses. Make sure that you are using a heavy enough weight (usually not a problem with men), and that you are exhausting the muscle group each time you work out (to failure--you shouldn't be able to finish the last rep--and you do need a spotter for the military presses, unless you do them on the smith machine). Some people genetically cannot change the shape or size of a muscle, but it does take a while of diligent training before you can assess that. Also, please be sure not to only work your back and shoulders, you will look very funny if you overwork them as compared to your pecs (never knowingly cause a muscular imbalance). I had a friend in college who was on the powerlifting team with me and he looked as if he was hunched over his back was soooo overdeveloped compared to his pecs and abs! He did a great deadlift though! The pain with your tailbone should get better soon! cheers, KarenK

Chris, This is excellent advice from Mikee and Karen. I agree with them 100%. Now let me add my two cents. First, Dont overwork the abs. Most people overwork the abs witch actually causes them to "bulk up" witch is the opposite of your goal. Abs are all about diet. It take time for the skin to shrink back Secondly, you said you are not satisfied with your results of your shoulder work. How long have you been working the shoulders? It takes months and months to get results. I stated a new shoulder routine in January and am finally seeing results. I am with Mikee, work all three deltoid heads...especially the rear delt. Just hang in there, it takes time. As we get older the results don't come as fast. We just have to work a little harder and be a little smarter. Good Luck.