Is there a way to get abs without cutting out junk food?

[Jamaal510]

My workout routine is 15-20 minutes on the treadmill, then 15-20 of either push-ups or crunches. I work out almost daily, and everywhere except my stomach is toned. I understand it would be more effective to not eat junk food, but I can't see myself giving up foods like pizza and cake for a diet full of salads and water. Can anyone here suggest a suitable workout routine?

[Avalux]

1. Waist circumference....

A dietary pattern of consuming refined carbohydrates, dairy products, red and processed meats, fast food and soda is correlated to a higher waist circumference.

You can do a gazillion crunches a day but if your diet isn't healthy it won't matter.

[Scuba]

2. You don't have to give up the foods you love. Just eat less of them.

[digonswine]

3. I can't say for sure-

but--you need to get some "cardio" in about 3 to 4 times a week. What do you do on the treadmill?
Give up the shitty carbs-not the pizza.
Also--situps and crunches do but so much. There are plenty of fairly easy exercises that build the abs.
I can explain a few if you want that have worked for me.
Keep in mind-you may not have the body that fits into what you see as ideal. I, for instance, am in quite good shape but have trouble making my pecs bigger. I look at my father and see why this is the case. I will never have the pecs I would want.

[Honeycombe8]

4. It could be genetic. But you can always make improvements & be your best.

I am female. Thick midsections run in my family. I have been fairly thin and in great shape before. The smallest I could get my waist was 25 1/2 to 26. Another girl my size would've had a 22-24 inch waist. My midsection is my problem...and I eat very little junk food or fast food. I eat a lot natural fruits and veggies. I do not eat red meat. I do eat junk food, but it's not part of my daily diet. A regular day for me is...low calorie/low fat frozen dinner OR a salad with chicken and feta cheese and tomatoes, couple of apples during the day, for dinner a sandwich with high fiber low cal bread and baked chicken with tomato and bit of lettuce OR homemade salad OR plain yogurt mixed with non-sugar jam. Once a week I may have some chips or a piece of cake or some other junk food.

There are just more fat cells in my midsection than elsewhere. Therefore, I think it always has a tendency to be flabbier than other areas. Plus, I have a short waist. There's less area for my midsection fat to spread over.

SO...I try to concentrate on what I naturally have that others don't. For instance, most women are dismayed by their hips and thighs. Even though I'm over 50, I still have pretty good hips and legs. When I work at it, they get even better. But they're pretty good, just naturally. It's genetic.

Here's something to try: I've been too lazy lately, but I've read before that you can pick the body type you would like by the SPORT the person does (choose from pro sports). Then do what they do to train for that sport. Even within a sport, you will see that some who do that sport have a leaner, longer midsection than others. Mary Lou Retton, the gymast...remember her? She was short, boxy shaped, stubby. Other gymasts were also short but lean in the midsection. Retton could NEVER have the body type of the leaner ones. She just wasn't built that way, genetically. But she COULD be taut and firm and muscular.

Flabbiness is fixable. Body type is not.

(Tip: that's what liposuction supposedly fixes; removes overabundance of fat cells from certain areas. But beware, if they're gone from that area, that fat will pop up somewhere else, and that place may be strange.)

I am looking into getting a Total Gym or something, and start working on getting in shape. In the meantime, I have dumbbells and workout DVDs, so there's no excuse for me not to get in shape.