Mel Andrews is a tutor at Lifetime Training, and has over ten years experience in personal training and GP referral instructing. Below she answers your fitness questions to help you get and stay in shape.

If you have a fitness question you would like answered by Mel, all you have to do is submit your question using the Comment on this Article box below. And remember - sign-up to our monthly health and fitness newsletter to receive your expert answer direct in your in-box.

Question

Tamela Asks:

Dear Mel, I am very interesting in knowing how to loose the baby fat almost two years after having my little boy. I have been going to the gym for almost a year now and I go five days a week. I have lost weight but it is still hard to get rid of that stubborn fat that surrounds your stomach (that old stretched skin). I think my problem is I cheat on my eating habits. Please inform me of what to do to get across this point. I'm almost there!

Mel’s Answer

One thing to consider here first of all is whether the fat around your stomach is fat or whether it is loose skin. If it’s body fat that can be lost. If it’s loose skin that is more difficult as we can’t loose skin!

You have to ask yourself if your programme still challenges you. If the answer is no, then it’s time for a change and you need to speak to your gym instructor.

It’s also important to be as honest as possible with your eating habits. We all have our indulgences and this is fine. It’s just simply keeping those indulging times in moderation.

Treat your eating as a lifestyle rather than a diet. You need to make permanent changes in your eating habits rather short term changes.

Not sure if it’s fat or loose skin? The loose skin lots of people experience after pregnancy and rapid weight loss tends to be very loose and hangs. Fat can often look similar but it is likely to be denser and more solid. You could also have your body fat measured to see if it is high. Lots of gyms offer this and you can also buy the monitors from some chemists. If your body fat percentage is high, then this can be addressed with regular activity and a healthy diet low in fat and high in fibre, e.g. lots of fruit.

If the problem is down to loose skin this is more difficult to rectify. It is often a result of very rapid changes in weight leading to the skin not being able to stretch or return to its original state at the same rate as the body mass. This leads to the skin becoming overstretched and often leads to stretch marks. A lot of this is down to your genetics. Some people can have lots of children and not have any problems with this (they’re the fortunate few). Most of us will have some repercussions. If your Mother had good skin after pregnancy or weight loss you will probably fare better. If she suffered quite badly with loose skin chances are you will too.

Being faced with this prospect myself at the moment I’ve tried a few preventative measures. My mum had myself and my sister and didn’t suffer with loose skin or stretch marks (let’s hope the genes have been passed to me) but to reduce the risk further I have been sensible with eating throughout pregnancy so that I haven’t gained excessive amounts of weight, although I’m heavier than I’ve ever been in my entire life! I’ve also used lots of moisturisers containing vitamin E to help the skin maintain its natural elasticity and from what I have been reading recently will need to continue this afterwards as well to help the skin recover. I’ve also managed to maintain a reasonable level of activity throughout pregnancy by swimming and walking on a regular basis as well as some specific abdominal exercises suitable for the ante natal period to keep the deep abdominal muscles strong. By taking these kinds of measures you may find that you can stop the problems before they start.

Another way to avoid the issues of loose skin is to avoid rapid changes in weight. Avoid crash and yo yo dieting. This is when most people get the problem. The skin cannot adapt quickly enough to the changes in body size.

Once your skin has stretched though, the only solution is surgery, and pretty drastic surgery at that, to remove the loose skin. Bearing that in mind, prevention may be the better answer.

Mel Andrews, pictured. When taking up any new activities or exercise always consult with your GP first and ensure that you get advice from an appropriately qualified instructor.

For more information on fitness courses & more contact Lifetime Training on 0870 702 7273 or visit www.lifetimehf.co.uk