I am am 5 feet tall, 120 lbs, early 40s, 3 kids, and have a flat stomach. I work out 6 days a week, which include running over 20+ miles a week and weight training twice a week. However, I've worked out like this since before having kids, and never stopped even through my pregnancies and postpartum; I'd just adjust volume and frequency as necessary. I am very toned/muscular all over but my flat stomach has some sag from the kiddos but not enough that I'd be self conscious wearing a bikini. I eat healthy (e.g., boiled eggs in the morning; salad for lunch, protein/veggies/carb for dinner) and indulge occasionally (a couple of drinks on the weekend and a treat (ice cream or candy bar and chips once a week). My body shape (small waist, wide hips and thighs and broad shoulders) is genetic as is my ability to build muscle/definition quickly. But everything else I believe is the active lifestyle and health eating. I know this because my sisters don't work out at all and don't have flat stomachs even if none are overweight and are otherwise healthy eaters. One recently did start working out regularly and has great muscle definition everywhere but her abs.

What does "flat stomach" mean?

I am 50, have six children, am in complete menopause, and I have always kept my stomach flat. Control those muscles.

5'2", 125 pounds, within my BMI, but I'm 54 so I'll take it. My doctor told me to keep doing whatever I'm doing. I only drink black coffee (adding those milks and creams really adds up in calories!) and have fruit and a toaster waffle for breakfast. I usually have two small Scandinavian rye crisp wafers with cheese and some fruit or yogurt for lunch. I drink water. One serving of dinner with generous veggies and protein, one glass of red wine while cooking. That's my dessert, ya gotta live a little, you know? I might have one cookie in the evening some nights, and I keep it to one. I usually walk 12,000+ steps per day.

I'm 5'4 and 115 (sorry if too tall). I'm 50, had two kids in my 20s. Flat stomach with some ab definition. I mostly just do push-ups and ab work on the floor while watching TV.

I try to mimic a moderate hike on the treadmill 6 days a week (4.5 to 5 miles, 2000 vertical feet). I eat 3 meals and many snacks daily. I avoid processed carbs and limit added sugar, but no other restrictions. I eat when I'm hungry and I'm frequently hungry.

A lot of it is body shape. I have a straight/rectangle shape. My SIL at the same height/weight (with an apple shape) would have stick legs and a belly.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:5'2", 112 lbs, flat stomach. I work out in some way every day--strength training, cardio, or yoga. I generally don't eat breakfast, have either leftovers or a sandwich, chips, and a veggie for lunch, and dinner is anything I want. I rarely snack, but when I do it is usually a piece of fruit or a small piece of chocolate. I drink about 10 drinks per week--usually wine, sometimes a cocktail, never beer. Ice cream twice a week.

Enjoy it while it lasts 😅 This used to be me. But then I hit forties and now even a tiny indulgence shows up at my waist.

PP you’re responding to. I am almost 45.

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t call my stomach flat, but it doesn’t show in clothes. 5’0, 95 pounds.

Breakfast: Frittata with broccoli, Trader Joe’s Unexpected Cheddar and Trader Joe’s frozen potatoes with peppers and onions. (I meal prep this and eat throughout the week or from freezer.)

Lunch: My personal “pan Asian chicken wrap”: shredded rotisserie chicken, gojuchang-honey cucumbers, lettuce/ bagged mixed salad tossed with <1 tbsp peanut dressing, whole wheat lavash wrap (I like Joseph’s from Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s whole wheat lavash). Spinach side salad, fruit.

Afternoon snack: apricots and grapes or banana. If I’m really low on energy, nonfat greek yogurt (for protein) with <1tbsp fruit preserves (for flavor and sugar boost)

Dinner: one serving Carba-Nada fusilli pasta, bolognese-style sauce from canned tomatoes with turkey sausage and 96% fat free ground beef + veggies (mushrooms, onions, peppers, minced spinach), side of asparagus and tomato salad.

I learned how to build menus from Weight Watchers. It’s a great program that totally changed the way I eat.

I'm 5"2', age 54, and 115#. I've never done Weight Watchers b/c the calorie-counting approach wouldn't work for me, but I have to say your menus are tempting me. Have you thought about creating an app? What works for me is eating mindfully while still enjoying food. I like to cook and, as an empty-nester, I have the time to cook, which I realize is a luxury when your kids are younger. I have a sweet tooth, so I generally avoid desserts unless it's a special occasion. I do some kind of exercise pretty much every day; to make sure that happens, I do an exercise class 3x/week, but I also play tennis, walk a lot (with the dog, with DH, with friends, and just by myself), and work in the garden. As other PPs have observed, if you're short, an indulgence shows up quickly; OTOH, even in my 50s I find that as a short person, I can counter a minor weight gain within 2-3 weeks if I make a conscious effort.

5’2”, 117 pounds, 45 years old, 2 kids, flat stomach. I work out a lot but tend to gain weight in my legs before my stomach. I eat yogurt, nuts, chia seeds, meat, seafood, fruit (berries), and lots of vegetables and salads.

I am 5’3” and usually about 105-108 lbs and have a flat stomach very largely due to genetics. I just don’t gain weight above my hips - so no tummy, even after 2 kids and in my early 40s, thin, muscular arms despite having no real upper body strength, but I’m also almost completely flat-chested. I show weight below the hips though, not skinny legs, definitely cellulite around my butt.

I have a history of working out until I had kids at age 35 but since then have rarely stuck with exercise for more than a couple months. I generally don’t eat a lot but also don’t hold back on junk food and desserts and beer, even late at night.

So my point in this admittedly probably obnoxious post is that genetics plays a huge role in body type and that probably a lot of the people you might think are disciplined in some way that you’re not are actually just lucky and not inherently more successful in dieting or exercise or whatever.

Anonymous wrote:5'2", 112 lbs, flat stomach. I work out in some way every day--strength training, cardio, or yoga. I generally don't eat breakfast, have either leftovers or a sandwich, chips, and a veggie for lunch, and dinner is anything I want. I rarely snack, but when I do it is usually a piece of fruit or a small piece of chocolate. I drink about 10 drinks per week--usually wine, sometimes a cocktail, never beer. Ice cream twice a week.

Enjoy it while it lasts 😅 This used to be me. But then I hit forties and now even a tiny indulgence shows up at my waist.

*skin that sags

I think it is genetics at a certain point. I’m 5’2.5” and 105lbs. I’ve had three kids, two csections. I have loose skin that says and makes a bit of a pooch. 27” waist like other posters, but my stomach isn’t “flat.”

At a certain point all you can do is wear flattering clothes and focus on health, not pure vanity. My mom and sisters have bellies too. They are heavier but it really comes down to body type.

I’m 5’2” and 110-115. My stomach is flat. It is pure genetics. I am a pear-shape. I carry most of my weight in my thighs, but a little in the chest (32D). I just don’t carry it in my midsection. I am not particularly toned, but not flabby. I walk, stretch and lift a little. I am 45. All of the women in my family are shaped like this.

I eat a diet heavy in protein and complacency carbs. I don’t care for many sweets.