Losing the last 5 pounds/Tonning the ABS

Hello all! I have recently lost roughly 15 pounds. I was never really overweight, but was a bit heavier than I liked. I am currently 5'9", and weight about 142 pounds. I have always had a bigger upper body (broad shoulders, chest), and a skinny waist (about 28 inches). I am getting closer and closer to my ideal body.

I run 5km (3 miles) 6 days a week, and do exercises such as push-ups, various ab exercises (laying on back, lifting legs 45 degrees, lowering/crunches/laying on back and doing the biking motion with legs), squats, lunges, and bicep curls and other various exercises using a resistance band.

I am also on a fairly strict diet. I eat a bowl of all-bran cereal with skim milk and fresh blueberries/strawberries for breakfast, a fiber bar for snack, fat-free turkey sandwich with honey mustard and hot sauce on whole wheat for lunch, 1/4 of a fat-free yogurt parfait with blueberries/strawberries/fat-free cottage cheese as a snack, and usually another fat-free turkey sandwich for dinner, followed by the rest of the parfait. I also sometimes substitute the 2nd turkey sandwich with whole wheat pasta with chicken breast. I have 1 cheat meal once a week, and drink only water (almost 4 litres a day) and green tea.

I am very happy with my results thus far, and I am still on this routine. My chest and shoulders are getting very defined and my upper abs are coming in very nicely. My problem lies in my lower abs. Perhaps I am being impatient, but I still have a small layer of belly fat in this area, and would like to get rid of it. After getting rid of this fat, I will have my ideal body.

Can you guys help? I know most will say I should start eating more calories and lifting weights. This is very doable for me, and I would enjoy hearing of good routines to do.

Thank you very much in advance!

Steve147: I have always had good stamina, so my diet + running helped me lose the weight quite fast once I started doing it consistently. I started off jogging 3km 3 days a week, and cutting out fast foods. Once I started seeing results, it made me more motivated, and I moved up to 3km 5 days a week, then 4 km 5 days a week, now I'm up to 5km 6 days a week. I've been doing this consistently for roughly 2 months now. The biggest part of weight loss is getting in the proper mindset. You will start off slowly, but once you see results, you get super-motivated and will be more consitent. I do have cheat meals every once and a while, such as steak, pizza, fried rice, etc. It doesn't make a big difference aslong as it isn't overly often, and you still burn off those calories. The important thing is to eat less calories on your rest day(s) and work out harder on your cheat days. Don't take your rest and cheat on the same day. To some of the above: I do enjoy BBQing, but I usually stick to boneless-skinless chicken breasts. Every once and a while I may have a steak aswell. I do eat vegetables often, and I accidentally left out the fact that I eat salads when I get a chance. I work 55 hour weeks, and still find time to work out during the night or in the office. I pack all of my lunches so I don't feel the urge to buy something unhealthy. For any reference, I'm 21 years old. I feel MUCH better about my health and self-image now. Thank you for the suggestions guys

Lol, awesome, I will have to eat more steak then I'm kind of pissed right now, because I have injured my left foot while using an elliptical machine My cardio usually consists of 5km run 6 days a week, and 3 days I usually do skipping and elliptical on top of the run. I haven't been able to run because of my foot for 3 days, and I feel like shit because of it. Thankfully after weighing myself, I haven't gained anything back which is good. I am still doing all my regular exercises more intensly though, to hopefully burn more calories. I have heard nothing but good things about HIIT training. I run outdoors, so the change in terrain (concrete, grass, sand/rocks on side of the road, avoiding trees and people) do help give more variation than if I was to run on a treadmill. I will start doing HIIT when my foot recovers!

I'm not too familiar with "cortisol" but if I remember correctly, it has something to do with storing fat because of stress? I work 2 jobs: a web-design job I landed recently, and an assistant manager for Cinnabon (I have never liked Cinnabons, so this is safe for my diet). My web design job I absolutely love. I do work I REALLY enjoy doing, my pay is good, and my hours are good. When I am doing the work, I don't feel stressed at all; I feel like my life is progressing in the right direction My other job (Cinnabon), is easy work, and I get paid decently for what I do (tell people what to do, no one tells me what to do). I'm only still working it to pay off student loans. Stress has never really been an issue with me, and working out further relieves any stress I normally would have. I honestly think I'm just being a bit impatient, as I haven't been working out for too long yet. Thanks again for suggestions!