4 Tips For Sexy Summer Abs

Everyone wants a sexy six pack in time for summer. These four tips will get you on track to be ready for the beach to show off your very own set of fab abs.

The number one thing you must do if they want to have a sexy six pack is to eat a clean diet. In a nutshell that means to eat small healthy meals 5-7 times daily. Your diet should consist of lean protein sources such as chicken, turkey and fish, healthy carbohydrates such as oatmeal, sweet potatoes, brown rice and vegetables, healthy fats such as almonds, olive oil and natural peanut butter. Eliminate soda, candy, cookies and other high sugar foods from your diet. These should only be eaten on occasion and in moderation. Also eliminate fast foods, fatty, greasy foods and alcohol (if you do choose to consume alcohol it should be minimal, these empty calories will easily sabotage your fitness goals) from your diet in order to drop fat weight so you can reveal your abs.

Secondly you must get a good combination of cardiovascular exercise in addition to strength training. Working with weights allows you to build and maintain muscle which will give your body the shape that you want as well as increase your metabolism. Cardio and aerobic workouts will help you burn off body fat so that you can see the shapely muscles hidden underneath.

Tip number three is to stay consistent. Your body will not change overnight. There is no pill that you can take that will give you phenomenal abdominals. It takes eating right and exercising right on a consistent basis to get the results that you want. To maintain your weight loss you need to develop healthy eating and exercise habits which you can commit to for life. Results of any fad diet that you try will not last a lifetime. The only way to get the body you want and to keep it is through proper nutrition and exercise. Be patient and set mini weight loss goals for yourself every week. The more consistent you are with making healthy eating choices and training on a regular basis with intensity, the faster you will see results.

The fourth key to revealing your sexy summer six pack is to identify you underlying motivation.
Changing eating and exercise habits can be difficult if you don't stay motivated. It's easy to lapse back into old unhealthy habits which will ruin your chances of getting the beach ready body that you are looking for. If being able to visually see your abs were easy to achieve then everyone would be showing off their midsection. If it is something you want for yourself then you can have it, but it is hard work! In order to stay on track during those tough times keep visual reminders of your motivation where you can see them on a daily basis. For example if you want to look great in your swimsuit then put it on a hangar and have it out where you can see it every single day to remind you why you need to make the right choices!

Remember this. Everybody has abs, it's just that most people have layers of fat covering them up. You can do all the crunches and sit ups in the world and you will never see your abdominals if you don't eat properly and do enough cardio to burn off the fat that is hiding your sexy six pack. If you have been consistently exercising and have not seen the results you want the problem lies within your eating habits. 80% of the way that your body looks is dependent on how you fuel it. Follow these four important tips and you will shed your winter weight and be ready to flaunt your fab abs this summer.

Read More

Workout Routines for Women - Lift Heavy, Look Fit!

There is a huge misconception in the fitness world that only men should lift heavy weights, and that women should stick to light, "toning" routines. Many women fear they will get big or bulky if they lift heavy. Nonsense! Do you realize how hard it is for MEN to gain muscle mass, even with their testosterone and larger calorie consumption? Nobody, man or woman, will ever get "too big" for their liking on accident.

The truth about workout routines for women is that they should contain mostly heavy lifting! Lifting heavy weights has a variety of benefits for women. First, it helps stimulate the growth of lean muscle tissue. This extra muscle helps create a slim, fit body contour. In other words, it makes you "toned." You can't actually "tone" your muscles with high reps on those little pink dumbbells - you've got to actually build that firm muscle tissue with heavy weights.

The second benefit of lifting heavy weights it that gaining a few extra pounds of muscle can help burn fat. Muscle is metabolically active tissue, which means it's constantly burning calories. Gain some more muscle, and you'll be able to lose fat more quickly or just eat a little more of the foods you like without consequence!

Third, heavy lifting is a type of exercise that "stays with you" all day. Whereas walking, jogging, and other moderate-paced cardio exercises only burn fat while you're doing them, a hard weights workout will keep your metabolism raised and revving at high speed for the rest of the day.

Finally, workout routines for women should contain plenty of heavy lifting because it's fun! Many people complain about going to the gym not because they're lazy, but because it can be so boring. Given the average workout routine, they're right! Hours of treadmill walking and stair stepping combined with long, high-rep sets of light lifting gets old quick.

Lifting heavy provides a new, fun challenge every time you're in the gym! It may seem weird to think about now, but you'll start to get excited about setting a new personal record on the squat or pushing more weight than you ever have on the bench press. Besides, these workouts take much less time, anyway. Get in, have fun, get your work done quickly, and get on with the rest of your day!

Hopefully you can see that workout routines for women should actually be all about lifting heavy weights and getting stronger. Leave the boring cardio routines for people who can't handle some harder exercise! If you get stronger and eat right, you will develop a slim, lean physique.

                                                                Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5829723

Read More

How to Gain Weight For Women

This seems like an odd topic for an article, but we are going to talk about how to gain weight for women. You see even though most are looking to lose weight there are some that need to gain a few pounds. Whether you just want to be healthier or get a little curvier you will find the advice here beneficial. It is also important to know that there are two different kinds or meanings of weight. The first one has a negative connotation. This is where people think weight means fat, when in reality it can mean something totally different. This takes us to our second meaning which is lean mass. This is lean muscle that is healthy and looks great.

Now you will need to start cutting down on your normal cardiovascular exercises. This does not mean cut them out because they are needed for cardiovascular health. It means cut them down because they will keep you too skinny. When learning how to gain weight for women you need to grab the weights and start some resistance training. This is not the bench press 200 pounds type of lifting. You can find many routines that are specific to women. They will help you gain the type of weight that you are looking to add to your frame. Also you should be adding calories to your diet. I suggest starting at 250 extra calories a day and gradually increasing it to 500 more a day. This will coincide with your weight lifting to help you put on the right type of weight.

There are also women specific protein powders that are formulated for women's needs. This can be a very good thing because you want to increase your protein intake to supplement your new workout routine. By following these types you will learn first- hand how to gain weight for women.

Read More

5 Tips For Women To Develop Lean Muscle Tone

Many women want to improve their fitness levels, partially for health reasons and partially for their overall look. For women who want to look more toned you can do it by building muscle tone and making those muscles much leaner.

Here are the top 5 ways that women can achieve good muscle tone and improve their over-all appearance.

How Build Lean Muscle Tone

Muscle tone improves when the muscle fibers become larger. This is achieved with regular training with weights. Women are often concerned about building muscles mainly because they think that they will develop a bulky male body-builder shape. But men's bodies only develop that way due to the testosterone hormone that has very minimal amounts in women.

1. More Repetitions When Weight Training

When you are training with weights you need to increase the number of repetitions that you are doing to stretch your muscles even more. A good workout routine would be to lift a reasonable weight for six to twelve repetition sessions.

2. Eat More Protein

Women can also get good body tone by eating a healthy and balanced diet. This includes eating a good amount of protein regardless of whether you are exercising or not. Protein is basically the building blocks for muscles. The more you have the more you can build your muscles. Protein is also fills you up so you'll feel fuller for longer and help you snack less between meals.

3. Reduce Carbohydrates

Even though carbohydrates are a necessary part of a healthy diet, you want to cut down the amount you eat if you are trying to build lean muscle tone. This is not saying to cut them out completely as they help your body release insulin, which is needed for energy and to help with muscle repair.

4. Eat More Vegetables

Eating vegetables are part of a healthy diet. Vegetables are typically low in calories and take a lot of energy to eat and digest. This helps with building muscle tone, particularly if they are eaten raw or just slightly cooked.

5. Limit Your Cardio Exercises

If you're concentrating on building a lean body tone then you need to limit the amount of cardio exercise you do. For example, long distance running actually encourages muscle wastage. Instead of stopping all cardio workouts, you can still build muscle tone by including very short bursts of high intensity runs or cycle workouts.

                                                        Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9449187

Read More

Best Workout Routines for Men

Exercise is one of the most effective ways to obtain physically fit bodies. There are various fitness training programs that have been designed and developed to help individuals with the proper techniques and schedules of doing their workouts. To ensure good result and maximize the effectiveness of the workout program, one should also follow a proper and strict diet that would match the kind of workouts a person is doing and the amount of energy the body needs while doing the exercises. Consume food that are high in protein and helps burning of fats faster and have lower fat content.

Choosing the best workout routine for men can be achieved by consulting professional fitness trainers and by going to the gym. Although there are various workout programs that can be done at home, if you have the necessary resources like time and money, you might as well maximize the effectiveness of obtaining the perfect body you have been dreaming by going to the gym regularly.

Gym fitness trainers can help you choose the best workout routines for men since everyone have different body structures therefore there are different types of workout routines suitable and appropriate for every person. You can also be sure of your safety since there are fitness professionals that are ready to guide and help you with the proper and effective way to do the workouts.

Here is one of the best workout routines for men that can be done when you are in a gym. This type of workout routine is very simple and easy to follow and can be done three to four times weekly depending on the available schedule of the person. To do the workout routine effectively, one should prepare properly first like doing the proper warm-ups and exercises to avoid injuries, and other joint and muscle problems.

Ideal workout preparations and warm-ups would be cardiovascular activities like treadmill jogging for five to ten minutes and then followed by some stretching exercises for the body. Remember that this workout routine is done in a gym therefore proper guidance is needed from fitness trainers if not familiar with the type of workouts and the type of equipment needed for the workout to ensure safety and avoid injuries.

Day 1 - Chest and Abdomen Trainings

* For the chest improvement, you can try the Decline Close-Grip Bench Press and Cable Chest Press.

* For the abdomen, try Abdominal Reverse Curl, Bicycle Kick, Barbell, Inclined Reverse Crunch, Standing Oblique Crunch and Swiss Ball Oblique Crunch.

Day 2 - Shoulders and Arms Trainings

* For the shoulders, try Bar Military Press, Cable Rear and Side Lateral Raise and Machine Shoulder Press.

* For the Biceps, ideal workouts would be Standing Biceps Curl and Dumbbell Biceps Curl.

* And Seated Triceps Extension for the Triceps.

Day 3 - Muscle Back Improvement

* Lat Pull Down and Cable Seated Low Row.

Day 4 - Leg Strengthening

* Machine Leg Press, Dead Lift and Machine Leg Curl.

You can try different combination of these workouts to form the best workout routine depending on the advice and recommendation of your fitness trainer that would be more appropriate and suitable for you.

Read More

Muscle Building Workouts - Build Muscle and Fitness the Right Way

You have goals for your muscle building workouts. You follow a regime that allows you to achieve those goals. You're doing everything right. But, you fall on your butt.

Then you find that you get back up and start the whole process working on your muscle building workouts all over again. Only to find that you keep falling down, getting back up again and repeating this over and over.

You do this until you think that you are never going to achieve anything here. You think that this training lark isn't for you. So what do you do?

Yep, you give up.

Why does this happen and what can I do about it?

You've probably asked yourself that question many times. But you may have found that you never came up with a real answer. You blame the muscle building workouts and everything that led you to it.

So what is the real problem?

It seems that you have the right muscle building workouts. You may have goals in mind of what you would like to achieve with that training routine.

Maybe you're doing one, or more, of the following:

* Having bad, or no, warm up sessions.

* Not eating enough.

* Not taking enough fluids.

* Training too much.

* Lifting excessive weights.

* Not getting enough sleep.

These are all very common to all muscle and fitness workouts, no matter what sport you do.

These are easily identified and remedied. Just go through each one of these and see if they apply to you. If so, then identify why this is the case. Having done that, you need to find the right solution to fix it. You do this in a systematical manner, until you have fully identified what is wrong, the reason for it going wrong and the appropriate solution for it.

For example:

Lets say that you not experiencing any growth in your biceps. Ask yourself some questions of your muscle and fitness workouts:

Question: What is wrong?

Answer: My biceps are not growing.

Question: What are the possible causes, and why?

Answer: The exercise may be done too quickly, or maybe I'm cheating in my training, or maybe there isn't enough weight on the barbell.

Question: What can be done to remedy this?

Answer: Improve my form when doing this exercise.

Reduce the weight so that I don't cheat and to keep me more strict. Or increase the weight on the barbell to promote more growth in this area.

So you see, you need to identify the problem first. If you don't do this, you cannot fix it up. Then you must identify what the possible causes are so that you can offer up appropriate solutions to remedy the situation. Just go through each solution, one at a time, until you are satisfied with the results.

This requires patience and dedication. Most people will not put in the time to find out why they're going wrong. Instead they spend a lot of money and waste a lot of time trying out different solutions. Whereas, what they should have done first was to seek the answer within themselves. Then seek the appropriate solution elsewhere suitable for their muscle building workouts -- only if that solution is outside of their grasp.

                                                              Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/89649

Read More

Abs Are Sexy!

I am sure that many of you have watched numerous ab commercials suggesting products that would land you the perfect set of abs. You have probably wasted tons of cash on worthless products. I know I have. Do you know what you are doing every time you purchase one of these items? You are buying a dream. A dream that most likely will never become reality. In my opinion, there is no easy way to obtain six pack abs. You have to work at it. It is an ongoing process unless you were genetically blessed.

In order to develop your six pack, you will need to exercise regularly and set a strict diet. Doing one without the other will not cut it. You need both. I can not stress this enough, when you diet please form a plan. Do not just make up a meal as you go along. This could spell disaster for you. You should put yourself on a meal schedule and stick to it. I believe it is okay to go with a six and one plan. That is six days of dieting with one day off. You can diet Monday-Saturday, then take Sunday to enjoy yourself. To relax and enjoy your favorite food. This could prove to be very beneficial to your long term dieting plans.

Diet Sample

Breakfast
1 bowl of oatmeal with 2 hard-boiled eggs

Snack
1 Packet of nuts

Lunch
Tuna fish and cooked shrimps with any dips of your choice.

Snack 2
Ox tail soup or breadless cheeseburger.

Dinner 
Roast beef served with a large bowl of salad and a plate of berries (strawberries and blueberries) for dessert

Remember, along with the dieting you must get the proper exercise. Do lots of cardio. To see the best results, each exercise session should last 30 minutes to lose fat. Continuous cardio exercise such as walking, jogging, cycling or stair climbing should help tremendously. There is no set time for you to exercise. Just do it. You will burn fat whenever you exercise. However, to maximize your efforts it is suggested that you perform your cardio exercise early morning, before eating. You may find it difficult to get up some mornings to exercise, but you must stay motivated. Keep pushing yourself. Just imagine how good you will feel once you reach your goal. You will be more confident in yourself. You will attract the opposite sex. You will have increased levels of energy. You will most likely feel like a new person.

                                                   Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1029900

Read More

Choosing a Fitness Center that is Right for You

So you have finally made the commitment to get in better shape and part of your plan is joining a fitness center? Great! Now, how do you go about choosing the right one for you? There are many factors that you should consider. After all, the membership won't help you reach your fitness or weight loss goal if you don't actually use it. Before signing a contract or paying the membership fee, be sure that you consider such factors as location, quality of equipment, activities offered, hours of operation, cost and availability of childcare. All of these can have a significant effect on how much you end up using and enjoying your membership.

As with any other major purchase, you should comparison shop by visiting all the fitness centers that are within the geographical region that you are considering. Before visiting, make a list of things that are important to you such as child care or aerobics classes so that you don't forget to ask about those things. Call each center and ask if they give free tours for prospective members and tell them you'd like to make an appointment. Try to schedule your visit during the time of day that you will most likely be working out so that you can see how busy it will be during that time.

Some things you should look for while visiting a prospective fitness center are the knowledge of the staff and how helpful and friendly they are, the condition as well as the variety of the equipment and how clean and well maintained does it appear to be. Also, how well do you fit in with the other members and is that something that concerns you? For example if you are just looking to lose a few pounds and get in a little better shape but the majority of the clientele are serious body builders, will you feel out of place? Is the general atmosphere relaxed? What type of music if any do they play and do you like it? Do they offer televisions and earphones? All of these factors which may not seem that important could end up having a big effect on how much you enjoy and use your membership. If you are not sure if the gym is for you, ask if they offer a free trail membership. Many fitness centers will give you a week's pass so you can see if you want to join.

If you like group activities then be sure to ask about things like the availability of group aerobics, spinning or other types of classes. Some gyms offer tanning, personal training and even massage as extra services available on location although there is usually an additional fee for those. If you are interested in any of those types of extra services, be sure to inquire about them and find out the costs.

If you are a parent and will need childcare, that is another important factor in deciding on a gym. Be sure to ask if they provide child care as part of your membership fee and what hours it is available. Ask to see the childcare area and find out the qualifications of the people who will be caring for your children. Meet them and be sure you would be comfortable leaving your child in their care.

Location and the hours the gym is open are two more consideration. If the gym is close to your home or located on your way home from work, you will be more likely to go. Make sure they are open at the time that you want to work out. Some gyms are open 24 hours and issue swipe cards for members to be able to get in at any time. Others are open only certain hours.

A gym or fitness centre membership can be costly and in some cases means a 2 year contract, so like any other investment of money, be sure that you thoroughly investigate what you will be getting for your investment. You do not want to end up paying for something that you don't use

Read More

Women and Upper Body Strength

I recently began surfing, and I have to say that I love it! Surf Divas in La Jolla specializes in teaching women and girls how to surf, and they do an excellent job at it while having a great time. One thing I did notice, however, was that many of the students lacked upper body strength.

The sport of surfing requires the surfer to paddle out into oncoming waves to get to the outside area beyond the breaks. This requires upper body strength in the shoulders, chest and upper back regions. While most girls can perform the maneuver, the task could be made easier, for this sport as well as others requiring upper body strength, by performing some simple resistance training exercises.

The deltoids, or shoulders, are the primary muscle groups firing when paddling out, so the overhead shoulder press serves as a great exercise to perform to increase strength in this area. You can use either dumbbells or a barbell, starting with one set of 12 repetitions and gradually increasing to 2 and then 3 sets of the exercise as you progress. You should choose a weight challenging enough that won't allow you to do more than 12 repetitions; otherwise the weight probably isn't heavy enough.

Another great exercise is the chest press and the incline chest press to focus in on the secondary muscle groups involved in surfing. I would suggest starting out with dumbbells for these exercises, once again performing one set of 12 repetitions to begin with and then increasing gradually. The bench press is performed on a flat bench preferably, but you can substitute the floor if you don't have a bench. This exercise works the chest, otherwise known as the pectoral muscles. The incline press should be performed on an incline bench at an angle not greater than 45 degrees, and works the upper pectoral muscles.
Of course, I would suggest you perform an exercise for each major muscle group in the body for an overall, well-balanced resistance program.

A lot of women are overly concerned with exercising their lower bodies, and while this is important, you cannot neglect your upper body. So don't be afraid to lift weights, girls. Another selling point to upper body strength training is that by building your shoulders and upper back area, you will give the appearance of a narrower hip region. This alone may be enough to convince many of you to give it a try!

So for all you women out there, I highly suggest you try surfing. It's challenging, a great form of exercise, and most of all fun! The instructor staff at Surf Divas are very well qualified as well as diversified, ranging from marine biologists to lifeguards to professional surfers. They offer beginning weekend clinics at an affordable price that is well worth the experience you will take away with you. So try these new exercises today if you aren't already doing them, and just watch the results!

Read More

Best Muscle Fitness Training System

The structure of a muscle fitness training system can take many forms, varying from extremely short and intense to overly lengthy and exhaustive.

One basic way in which a muscle fitness training system is structured is by utilizing a "split routine", dividing the muscle groups up and targeting a certain group one day and another group on another day and so forth. One of the best and basic muscle fitness training systems consists of a split 3 day a week routine which basic structure looks something like this:

Basic muscle fitness training system: 3 day a week workout:

Monday: Chest/Shoulders/Triceps

Wednesday: Back/Biceps

Friday: Legs

Looking at this basic 3 day a week muscle fitness training system, Monday three different muscle groups are worked. The pectorals (chest), the deltoids (shoulders), and the triceps. Since there is some overlap in muscles being worked, that is the deltoids and triceps will be assisting in pushing movements involving pectoral work. So it makes sense to also train shoulders and triceps in this workout as they're already being "activated". So shoulders are followed after chest, and the workout concludes with tricep training (the two larger muscle groups are worked first, and then the smaller triceps muscles are worked last).

Wednesday in the basic muscle fitness training system consists of back (latissimus dorsi) and biceps. Once again there is muscle overlap. When one trains the back performing pulling movements, the biceps also get activated to a degree. So the biceps will be trained on back day since they're already getting worked.

An added note to back and forearm training in Wednesdays muscle fitness training system. The back is sometimes split between upper back for width, and mid back for back thickness. After the biceps are performed, some trainees will also train their forearms, if their goal is overall arm development and especially if their arm development is particularly lacking in the forearm department.

Friday in this muscle fitness training system calls for legs, or in gym circles its "leg day", or in hardcore dungeon gym settings, its "DLD", "dreaded leg day". Since dreaded leg day can be so taxing on the entire body, two days rest are given for recuperation before starting up again with chest on Monday. Leg day consists of training the front leg muscles-quadriceps, the back leg muscles-hamstrings, and the calves round out the Fridays muscle fitness training system.

This is just one basic muscle fitness training system split, which provides the trainee the benefit of working overlapping muscle groups in the same day and allowing rest and recovery in between each muscle building workout. There are a number of other muscle fitness training system splits, routines, and workouts. Only through beginning a routine and seeing what personally works for your bodytype and genetic capabilities, can you begin to personalize your own ideal muscle fitness training system. Future articles will outline specific exercises one can implement within this workout split.

                                                    Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/454476

Read More

5 Diet Fitness Tips You Can Use Today

Are you ready to live a more powerful life by taking control of your  weight and physical condition? If so, here are five ideas that can start you on the path to a healthier, slimmer body today.

1. Stop using remote controls. Remote controls are the bane of a prospective weight loser. They may be remarkable gadgets by themselves but from the weight loss point of view, they just aren't 

very helpful.

They really encourage us to take a laid back kind of attitude towards life itself. In fact if remote controls were not there, the television would not have become so popular. It is because of remote 

controls that people can remain where they are and switch from one channel to the other. And they only have to twitch a finger muscle to achieve this.

Now, I have nothing against multi-channel television sets but what I strongly advocate is that you get up from where you are and change the channel of the TV each time you want to do so.

2. Try massaging your partner on a regular basis. This is a fun way to lose weight. It is something that can give your partner a lot of pleasure and at the same time can give you a lot of exertion there by 

leading to weight loss.

The attitude should of course be you scratch my back I will scratch yours. It should not be a one sided effort or else the interest will soon dwindle.

In fact, it is a good idea if couples take up weight loss routines together. They can keep watch over each other, help control those urges to eat and motivate each other to stick to the routine.

There are a lot of things that couples can do together that can help them to keep physically active...

3. Try breathing exercises. You might be surprised to know that breathing exercises too can lead to weight loss. If you are doing the breathing exercises properly, you will find that you can exert a lot 

of pressure on the muscles around the mid section.

You can feel a tightening of these muscles each time you breathe in or breathe out. So go ahead and breathe properly, it is good for you.

4. Join a dance class. Dancing is a wonderful way to burn off those extra calories. It is true. When you dance you are in fact burning away a lot of calories. Of course we are not referring to the slow 

ballroom kind of dances in which one person actually leans on the other one for support. We are talking about fast dances.

The best way to do it is by joining a jazz or hip-hop dance class because they will really work you out. I would suggest that you wait for a couple more pounds to vanish before you think of becoming a ballerina.

5. At the very least, do things like fetching, turning things off and on by yourself. Often when we come back tired from work, we tend to get others to do simple chores for us. These things are no big 

deal. They are things that we can very well do for our selves but we don't.

That is why we often ask our kids to fetch us this or take away that.

Training your pet is a wonderful thing indeed. It is quite remarkable how some people get their dogs to fetch them something. But the fact is that while you may be making sure that your dog is 

getting a lot of exercise, you are neglecting your bit of the story

Read More

5 Slimming Exercises for Women

While it's true that knowing how to properly control your diet can help you get rid of unwanted inches around your belly, it's also true that you will only ever achieve a super-slim waist if you compliment that diet with a selection of beneficial exercises. Simply working out on a stationary bike or trudging through grueling cardio sessions for hours on end isn't enough. Finding the right slimming exercises for women means working through a number of motions designed to strengthen and stretch your core.

Keep in mind that all of the exercises we address below can be optimized with a few extra measures. For example, adding weights to your workout routine can help to encourage the buildup of muscle which burns extra fat. What's more, using a slimming waist trimmer belt can focus your core temperature so that you burn calories quicker.

1. Skipping Jump Rope

When it comes to effective (and fun) slimming exercises for women, a skipping rope is a great way to cast off unwanted calories. The range of motions raises your metabolic rate substantially, while forcing you to tighten your core for a double whammy of effective fat-busting. As you get better with your jump rope, try throwing in a few more complex movements and twists so that you get as many muscle groups as possible involved.

2. Hip Thrusts

Another ideal, but often overlooked option in slimming exercises for women, is the hip thrust. Hip thrusts, when combined with bridge movements help to target the muscles of your lower back and your glutes at the same time, strengthening your mid-section. This is a great way to narrow down your waist, and make your curves even more appealing.

3. Ski Twists

While jumping jacks can be a bit boring for some, they're a great way to burn flab. To try something different, use a ski twist. In this exercise, you jump in the same way as a jumping jack, but keep your feet together and twist at the hips instead of throwing out your arms. The exercise works your body's core while burning calories at the same time.

4. Bike Crunches

Bike crunches offer two different workouts. The first is a cardio burn that raises your heart rate for an effective weight-loss routine, and the second is an ab-burn that cuts away excess inches around the waist. Bicycle crunches as slimming exercises for women have been found to be more effective than any other core exercise at building your abs.

5. Swiss Ball Roll outs

Last but not least, take planking to the next level with Swiss ball roll outs. While there are many variations of the Swiss roll out, the basic motion starts with your hands on an exercise ball. Hold your plank position, and roll the ball forwards, maintaining your position for about three seconds before returning to the starting position. This back-and-forth motion will be a fantastic way to improve your core by stressing the abs and lower back muscles.

                                                        Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9381092

Read More

Fitness Program – Workout to Stay Healthy

I’ll admit, I’m one of those people who’s primary driving force for working out is to look great.  We all love that feeling of looking fantastic, and catching the eyes of people as we walk down the street or exercise in the gym.  However, there are far greater benefits of exercise, and although we hear them all the time, they can sometimes become easily forgotten.


For years, health experts have spoken about the benefits of weight training as a fitness program.  Workout routines involving resistance and weights can help improve cardiovascular activity, and also help in speeding up a person’s metabolism which greatly reduces the risk of becoming overweight.  As we all know too well, being overweight can often lead to a long list of other health concerns such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

Some may misconceive that weightlifting is a risky exercise program.  Workout routines of any type have their share of risk, however.  I will agree that weight training has a lot more potential for causing injury than other exercise activities, but that shouldn’t stop anyone from doing it.  If the person is properly trained, and isn’t attempting to do something their body isn’t capable of, there should be little to no risk of injury.  However, often times novices to bodybuilding will try to do more than they are capable of and can become seriously injured due to either too much weight, or poor form.  If you are trained correctly, and aren’t trying to show off at the gym and push too much weight, you should be just fine and well on your way to a healthy, happy lifestyle.

I don’t want people to think I’m one-sided, as I’m not condoning a 100% weightlifting program.  Workout routines should be varied and always include other facets of fitness such as cardio and stretching.  It’s critical to be well rounded and at least touch on all these areas.  Too often I see people that have great muscular structure, but are so stiff that they can’t even touch their toes, or have such poor cardio that they get winded after running a few hundred meters.  You don’t want to be that person, make sure to keep things well balanced and you will be amazed at how much energy you have, as well as how many looks you get when walking down the street!

Read More