Crunches alone are not enough to sculpt six pack abdominals

If your goal is to flatten your stomach for the summer, you must do more than crunches. Developing a six pack requires a combination of proper eating and cardiovascular exercises. Crunches alone will not effectively remove the layer a fat covering your abs.

Thirty percent of your daily calories intake should come from fat. If you are consuming excess fat, losing around your midsection will be difficult. Cut fat calories by baking instead of frying foods. You can also shed fat by replacing cakes, candies and cookies with fruits and vegetables.

Along with eating healthy, a good exercise routine is vital to sculpting a six pack. You should exercise to burn fat while building lean muscle. A combination of cardiovascular and lightweight lifting exercises will accomplish this goal. Instead of doing 200 sit-ups on the floor, jog a mile on the treadmill followed by dumbbell exercises. You will see results faster because you are burning fat and building muscle simultaneously.

Crunches alone will not flatten your stomach. To mold a set of beach body abdominals, you must eat properly and complete good exercise routines that include cardiovascular exercises. A few months of the right combination will turn heads at the beach.

Quit blaming your kids for your weight problems

Your figure was nearly perfect in high-school and college. After having two kids, your flat stomach has turned into a fat stomach. Since your body was great before you had kids, it must be your child’s fault your coke-bottle shape has turned into a 3-liter.

The reason you gained weight is as close as your nearest mirror. Avoid accusing baby Johnny or Sue for your jelly-rolls. Lack of exercise and unhealthy eating habits are the reasons you can’t lose your “baby fat”. Having kid(s) is just a convenient excuse for your lack of discipline.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, you can resume or start an exercise program after postpartum. Listen to your body and speak with your doctor before starting your program. Generally, it is recommended that you wait about six weeks to start exercising after giving birth. There is no excuse for not taking care of your body after giving birth.

The problem with “baby fat” is not the birth of a child. Your difficulty losing weight is a result of lack of activity. Taking your child to school and working is not considered an exercise program. To safely lose weight, you must complete exercise routines by setting aside four to five hours a week. Although your child consumes most of your time, there’s no excuse to avoid exercising. Many gyms offer child care and convenient locations. If you can’t join a gym, you should workout at home. You can design a routine that fits into your busy schedule.

Unless your kid is strong enough to force food down your throat, eating healthy is your choice. Every time you pull up to a drive-thru window or destroy a cream-filled donut, your child can only watch. In most cases, your offspring will eventually mimic your behavior.

Most individuals consume excessive fat calories or under eat. These unhealthy habits can cause and keep you from achieving your fitness goals. Remember, there is nothing stopping you from making healthy eating choices.

It’s understandable that pregnancy causes weight gain, but blaming your 7-year-old for your bad habits is unacceptable. There are many examples of women with multiple kids and great bodies. The difference between you and them is effort. If you contact your doctor, exercise, and eat healthy, you can earn a body your kids will be proud of.

Lose weight by logging your results

Logging your workout, food, and beverage consumption is one of the keys to losing weight or any fitness goal.  Writing or typing your results help keep track of your accomplishments.  As you progress, the recorded information is helpful in determining if you need to make further changes to your plan. Keeping track of your progress will also greatly improve your performance when you can physically see the progress you have made.

Download and print your own Exercise and Diet Log Sheet

Exercise routine to sculpt your entire body

If you want to lose weight while toning your muscles, try this fat burning routine. This workout is effective because it challenges your entire body. For the best overall results, you must also eat healthy.

Required Equipment:

* Set of Dumbbells
* Stability Ball
* Jog outside or Treadmill

1.) CARDIOVASCULAR- WALKING/JOGGING OUTSIDE

Notes:
Warm up for 5 minutes walking briskly. After 5 minutes. Jog until you are too tired to jog anymore. When you get tired, walk briskly for 2 minutes. After the 2 minutes walk start back jogging. Repeat this sequence until you complete 20 minutes.

Goal:

You goal is to build up to jogging the whole 20 minutes. Every day you should jog more than you did the previous time. THE MORE YOU JOG THE MORE CALORIES YOU BURN.

2.) PUSH UPS

* Lie down on the floor, chest down. Palms are flat on the floor about a shoulder-width apart and level with your shoulders. Your feet are together and your legs are and back are straight
* Look forward and as you go down , make contact with the floor with your chin
* When you come up, don’t bend or arch your upper or lower back as you push up.
* Breathe out as you go up.
* Pause and then repeat the process

Once you have mastered the basic push up, there are many ways to customize it to your liking and fitness level. Some of them are very challenging; others are great fun to do with friends. Experimenting with these will help keep you motivated – well, hopefully.

HOW MANY: 2 SETS OF 20
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

3.) DUMBBELL ROWS

Tips:

Put your feet close together and grab two dumbbells. Bend forward as far as you can go, so your torso is close to parallel to the floor. Bend your knees slightly and keep your head up and back arched inwards. Hold dumbbells at arm’s length straight down. Pull dumbbells straight up to your sides keeping your elbows out. Concentrate on squeezing with your middle back. Return slowly to starting position. You can also do this with a barbell or with an underhand grip.

HOW MANY: 3 SETS OF 20
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

4.) DUMBBELL CURLS

Tips: Stand straight up, with your head up and your legs straight. Start with the dumbbells at arm’s length with your palms facing in. Curl dumbbells up at the same time, twisting your wrists on the way up. Your palms should be facing up when you are at the end of the movement. Do NOT swing and do NOT move your elbows. They should stay in the same place during the whole movement. Keep your arms close to your side. This one is easy to cheat on… so don’t do it! You can also do this with a barbell, or by alternating one hand at a time.

HOW MANY: 3 SETS OF 20
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

5.) DUCK SQUATS

Starting Position:

Stand with feet wider than shoulders, knees slightly bent, toes turned outward. Hold a dumbbell with both hands in front of body.

Action:

INHALE: Squat until your thighs is nearly parallel to the floor, sticking butt out as if sitting in a chair.
EXHALE: Squeeze glutes as you straighten legs to starting position to complete one rep. Special Instructions Keep abs contracted. Make sure knees to not pass the line of the toes.

HOW MANY: 3 SETS OF 20
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

6.) CALF RAISES

Tips: Place a wooden block or something similar on the ground that is at least 2 – 3 inches tall. Grasp a dumbbell in each hand. Position your toes and balls of feet on the block with arches and heels extending off and resting on the floor. Raise your heels by extending ankles as high as possible. Lower heels by bending your ankles until your calves are stretched. Repeat. Keep your knees straight throughout exercise or bend knees slightly only during stretch. This exercise can also be done with a barbell on your back instead.

HOW MANY: 3 SETS OF 20
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

7.) SHOULDER PRESS

Preparation:

Position dumbbells to each side of shoulders with elbows below wrists.

Execution:

Press dumbbells until arms are extended overhead. Lower and repeat.

HOW MUCH: 3 SETS OF 10
REST: 40 SECONDS IN BETWEEN SETS

8.) CRUNCHES

Tips: Lie flat on your back with your feet flat on the ground, or resting on a bench with your knees bent at a 90 degree angle. If you are resting your feet on a bench, place them three to four inches apart and point your toes inward so they touch. Place your hands lightly on either side of your head keeping your elbows in. Don’t lock your fingers behind your head! Push the small of your back down in the floor to isolate your ab muscles. Begin to roll your shoulders off the floor. Continue to push down as hard as you can with your lower back. Your shoulders should come up off the floor only
about four inches, and your lower back should remain on the floor. Focus on slow, controlled movement – don’t cheat yourself by using momentum!

HOW MANY: 3 SETS OF 25 REPS
REST: 30 SECONDS BETWEEN SETS

9.) CARDIOVASCULAR- WALKING/JOGGING OUTSIDE

Notes:
Warm up for 5 minutes walking briskly. After 5 minutes. Jog until you are too tired to jog anymore. When you get tired, walk briskly for 2 minutes. After the 2 minutes walk start back jogging. Repeat this sequence until you complete 20 minutes.

Goal:
You goal is to build up to jogging the whole 20 minutes. Every day you should jog more than you did the previous time. THE MORE YOU JOG THE MORE CALORIES YOU BURN.

Five Reasons You’re Not Dropping Pounds

1. You are not eating enough calories

Under-eating is one of the obstacles in the fight to shed pounds. Many individuals believe if you decrease your calories, fat loss will occur as a result. However, your body requires a minimum amount of calories to function properly. If you don’t provide your body with that amount, you will not see positive results. Your suggested calorie intake is determined based upon age, height, and weight and activity level. To get the scale moving in the right direction, you should consume enough healthy foods.

2. You are on a diet without exercising

You must combine a balanced diet with exercise. Exercise helps tone your muscles and raises your metabolism rate. By raising your metabolism, you can increase your body’s ability to release fat. Exercising along with a diet plan is the best way to achieve and maintain a healthy body.

3. You never change your routine

You must change your routine often to see improvements. For example, if you are exercising on an elliptical machine every day at the same speed and level your body will adjust and progress will stop. You must perform a variety of cardiovascular and weightlifting exercises. When the results slow down or stop, switch your routine to give your body another challenge. If your body is not stimulated to change, it will stay the same.

4. You don’t have an effective exercise program

Doing a couple of exercises without a plan or schedule won’t produce good results. For the best results, you should have a detailed workout plan. Join a gym or use a facility with enough equipment to work every angle of your body. If you can’t join a gym, try a home workout routine. With proper planning, you can design a great home workout routine with a stability ball and a set of dumbbells.

5. You don’t have a “can do” attitude

Most people suffer from some discomfort at times, but try not to use minimal discomfort as an excuse to avoid exercising. Actively look for solutions to your obstacles, like time and money. Today, most gyms are affordable and convenient. Spending a few dollars a month to join a gym won’t make a difference in your lifestyle. Find the time to work out by looking for breaks in your schedule and rearrange accordingly.

If you are serious about improving your body, analyze this list and make attitude adjustments if needed. Take small steps to reach your goals. Have the confidence that you’ll get there in due time. Losing weight and toning muscles is not always easy, but the results could change your life.

Full-figured Fitness

In today’s fitness industry, the needs of full-figured women are often overlooked. Images of skinny women saturate magazines, televisions, and internet websites. Unfortunately, only thin women are shown as examples of fitness success. The fitness media should evolve by acknowledging women of all sizes can be physically fit.

The majority of women openly embrace their voluptuous figures. Despite loving their curves, the desire to lose excessive weight still exists. Sadly, the fear of becoming too skinny deters many individuals from participating in exercise and diet plans. This way of thinking comes from the fact that average-sized women are rarely portrayed as having the ideal body. A good weight loss program does not try to transform a plus-sized woman into a size two body.

Full-figured women should focus on lowering body fat percentage, with less emphasis on how much they weigh. The body fat composition of a woman’s body should be around 20-25%, much lower than the potentially dangerous average of 40-50%. Weighing on a scale is only one method of measuring progress. An individual weighing over 200lbs can have a lower body fat percentage than someone that weights less than 150lbs. To lose fat while maintaining your curves, it is important to find the right combination of exercises and healthy eating habits.

Top three tips to sculpt a voluptuous and healthy body

Tip 1: Eat enough food

Attempting to lose weight by skipping meals is not the proper approach. Instead of under-eating, consume additional meals in smaller portions. Avoid replacing meals with shakes and other food replacement products. Your curves need to be fed with healthy solid foods. You must consume enough calories daily to keep your body functioning properly. The ideal calorie intake is determined by your height, weight, age, and activity level. Visit http://www.makeoverfitness.com for a complete list of diet tips.

Tip 2: Drink plenty of water

Continuously drinking water throughout the day is essential to your success. You should drink eight to ten glasses a day. You should consume more than ten glasses if you are active. Adequate hydration is important especially when exercising. Lack of water may cause decreased performance, headaches, and constant fatigue. At the end of the day, you should have consumed more water than any other liquids.

Tip 3: Do cardiovascular and light weightlifting exercises

You should do cardiovascular exercises to burn fat and weightlifting exercises to tone your muscles. Cardiovascular exercises such as jogging, gliding on an elliptical machine, and riding a bike will eventually burn the fat in your target area(s). Weightlifting helps to build and maintain the natural shape of your body. Avoiding weight training can result in a droopy or sickly looking body.

Never neglect the rest of your body while targeting a specific area

Example: Ann looks at her body and decides she wants to tone her arms and legs. When she works out, she only trains her arms and legs without any attention to the rest of her body.

Her approach for toning her target areas is not correct. This type of training may cause injuries and lack of results. Human muscles work together as one unit and should be treated as such. Train all parts of your body with emphasis on your target area(s).

About me:

I am a 34 year-old certified personal trainer from Birmingham, AL. My experience includes over 10 years of Personal Training. I have studied diet techniques, weightlifting, and nutrition for over 10 years. This includes the study of kinesiology at the University of Alabama. I am also the author of “Dangerous Curves”, a fitness book for full-figured women.

Fitness support

I understand that communicating with a client is necessary for reaching fitness goals. It is important to find out the age, height, weight, eating habits, goals, and health issues of a client before giving advice. Since each individual has unique circumstances, feel free to submit your questions to Clinton Walker III at fullbodymakeover@yahoo.com