3 tips for a Rock-Solid Stomach

3 tips for a Rock-Solid Stomach

1. Keep Your Abs Engaged. Your core region (lower back, abs and glutes) make up your “stabilizer” muscle group. This powerhouse is constantly at work when you’re doing ANY kind of workout, so take advantage of this! When you’re lifting weights, or doing anything that uses your stabilizer muscles, consciously tap into that strength—keep your abs tight and posture solid, and you’ll see big results.

2. Use Compound Movements.  When targeting your abs, compound exercises are better than isolated ones. Why not work multiple muscle groups at once? Some compound movements that work the whole ab region include Planks and the Bicycle Maneuver:

 For Planks, lie face down, forearms and toes pressed into the floor, and lift your hips up off the floor. Engage your abs, straighten your back and hold this position for as long as you can. Trust us, you’ll feel your entire ab region engaged! 

• For Bicycle Maneuver, lie with your back on the floor, hands behind your head and elbows spread wide. Keeping your lower back pressed into the floor and abs contracted, crunch across the body—one elbow to the opposite knee. Alternate continuously. This will work more muscles than a standard crunch.  Add a fitness ball to increase strength.

3. Eat Protein.  Protein will allow your body to rebuild muscle after your workouts. Great sources include lean meat, nuts, eggs, cheese and legumes. Another excellent source of protein is a protein shake, which can be one of your 5-6 daily meals. A whey or soy protein powder, when mixed with soy or skim milk, can give you roughly 20 grams of protein. 

Are you using exercise as an excuse to eat more?

Are you using exercise as an excuse to eat more?

Unfortunately, exercise does not burn as many calories as we might think. What you may not realize is that thirty minutes on the elliptical, for example, cancels out only one Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.

Key to weight loss is to EAT SMALLER PORTIONS at least 6 times a day!  Make an effort to control your desire for junk food by eliminating it entirely.

If you’re training for a sporting event, you may need to eat more to fuel your workouts—otherwise, consider regular exercise a keep-it-in-check tool, not a free pass to eat whatever you want.

Fuel your body with healthy eating.  The right combination of proteins, complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables—as well as adequate hydration with water—can also add a kick to your energy levels.

While cardio exercise won’t completely burn away a weekend binge, it does benefit health by increasing energy and lowering your risk for heart disease.

8 Fitness Myths Busted!

8 Fitness Myths Busted!

Here are a few myths about fitness:

Is Spot reducing possible? "It's simply not possible to 'burn off' fat in one specific body part by exercising that area," Many studies have tried to dispute this claim, but none of any scientific value has proven that spot reducing is possible. At best you might lose some water weight in the area to give the impression that you indeed did "spot reduce". Rehydrate and you will see those stubborn inches "magically" reappear. Only regular exercise -- aerobic and strength training (weight lifting) -- and a sensible diet can melt body fat.

If you exercise, you can eat whatever you want. If you really want to lose weight and get into shape, do not use exercise as an excuse to eat more. Continue to eat a healthy diet, with lots of fruits and vegetables. When you train you build more muscle and the more calories you will burn at rest.

Exercise requires a huge time commitment. As little as 30 minutes a day works when you're in health-and-fitness maintenance mode, and 60 minutes a day will help you lose weight. "I spend 40 minutes a day 5 days a week". If you are not looking to be the next Mr.Olympia, 40 minute workouts is enough. If you are performing the exercises correctly, with great intensity, and combining the workouts with proper rest and proper nutrition.

There's a secret diet or a secret workout out there to get you in shape quickly. There is no quick fix. There are ways to train that can help maximize your time in the gym and the benefits you will drive from your workouts, but there is no quick fix. Most important is to "believe in yourself, believe in the process, stay the course, and you will look the best you ever looked before!"

Exercising at high intensity burns more fat. "This is a particularly confusing topic for some people," "Many people have thought that higher intensity means burning more fat. Well, you can burn more fat this way, you will burn more calories this way, but you also run the risk of burning more muscle this way too. If you burn hard earned muscle, the ultimate result will be a slower metabolic rate and in the long run you will be less lean than if you worked out at a lower intensity for more time.

Women who lift weights will get bulky muscles. Women don't have enough of the "male" hormone testosterone to develop large, bulky muscles. Strength training will not cause women to build muscles, although steroids might. I hear the same things from men who state that "they don't want to get too big". You can not get too big by accident. Putting on muscle takes dedication, hard work, and a plan.

Muscle weighs more than fat. "A pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat. " The difference is that muscle is much more dense than body fat. Therefore, a pound of muscle will take up much less room in your body than a pound of fat."

No pain, no gain. It is important to know what is good pain and what is bad pain. Often beginners have not learned the difference here. It's OK to push yourself to fatigue, tax your heart, lungs, muscles, feel the burn, -- but be reasonable.

Don't push yourself so hard that you have to miss sessions, and even worse,

possibly risk an injury.

The 5 Most Effective Abdominal Exercises!

The 5 Most Effective Abdominal Exercises!

Just because you’re doing stomach crunches doesn’t mean you can skip on the diet and eat anything you want.


If you want to have definition of you ab muscles You need to lose fat. Remember, muscle mass and fat mass are two very different entities. Just because you’re gaining muscles doesn’t mean you’re automatically losing all the fat in your body and get a flat stomach as well.

Focus on the form, not the number!

Most individuals hurry though their stomach crunches, not minding their form. They end up straining their necks and eventually injuring their backs. It’s important to note that a stomach toning exercise is the last thing you’d want to rush. First and foremost, you end up wasting valuable time and effort this way. Secondly, it’s very difficult to recover from neck and spine injury. You might just end up losing more muscle mass in this manner.

Always remember, a good stomach exercise is one that concentrated the tension on your abdominal muscles, not your shoulders and neck. When you’re trying to pull yourself up, work your abdominal muscles. Never strain your neck and back just to sit upright. You don’t really need to sit up when you’re doing crunches.  You can stop midway, as long as the pressure on your abs is consistent. Make sure that your chin isn’t touching your chest, and your back is kept straight.

The hand behind your nape is supposed to support your neck, not pull it up further.

25 well formed stomach crunches is definitely more effective compared to 300 hasty ones. The catchphrase in an effective stomach toning exercise routine is “slow but steady”.


#1 Long Arm Crunch

This exercise targets the upper portion of the rectus abdominis.

*Lie on a mat and extend the arms straight out behind the head with hands clasped, keeping the arms next to the ears.

* Contract the abs and lift the shoulder blades off the floor.

* Lower and repeat for 12-16 reps.Exercise

#2 Reverse Crunch

*Lie on the floor and place hands on the floor or behind the head.

* Bring the knees in towards the chest until they're bent to 90 degrees, with feet together or crossed.

* Contract the abs to curl the hips off the floor, reaching the legs up towards the ceiling.

* Lower and repeat for 12-16 reps.

* It's a very small movement, so try to use your abs to lift your hips rather than swinging your legs and creating momentum.

Exercise #3 Full Vertical Crunch

* Lie on your back and extend the legs up towards the ceiling.

* Place hands behind your head (lightly cupping it) and contract the abs to lift the shoulder blades off the floor.

* At the same time, press the heels towards the ceiling, creating a 'u' shape with the torso.

* Lower down and repeat for 12-16 reps.

Exercise #4 Criss Cross

The BicycleThis exercise was found to be the most effective abdominal exercise to target the rectus abdominis (six pack abs) and the obliques (love handles).

* Lie face up on the floor and lace your fingers behind your head.

* Bring the knees in towards the chest and lift the shoulder blades off the ground without pulling on the neck.

* Straighten the left leg out to about a 45-degree angle while simultaneously turning the upper body to the right, bringing the left elbow towards the right knee.

* Switch sides, bringing the right elbow towards the left knee.

* Continue alternating sides in a 'pedaling' motion for 12-16 reps.

Exercise #5 Plank on Elbows and Toes

The plank exercise ranked number 10 in the ACE study and is a great way to build endurance in both the abs and back, as well as stabilizer muscles. To do it right:

* Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor.

*Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows.

* Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels.

* Tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking up in the air.

* Hold for 20 to 60 seconds, lower and repeat for 3-5 reps.

Remember to train the abdominals as you would any other muscle group- with at least 24 hours of rest in between. Although these abdominal exercises are wonderful for strengthening the adominals they won't necessarily get rid of the fat tissue. Make sure to eat healthy and perform a variety of cardiovascular activity to enhance the abdominal exercises above. Drink Plenty Of Water!

It takes a healthy diet, strength training & cardio to remove the layers of fat to show off your abs.