Everyone who has come to me in the past few weeks for any type of health or fitness advice has said one thing:
I want to look good in my bathing suit!
Whether it be flattening your abs, toning your triceps, or slimming your inner thighs: I’ve got the plan for you.
A big misleading fitness myth is that you can lose fat in a certain area of your body by WORKING that area. Sorry ladies, this is WRONG. Just because you do bicep curls does NOT mean your biceps will lose fat. Your body picks and chooses as it likes where it will burn fat from.
Spot-Toning DOES work. So if you are already lean, and have no fat over a muscle, isolating that muscle will show through. With most people, this is not the case. You’ve got a few inches of fat over that inner thigh, a little pooch to grab on your belly, and some not-so-flattering triceps. Don’t worry – we can fix it!
The number one thing you need to understand is that you will have to change your diet. If you really want to look good and lose a few pounds and inches, you are going to have to focus on cutting out happy hours, drinks, and fatty foods. (I’m looking at you chips & salsa before dinner.)
Here is a simple breakdown to look fantastic this Summer 2013:
1) Eat a low-fat, whole-food, mostly-plant based diet, and drink plenty of water.
This means no processed white bread from the dinner basket, no extra scoops of margarine on your toast, and no olive oil or vinaigrette on your salad. For carbs, stick to whole grains like sprouted bread (Ezekial), brown or wild rice, quinoa, and fruit.
Have at least one meal as a salad: Load up a bowl of greens with your favorite fruits, veggies, and a lean choice of protein. (3oz white fish or organic chicken breast, grilled) Top with a flavored vinegar but hold the oil. I like Trader Joe’s Citrus Vinegar. It has enough flavor and a low calorie count.
2) Do your CARDIO!
Performing 3-5 sessions of 30 minutes each per week of running, swimming, biking, kettlebells, and/or HIIT will set your body into fat-burning mode. My favorite cardio is High Intensity Interval Training filled with mountain climbers, jump squats, agility ladder drills, hop lunges, ski jumps, and burpees. HIIT will give you a greater metabolic boost, so for the rest of the day your body will be processing your food a bit faster and more efficiently.
3) Do not skip the weights.
Strength training is vital when you want to tone those muscles to look sleek without covers. The more muscle you have on your body, the more calories you burn each day. I advise training 2-3x per week with yours truly, a personal trainer, with free weights, cable machines, medicine balls, and kettlebells. Doing weights in a circuit will also be a high intensity form of cardio, boosting your cardio session results.
Plus, for you ladies reading this, strength training is vital for strong bones as we age. Our calcium is absorbed less efficiently, so using weights actually increases the density of our bones to reduce the risk of injury and osteoporosis. Yay!
4) Consistency
Okay, so you’ve got the motivation now. The sun is out and the warm breeze is blowing. You are all hyped for the summer season…but soon the spark will start to fade. You NEED to keep up the consistency and dedicate yourself to these steps to a bangin’ bod. Wouldn’t you like to have it year round? It’s not just the 6 weeks before summer that are going to shape you into a healthier, happier human being. It is the weeks, months, and years that you continue this fit lifestyle down the road. If you can find time now to fit it in, you can find it later. Apply these simple rules above and nothing will stop you from being, feeling, and looking FANTASTIC!
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Nixie Dee 