Post Tagged with: "abs"

Former Disney Princess and  star of hit series Hannah Montana,  Miley Cyrus  has shredded her innocent  image in exchange for the sassy, sexy woman that covers Cosmopolitan magazine’s March 2013 issue. Transitioning from long, wavy brunette locks to a short pixie blonde and sporting edgy, risky clothing like her much beloved crop top! The Miley that we used to know seems to have disappeared, gone, vanished. The new Miley is:

1. Not single. She is engaged to hot and hunky aussie, Liam Hemsworth.

2. Working on her fourth solo album.

3. Has taken an interest in twerking. Yes, TWERKING. (See the video below!)

4. To top it all off, she has developed a long, lean “womanly” figure that she shows off any chance she gets. She loves her crop tops!

With the help of celebrity Pilates trainer  Mari Winsor, Miley’s former Hannah Montana physique has transformed into a super sexy figure that she is exceptionally proud of.  Thanks to Miley’s mother, she met with Winsor and fell in love with the Pilates program. Pilates is a workout system that requires concentration, control, and breathing. It builds strength  without looking bulky, creating a sleek toned body. Miley is a fan of all Pilates workouts, but her favorites focus on the abs. (Did I mention her infatuation with crop tops?)

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Tonight is the big night for supermodels like Alessandra Ambrosio, Doutzen Kroes, and Candice Swanepoel.  They’ll slip into their sexiest lingerie and put on their wings for the 2012 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, which will air tonight at 10pm. While the perfectly toned Angels strut down the runway, the rest of us will be left wondering, “How did they get SO fit?!”. Having good genes certainly plays a big role in the body shape of these women, but they do log in long hours and hard work at the gym to stay runway ready year-round.

In anticipation for the fashion show, Victoria’s Secret has released a series of videos on how to “train like an angel”. Taking a few notes from these workout videos, we’ve rounded up the best exercises for your legs, arms, and abs. Incorporate these simple moves into your next workout and you’ll be ready to rock your own runway, angel wings and all!

And if you need music to get you pumped, we have the OFFICIAL Victoria’s Secret party mix just for you!

Maybe you remember her from her early days of hosting shows like Wild On! on the E! network, or more recently as the host of Dancing with the Stars. But it’s safe to say when you see Brooke Burke you can’t help but think, “How has she stayed in shape all of these years?!”. Over the course of her career this 41-year-old model, actress, host and mom of four has managed to maintain her weight and slim physique.

So how does she do it?  By working out at least five times a week with fast-paced total-body exercises, Brooke keeps her body looking lean and toned. From her line of workout DVDs, we’ve picked up on some of Brooke’s favorite moves and her tips for staying focused on a healthy lifestyle.

The newest way to shape up your belly, butt, and thighs without stressing your joints is to flip your workout upside-down! These three ballet-inspired moves use the wall and one piece of equipment–a ball–to gently increase your flexibility and range of motion. The result: you’ll isolate the tough-to-reach muscles that pull in your belly, lift your backside, and trim your thighs. The perfect complement to weight-bearing exercises such as walking, inverted moves use gravity to boost circulation naturally and to provide an instant, energizing rush. They also give your knees and hips a break from the pounding of upright life. All you need is an open space (four to six feet) on a wall, a mat, and an exercise ball (optional).

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Wall Bridge or Ball Bridge (tones back, butt)

Lie on your back with butt against the wall, arms at your sides, knees bent, and feet planted three to four feet up wall or stability ball. Exhale and move your back off floor, keeping your shoulders blades down. Your body forms a nearly straight line from chest to knees. Hold for a deep inhale, then exhale and slowly roll back down.

Are you noticing more belly flab with each passing year?

An estimated 50-60% of the amount of fat in your midsection is said to be dictated by the genes you inherit. But how you live and the changes that your body goes through as you age also play a major role. Hormonal fluctuations that can start in a woman’s mid-to late-30s are often accompanied by an increase in waist size. Too much stress, too little sleep, and eating too many calories can contribute to belly bulge. Your level of activity also affects your shape: more active people are more likely to be leaner all over, including in their bellies.

Before you drop to the floor to perform abdominal crunches and other core’ exercises, realize that a bigger belly is often caused from excess fat in the area, not from weak muscles. So pummeling away at abdominal muscles won’t have the flattening effect you might think it will. What core exercises can do is strengthen your abs and surrounding muscles. To chisel away at your ab muscles, you must do cardio exercise. By using up extra energy with aerobic workouts, your body pulls from fat cells all over the body, which will reveal the ab muscles you’ve been working so hard to develop!

The good news is that abdominal fat has a higher lipolytic activity than lower body fat. That means that more fat-burning enzymes are circulated in ab fat cells. This may explain why many studies show that increasing the amount of cardio you do each week has a direct effect in helping to reduce your waist size. So, if you want to tighten your tummy for the summer, remember to make cardio workouts a part of your regular exercise routine.

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Before we discuss my favorite ab moves, it must be noted that you can’t simply “crunch” your way to a chiseled midsection. Numerous recent, peer-reviewed studies have confirmed that, in order to reveal tight, toned abs, one must decrease body fat through a combination of cardiovascular exercise and proper diet.

Many women tell me they can’t get the results they seek to achieve, although they spend hours each week working their abs!

Interval Training

I often prescribe interval training to supplement their current aerobic routine, and I help them tweak their diets, in addition to working abs properly. Interval training—specifically, High Intensity Interval Training, such as one of our HIIT classes—has been proven to be superior for reducing abdominal adiposity (belly fat!) for several reasons (Medicine Science Sports Exercise, 2011). Most notably, HIIT increases levels of HGH (human growth hormone) and fight-or-flight hormones, which have receptor sites in the ab region.

I also advise women looking to firm, tone, and decrease the midriff area to increase their cardio to 5-6 days per week. Two to three days of HIIT, such as sprints on the treadmill or a HIIT class, can be alternated with 2-3 days of Steady State Cardio (SSC). SSC can be a walk, run, bike, elliptical workout, or any of our fun, motivating, calorie-blasting cardio classes, such as Step or Zumba. Aim for a minimum of 30-45 minutes for each workout session, and you will see your hard-earned ab work begin to show within a few weeks!

A number of well documented, peer-reviewed studies have demonstrated that “spot reduction” is possible with high-repetition toning exercises. A landmark Danish study proved that lipolysis (fat burn) increases in thigh muscles after sets of 25 repetitions of leg extensions were performed (Applied Physiology Nutrition Metabolism, 2011). Various studies have demonstrated that fat burn increases in adipose tissue (fat cells) following intense sculpting workouts. This occurs in the fat adjacent to, or in very close proximity to, working muscles. For example, 3 sets of 25 leg extensions will increase fat burn in the body fat near the thigh muscles (in this case, the quadriceps) for about 30 minutes. That would mean, according to the results published, you are burning fat from the front of the thighs, near the working thigh muscles, after you finish your workout!

Unfortunately, the abdominals seem to be the exception to this rule. According to the latest study published in Journal Strength Conditioning Research (2011), spot-reduction in the abdominal area is not possible. This information may help shed some light on why you are not getting the results you desire from your current abdominal training. Does this mean that you should ditch your 3-days-per-week abs workout and give up on reducing dangerous and often unsightly “belly fat?” Absolutely not! There are still solutions for toning the abs, even though they do resist spot-reduction.

Belly fat, also known as visceral fat, is problematic for many reasons. It is not only a source of self-esteem issues for many women, it is dangerous. Central adiposity, or belly fat, has been linked a host of health problems, such as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and increased risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease. This central fat is very close to one’s vital organs—it’s near the liver and kidneys and is in close proximity to the heart. The accumulation of belly fat is not only risky to one’s health, most women consider it unattractive and would do just about anything to get rid of it.

The good news is, belly fat has a higher turnover rate than the very stubborn fat of the hips and thighs. In other words, it can be targeted to be decreased more effectively and efficiently. Although age, genetics, and hormones are related to why, when, and where we deposit fat, there are a few things you can do to battle this “belly-bulge”.

Post-baby, I spent a lot of time researching how to get my pre-pregnancy body back. I have continued that research avidly from a fitness and nutrition standpoint. Here are a few things that will help shrink your waistline, fast. You may be 5 or 50 pounds from your goal, but these tricks are tried and true—backed by current scientific research!

You ask, our experts answer!

Dear Dr. Emily,

I had a baby about six months ago and have been working out about four days a week. I’ve dropped 30 lb. so far, but I can’t seem to get rid of my belly. I currently do about 100 crunches a day (a mix of crunches to target all areas), and I haven’t seen much progress. What else can I do?

-Frustrated

Forearm Plank

Dear Ms. Frustrated,

Thank you for your question. This is a common concern among women who have recently given birth. Due to the high demans placed on the abdominal muscles during a pregnancy, it often requires a lot of dedicated core work to tighten the midsection. It’s important to understand that our abdominals are made up of a deeper layer (which you cannot see) and a more superficial, outer layer (which you can see). Post-baby, you actually want to focus on the deeper muscles, which will help to pull everything back into your pre-baby physique. Some examples of great exercises for targeting the deeper muscles are the forearm plank, push-up plank, side plank, and isometric crunches. Prefer to take a core-targeted class? Pilates is a great workout known for hitting the deeper core muscles!

– Dr. Emily

Do you have a question for Dr. Emily? Email emily@lucilleroberts.com.