A Workout Queston
 

The girls and I are heading to the beach next month for some sun, sand, daquiris, and serious fun. I've always been a going to the gym kind of girl...but it's summer which means it is officially itty bitty bikini season, and I was wondering if any of you have done any ab exercises that really worked.

The Crunch: Pilates ab workout is good. You can find it at Kmart for pretty cheap.

2 good ones:

--bicycle crunches done slowly

--"the plank"... try to hold it for a minute straight, suck in your abs and make sure your butt isn't sticking up (this helps flatten the abs, normal crunches don't)

Cardio Cardio and more Cardio

I also liked the heavy balls... you sit on a mat and lean back just enough and then take the ball in both hands and move it from one side of your body to the other while sorta (not a lot) moving your body in that dirrection

Target carries this as well.
Also, the Pilates Balance Ball workout is great. It leaves my abs aching!

I am currently using Winsor Pilates and love it. It tones all the targeted areas (stomach, hips, butt, thighs, etc). I bought the tapes through this website below. Good luck in your quest!

http://www.winsorpilates.com

http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmili.../pinkieone.gif http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmili...e/bluegrab.gif http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/spin3.gif

six-packs are made in the kitchen!

In order for your abdominal muscles to show you need to lose body fat- we all have six packs but layers of fat are what prevent us from seeing the muscle.

If you want a toned tummy then cardio and good eating habits are a necessity. Everyone's body is different, but what worked for me was increasing my protein intake to 1 g of protein per pound that I weigh (120 lbs = 120 g of protein). Doing that I retained muscle while losing body fat doing cardio.

My tummy was tiiiiiiight, lol. THEN came the job search process and I gained 4 pounds. Bye Bye 6 pack.

It's okay though, I went to GNC and bought a HUGE tub of protein shake mix and will be getting back to my three times minimum gym/workout schedule this month. I give it about a month til I get my 6-pack back- it would be less but I dont have time to kill myself at the gym right now.

lovelyivy84,
Thanks for the tidbit of information on protein. I was always under the impression that protein would put weight on, but now that I read your post and actually think about what you said, I understand. I really like your suggestion of equaling what you weigh to the amount of protein you eat during the day. I think I am going to try to follow your plan :)

Anyway, to answer the question....
I am also a fan of Windsor Pilates. It really does tone and tighten those problem areas. Also, I picked up a belly dancing tape from Wal-Mart. I haven't done it too frequently, but it works (and it's a lot of fun)! I don't know if you weight train or not, but if you do, I suggest performing dips and pull-ups (on an assisted weight machine at the gym) to tighten and strengthen your obliques. So far, this is the only exercise I have found that really works my obliques. Well, that and kick-boxing. Kick-boxing works your abs too!!!

Hey Jadey!

It isn't that difficult, you just have to find the most efficient (read: lo-cal) forms of protein available. When I had my beloved six-pack lol I ate six small meals every day, two of which were protein shakes (240 cals, 40g protein each). I was following Scott Connelly's Six-Pack Prescription plan, so you can buy the book if you need more formal guidelines. My other small meals were packed with fruits, veggies, fish and chicken. I did not cut out starchy carbs altogether although I cut out white rice- I ate brown rice, a lot of whole wheat bread and noodles OCCASIONALLY. I made sure to get a lot of fiber. The only thing I tried to cut out COMPLETELY was fructose.

You would not believe how hard that was- fructose is in damn near everything because it is allegedly good for diabetics. In reality it isn't good for anybody. Studies have shown that your body doesn't process fructose as it does other sugars, and it basically becomes fat. I finally gave up and accepted that minimal amounts were acceptable.

I am only barely approaching the efficiency I had at that point now. I have cut out rice again and thankfully summer means that my favorite fruits and veggies are out in abundance but now I find myself eating a lot of noodles (because they are so easy to cook). Brokeness inhibits all my planning, lol.

on workouts:

belly dancing is sooo amazing for your abs! I just had to ad on that statement, lol. I took classes twice a week in addition to weight training ang it was a great workout for my abs and back (all the undulating).