As the overcoats and beanie hats begin to be stored away, hopefully leaving the winter behind for another year - It’s time to get in shape, lose a little weight and look great! – On the beach. But how will you achieve this amazing bikini body?? Weight loss and toning are your two main goals…..

So here are a few tips to achieve the perfect bikini body and turn a few heads - in the right direction this summer!

3 tips to get you loosing inches straight away

Make a food diary.
Take a week to record everything you eat – and we mean EVERYTHING!  From finishing your kids cereal bar, left over from their lunch box - to that lonely looking Cherry ripe that could’nt possibly be left on it’s own in the fridge.  Writing down what we eat and drink forces us to be aware of what we’re putting in our mouth. It also gives us an easy way to track our intake and decide what changes we want to make.

Make sure you’re eating for the right reason!
Every time you start to eat or drink, ask yourself one word: Why? Why am I eating this? Am I hungry, tired, bored, stressed, lonely? The correct answer is simple: hunger. If you’re not hungry, don’t eat. Work out what you need to do to satisfy that emotion: Take a nap, read a book, call a friend - just don’t eat if you’re not hungry.

Give yourself a reward!.
Allowing yourself little treats can provide a perfect reward for counting the calories all week or completing that extra 20 minutes at the gym one day.  Give yourself something to look forward to – one or 2 treats a week will help to keep up your motivation and allow you to still enjoy some of your favorite delicacies – but only in moderation!
Start an exercise plan!
Try this 4 week bikini busting workout!
Week 1 - Interval training
Interval training is one of the best ways to burn fat. It involves changing the intensity or level at which you are exercising for a couple of minutes during your workout. For instance, during your 30-minute workout, try running (or walking) at your normal pace for three to five minutes, then run (or walk) at a faster pace for three to five minutes, and slow down to your normal pace again. If you’re working out on the running machine in the gym, run at a normal pace for three to five minutes, then speed up for three to five minutes, and so on. Build up the intervals, so with each high intensity burst you’re working harder than the one before.
By working hard for short periods of time and allowing yourself time to recover, you can push yourself harder than if you tried working at a high intensity for an extended period of time. In working yourself harder, you push your muscles, lungs and heart to their capacity, thereby improving your overall fitness level and, consequently, your body’s ability to burn fat.
Your goal for the week - Three 30 minute interval sessions per week

Week 2 – Say goodbye to cellulite

Cellulite is like any other fat in your body, but the difference is in the way it’s stored. In women’s bodies, the connective tissue that runs between the layers of skin is tighter and closer together than in men’s bodies and, as a result, forms several bucket-shaped chambers. Fat is then stored in these chambers and, once they fill up, the fat protrudes over the top of the chamber, creating lumps and bumps that appear through the skin.
Therefore lengthening muscles and the shape of the fat storing chambers so that the fat is spread more widely across the tissues is less likely to protrude over the top and produce dimply-looking cellulite.  This can be achieved by adding a series of deep stretches to your workout.
Take the 3 stretches (below) to the point where you feel the muscles resist, then hold it, breathe and focus your mind on relaxing and lengthening the muscle. When the feeling of resistance stops, stretch further and do the same thing again until you feel you can’t go any further. The result is increased flexibility, longer muscles and cellulite-free skin.

Inner thigh stretch
Sit on the ground and bring the soles of your feet together, letting your knees drop out to the sides. Then sit up straight, rest your elbows along your inner thighs and gently try to press your knees to the floor.

Hamstring stretch
Sit on the floor with one leg extended in front of you and the other bent so that your foot rests against the inner thigh of the extended leg. Bending from your waist, reach forward towards your toes with your hands, ultimately trying to press your stomach and your chest against your leg.

Gluteal stretch
Lie on the floor with both knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Cross your right leg over your left knee so that your right ankle is resting on your left knee at a 90-degree angle. Reach forward and wrap your hands around your left thigh so that your hands clasp just under your knee. Lift your left leg so your foot lifts off the ground, and pull your left leg towards you.

Your goal for the week – Three 30 min interval sessions each followed by 15 min deep stretching sessions.

Week 3 – Tone and shape with strength training

Muscles require more energy than fat to function. While fat is simply stored energy in your body and doesn’t require fuel to maintain itself, muscles are active so they need to be fueled in order to function. Even when they are not being used, muscles require fuel to recover from exertion. Consequently, the more muscle you have, the more fuel they need and the more calories you use, or burn.
Start with your larger muscles and then do more specific exercises to target the smaller muscles as well. For instance, to tone the area around your buttocks and thighs, start with exercises such as squats and lunges that use all those muscles together. Then move on to exercises such as leg curls and leg raises that isolate smaller muscles.

Your goal for this week: three 20 minute interval training sessions followed by 20 minutes of strength work. Finish off with 15 minutes of deep stretching.

Week 4 – Cross Training
Cross training uses different muscles each day, which means you’ll be able to work out at an intense level without overstraining your body. It also means you’ll see quick results.
From this point on, you need to take all the exercises you have done for the past three weeks and alternate them so you do different workouts every day. Here’s a sample weekly plan:
Monday: do your strength training and deep stretch workout
Tuesday: do your interval training and stretch workout
Wednesday: day off
Thursday: go back to your strength training and deep stretch workout
Friday: do your interval training workout

After four weeks you should start to feel great and look fantastic – See you on the beach!

This entry was posted on Monday, November 3rd, 2008 at 2:03 pm and is filed under Exercise Science. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.