Abs of steel!

I get a lot of compliments on my flat stomach & abs and am always asked how I get them!

A common misconception is that all you need to do to get abs is a lot of ab work outs but this is not true! The abdominals are covered by a layer of FAT, in order to see the abs you have, you have to get rid of the fat on top of them. SO in order to get flat sexy abs, eating healthy is essential!!!

I do ab workouts every other day. I make the ab part of my workout pretty extensive but it is well worth it and anyone can do it, best of all you don't need ANY equipment to do my ab workouts! So you can do them in the comfort of your own home :)

I start with regular crunches, with my legs up in the air and my feet crossed. When I lift off the ground I go up in the direction of my feet, however you can also keep your feet flat on the floor for crunches as well. I do 50 of these, but you can always start at a lower number.

Next I do side crunches. Its pretty self explanatory, its the same thing as a regular crunch only you bring your body up and twist your mid section to the side, while keeping your legs stationary and feet flat on the floor. I really like to do these on an exercise ball especially if I don't have a mat available, but they are just as effective on the floor! I do 20 on each side

Another exercise I do for my side abs is almost like a plank, but with more movement involved. Start in the push up position, make sure your hands are shoulder width apart and your back is straight. Bring your right knee inward towards your left arm, hold for 3 seconds and then switch to your left knee going inward towards your right arm and hold. Do 10 of these on each side.

One of my favorite ab workouts is the leg lift! Lay flat on your back, keep your arms by your side or crossed over your chest and put your legs straight up in the air, slowly bring them down counting down from 10 until they almost reach the floor then bring them back above you and repeat. I usually do 10 of these. This work out is especially good for those lower abs!

I like to finish with a 1 minute plank. Hold yourself up in either the push up position or on with your arms down holding yourself up with your elbows and forearms (this is what I prefer). This is a great way to increase the strength in your core area!

I go through this workout three times (three reps of each) Good luck!

Breakfast

Today's post is all about the most important meal of the day...BREAKFAST! 

It has been proven that making eating breakfast a habit is essential in helping with weight loss! Without eating breakfast, you are more hungry later in the day which usually causes you to eat more snacks or larger portions at lunch and dinner. People don't realize, you don't eat while you sleep at night (obviously) so by skipping breakfast, you are starving your body for anywhere from 12-15 hours, not good!! I hear the excuse of people not having enough time in the mornings to eat a healthy breakfast and my suggestion to that is to wake up 10-15 minutes earlier, if you are committed to get in shape, it should be worth it! And as you get more in shape, getting up earlier will become easier!

Eating breakfast is very important HOWEVER you do not want to eat foods high in sugar, calories or fat in the morning (doughnuts,sugary cereals, pop-tarts, bagels etc) Another thing most people don't realize is that you need to avoid sugary juices in the morning. Most fruit juices contain a lot of sugar! This includes both apple AND orange juice, not saying to never drink orange juice but it is not good to constantly drink for someone who is trying to lose weight.

Here is a list of my suggestions for a good, healthy breakfast that I like to eat :)
OATMEAL! (definitely my favorite!)
Greek Yogurt
V8 (regular/splash/fusion)
Bolthouse farm juices
Whole grain cereals (Cheerios, Raisin brain, Honey bunches of oats, Special K etc) with
low fat/rice milk/silk milk
Whole grain toast with peanut butter (NOT recommend for every day, although peanut butter is a good source of protein, it is also high in calories)
Fresh fruit
Eggs (a couple times a week, ideally without the yolk)

Hey guys!

This is my first post of my fitness and health blog! I am constantly being asked to give people advice about fitness/nutrition so I thought this would be the best way to do it. I will be posting exercise advice as well as eating tips! I am going to post as many pictures as possible along with my post, to make things more self explanatory. Feel free to ask me ANY questions about healthy eating habits or working out! & bare with me while I figure this whole blog thing out! :)