When you're getting ready for swimsuit season, you may be focusing on working out your legs, butt, or core, but one area that is often overlooked is your back.
Not only does having a strong back help you to avoid injury and support you during all of your fun summer activities, but it also helps you look great in sexy swimwear or skimpy summer tops!
This short workout will work your shoulders, core, and entire back and butt area, to provide a toned and sculpted look from behind - all in less than 15 minutes.
All you need for this workout is a mat and a set of hand weights (or use water bottles or canned goods if you don't have weights).
Showing posts with label strong core. Show all posts
Showing posts with label strong core. Show all posts
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
Get Your Sexy Back...In Time for Swimsuit Season!
As you are getting ready for the summer swimsuit season, you are likely focusing a lot on your tummy, thighs, and butt to make sure you look great. Don't forget the importance of exercising and toning your back muscles, though. After all, your back is likely to get a lot more sun this summer as you bare more skin. Don't worry, however, because there are lots of exercises you can do to tone and strengthen your traps, lats, and back.
Exercising and strengthening the back does more than just help your back view look good. These exercises can help improve your overall posture and help you avoid injury when exercising as well as in your daily life. Try some of these targeted exercises.
Traps
Traps, or the trapezius muscles, are best worked out with targeted exercises. These will target your back and the backs of your shoulders.
* Shrugs - Depending on your level of fitness, you can either use the resistance of your own body, resistance bands, dumbbells, or barbells to complete this exercise. The object is to simply shrug your shoulders, holding the shrug and then releasing carefully, with your arms off to your side. Holding weights or resistance bands helps to create more tension.
* Kettlebell Pulls - Stand with your legs wider than shoulder width apart, with a kettlebell of your chosen weight in front on you. Bend your knees to pick up the kettlebell with both hands, but then keep your legs mostly straight for the remainder of the exercise. Using both hands in the middle of your body, lift the kettlebell to belly button height, then down again.
Lats
Lats, or latissimus dorsi, are best worked out with exercises that involve putting your hands above your head and pulling down. Here are some examples of useful exercises for lats:
* Chin-Ups - Find or install a secure bar that can hold more than your body weight, for safety. Grab the bar with your hands out wider than shoulder width, hands facing away from you. Pull your body up until your chin is above the bar, then slowly let yourself back down.
* Pull-Downs - Using resistance bands or gym equipment, use resistance to pull the bar or bands from above you using both hands. Bring the bar or resistance band behind your head, and then return and repeat.
Back
To work out your entire back, you are better off focusing on doing multiple targeted exercises as well as full-back workouts. These will help trim fat off your back and tone and sculpt the muscles there to give you a great-looking back.
* Core Exercises - Many core exercises are great for your full body, including your abs and butt muscles. Core exercises are excellent for your back, and can help you increase strength and balance to be able to complete other more difficult workouts. Planks are an example of an easy home exercise that works out your entire body, including your back, very well.
* Lying Dumbbell Lifts - Using a bench, lie front down so that your arms are dangling. Grab your chosen weight of dumbbells with both hands. Lift the dumbbells out away from your body, so that your arms are spread out like flying, and then slowly return your arms back down and repeat.
These exercises will help you tone and strengthen your traps, lats, and overall back muscles. This will help you look great this summer when you dare to bare your back, and will help you look leaner and stronger overall. Remember that consistency is key, so repeat these exercises multiple times a week to keep those back muscles working and looking their best.
Exercising and strengthening the back does more than just help your back view look good. These exercises can help improve your overall posture and help you avoid injury when exercising as well as in your daily life. Try some of these targeted exercises.
Traps
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| (Image courtesy of stockimages at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.) |
* Shrugs - Depending on your level of fitness, you can either use the resistance of your own body, resistance bands, dumbbells, or barbells to complete this exercise. The object is to simply shrug your shoulders, holding the shrug and then releasing carefully, with your arms off to your side. Holding weights or resistance bands helps to create more tension.
* Kettlebell Pulls - Stand with your legs wider than shoulder width apart, with a kettlebell of your chosen weight in front on you. Bend your knees to pick up the kettlebell with both hands, but then keep your legs mostly straight for the remainder of the exercise. Using both hands in the middle of your body, lift the kettlebell to belly button height, then down again.
Lats
Lats, or latissimus dorsi, are best worked out with exercises that involve putting your hands above your head and pulling down. Here are some examples of useful exercises for lats:
* Chin-Ups - Find or install a secure bar that can hold more than your body weight, for safety. Grab the bar with your hands out wider than shoulder width, hands facing away from you. Pull your body up until your chin is above the bar, then slowly let yourself back down.
* Pull-Downs - Using resistance bands or gym equipment, use resistance to pull the bar or bands from above you using both hands. Bring the bar or resistance band behind your head, and then return and repeat.
 |
| (Image courtesy of phasinphoto at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.) |
To work out your entire back, you are better off focusing on doing multiple targeted exercises as well as full-back workouts. These will help trim fat off your back and tone and sculpt the muscles there to give you a great-looking back.
* Core Exercises - Many core exercises are great for your full body, including your abs and butt muscles. Core exercises are excellent for your back, and can help you increase strength and balance to be able to complete other more difficult workouts. Planks are an example of an easy home exercise that works out your entire body, including your back, very well.
* Lying Dumbbell Lifts - Using a bench, lie front down so that your arms are dangling. Grab your chosen weight of dumbbells with both hands. Lift the dumbbells out away from your body, so that your arms are spread out like flying, and then slowly return your arms back down and repeat.
These exercises will help you tone and strengthen your traps, lats, and overall back muscles. This will help you look great this summer when you dare to bare your back, and will help you look leaner and stronger overall. Remember that consistency is key, so repeat these exercises multiple times a week to keep those back muscles working and looking their best.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
[Video] 10-Minute Hard Core Workout
This 10-minute core workout will definitely get your core working hard - yes, you WILL be sore tomorrow!
A strong core is important for balance, posture, and injury prevention, and this workout will definitely help you to build your core muscles fast.
From all of your ab muscles, including those waist-shaping obliques, to your glutes and lower back, this workout will challenge and strengthen your entire core, providing balance and stability to your whole body, improving your posture, and helping prevent injury during running, other workouts, or just your regular daily activities.
This is not an easy workout, so go slow, maintain proper form, and listen to your body! Be sure to keep your abs tight to protect your lower back, especially during any extension exercise.
Do this one at least twice a week for ongoing core shaping and strengthening benefits.
A strong core is important for balance, posture, and injury prevention, and this workout will definitely help you to build your core muscles fast.
From all of your ab muscles, including those waist-shaping obliques, to your glutes and lower back, this workout will challenge and strengthen your entire core, providing balance and stability to your whole body, improving your posture, and helping prevent injury during running, other workouts, or just your regular daily activities.
This is not an easy workout, so go slow, maintain proper form, and listen to your body! Be sure to keep your abs tight to protect your lower back, especially during any extension exercise.
Do this one at least twice a week for ongoing core shaping and strengthening benefits.
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
3 Core Strengthening Tips for Runners & More
Developing a strong core is critical for runners (and others as well) not only to maintain stability and balance, but to prevent injuries too. Unfortunately, some runners do not realize the importance of incorporating core strengthening exercises into their routine and they think that having strong legs is enough.
If you want to improve your performance as a runner (or just in general), here are some tips on how to strengthen your core:
1. Before running, make sure you warm up to stretch out your lower back. If your lower back is tight, it will prevent the core muscles from firing properly. Some people encounter reciprocal inhibition and this occurs when a particular muscle group is tight.
Naturally, when one muscle group is tight, it prevents your other muscles from doing their job properly. Warming up prepares your mind and body for a demanding activity but it will also allows you to achieve peak performance. To warm up your lower back, do some spinal twists and forward bends.
2. Practice hip bridges and pelvic tilts to strengthen your core. These two exercises are very easy to do and they are perfect for beginners and people with back problems. They help isolate and strengthen the glutes and hamstrings as well as train your body to engage them when needed.
The hip bridge also improves core and spinal stability. To do this exercise, lie flat on the floor, lift your pelvis and hold the position for 15 to 30 seconds. Do 10 repetitions. If you want it to be more challenging, you can lift up on your toes alternately as if you are marching. For pelvic tilts, get down on your hands and knees and then raise your lower back to the ceiling, while tilting the front of your pelvis towards the floor. Then straighten your back and tilt your pelvis up. Move smoothly and concentrate on using your abs when you flex your pelvis up and forward. Do 10 to 20 reps.
3. Another way to strengthen your core muscles is to do plank exercises. Aside from a flat stomach, planks will help improve your posture. Despite the simplicity of the exercise, doing a ten-minute plank outweighs the benefits of doing abdominal crunches for an hour! (Plus it's much better for your back.)
Start by getting in the push up position. Your forearms and toes should support your weight and make sure your elbows are lined up directly under your shoulders. Keep your neck neutral by looking down on the floor. This prevents placing too much strain on your neck.
Hold the plank for at least 30 seconds, breathing slowly and deeply, and take a 5-second break in between repetitions. Once your core gets stronger, you can hold the position for as long as 1 minute or more.
If you want to improve your performance as a runner (or just in general), here are some tips on how to strengthen your core:
 |
| (Image courtesy of photostock at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.) |
Naturally, when one muscle group is tight, it prevents your other muscles from doing their job properly. Warming up prepares your mind and body for a demanding activity but it will also allows you to achieve peak performance. To warm up your lower back, do some spinal twists and forward bends.
2. Practice hip bridges and pelvic tilts to strengthen your core. These two exercises are very easy to do and they are perfect for beginners and people with back problems. They help isolate and strengthen the glutes and hamstrings as well as train your body to engage them when needed.
The hip bridge also improves core and spinal stability. To do this exercise, lie flat on the floor, lift your pelvis and hold the position for 15 to 30 seconds. Do 10 repetitions. If you want it to be more challenging, you can lift up on your toes alternately as if you are marching. For pelvic tilts, get down on your hands and knees and then raise your lower back to the ceiling, while tilting the front of your pelvis towards the floor. Then straighten your back and tilt your pelvis up. Move smoothly and concentrate on using your abs when you flex your pelvis up and forward. Do 10 to 20 reps.
 |
| (Image courtesy of phasinphoto at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.) |
Start by getting in the push up position. Your forearms and toes should support your weight and make sure your elbows are lined up directly under your shoulders. Keep your neck neutral by looking down on the floor. This prevents placing too much strain on your neck.
Hold the plank for at least 30 seconds, breathing slowly and deeply, and take a 5-second break in between repetitions. Once your core gets stronger, you can hold the position for as long as 1 minute or more.
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