There is always a reason why you aren’t getting the results you want – especially when you are trying to get a tight and toned, cellulite free butt.  Its figuring out WHY you aren’t getting these results after working out week after week that becomes the challenge.

When you don’t see results you want – in this case you’re butt just doesn’t seem to get firm no matter how many lunges you do – it becomes frustrating. This frustration can often lead to you giving up on your goals – never really getting the butt that you want.

But no more – there is something you haven’t taken into consideration yet and there is one muscle group that is prohibiting you from getting the butt of your dreams.

Your hip flexors are preventing you from getting a tight and toned butt.

How?

Your butt is the biggest muscle in your body – made up of three different muscle groups. In order for the glutes to work properly you need to make sure that your hip flexors are not tight.

When your hip flexors (located in the front of your hip) are tight your glutes basically shut down.  When your glutes shut down it is nearly impossible to get a tight and toned butt.

Why?

If you have tight hip flexors it prevents your glute muscles from firing properly.  This means that your glutes to work to the best of their ability. The tightness of your hip flexors causes your glutes to become weak as you cannot work your glutes properly.

Not only will tight hip flexors not get you a cellulite-free butt – it can also increase the risk of injury as your hip flexors start to take over some of the jobs that your butt is suppose to do. Such injuries include back injuries, knee injuries or even injuries to your hamstrings.

You can do squat after squat, lunge after lunge or even bridge after bridge and you will not get the butt you want.

What to do?

The only way to get rid of tight hip flexors – to prevent injury and get a cellulite-free butt is to stretch them.

The best stretch? The Warrior Stretch.

• Kneel on your right knee – with your left foot on the ground in front of you.
• Place your hands on your left knee.
• Without moving your body – tilt your pelvis forward so you feel a stretch in your right hip flexor.
• Hold for 10-15 seconds.
• Switch sides and repeat for opposite side of your body.

The Warrior Stretch is an important stretch to end to the end of your your workouts to get your glutes working again. This one simple move – to fix the one little muscle that has been preventing you from getting the butt you want – will help get your but working again so you have the tight and toned butt you want in no time.

So, I just got home from the gym…after a week off!

Eep! I know I know – its not something I should be doing – especially when at least 10 weeks away from show time. But I promise it was necessary.

I spent last weekend in bed with the stomach flu – which is a GREAT way to lose 5lbs REAL quick. However, the lack of food for two days + a little leftover queasiness made it impossible to go to the gym Monday and Tuesday. I also made a promise to myself to take it easier this week as the excitement/stress of a new job last week + workouts led me to get the stomach flu.

Since health really is most important…I took it slow. A then snowstorm prevented me from going to the gym another day and by Friday I was too pooped to wake up early and get to the gym. SO, that leaves me to today…and my refreshed body that’s been WAITING to go to the gym!

I changed the workout up a bit – did a quick full body workout – just to wake up all my muscles and let them know its time to get back to business – haha. Let me tell you – a few of the moves were completely different and my buns are ALREADY burning! Haha…here’s today’s workout:

This was then followed by 20 minutes of intervals on the Stair Climber – 1 minute low speed – 1 minute HIGH speed. It was definitely the PERFECT way to get my body back into it! Can’t wait for Monday!!!

Everyone likes surprises – I know I do! In fact, your muscles need a bit of a surprise every once in a while in order to continue effective weight loss.  Ladies, since you’re already lifting weights because the benefits of lifting weights for women are endless, you need to make sure that you keep your muscles surprised and working. You can change your routine completely or you can make minor changes to your current routine.

If you’re in the middle of a flat stomach workout, I have at least two ways to surprise your muscles that don’t require a whole routine change. Try one of these two methods to keep the fat burning and your muscles growing.

1. Slow Down – Changing the tempo of exercises helps to stimulate the muscles differently.  Instead of just lifting the weight up and down – take a bit more time – push for a two count and bring the weight down for a four count.  For example – when doing a chest press – count two when pushing the barbell up towards the ceiling and then count to four as you lower the weight back down.  Or, if you are doing a squat count to four as you go down and two when you come back up. Slowing down the exercises makes your muscles work longer and therefore burn more fat.
2. Mix it Up with Cardio – Keeping your heart elevated helps you burn more fat. Doing cardio in between sets of weight exercises helps you burn even more fat calories during one workout as it keeps your heart rate up for a longer period of time. Instead of resting after a weight exercise, head to the treadmill for a one minute of sprint or if working out at home try jumping rope for 30 seconds or high knee lifts.  This quick bout of cardio will help you burn even more fat and reach your flat stomach goals even faster.

So, next time you’re in the gym, try one of these two methods to keep your muscles guessing what you’re going to do and make sure that with every workout you are burning fat and building muscle.  All to help you reach your flat stomach goals.

I spent the last week away from home (if you saw my Facebook status you know I was on a school trip with 100 5^th graders – fun).  The trip was fun, but while I was away for those four days I did not have the access to good food or the gym. AHHHH….what to do?

This is a common problem many people face when it comes to vacation or travelling away from home. You don’t always have access to a gym and you don’t always have access to food that you would normally eat on your flat stomach diet.

So instead of freaking out I kept in mind my three tips for traveling away from home….tips that you can keep in mind on your next business trip or vacation and not stray off the path to your flat stomach.

Tip #1 – Take a few days off from the gym

If you don’t travel often and this is just a quick trip away from home then make those few days your rest days.   If you are on vacation – it’s time to relax – not worry about whether or not you can get to the gym. Your body will appreciate the rest when you get home. Your muscles will be recovered and you’ll be ready to go when you get back.

However, if you’re really concerned with your workout routine – go for a walk or a run. Maybe take a hike or rent a bike if you can. Try a different form of exercise than those you are used too. Your body will still be burning calories and you will come home guilt free  because you didn’t miss all of your workouts.

Tip #2 – Watch what you eat

Since you are going to be eating out a lot while out of town – try going for those ‘healthier’ options. Stay away from the French fries if you have the options of veggies with dinner. Try a salad with the dressing on the side and stay away from too much fried food.  Don’t clean your plate either – we all know that restaurant portion sizes are way too much to eat anyways – so enjoy good food, but not a clean plate.

Tip #3 – Pack your meals before you go

If it’s a quick trip and you really don’t want to tempt yourself with the options of going off of your flat stomach diet – then prepare for the trip. Pack some protein powder, peanut butter, oatmeal and some healthy snacks. Maybe even pre-cook some chicken for the road if the travel time isn’t too long and get a fridge to store the food in when you get to the hotel. I’ve done this before when I went away for a quick trip and didn’t want to stray off of my diet.  It worked well and when I got back home I was ready to get back down to business on my flat stomach goals.

So, next time your job or your life takes you away from home – don’t stress out about what’s going to happen with your flat stomach workout.  Instead enjoy the trip by taking a few days off, being extra careful with what you eat or pack your meals so you know what you’re going to eat. But above all – don’t stress about missing a day from your routine, traveling is stressful enough. Instead, enjoy your trip and know in a few days time you’ll be back home and kicking butt on your flat stomach workout.

Timing is everything. However, when it comes to your flat stomach workout – is there a best time to hit the gym? With minimal scientific research, this question has turned into one with much debate and controversy. So when is the best time to workout?

Studies have found…

• Your strength is greatest in the afternoon – enabling women to lift heavy weights and reach your maximum
• Working out in the afternoon creates less opportunity for injury. Our bodies are alert and awake – so are we  mentally. Plus, our body temperature is at its peak – allowing for maximum flexibility of the muscles and joints – therefore preventing injury.
• You have a greater aerobic capacity in the afternoon – if you’re training for a marathon or running sprints you’ll have greater endurance if you schedule your workout in the afternoon.
• If you hit the gym in the morning you’re more likely to consistently go. Hitting the gym in the morning and then heading to work allows for your workout to be done and over with – so you have no excuses at the end of the day to skip you workout.

However, we are all different. Some of us are morning people and have no problem waking up in the morning and heading to the gym. While others can barely wake up in time for work and need to get to the gym in the evening after work. You make the time work for you. If you need to work out in the morning because it is more convenient then go to the gym in the morning. Your body will adjust to working out at this time and you will have a great workout.

Another problem that we come across when deciding when to go to the gym is our personal life.  Between your family, relationships, work, running errands, and whatever else life can through at you it can be difficult to figure out when is the best time to go to the gym.  That’s when you have to squeeze in your workout whenever you can – no matter the time of day – just whenever you have the time.

So when is the best time to for your flat stomach workout? The best time is whenever works for YOU. The most important part in figuring out when you workout is making sure that you WILL go to the gym and that you can get your workout in. If that means working out one day in the morning and the next day at night – no big deal – your body will get used to the routine. Just get to the gym – and remember dedication and focus are the two most important keys to reaching your flat stomach goals – not the time of day.

Need a new exercise for your upper body to keep your workout exciting? Or are you trying to sculpt lean, sexy arms? Whatever the reason for your need of a new exercise you need to make sure that you add push-ups to your workout today.

Now it might seem weird that I’m telling you to add push-ups to your workout – right? They seem like such a simple exercise that there couldn’t possibly be so many benefits – I agree. However, push-ups are a great exercise to help you further your progress towards a flat stomach and build strength in your upper body.

Doing push-ups is going to help you build muscle (which we all know helps us burn more fat), and also helps our upper body become stronger. Unfortunately, many women lack necessary upper body strength, and push-ups are a great simple exercise to help you increase that strength.

Not only do push-ups benefit your upper body (chest, triceps, shoulders) but doing push-ups correctly will help to strengthen your core muscles.  Having a strong core will prevent back injuries and get you to that flat stomach faster.

I think my favorite thing about push-ups – they’re portable! Haha – yes – no equipment required! Plus, you can use your stairs, books, coffee table or even the couch to help you make them more difficult.  Personally, I also like to challenge myself and like to see how I get stronger – tracking how many push-ups you can do is a great way to do that. For example – lets say you can barely do one push-up (without going on your knees) – no problem. If you keep trying everyday (doing 10 push-ups on your knees and trying one push-up without being on your knees) – you’re going to see your strength increase and pretty soon you’ll be doing 5 push-ups without going on your knees. Seeing the increase in number of push-ups is an instant picture to show that your hard work is paying off and you are getting stronger.

So – what types of push-ups are there? There are 100s of different variations of push-ups, but I’m not going to show or tell you about all of them. This short video shows four of my favorite types of push-ups that are going to help you get stronger, sculpt lean, sexy arms, and get a strong, tight core.

**Side Note – If you don’t do push-ups with the right form or sag your lower back -they are going to prove to be no benefit to you – you will instead only hurt yourself. Make sure you start off slow and gradually and daily build your strength.**

Ladies – I know we’re ALL scared of something – for Dorothy it was lions, tigers, and bears (oh my!).  While for many of us, when it comes to losing weight , we are scared of failure, not working out hard enough, doing the ‘wrong thing’ and looking like a man caused by lifting weights.  Well, ladies, its time to get rid of these fears – its time to take charge – today  I’m going to tell you why you no longer need to be afraid of lifting weights and why lifting weights for women is important (heavy ones too).

For too long I have been the lone female in my gym in the free weight section.  Most of the women in the gym are spending the hour they have to work out on the elliptical or treadmill – making sure to burn the exact amount of calories they consumed for the day.  Maybe one or two trickle upstairs and join me, but for the most part it’s me and the guys – lifting the weights – building muscle and burning fat.

It’s time now for YOU to start doing the same and spend time lifting weights.

In order to get rid of our fear of lifting weights, we must look at why we are scared of lifting weights.

Reason  #1 – You think that lifting weights will make you look like a man.

I agree -  I don’t want to look like a man either! Currently I’m in the gym lifting weights 5 days a week and I don’t look like a man.  This can no longer be your excuse because well, as a woman you do not have enough testosterone in your body to bulk up like a guy does. Our levels of testosterone are so low, that we will not bulk up and look like Arnold Schwarzenegger just because you are lifting weights a few times a week.

(Side Note – also, if you don’t like the look of lean women either who have muscles, lifting weights a few times week to burn fat won’t do this too you – it takes time and dedication to building muscle and the possibility of other substances.)

Also – lifting HEAVY weights will NOT make you look like a man either – for the same reason – we don’t have enough testosterone in our body to allow us, as women, to bulk up.

If anything – lifting weights, heavy or light – will help you burn more fat and help you become stronger. When you add muscle to your body, your body in turns burns more fat, therefore helping you reach your flat stomach goals faster. (You will even burn fat while you’re not working out!).  What’s even cooler – is you will see yourself getting stronger and honestly – what woman doesn’t want to be strong? I love it when I can go in the gym one week and lift a heavier weight than I did 3 weeks ago – it shows that you are working hard.

Reason #2 – You don’t know what to do and you don’t want to make a fool of yourself by doing the wrong thing.

Okay – stop right there. There are PLENTY of people in the gym who don’t know what they are doing and many of them are guys. There are people in there with poor posture, making up exercises and some who aren’t even working out because they’re talking.  So, there is no need to worry about not knowing what exercises to do and if you are doing them right or wrong.

Plus, most people aren’t actually watching you.  Yes, you get your random people who do quickly glance over at you, but for the most part everyone in the gym is there to get their workout in and get out.  They aren’t going to be staring at you and wondering what is she doing? Unless of course you start flapping your arms like crazy like I saw some guy the other day. But I know you won’t do that.

There are so many opportunities for you to find out and learn what exercises you can do with weights in the gym that you don’t need to be nervous. You can check out the exercises on my YouTube channel, you can read workout magazines to see what other women are doing, or you can search the internet.

If you are really nervous and don’t feel comfortable just going out on your own then set up a session with a trainer at your gym.  They’ll be more than happy to show you what exercises to do, show you how to do them properly, and to give you a routine to start off with. There are so many ways for you to find WHAT to do (plus I’m going to be sharing some more with you) that this is no longer an excuse.

Reason #3 – You’re scared you are going to hurt yourself.

This is a very understandable concern. However, like I mentioned above – ask someone, research the proper form and technique and if you’ve never lifted weights before, don’t start with the heaviest weight possible. Start off light and let yourself get stronger.

Also, lifting weights properly will help you prevent injuries- now and later in life.  Research has shown that lifting weights increases bone density, therefore decreasing the risk of osteoporosis in women.  They have also found that lifting weights helps to strengthen the connective tissue between your joints, making them stronger.  When the connective tissue becomes stronger, it adds support to your joints, preventing injury. Plus, we all know that when we exercise, we are lowering our levels or body fat, therefore lowering our cholesterol and risk of diabetes and heart disease.

So, are you still scared?  There is no need to be – I know you can do it and you know you can. There are no more excuses for you to not lose body fat and get stronger – lifting weights will only help you.

However, if you are still worried about lifting weights – leave a comment below or  email me – melissa@womensabworkout.com and let me know what is preventing you from adding weight lifting to your flat stomach workout routine and together we’ll make sure that you can start lifting weights and losing fat faster!

I had to share my workout from two days ago, because I’m STILL feeling the effects two days later (Thank You D.O.M.S!) plus its a great workout to help you get lean legs and a tight toned butt. (And who isn’t working towards that?)

I wrote about my last shoulder/leg workout a few weeks ago – it was an awesome workout, but it’d been a few weeks of it and I was getting bored, so it was time to change it up. Changing my workout was definitely beneficial as I felt the burn and feeling the results of the change – new muscles are being worked that weren’t necessarily targeted in my last workout.

Legs and shoulders are easily my favorite training day – I think because I can really feel the burn and tight toned legs really show dedication to your workout, plus who doesn’t love sexy shoulders?!? Another reason – its summer and I love feeling comfortable wearing shorts!

Here’s the workout below:

*To see image full size click on image*

If you have any questions about the exercises let me know – I’d be happy to explain them further. If you’re looking for a new leg workout – I definitely recommend this one – my legs and glutes are STILL feeling the burn two days later!

What’s your favorite leg exercise? Leave a comment below and let me know – I’d love to know!

Today’s workout was shoulders/legs (a GREAT idea courtesy of @mandystafford from Twitter).  That’s one of the best parts of social media – exchanging ideas with people all over the fitness industry.  Mandy and I always compare our workouts – and once she told me about this split, I knew I had to try it and I LOVE it. Not rocket science, but it’s different than my last 4 week routine and my body loves it.

I’ll be lifting weights again Monday – which will be chest/biceps and my third weight day is back/triceps.  Combining body parts this way allows me to work each body part just a little bit harder – and means I’m just a little bit sorer the next day (but we all know that I love feeling the results of my workouts!)

Quick tip – make sure to change up your weight routines or workouts every four weeks. This will keep your muscles from getting too used to the exercises. It will also ensure that you are continuing to build muscle and burn fat, while you do your flat stomach workout and getting you closer to reaching your fitness goals.

So, enough chatter – here’s today’s workout.

*The letters denote supersets. So, if two exercises have the same letters in the left hand column, this means that they were done immediately after each other with no rest, until after the second exercise has been completed.

Lately I have been receiving a lot of questions about what to eat after a workout.  So, I wanted to take the time to make sure that we all understand the importance of post-workout nutrition and how it can affect how quickly you reach your fitness goals, without getting too scientific.

There are two major things to consider with your post-workout meal:
1)  How soon after your workout you have your first meal
2)  What to eat after your workout

How Soon After my Workout Should I have My First Meal?

Timing of your post-workout meal is VERY important. If you wait too long to eat after your workout your body will store the food you eat as fat, instead of feeding it right into the muscle.
Ideally, you should eat 30 minutes to 60 minutes (at most) after your workout. During this time, immediately after your workout, your muscles are in the most optimal state to absorb the nutrients, from your post workout meal, directly into the muscle.  It is also a time where glycogens, the energy reserve in your muscle, can most efficiently be refueled. Waiting too long to eat will then starve the muscles and make your workout less effective.

What to Eat after My Workout?

The best post-workout meal should consist of a proper proportion of protein and carbohydrates.  If you are working out to lose weight, you want to make sure that you have more protein in your post-workout meal than carbohydrates. However, if you want to splurge on carbs, having them post-workout is the most optimal time, as your body will not store them as fat.
Also, make sure to stay away from fat in any post-workout meal. Healthy fats are a great source of nutrition; however, during the time right after your workout, fats will slow down the digestion of the protein and carbohydrates that you have. By slowing down the digestion process you are slowing down the absorption of nutrients into the muscles.

The simplest and one of my favorite post-workout meals is a protein shake. I use a whey protein, combine it with water in a shaker cup, and sometimes have a piece of fruit to go along with it. This liquid meal absorbs into your body quickly and works immediately to restoring and rebuilding your muscle. Or, if I am not in a rush I’ll make myself a ‘fancier’ post-workout shake and combine the same ingredients in a blender.  Another option, if you have more time, you can always cook egg whites, or chicken breast for a post-workout meal. But you want to make sure that you are getting it into your system as quickly as possible.

What you eat after your workout is one of the greatest determining factors in how quickly you reach your fitness goals. Keeping in mind these simple nutrition tips will help make each workout that much more effective and keep your fitness goals a reality.