So we did another crazy abdominal work out at boot camp... killed it with
the body saw move...

Your abdominal muscles begin under your chest and finish a little below your belly button. These muscles can be toned through simple strength training, but if you are overweight, you will need to lose the excess pounds before you begin any toning exercise.

Here are five ways to tone your abs fast:

* Use a simple crunch exercise. There a many types of this abdominal exercise, but the basic one is fine. Lie on your back and place your feet flat on the floor. Put your hands behind your head, then lift your head, neck and shoulders off the floor. Keep this position for few seconds, then lower yourself back down again.

* Don't perform ab exercises everyday. Once every other day is fine. This is because in the beginning your muscles will need time to recover, and you do not want to cause yourself any injury.

* Perform the exercises correctly. Do three sets of ten to twenty-five reps with the last few being a little painful to complete. If you are finding this to easy, then use a crunch ball to isolate the correct muscles in your abs.

* Perform exercises on the floor. You don't need any machinery for these exercises as they don't specifically tone your abs, but also focus on other muscles. This is why floor crunches are best. The only exception to this rule is the ab roller. The ab roller puts you in a position that helps you work on your abs. Some people get neck pain while performing crunches, so this machine supports the head and takes the stress off the neck.

* Make your exercises challenging. When you have been performing these exercise for some time they will become easier. This is when you will need increase the amount of reps you do. The crunch exercise is very effective as your head is below your legs. Being in this position takes more effort to perform a crunch than if you were laying with your legs flat.

Following these five ways to tone your abs fast on a regular basis will give you the toned, washboard flat stomach you have being looking for.

See you on Wednesday - Glendale BC crew!

Adriel

I'm all good now... and feel better than ever  

Keep moving forward,

Adriel

CFT-ISSA Personal Trainer Glendale

I do hope you're doing great

We all know the more fun we get from our
activity, the more we are likely to stick to it long term.

Zumba Fitness® is extremely popular at my gym.

But even the instructor of the class was asking
that  she personally needs more strength training
because it's mainly a cardio workout.

Ask you local trainer for help with putting some
fun with strength training.

Be creative with your training program and add
some days of strength training in between your cardio days

If you only have a couple of days to strength
train, maybe when you train twice a week, you can work
on upper body one day and lower body on the other or whole body.

Here is an example of an quick yet effective strength circuit training  routine:

Barbell Bench Press: 1 set of 15 reps
Dumbbell Squats: 1 set of 15 reps
Assisted Pull downs: 1 set of  15 reps
Forward Lunges: 1 set of 15 reps
Shoulder Press Over Head: 1 set of 15 reps

Who's looking after ya?

Adriel

When I get on the treadmill, I go in a little trance.
I usually hold on one of the rails and close my eyes.
I'm see my work out results way before it happens.

Visualize during warm up what it is you seek -
whether confidence, strength,
be faster as a runner, physical attractiveness -
whatever it may be - mentally prepare by your warm up.

See it first!

Adriel

Happy Thursday!

As I walk by the front desk of my gym, I can
see the doctor scale over to my right, carefully
placed where all members pass to get to the weight room.

I do measure my scale weight, maybe every 4
weeks. Even once a week is fine but don't let the scale
number  be your choice assessment of training progress.

It can be discouraging.
You don't want to get discouraged do you?
You see, you're scale weight may not change much
and you can actually gain scale weight and still lose inches.
Get your scale and donate to GoodWill, throw it away or give to your enemy.

You want to be able to track ways to see changes
on your body. Use body fat percent vs your lean body mass.

You can look at changes with measurements, clothes fitting or even
just the mirror. You can even measure changes in the weight you lift (strength gains).

Be better,

Adriel

Whatever you goal are, bring awareness to it and
start with the simplest action step to move you forward.

I've had mentors who were masters of their work I looked up to.
Although most I wasn't with them physically, I modeled
what I could from what I read in their books or
what I had listened to their audio.

Thoughts manage life.
Your thoughts manage life.
Remember that... what are you thinking of right now?

Decide to be a mentee to an inspiring and great
mentor - even if its through books or audio.

Decide on the disciplines that you want to
master. Take full ownership of your awareness.
Now, take the smallest, simplest steps that moves you forward.

Keep moving forward,

Adriel

It takes strategy, planning and lots of hard
work.

So don't fall for those "quick-fixes" and crazy
fad supplements (these are never gonna stop so make
sure you do your due diligence)

What can I do to help you?

-Help you stay focused on your eating
-Help you stay focused with your training
-Help inspire and motivate through education

You have the power to change.

Feel free to ask me your questions or you can
call and leave a message at 951-73-Ask-Me (dedicated voicemail number)

Create a great day,

Adriel

Or maybe you just want a faster running speed to chase after your kid?

I couple of months ago, I was in the back corner of the gym aerobic room adjusting the seat height of the spin bike.

I had my water bottle and running shoes on.

I was nervous. I was taking a spin class (I haven't spun in years!)

I knew that might be an intense class but it might be hard on my knees. Hard on the knees was a misconception (it really is gentle on them) I wanted a change of pace from working the muscles of my lower body. I found spinning an excellent alternative.

Was this going to be too hard, cardiovascularly?

I was just nervous it might be too hard and I couldn’t keep up. I felt conscious about how silly I looked in this gear. Did I have the stamina to keep up?

I had been lazy about taking this class for sometime and now it was time. I did prepare for it. Here’s how.

How to do it:

Spinning is non-impact, great for strength and endurance building. Great for working different muscles of the lower body to change up from the usual walking or running muscles.

Arrive early for class to meet/greet instructor and fit your bike. 10 minutes early is good.

Push through the heels when you pedal keeping the feet flat, not pointing down.

Relax the upper body - this includes the arms at the elbow and the shoulders. This will help improve your performance.

Interval training can easily be done even for low level of fitness enthusiast who want to build up their endurance.

Light comfy clothing, water bottle (cold one) running or cycling shops to get more power out of your strokes. Invest in cycling shoes when you can or start getting hooked on this form of exercise.

I love the faster leg turnover you develop to chase after your kids down the street with or around the house.

Spinning is easy on the joints which is awesome. Prices average 10-20 dollars for a single class or some gym memberships offer is at part of the membership deals.

Fact: A 50 minutes spin class can burn average 500 calories. (I’m in!)

My favorite - Try Cosmic spinning class or having a large projector screen in from to really stimulate the senses. Some gyms have these extra bonuses for their spinning class. So a web search for the closes gyms that have these extras. I've also become better at choosing tools that cater to particular exercise activities such a cycling shoes needed or socks and gloves that I might need on a real bike ride.  I love this also because my joint to ache after class and keeps me consistent with physical activity that speeds my metabolism.

Who's lookin' out for ya?
Adriel

If you're feeling just "okay", take
the next step to feeling better.

You either get closer or further away from how you want to feel inside.

Don't put a facade up. Take responsibility of how you feel.

What's the next step. Don't make a huge stride, just a tiny one
that supports you towards your overall goal.

Take the smallest step to feeling "better" even if you already feel good.

If I feel crappy, I may take a walk around my neighborhood.

If I'm still hungry after I just ate a meal, I may listen or read to a book
instead of eating more.

Can you eat healthier the next time around?

Can you do some activity just a little better the next time?

Can you drink something healthier when you feel thirsty?

Loving yourself tomorrow starts with loving yourself today,

Adriel

I HOPE you're awesome!

It's New Year tomorrow... and HOPE. A new year gives
you hope...a another year and another chance to,
quite literally, reinvent yourself and your life
the way you really want it. I HOPE you do that!

Have a happy New Year, my friend

Adriel