Tone That Tushie with Our Butt-Sculpting Workout!

You’ve got crunches for your abs, tricep and bicep curls for your arms, but what about your butt? A flabby bum isn’t good for anyone’s sense of wellbeing, but how do you get your butt wellness – yes, that’s a thing – into shape? Luckily, we’ve recruited fitness expert and certified personal trainer Nicole Nichols, who has designed an equipment-free workout to help you use your own body weight to target and tone your butt from every angle in just a few minutes per day. Try to limit how much you rest between exercises and do the full circuit at least once, but up to three more times.

 

1. Donkey Kicks: Nichols instructs, ‘Begin on hands and knees, wrists directly under shoulders, arms straight but not locked, knees directly under hips, and spine neutral. Engage your abs by pulling your belly button toward the spine (but without moving your back). Keeping hips level with one another, and both knees bent at 90 degrees, lift your left thigh up until parallel to the floor (or as close to parallel as you can), ankle flexed and foot flat and parallel to the ceiling (pictured). Slowly return to starting position without resting knee down. Repeat on same leg for one full minute. Switch sides.’ Make sure you keep your hips level with one another and your weight is as balanced as possible in both arms. Also, don’t let your back arch or round at all.

 

2. Single-Leg Bridges: ‘Begin lying on your back with feet flat, knees and ankles hip-distance apart, knees bent, back straight and arms lengthened at your sides,’ Nichols states. ‘Extend right leg as straight as possible toward the ceiling, keeping thigh in line with your hip. Squeeze the muscles in the back of the legs and butt to lift hips off the ground while keeping right leg extended toward ceiling (pictured). Slowly return to the start position, keeping right leg lengthened. Repeat on same leg for one full minute. Switch sides.’ Remember to activate your glutes in order to keep both hips as level as possible, pull your abs in tight to protect your back, and use your foot, shoulder blades and arms – not your head or neck – for support.

 

3. Reverse Lunges: For this one, you can hold onto a wall or chair for balance. Nichols details, ‘Begin standing with feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward, back straight and arms extended in front of shoulders (or on hips). Relax shoulders away from the ears. Engage the core, pulling belly button toward the spine. Starting on right leg, take a large step back to create a wide stance between the feet, making sure both feet still point directly forward. Slowly bend both knees, working toward a 90-degree bend, lowering the body toward the floor (pictured). Straighten legs and step forward to starting position to complete one rep.  Repeat on same leg for one full minute. Switch sides.’

 

4. Sumo Squat: Nichols comments, ‘Begin standing with legs and toes turned out from the hips, feet in a wide stance (wider than hips), back straight and hands on hips. Keeping back straight, bend both knees (making sure they’re pointing in same direction as the toes) and squat down, aiming for thighs to be parallel to the floor (pictured). Straighten legs to complete one rep. Repeat for one full minute.’ With this move, don’t bend at your hips but from your knees, and keep your back upright and straight. In order to achieve a wide-leg squat and full range of motion, you need to take your feet as wide as you can.

Categories: belly button, floor pictured, glutes, hips level, minute switch, pictured slowly, reverse lunges, starting position, straighten legs, switch sides, toning, wide stance

Kickass Yoga: Get those Glutes in Gear with this Routine

As you get older, those cheeks (and we’re not talking about the ones you put blusher on) tend to grow and sag, which can be a real party pooper to your sense of wellbeing. A wobbly bottom is hardly anyone’s idea of a sexy, self-confidence boost, but yoga can be the answer you seek. Not only is this fitness regime good for physical, mental and spiritual wellness, but the right routine can take the gluttony out of those glutes!

 

1. The side jab: This bum-burning move will work all three of your gluteal muscles. Starting in a tabletop position (hands directly under your shoulders and knees directly under your hips) inhale and extend your right leg back so that your heel is in line with the hip. As you hug the thighbone into your hip joint, press through the heel and draw your belly button towards the spine. While you’re doing this, you should keep your hips level and your core strong. Then, exhale and move your leg as far to the right as possible. Breathe in again as you draw your leg back to the centre, and then repeat this movement 10 to 12 times with each leg.

 

2. Downward-facing dog leg pumps: This move is great for your core and gluteus medius, as well as giving your body more energy. Again, you start in the tabletop position, but this time you walk your knees and feet back five or six inches and tuck your toes under so you are on the balls of the feet. Breathe out and lift your sitting bones up so that your body is in a V shape, or the downward-facing dog pose. Breathing in, try to lift your right leg as high as you can, pointing your toes away from you. Once your leg is up there, try to separate your little toe from the others, as this engages all the muscles in your leg and bum. Make tiny pumps with your right foot 16 to 24 times before you exhale and return to downward facing dog, in order to repeat on the left side. Remember, throughout this movement you should keep your shoulders level and hug your belly button towards your spine.

 

3. Warrior II flow: If you want to sculpt your buttocks and thighs and gently open your hips, this is the exercise for you. Stand with your feet spread four inches out from your hips and parallel. Inhale and pivot your right foot 90 degrees and begin to bend your right knee so that it ends up directly over the ankle. Breathe in and reach your arms over your head, and then bring them into a “T” shape parallel to the floor as you breathe out and gaze over your right middle finger. You are now in the Warrior II pose. From here, externally rotate your thigh bone so that your right knee comes towards the pinky-toe side of your foot. Inhaling, straighten through your right leg by firmly pressing the foot down and squeezing your kneecap up, and reach your hands overhead and look up. Then exhale and return to Warrior II, repeating the movement eight to 10 times on each side.

 

4. Muffin-top melter: This final pose is a challenging pulse yoga move that helps to strengthen your legs, hips and lower back. Start out by sitting with your legs out in front of you, and bend your left and right knees so that their pointing out towards 11 o’clock and 1 o’clock, respectively. Place your hands on either side of your left knee, and focus on keeping your shoulder blades moving together and down, lifting your sternum up and forward, and pulling your belly button back towards your spine. Breathe in and raise your right knee, shin and foot five to seven inches off the ground, separating your toes and much as possible. Exhale and extend your leg, and pull the leg back in on the inhale. You should repeat this 12 to 16 times before you switch to the left side.

Categories: belly button, Breathe, downward facing, Downward-facing dog leg pumps, facing dog, foot, hips, nbsp, Saggy Bottom, tabletop position, warrior ii, Warrior II Flow

Spot the Signs: How to Tell If You Have Appendicitis

Appendicitis is a major health concern, as your life could be at risk if your appendix bursts before surgeons have the chance to remove it. However, Michael Payne, MD, a gastroenterologist with Cambridge Health Alliance, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, notes, ‘It is a very common illness and many people don’t have classic symptoms. We actually have to put our hands on a belly to see for sure.’ So how can you tell if your wellbeing has been affected by appendicitis? Luckily, there are certain signs to watch out for:

 

1. Belly-button pain: Even though appendicitis pain mainly occurs in the lower-right side of your abdomen, your first sign that your wellness has been affected will be discomfort near your belly-button. This pain will then move to your lower abdomen, and will get worse if you cough, sneeze, move your legs or abdomen or become jarred (during a bumpy car ride, for instance).

 

2. Rapidly-worsening pain: The pain can become really intense once it hits the lower part of the abdomen. According to Dr. Payne, many of his patients describe it as, ‘like no other pain they have felt before.’ In fact, the pain is so severe that, if you’re sleeping once it hits, it can even wake you up.

 

3. Low-grade fever and chills: A lot of people mistake appendicitis for a stomach bugs, as the symptoms are similar; low-grade fever, chills, and shaking. Dr. Payne makes the following distinction: if your fever is 100 degrees and your stomach hurts, you probably don’t have anything to worry about. If your fever is 103 degrees and your stomach hurts so badly that you can’t stand up straight, you may have appendicitis.

 

4. Vomiting, nausea, and loss of appetite: It’s likely that you’ll have a few days of low appetite, mild nausea and vomiting, again similar to a stomach bug. Dr. Payne notes, ‘You won’t have projectile vomiting – It’s not like The Exorcist.’ You’re probably fine if this improves after a day or so, but if it continues and you have any of the other appendicitis symptoms, you should seek medical attention. The same goes if you have been vomiting for more than 12 hours, or have had diarrhoea for more than a couple of days.

 

5. Constipation or diarrhoea: Again, this symptom is likely to be mild and occur after you’ve already experienced abdominal pain. If this does happen – particularly if there’s a lot of mucus in your diarrhoea – you should see your doctor.

 

6. Gas and bloating: A little bloating in the evening is common in anyone who indulges in a few beers and half a pizza, but if you wake up the next morning and still have pain – or the pain is worse – you may have cause for concern. Being bloated for more than a couple days, having a lot of gas accompanied by bowel pain, or having trouble passing gas are general symptoms that may indicate appendicitis if they occur alongside other telltale signs.

 

7. Rebound tenderness: If you push on the lower-right part of your abdomen and then experience pain when releasing the pressure, this is known as rebound tenderness and may indicate appendicitis – especially if accompanied by a fever, nausea, or other symptoms. Dr. Payne advises against pushing on your abdomen again — ‘if it hurts, don’t do it again’ is a good rule with appendicitis-related abdominal pain, he says – and you should go see your doctor.

 

8. No symptoms: While Dr. Payne has heard stories about doctors opening up patients for unrelated surgery and discovering that their appendix has ruptured and healed without treatment, he argues that this is an urban legend. He asserts, ‘If your appendix bursts, you’re going to know it.’

Categories: abdominal pain, Appendicitis, appendix bursts, belly button, doctor nbsp, dr payne, grade fever, Pain, Rebound Tenderness

How to Get Sexier Abs By Doing Some Simple Exercises

One of the biggest weight and fitness goals that women have is to tone up their abs. Having a flat, toned and sexy stomach seems like a direct route to sexual wellness and wellbeing, and so women are often desperate to find that magic formula to help them achieve these.

 

Not all exercises lead to nicer abs, however, and you need to ensure that you are targeting your core muscles if you want to have that movie star and athlete style of flat, toned tummy.

 

First of all – you need to be doing cardio work and burning off fat. Coupled with a low fat, healthy diet, this is one of the keys to having nicer abs. You can do all the tummy work you like, but unless there is no fat at all on top of your abs, it’s going to be very hard to see the definition you’ve created in the muscle. Cardio needs to be serious, fat-burning exercise and your diet needs to be healthy and nutritious to reduce body fat as you build muscles.

 

The first exercise you should try is the belly button to the spine move. Wherever you are and whatever position you are in, be it lying down in bed, sitting in the bath or at your desk at work, you should practise pulling your belly button in towards the spine on a daily basis. This trains your tummy to be naturally pulled in in the middle. Just make sure that your spine is straight when you do the exercise, and then imagine that a cord is pulling your belly button backwards towards your spine.

 

Downward dog with a plank is also a move that you should perfect to improve your abs. Start by lying on the stomach and pulling up into a plank position, where you support your body on your elbows and toes, and then pull your bottom up towards the ceiling, whilst keeping your abs tight. Keep switching between plank and downward dog for tight and toned abs.

Categories: Abs, belly button, Downward Dog, exercise, flat toned, nbsp, nicer abs, spine, stomach, toned, tummy, work