Your New Year's resolution is probably a distant memory and the gym crowds have started to dwindle. I always know it's summer when my favorite spinning class doesn't have a wait list 30 people deep, or when I don't have to wait 20 minutes for a lane in the pool.
My hope is that the warmer weather has inspired people to migrate outside to exercise, but something tells me that there's probably been a drop-off in the motivation department. Whether it's out of boredom or lack of results, many people throw in the towel and give up their exercise routines before their dream body has been revealed.
Check out the following exercise ruts and see if you agree with any of the statements. If you do, try the corresponding expert solutions. You'll not only reclaim your workout willpower, but you'll finally reach that 2009 resolution: to keep at it and get healthier than ever!
PROBLEM: I do crunches like crazy but can't lose my muffin top.
Solution #1: Sprint!
Only fat-dissolving cardio (and cutting calories) can erase belly fat. The workout that targets the overhang: interval training. Women who alternated cycling as fast as possible for 8 seconds with 12-second rest periods repeated for 20 minutes dropped 9.5 percent of their mushy middles, whereas those who cycled steadily for 40 minutes gained, a recent study in the International Journal of Obesity reveals. Add speed bursts to any exercise—horseback riding, belly dancing or roller skating—and beat the bulge!
Solution #2: Don't rest between reps
When doing crunches, never let your back and shoulders hit the floor, which allows them to relax. Because abs are used in constant tension when we sit or stand, you need to deliver tension when exercising or else the moves are too easy. Set a stability ball at the small of your back. The ball's curve won't allow your back or shoulders to cheat. Do three or four sets of up to 15 reps, with a 30-second rest between sets. Find ball workouts at Self.com.
Solution #3: Try a pilates move
The ab-specific Teaser tones the rectus abdominis 38 percent more and obliques 245 percent more than crunches on the floor, according to Auburn University in Montgomery, Alabama. Lie faceup, legs lifted, bent 90 degrees; raise hands to ceiling. Lift torso and extend legs to a V with arms parallel to legs. Pause, then roll back down, keeping legs raised. Return to start position. Do 6 to 10 reps.
PROBLEM: I do lots of cardio and get sweaty but not skinny!
Solution #1: Mix it up
If you only jog or walk every session, you have likely become so good at the motions that your body requires fewer calories to perform them. Switch it up twice a week (swap the treadmill for a spinning class) for a fat-melting jolt to your system.
Solution #2: Go for the burn
Do seven sessions of intervals—fast bursts—in a two-week period (complete at least three in one week) and you'll shed 36 percent more fat during an hour of steady cardio time, research from the University of Guelph in Ontario shows. (Sessions included 10 four-minute sprints with two minutes of rest in between.) Keep it up with this interval training and toning plan for fast-tracked results.
Solution #3: Start strength training
Add one to three days of strength training intervals to your weekly cardio (or four to six speedy sets per workout) and you may keep increasing your fat burn indefinitely. Most people stress less about their weight if their body looks toned, and strength training does that by shaping and redefining curves. Burn more calories by doing the contraction part of moves—like the lift—fast, with as much effort as possible, then lower on two counts. Try it with toning moves from The Biggest Loser's Jillian Michaels.
PROBLEM: I do a zillion squats and lunges but my lower half is still not lean.
Solution #1: Outsmart your body
Do a plyometrics move: an explosive leaping move such as a jump squat, followed immediately by a free-weight exercise, like a leg press, on the same side. Plyometrics burns serious calories, plus it fatigues muscles, which is essential for toning, without extra reps or weight. By maxing your effort with a plyometrics routine, you use more energy in less time, shaving minutes off your workout and sculpting lean curves.
Solution #2: Focus on the rear
Add hip extensions and step-ups to your regular routine. These moves tap hamstrings 55 percent more and glutes 79 percent and 59 percent more, respectively, than squats, a study by the American Council on Exercise in San Diego shows. For hip extensions: Get on hands and knees, press one bent leg toward ceiling, keeping knee bent. Do 12 reps. Switch sides. For step-ups: Holding a 5- to 8-pound dumbbell in each hand, step left leg onto a bench. Step down on right leg. Do 12 reps. Switch legs; repeat.
Solution #3: Work the angles
Glutes create an external rotation when contracted (like the side-pushing motion in skating), so doing moves in that same range of motion makes the exercises more effective. Try this: Stand holding a chair in front of you. Extend your right leg straight behind you, foot flexed. Point your toe, then sweep leg counterclockwise until toe reaches a 4 o'clock position. Do 12 reps, switch sides. Or take it outside and mimic this movement as you ice skate or Rollerblade—but be sure to contract glutes at the end of each skate stroke to work the muscles to full potential.
PROBLEM: My arms continue to jiggle even though I consistently put in toning time.
Solution #1: Add power
To truly firm upper body muscles, make sure your arms feel spent after a single set of 10 reps. When reps feel easy, up the resistance. Complete those last two reps of a set with 5-pound weights. If it's a cakewalk, upgrade to 8-pounders.
Solution #2: Alternate weight
For your first strength session of the week, use heavier weights and do fewer reps (about 8); next time, go lighter but do 12 to 15 reps. Called undulating training, it challenges your muscles in different ways, delivering even better results.
Solution #3: Grab dumbbells
If you use machines with rigid parts, you may be working the same muscle fibers over and over, neglecting others. Swap in free weights and you'll require input from more fibers to keep steady, recruiting more muscles. Try triceps extensions: With feet hip-width apart, knees soft, a 5- to 10-pound dumbbell in each hand, lean forward until torso is parallel to floor. Hold bent elbows near sides, palms in, knuckles down. Press weights up and back, rotating palms down. Hold for one count; lower; repeat. Do three sets of 15 reps.
PROBLEM: I go from gung-ho to no-show within weeks of embarking on just about any new regimen.
Solution #1: Escalate gradually
Do too much too fast—such as 12 power yoga classes in one week—and you'll burn out. Aim for readily achievable mini-goals; consistent success fuels enthusiasm for the long haul.
Solution #2: Tune into your mood
When you can pick an exercise based on how you feel (e.g., hip-hop dance out of a funk) or what fits the day's schedule, exercise becomes part of your life versus feeling like another chore. Do solo workouts (kayaking, biking, swimming) as well as group workouts or sports, and you're more likely to stick with your routine, research suggests.
Solution #3: Plan your fitness
Sketch out goals for the month on a calendar. Train for a marathon or schedule a weekly tennis match with your pal. Seeing routines in writing makes you accountable. Log your workouts and compare them with your goals to see where and when fitness levels dip. Get your own free, customizable log at Self.com.
PROBLEM: I like the treadmill for cardio, but I get bored so easily.
Solution #1: Try a game
Assign a distance, intensity or speed value to anything—the number of stoplights you pass, coins, M&M's colors; be creative—then apply it to your routine. Example: Before you start, dig in to your wallet, eyes closed. Pull out a $1 bill, do one-minute sprints. A $5: Go for a 5 percent incline every five minutes. A $10: Push your pace for 10 minutes. With goals to focus on, the time will seem more exciting.
Solution #2: Train with a pal
Take turns calling out challenges to each other or deciding on the workout. Guessing whether she'll next propose playing volleyball or volleying tennis balls makes fitness minutes fly. Add these paired-up moves to the mix for some added strength training.
Solution #3: Join a club
Treadmills are great, but a few times a week, turn exercise into a social activity. Check the Road Runners Club of America website, RRCA.org, or Active.com, which has tons of team sports (lacrosse, golf), to find people like you—or totally different. Either way, the change of scenery and new friends will keep things fresh!
PROBLEM: My 20-minute weekday workout never amounts to weight loss, but I am pressed for time and can't do more.
Solution #1: Rev intensity
Intervals aren't the only slimming supercharger. Get your blood pumping hard and fast for the entire 20 minutes and the amount of calories you torch afterward will skyrocket. This fast-paced circuit does it, while incorporating strength training and keeping your body guessing—and burning: Three times a week, alternate between three minutes of cardio (a different one for every interval—jumping rope, trampolining, even salsa dancing) and a minute and a half of a continuous multitasking strength move (like lunges with shoulder press or squats with triceps extension). Only have time for cardio? This 18-minute routine will give you a quick burn.
Solution #2: Vie for variety
Over time, your body will become more efficient with exercises, so two days of the week, do totally new activities. For 20 minutes, try kickboxing (which burns 214 calories for a 135-pound woman), step aerobics (182) and power yoga (144)
Solution #3: Squeeze in fitness
Once a day, spend 10 minutes doing something that leaves you winded. Run up stairs or skip to your car. Anything that adds to your day's total calorie output equals a leaner, fitter body!
Get more fresh, rut-ridding routines at Self.com, where you can choose from over a hundred boredom-busting workouts.
