Everybody dreams of having a perfectly toned body, one that is suitably slender in some places and rock hard in others. Clearly we aren’t asking for much, just a body that is enough to rival that of Matt Damon in The Bourne Supremacy or Demi Moore in G.I Jane. With a variation of different methods we can help you obtain your six second abs.
So how can you fast track your way to a perfectly toned stomach? Not everyone has the time to spend the required 6 hours a week in the gym, sweating and clinging to a piece of gym equipment. And unlike most celebrities we aren’t graced with the encouraging presence of an attractive personal trainer by our sides, shouting motivational speeches at us and massaging us when we feel a bit achy. Our motivation to work hard has to come from within, and self motivation is never an easy thing to take control over.
Picturing the end goal is easy. You are leaping along a beach in your appropriately fashionable swimsuit attracting jealous glances from all around you. The work involved in achieving this is not quite such a glamorous undertaking. Each person will have a different method to psych themselves into a hard work out, personally I always use some loud music to help me get into the right frame of mind. The important thing is to learn how hard you can push yourself and to recognise the difference between a tired body and a tired mind.
When you begin a new exercise regime self discipline and control is crucial and you must be willing to keep pushing yourself until you finally reach your goal.
In order to help your body make the most of the exercise you are doing you must ensure that you are fully hydrated by drinking the recommended amount of water per day. Experts have said that this should be in the region of eight glasses a day and more if you are doing an activity that makes you sweat. Water is necessary in helping to build muscle tone and without it those six second abs will be much harder to achieve.
When it comes to healthy eating we are not fortunate enough to have a Michelin star chef running around behind us at our beck and call, ready to whip up an exotic and nutrient packed snack when we demand it. In reality, preparing meals like this are not only time consuming but also more expensive than picking a much handier ready meal. I know that when I come home from a long day at work the last thing I want to do is start to chop up vegetables and calculate how many vitamins I will be getting from each.
At the moment, however, with so much focus being placed on healthy eating and a better lifestyle for all, supermarkets are going out of their way to make our lives that little bit easier. The content of food is now emblazoned across the front of packaging meaning that we are able to work out how healthy a meal will be without the need for an internet search engine and a calculator.
The food standards agency has provided some top tips to help people stay in shape and achieve the best results from their exercise programmes. By eating more fruit and vegetables, cutting down on saturated fat and sugar and consuming less salt you will be giving your body what it needs to exercise effectively.
It is important that if you are in the middle of an exercise programme that you are careful not to eat more than your body needs. Stopping before you are so full you feel sick is definitely one way to cut down on the number of unnecessary calories you are taking in. The body knows how much it needs to get through an average day so if you are changing your routine then it is best to make this change a gradual one. This will prevent both a crash diet or a binge eating scenario. Going from doing no exercise at all to attempting a marathon style gym session will confuse your natural balance and cause your body to demand more food in preparation for the next time you want to exercise frantically.
By working out a good balance between how much you are exercising and how much you are eating you can make sure that you are not carrying any excess calories, nor are you starving yourself. It would be foolish to expect your body to succeed at a hard work out on just a measly breakfast bar.
Simple changes in diet can make a big difference to how effective your work out will be from day to day. I generally find that what I put in my shopping basket at the start of the week will affect what I eat for the rest of the week so going to the supermarket with a clear list will help you to become more structured with your eating routines.
Taking the low fat dairy options, not adding additional salt to dishes, leaving the two sugars out of your daily mug of tea and choosing wholegrain bread instead of white bread will mean that you are giving your body more of what is good and less of what is bad for it. A balanced diet will not only help your muscle tone to improve at a faster pace but it will also give you more energy, make you more alert and willing to push yourself.
By following a more controlled lifestyle you will be able to achieve those six second abs far quicker and before you know it you will have a body worthy of a cover page on a health magazine. A certain amount of self restraint is necessary to get the most out of your daily activity but the end result will be worth it and you will have a new body to show off to your friends and family. The envious glances on the beach can be achieved easily if you are willing to stick to your planned work out. Those six second abs will be just around the corner.