How to Turn Your Batwings Into Nice Shapely Arms

Yes, I said bat wings.  You know those flaps that sling back and forth when you raise your arms while wearing those cute sleeveless tops that every woman wants to wear in the summer time.  I don’t know about you but the last thing I want to do is be flapping in the summer time breeze.  So how can you turn those bat wings into nice shapely arms that you would love to show off in your new sleeveless top?  One of the most effective ways to tighten up those arms is with an exercise called the tricep dips.  The wonderful thing about tricep dips is that you can do them just about anywhere.

How to:

Place two flat surfaces, for instances benches or chairs, parallel to each other approximately 3-4 feet apart. 

Sit on one bench with your feet facing the other bench.  Place your hands on the side of the bench holding on to the bench. 

Use your hands to support your weight and lift your feet to the top of the other bench supporting the rest of your body between the two benches.

Slowly lower your body toward the floor by bending your elbows forming a right angle (90 degrees) with your elbow.  (DON’T GO BELOW 90 DEGREES).  Slowly straighten your arms moving up towards the starting position.

Perform 3 sets of 12-15 reps or for a real burn do a couple of sets of burnouts.  (Burnouts is performing as many reps as your body will allow you too, complete exhaustion of the muscle)  Expect to be sore for a couple of days.  The reward: Great looking arms.

Compound Movements

Name: Richard Miranda
Role: ePersonal Trainer
Favorite exercises: Compound movements
Why compound movements? “I like compound movements because more muscle groups are being used and more calories burn.”
What is an example of a compound movement?: Full Barbell Squat

How to execute a full barbell squat:

1. Grasp bar with overhand grip (palms forward) and slightly wider than hip width apart. Step under bar and position bar across posterior deltoids at middle of trapezius (as shown). DO NOT rest bar on neck. Lift elbows up, pull shoulder blades together, and lift chest up to create a “shelf” for the bar.

2. Start position: Using the legs, remove bar from rack. Stand with feet slighter wider than hip width apart. Back should be straight in a neutral position.

3. Lower body by flexing at the hips and knees. Upper body can flex forward at the hips slightly (~5°) during movement. Be sure to “sit back” so that knees stay over the feet.

4. Once thighs are parallel to floor, return to start position.

5. Remember to keep head and back straight in a neutral position – hyperextension or flexion may cause injury. Keep weight over the middle of foot and heel, not the toes.

6. DO NOT allow knees to go past the big toe or deviate medially or laterally throughout movement. Keep abdominals tight throughout exercise by drawing stomach in toward spine.

Click here to read about LiveLiving ePersonal training. Access ePersonal trainer profiles and enroll in an ePersonal training program with a special offer to lose 7 – 10 pounds in 30 days or get your money back guarantee.

No Nonsense

Kevin Willis spent over 21 years in the NBA as a power forward / center. During that time, this Christian athlete played on several different teams. The longest spurt was with the Atlanta Hawks, whom he played with from 1984-94 and 2004-2005. I had the privilege of talking to him about priorities and ways we can all learn how to “dejunk” our lives. In this exclusive interview, Kevin, shares his personal mantra for “no nonsense” and keeping things in right order.

LL: What do the words, “dejunking your life” mean to you?
KW: You have to distance yourself from insincere people. In the line of professional sports, you realize people have different motives. Some look at your status and what they can get from you. You have to determine what’s real and what’s not. For over 21 years, I played in the NBA and met a lot of different people. Some have your best interest at heart and some just want to be part of the show. Surround yourself with sincere people.

Click here to read more on “Dejunking Your Life” an interview with former NBA basketball player, Kevin Willis by Dana Williams in LiveLiving Christian Health and Wellness eMagazine.

Strengthening the Back and the Abs

Last week I talked about the Transverse Abdominius muscle, the one that pulls everything in the midsection up and in. This week I am going to address the entire core complex.

The “PLANK” exercise is a great way to strengthen the core by building endurance in both the abs and back, including the stabilizer muscles for the spinal column.

Not only is this exercise great for protecting your back for lifting, carrying, and performing all those activities you do daily, but also this exercise is the second layer of support for the Transverse Abdominius muscle.

The PLANK is performed this way:
1. Lie face down on mat resting on the forearms, palms flat on the floor.
2. Push off the floor, raising up onto toes and resting on the elbows / forearms.
3. Keep your back flat, in a straight line from head to heels.
4. Tilt your pelvis and contract your abdominals to prevent your rear end from sticking up in the air.
5. Hold for 20 seconds working your way up to a 60 second hold, lower and repeat for 3-5 reps daily.

Walking Lunges for Great Legs and a Shapely Butt

Name: Tonya Mitchell, DPT, ATC
Role: Director of ePersonal Training
Favorite functional exercise: Walking Lunges
Why walking lunges? This is an exercise that will shape and tone your entire lower body. It is a functional exercise as well as a shaping exercise. You can do them anywhere! I absolutely love walking lunges and recommend to everyone who not only wants good looking legs, but also a shapely derriere. They are great for strengthening the legs for walking, running, sports activities, or just being able to transfer from a sitting position to standing.

How to execute a walking lunge:
1. Start position: Stand with feet hip width apart.
2. Step forward 2-3 feet forming a 90° bend at the front hip and knee. DO NOT allow front knee to extend past the big toe – may cause injury.
3. Push body up and move the back foot beside the front foot. Alternate feet and repeat.
4. Remember to keep head and back upright in a neutral position. Shoulders and hips should remain squared at all times.
5. Watch for proper knee alignment – do not let front knee extend past big toe or deviate laterally or medially. Back knee should not come in contact with floor.
*To make this exercise more challenging try it holding a dumbell in each hand.

Click here to read about LiveLiving ePersonal training. Access ePersonal trainer profiles and enroll in an ePersonal training program with a special offer to lose 7 – 10 pounds in 30 days or get your money back guarantee.

Dejunking My Diet

As I spiritually began to grow, I found myself desiring to make God a part of every aspect of my life. I truly wanted to love him with my whole being. So even in my eating, I began to feel a connection with God and the food that nourished his temple. Yes, his temple where his spirit dwelled. I found myself longing to make changes in my eating habits – to go to another level where I would also remove the junk out of my diet.

I remember eating process food, like Kraft macaroni and cheese, Big Macs, Kentucky Fried Chicken, sweets (a must everyday), but as my relationship with God and my body changed, so did the type of foods I ate. I wanted to experience his life in every way. Read more on “Experiencing a New Dimension with the Divine: Dejunking My Diet” by Etta Malcolm in LiveLiving Christian Health and Wellness eMagazine.

The Belly Lift

Face lifts pull saggy skin up and back to reduce wrinkles, but what about your abdominal muscles or your stomach? You know that unsightly pouch that many women experience after pregnancy. Or how about that gut that hangs out over those, oh, so cute jeans you bought in hopes that you would lose enough weight to wear them? Well, guess what? It is now time to pack up those big sweaters you wore to cover up those extra holiday pounds, and break out the bathing suits and cute T’s you wear in the summertime or when you go to the beach on that much deserved vacation. Not to mention a vacation is supposed to help you get away from the stress of life, so the last thing you want to worry about is how you are going to look in your summer wardrobe.

If you want to pull that pouch in or tighten up your abs to eliminate the rolls hanging over those cute jeans then you definitely need to become friends with your TRANSVERSE ABDOMINUS MUSCLE, better known as the corset muscle of the abdominal group. This is the most important muscle in the abdominal group, but it has been the most overlooked when it comes to training. If you place your hands on your stomach (lower portion) and cough you will feel this muscle push out against your fingers. Training this muscle will lift your abdominal wall, gut, up and in, therefore decreasing the belly bulge, or pouch, we all hate to see in the mirror.

The best way to work the Transverse Abdominus muscle is with the vacuum exercise.

Lie on your back with your knees bent. Inhale through your nose, allowing your lungs to expand fully. Exhale through your mouth, press your abs strongly inward as if you are trying to push your navel towards your spine. Hold this contraction for 10 seconds and continue to breathe. (If you are holding your breath then you are using the WRONG muscle, diaphragm, not your transverse abdominus muscle.) Repeat 10 times. Once you have mastered this exercise in the lying down position, practice it in sitting and standing. After this has become a habit you will notice a flatter, stronger, and more attractive midsection.

Burn Calories with the Clean Hang

Name: Paul Mitchell
Role: ePersonal Trainer
Favorite weight training exercise: Clean Hang
Why the clean hang? Because not only is it a total body exercise, which tends to allow the body to burn more calories and produce more of the body’s natural growth hormones, but it also forces you to move the weight at a faster pace than most other exercises, which means constantly recruiting more muscle fibers.

Click here to read about LiveLiving ePersonal training. Access ePersonal trainer profiles and enroll in an ePersonal training program with a special offer to lose 7 – 10 pounds in 30 days or get your money back guarantee.

Spring Cleaning

Just as our closets may reflect a lack of discipline, organization, or prioritization by the amount of clutter we accumulate, so do the activities in which we engage. They reveal something about our inner “housekeeping”. What do you eat? Is it nourishing and helping to maintain a healthy, well functioning body or does your diet consist primarily of “junk” that tastes good, is convenient, but has very little nutritional value? Are you cluttering your body with foods that consume the space nutrients need to build upon? What do you feed your mind? Is it wholesome, encouraging a positive, productive way of thinking or is your mind being filled with life’s junk (worry, anxiety, violence, gossip, illicit sexual videos and lyrics, to name a few)? Take a short check test: how many times have you found yourself singing or humming a tune and wondered “where did that come from?” or how many times have you had someone else say “I didn’t know you knew that”? Do you sometimes utter words you didn’t learn in Sunday School and cover up with “oops”? Read more about “Spring Cleaning” by Paula Wynn in the March – April issue of LiveLiving eMagazine, De-junking Your Life.

I Know I Should Exercise But the Bed Feels So Good!

It is in my personal experience that I have found out that working out is 75% MENTAL and 25% PHYSICAL! Why do you think that Tonya? Well, have you ever had every intention on working out after work or set your alarm clock to get up one hour early to just cut it off and go back to sleep or honk your horn as you drive by the gym on your way home from work?

Well, I will be the first to confess that I have have fallen short on more than one occasion. By the end of the day, I find myself worn out, hungry, and tired. The last thing I want to do is fight and push myself through a workout. So, I come to an agreement in my mind that I am going to work out, and if I am unable to exercise after work, then I will get up early and do so. OK, remember I said the alarm clock goes off and guess what? Yes! The bed feels so good. All cuddled up under the warm covers and still exhausted, begging for just a few more minutes of sleep, I convince myself that it will not be this morning. I will exercise tomorrow.

Yes, I did say 75% MENTAL! And that is exactly what I meant. Our minds and our thoughts determine our behavior. I have found out that when you start to contemplate working out, you will come up with a thousand and one reasons not to work out. The reasoning and excuses build up in your mind and with each thought the idea of not working out sounds better and then becomes a logical reason you need to avoid your workout for today.

Or what about this one? You decide with “GOOD REASON” to not work out, but you begin to feel guilty. Yes, I did say guilty. I have been there too. You have your goals. You have a plan. You are just not putting the work in that is required to achieve your health or fitness goal, and there is no one to blame but yourself. That sounds harsh Tonya. I am sorry, but the truth hurts sometimes, and it is the truth. Sure I can come up with valid excuses to not exercise, but like I said they are excuses. Exercising is a choice. If you set your mind to work out and don’t let the excuses creep up on you, then you will be successful. It is all about what you consider to be a priority in your life, because I am sure that you find the time to do the things you really want to do, such as watching your favorite TV show.

On the other hand, have you ever found yourself in one of those moods where you didn’t want to workout, but somehow forced yourself to go to the gym anyway? What happened once you got there? This is the 25% of the physical that I was talking about. I can say for me that I became motivated. I began to feed on the energy of those around me. The farther into my workout I got, the better I felt. My grandmother and mother always said, “Energy creates Energy”, and I believed this. I would leave the gym feeling a sense of accomplishment and ALIVE! Not only was the workout good for my body, but it was excellent for my mental health.

Exercise functions like an addicton. If you feed the addiction, you get the results of the addiction. For exercise the reward is better health physically and mentally, strength, flexibility, and energy. If you don’t feed the addiction the desire to exercise goes away and you become unhealthy, weak, stiff, achy, and listless. It all begins in the mind. The body will do what the mind tells it to do.

Where are your thoughts today? What is your mind telling your body to do today? Sometimes God puts people in our path to help us and encourage us to get to where we need to be and if you are reading this, then I believe that you are looking for encouragement and we here at Liveliving are eager to help you live a healthier and abundant life!

Sign Up Today for a LiveLiving Trainer.