The New Year is here, and if you are like most people now is the time you feel more motivated than ever to get fit and healthy. But the problem is you don’t really have the time or desire to go to the gym.  The days when you had to spend hours slogging it out in the gym are over, try this 5 minute home workout that will really get you great results.

Here’s the format: 5 exercises all 20 seconds in duration with 10 seconds rest between each one( do as many repetitions as you can within that time period). Repeat each one twice = 5 minutes

1: Squat – Stand up straight and bend your knees. Lower your body down as far as you can, then push back up.

3/4: Split Squat – Start with 1 leg forward and 1 leg back as far apart as possible. Bend your back knee towards floor then push back up through your front heel. Repeat on other leg.

5: Front Plank – (Either from your knees or for the more advanced from your feet) Start face down resting on you elbows and knees/feet and raise body off floor. Hold position still.

There you are. Just 1 of my Fabulous 5 Minutes Workouts.

Today’s Takeaway - There is it is. A great workout from home in next to no time.  P.S. Don’t be afraid to repeat it a few times or add to it to increase the calorie burn!

A lot of people don’t do as much exercise as they should because the idea of going to the gym or doing an hours workout at home isn’t always possible. Here are some great ways to drastically increase your activity level without really even realising it.

1 Daily targets – Set yourself targets for the day with basic exercises. For example 100 squats and 50 press ups a day. That would take very little time. You don’t have to do it all in 1 go. You could do some when you wake up, some during an ad break when you’re watching TV in the evening, etc. You’ll be surprised how easy it is to reach your target and you can set yourself new ones.

2/ Get something fun that’s active – a hoola hoop or a tramet/trampoline are 2 great examples of this. You can play around with kids/ family and barely even realise your exercising. But you will still be burning calories.

3/Walk more – I know it sounds obvious but not many people do much of it! If you have a dog then that’s perfect as you have to do it. And add an extra calorie burn to your workout by taking a football or running around with your dog. But otherwise, just get off the bus a stop early, take the stairs rather than the lift. Whatever it takes just walk around more.

Today’s Takeaway – Exercise doesn’t have to be a full on workout. Little bits can add up to a good calorie burn.

Today I have a great workout for you – specifically  targeted at getting a flat stomach! You will see 5 exercises below all with exercise descriptions. You do the first exercise for 20 seconds, then move on to the next one with a 10 second rest period in between. You repeat this format, i.e. 20 seconds on each exercise and 10 seconds rest between each one until you have done each exercise twice. It will only take you 5 minutes!

Squeeze Crunch

Position: 

Lay face up with knees bent. 

Technique: 

Raise knees and squeeze towards chest, briefly hold and squeeze, then release. 

Points To Remember: 

Squeeze as high as possible. 

Keep knees together.  

Cobra – Legs Down 

Position: 

Lay face down with arms bent at the elbow. 

Technique: 

Arch back up as high as possible and hold position still. 

With arms bent squeeze them as high as possible and squeeze them together. 

Points To Remember: 

Ensure head is in line with your body. 

Leg Cycle 

Position: Lay face up with knees bent and raised. 

Technique: 

Kick legs forward and backwards in a cycling motion. 

Points To Remember: 

Keep lower back flat to the floor by bracing your stomach muscles. 

Keep a slight bend in your knee as you extent the leg forward. 

The lower and straighter the legs go the more difficult the exercise becomes. 

Half Side Plank- 1 

Position: 

Lay on your side with knees bent and your elbow directly beneath your shoulder. 

Technique: 

Push hip off the floor, resting on your knee and elbow. 

Squeeze the hip as high as possible and hold position still. 

Points… Read more->

 ’Exercising’ alone is not good enough. If you don’t know the ‘tricks of the trade’ you will be working hard with no reward. Here is a great sneaky tip to drastically improve the effectiveness of your workout.

 Chop and Change.

Your body doesn’t respond (and by ‘respond’ I mean burn fat effectively) to the same motion over and over again. This is one of the reasons why when you spend a long period of time on the treadmill or cross trainer your fat burning potential is always going to be limited.

You need to constantly vary what you are doing and which muscles you are working to contine to stimulate your body’s metabolism and fat burning hormones. Otherwise your body just gets used to the same old motion uses the same old muscles and burns little or no fat.

This is why my new program http://www.bestfatlossforwomen.com implements a system where you are never doing the same exercise for more than 20 seconds at a time. This is the variety you need in order to reach ultimate fat burning potential.

Today’s Takeaway – Chop and Change what you are doing during your workouts as much as possible. It will send you body’s fat burning hormones into overdrive!