That's Fit

Women's Health magazine just sent me a release with some fun tips entailed, and I thought I'd share this one with you. Four fabulous moves useful for those of you guilty of missing morning workouts to sleep in late, and then missing the gym after work due to fatigue. As your online trainer I want to make this clear to you: skipping your workouts on a regular basis is detrimental to your health!

Of course, early morning workouts can be tough. They're also what keeps you full of the energy you need to get through each day with vigor! Check out this gallery, and next time you go to hit the snooze button ... get your fanny up and do the Cat Cow pose instead. (No moo-ing necessary!) These four easy moves will give you the energy to get to the gym and start your day off right!

Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answer. Our ThatsFit.com fitness expert -- and now your own virtual personal trainer -- will help you get fit, increase your overall health and do it in a fun way. Drop your questions here in the Comments section below and we'll choose one per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Hey Fitz. I blew it! I am going on vacation with a bunch of my college buddies and some hot girls in four weeks. I've totally slacked off on my workouts since school ended and now I'd like to get ripped again before we head to Mexico. What can I do at my gym to shred a bit of fat and get buff quick before the trip? I know I'm a dork for slacking, but I also know you can help me improve. I'm willing to do the work! Jason

A. Familiar story Jason! You're not the only one who's taken some time off from their fitness training only to have it blow up in your face. You're also not the first person to try and undo the damage quickly. Four weeks is a pretty decent amount of time, so if you are really clean with your eating habits and start training intensely ... I think it would be safe to take off at least 10 pounds before you see Mexico, and all of those hot girls see you!

Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answer. Our ThatsFit.com fitness expert -- and now your own virtual personal trainer -- will help you get fit, increase your overall health and do it in a fun way. Drop your questions here in the Comments section below and we'll choose two per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Hi Fitz! I am 29 year old male and I am thinking about starting a workout routine. However, I don't know where to begin. I have a treadmill and that's it. I am 5'11 and about 160lbs. I don't have a lot of muscle, have a low self esteem towards my body shape and would like to change it. Something simple I can do at home with or without the treadmill would be OK. Any suggestions? Jared

A. Sweet Jared. So sorry you're feeling down in the dumps. Hard to know exactly what is causing it all, but getting yourself in shape can certainly be a grand opportunity to increase your physical fitness, confidence and self esteem. It's proven to help people live better and longer. I can help you with your physical goals. If you feel like there may be something else adding to your low self-esteem, please don't feel shy to talk to your medical doctor or a counselor.

Having said that, it sounds like you are long and lean. What a lucky place to start! Let's get you going with a very simple routine which should get you on your way towards the athletic body you so desire. Make that treadmill your home for at least thirty minutes a day, five days a week. Jog for as long as you can, take a two minute walking break, and then repeat. Continue this jogging/walking training until you can jog for 30 minutes straight. Once you get there....increase your time, distance, speed or all three. Up to you! When you feel like you have bricks in your shoes, just walk! It's OK to have some slower days here and there.

That exercise called the Plank has received plenty of mention here at That's Fit in terms of its impact on your core muscles. I incorporated the Plank into my exercise routine about three weeks ago and am seeing a difference. While flat belly abs are not emerging (have to lose more weight for that), I have noticed more power and grace when rising out of bed in the morning. I am also newly aware of my core, consciously tightening when twisting. A bit more definition in the obliques is sweet, too.

Thanks to a tip from Julie's Health Club, NBA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a big fan of core fitness. He's now blogging about fitness and more at the Los Angeles Times. He says core fitness is the answer for the over-50 crowd to stay fit and prevent those nagging injuries that often pop up as we age. Here are Abdul-Jabbar's three recommended core exercises -- of course the ever-challenging and productive Plank is first in line:

• Plank: With elbows and forearms touching the ground, push up onto your toes, tighten abs for 10 to 30 seconds and lower your exhausted bod back down to the floor. Repeat 10 times, increase reps with time.
• Crunch: Unlike the traditional sit-up, lay on your back with knees bent, but keep your hands crossed across your chest. Curl shoulders only toward your hips as you crunch those abs. Keep the lower back firmly pressed to the floor throughout the entire motion. Start with 20 reps and increase as you get fit.
• Quadruped: Get down on hands/knees with forearms in the Plank position. Raise one leg up so your thigh is parallel to the ground and the bottom of your shoe faces up toward the ceiling. Form is important, keep that neck straight and avoid arching your back. Lower leg to the ground and repeat 10 to 15 times. Switch to other leg.

Abdul-Jabbar says do these a minimum of three times a week, concentrating on form over repetitions, and don't forget to steadily breathe. I do whatever the King of the Skyhook says, his smooth hook shot was about the only way I could score over my towering brothers during our driveway basketball scrimmages.

For those of you out there who are not working out regularly, you may want to consider starting with the following five exercises. And, for those of you who have been working out for quite some time, you too may want to consider using the following five exercises.

Some are lesser-known, some are pretty common, but all are dynamic muscle-toners. Just don't hate me if you're sore in the morning.

5 - Pull-Up. A sure-fire method to get that famous V-taper is to do this exercise. Try any number of variations on this classic muscle-builder, and you'll soon see the definition in your back, shoulders and arms that you were hoping for.

4 - Box Jumps. Think of this exercise as a squat without a bar but somehow still as difficult. Not only will your quads be screaming by the time you're done with your set, but your heart will feel like you just ran wind sprints, making this a fantastic resistance/cardio exercise.

3 - Spider-Man Push-Ups. Traditional push-ups are one of the best upper-body exercises you can do, but this modified version makes them that much more effective (and difficult). Perhaps the greatest benefit of this version is that you will also utilize your core muscles.

2 - Plank With Rotating Knee Raises - I'm not sure I can even explain this one with words, but I'm going to try. Here goes: Start in a standard plank position, holding it for quite some time. Then, in a circular motion, raise your right knee toward your left elbow. Once it has gone as far as it can, circle it back to its original position. Next, follow a similar pattern with your left knee, only this time raise it toward your right elbow. If you feel like you're going to die, you're probably doing it right ;)

1 - Deadlift - Arguably one of the best total-body exercises, the deadlift can either be the hero of your workout or the bane of your existence, depending on your form. Performed incorrectly, you'll be nursing an aching back. Performed correctly, however, and you'll see results almost immediately. Use this exercise as a strength and muscle builder by going heavy (once you have the proper form down), or use it as a great fat-burning cardio blast by using light weights and doing several repetitions.

A reader commented on my post The Core: All it's cracked up to be with a question about the specific exercises I mentioned -- push-ups, pull-ups, dips, squats, lunges, touch-downs, and planks. He wanted to know how to do some of these since the names themselves are not so self-explanatory. Since I neglected to include the how-to details, I'm back, this time to clue you in on how exactly to strengthen that core of yours. Here goes.

Most of you probably know how to do push-ups, but click here for a refresher. As for the rest, you can find them by clicking on the name of each exercise. The only one I've omitted is the touch down. When I find a good tutorial link, I'll pass it on. For now, though, the following line-up will keep you plenty busy -- and plenty fit too.

Pull-ups
Dips
Squats
Lunges
Planks

For more how-to tips for almost every exercise imaginable, visit this site.

The "plank," which is a move where you keep your body stick straight and support it only on your feet and hands, is a great core toning and all-over body strengthening move but lets face it, it's pretty boring. So Women's Health is hoping to help with that boredom problem by offering up some variations on the traditional plank to make things a little more interesting. By doing all of the variations in a series you'll end up with a nice little workout that keeps your attention and gets you moving. So if you've always liked the plank but were wishing for more, or if you're just looking to try something new, give this routine a try.

For some people, busy schedules leave them with little or no time to workout -- except at night before they go to bed. But working out at home after the sun sets can be disturbing for neighbours -- what's the solution? Not working out? I don't think so. Here are some quiet exercise tips from Fitsugar:

• Push-ups, sit-ups, planks and side-planks will tone the core and arms
• Squats and lunges will tone your glutes without make noise
• A yoga DVD is a great way to relax before bedtime

What's your favourite home-based exercise?

Over the past two decades of teaching fitness, the most common gripe I hear about ab work is that my students experience neck pain while doing crunches. It's true that our heads are quite heavy, and if the little boy in Jerry McGuire was right they weigh about eight pounds.Sounds heavy to me. It's not a problem for our necks to hold these big melons up-right as we stand or sit, but our neck endures an unusual stress while we're in the horizontal position. There are two solutions to get you the firm, ripped abs you're wishing for.

With proper hand support and practice, our necks can earn the strength they need for crunches. Or.....we can just avoid that issue completely with the plank. If you're not familiar with the plank it's a fairly simple exercise that puts a terrific amount of stress on your abs and low back (in a good way), and takes all the strain off your neck.

The simplest form is easy. Get down on the ground and elevate your body on your elbows, forearms and toes. Hover with your back and legs as straight as possible. It looks easy, but once you staring doing it......you'll find it to be extremely challenging. As a beginner, aim to hold this pose for 10 seconds. Repeat the plank at 10 seconds a few times. Every time you do this exercise I suggest you progress by tacking five seconds on to your holding time.