Tag: Trainer

  • Mom-to-be Alia Bhatt’s trainer gives tips to ease menstrual cramps

    Mom-to-be Alia Bhatt’s trainer gives tips to ease menstrual cramps

    The newlywed couple, Alia and Ranbir declared their 1st being pregnant on Monday as a result of an Instagram publish. The actress appeared to be in a medical center having her ultrasound completed with her spouse by her side.

    Alia Bhatt’s coach about menstrual cramps


    Durations can become complicated for a woman due to the hormonal fluctuations, cramps, mood swings, and exhaustion one suffers from.

    Menstrual cramps are throbbing, aching cramps that materialize in the reduced stomach of the woman’s system. They happen just ahead of and for the duration of the period of time. They are between the most prevalent and vexing areas of intervals. Quite a few ladies get them on a frequent basis.

    The good information is that yoga can enable with bloating, backaches, and other symptoms related with a debilitating 3-to-5-working day time period.

    Anshuka Parwani, the actress’s yoga teacher, has shared video clips and demonstrations on social media for her followers to inspire them to include yoga into their schedule. She just lately has shared a new Instagram Reel on how to control menstrual cramps with yoga.

    Yoga Asanas to decrease menstrual ache


    Anshuka Parwani demonstrated 5 yoga asanas that enable ladies with irregular periods relieve discomfort and regularise their cycles.

    Head to Knee forward bend pose: Janu Sirs asana is a whole ahead fold that stretches from your ankle to your hips, the entire length of your again, and the side-entire body. It can enable to relax your head while also stretching your overall body. Near your eyes and cultivate internal peace as you fold ahead.

    Guidelines:

    1. Start in Employees Pose, with both legs prolonged in entrance of you.

    2. Change the flesh beneath your seat so that your sit bones are perfectly-anchored.

    3. Bend your still left knee and provide the sole of your left foot to the inside of of your correct thigh.

    4. Place your torso squarely more than your prolonged proper leg. Start to decrease your torso to your leg by tipping your pelvis ahead and strolling your fingers framing your extended leg in direction of your proper foot, so that the bend begins from your hips rather than your reduced back again.

    5. Manage a flexed correct foot although urgent the back of the proper thigh down toward the flooring.

    6. When you attain your maximum ahead bending limit, you have two selections: maintain your spine straight and very long or take it easy your coronary heart and head down toward the prolonged leg, enabling the backbone to spherical. Decide on whichever selection feels more cozy.

    7. Hold your foot if your fingers access it. If not, you can get your ankle or calf or position your arms on the floor wherever they arrive at.

    Cat / Cow Pose: The Cat-Cow Stretch, Chakravakasana is a will have to-do yoga pose for fantastic cause. It involves shifting the backbone from a rounded (flexion) to an arched situation (extension). Just about every motion is carried out in tandem with an inhalation or exhalation of the breath.

    Guidelines:

    Inhale and arch for cow pose –

    1. Curl your toes.

    2. Tilt your pelvis back again till your tailbone protrudes.

    3. Allow this movement to ripple up your spine until finally your neck is the very last factor to shift.

    4. Draw your navel in to hold your stomach muscular tissues hugging your backbone as your stomach drops.

    5. Gently raise your gaze to the ceiling devoid of craning your neck.

    Exhale and spherical for cat pose –

    1. Permit the tops of your toes to rest on the ground.

    2. Tuck your tailbone and tip your pelvis forward. Allow this motion to transfer up your spine the moment extra. Your backbone will spherical the natural way.

    3. Carry your navel to your spine.

    4. Decreased your head.

    5. Convey your interest to your navel.

    Camel pose variation: Camel lets you to practical experience deep spinal extension without the need of making use of your arms to support your fat. It’s also a significantly a lot more adaptable situation.

    Recommendations:

    Camel Pose is normally done though kneeling on a yoga mat or the ground.

    1. Kneel with your body upright and your hips stacked in excess of your knees. If your knees are sensitive, place padding (a blanket or double the thickness of your mat) under them.

    2. Attract your fingers up the facet of your entire body till your palms arrive at the rib cage. Make it possible for your thumbs to relaxation on the again of your ribs even though your other four fingers wrap all-around the sides and fronts of your rib cage, elbows pointing out. With this grip, raise your rib cage up for guidance as you start off to open your upper body toward the ceiling.

    3. Retain your upper body placement as you reach your arms back just one at a time to grasp your heels. Tuck your toes underneath if you have to have a little additional height. If not, the tops of the feet can be flat on the flooring.

    4. Convey your hips forward right until they are specifically over your knees.

    5. Make it possible for your head to return to normal, opening your throat. If that doesn’t match your neck, preserve your chin tucked in its place.

    6. Convey your chin to your chest and your palms to your hips to launch. Business your abs and use your palms to aid your lower back again as you little by little deliver your body to an upright kneeling placement.

    Sphinx Pose: Sphinx pose is regularly applied in Yin yoga, where by poses are held for various minutes at a time. It is a modified model of Bhujangasana designed to assistance inexperienced persons ease into it. This pose is also valuable for persons who put up with from decrease back again discomfort due to the fact it has less arch and therefore considerably less stress on the spine.

    Guidance:

    1. Lie on your tummy, toes flat on the ground, and forehead on the floor.

    2. Keep a shut connection in between your legs, with your toes and heels frivolously touching.

    3. Extend your hands out in front of you, palms down, arms touching the floor.

    4. After taking a deep breath, slowly but surely increase your head, upper body, and stomach even though trying to keep your navel on the ground.

    5. With the help of your arms, pull your torso back again and off the flooring.

    6. Go on to breathe mindfully as you curve your spine vertebra by vertebra.

    7. Make positive your feet are continue to shut together and your head is facing straight forward.

    8. Breathe out and gently decreased your stomach, upper body, and head to the floor.

    Vast angle seated ahead fold: It is a seated yoga posture that stretches the legs and spine deeply is Vast-Legged Seated Forward Fold. This pose also stimulates the abdominal organs, which aids digestion and metabolism. Folding forward in a natural way draws the interest inward, which calms the brain and relieves panic, tiredness, and mild depression.

    Recommendations:

    1. In Employees Pose, sit on the edge of a firm blanket with your legs prolonged in entrance of you.

    2. Lean your torso again and spot your palms on the ground at the rear of you. Then distribute your legs as considerably as they will go.

    3. Firmly press your hands into the flooring and carefully bring your buttocks ahead alongside the flooring, even more widening the legs.

    4. Get the job done your way up to a 90-diploma angle (with the pelvis as the apex) or even broader.

    5. Manage a straight line from the tops of your kneecaps to the ceiling.

    6. Flex your feet and interact your thigh muscle mass strongly, urgent your legs down toward the flooring. Arrive at out with your heels.

    7. Start out going for walks your palms ahead in between your legs, holding your backbone extended and straight. Preserve the duration of your front torso and stay clear of rounding your again. It’s fine if you only walk your palms forward an inch or two.

    8. Continue to bend ahead until eventually you sense a stretch in your hamstrings, but will not go also significantly. Loosen up if your backbone rounds or you really feel any pinching pain.

    9. Arrive at your arms to the sides and clasp your significant toes by generating a loop with your thumbs and 1st two fingers as you progress further into the pose. Lengthen your elbows to the sides. Retain a lengthy entrance torso. Area your chin on the mat and seem forward.

    10.Hold for a utmost of a few minutes. Gently wander your palms back toward your body, maintaining your spine lengthy and your torso upright. In Workers Pose, bend your knees, and bring your legs back again collectively.

  • Leeds personal trainer in fundraising push after giving lifesaving advice to client with throat cancer

    Leeds personal trainer in fundraising push after giving lifesaving advice to client with throat cancer

    Terrimarie Appleyard, 36, operates physical fitness classes for pre and submit natal girls with a enthusiasm to hold match and active.

    Read through Far more

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    This is what the individuals of Leeds have to say about Boris Johnson as he faces no-…

    For the duration of lockdown her lessons moved online serving to women with Zoom fitness routines, psychological overall health workshops and physique positivity talks for women put up pregnancy.

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    Terrimarie Appleyard, 36, runs exercise lessons for pre and post natal women of all ages with a enthusiasm to hold fit and energetic. Image: Photoarts by Jay.

    One of her consumers started off schooling with a continual sore throat, so Terrimarie proposed she go see a professional and not set it off any for a longer time.

    This turned out to be lifesaving tips as her customer was identified with throat cancer and now has to discuss by using an automated voice box subsequent a pharyngectomy.

    “We were schooling jointly and she had been instructed it was bronchial asthma and acid reflux but you could inform from her respiration that it just wasn’t that but a little something substantially considerably a lot more,” she explained to the YEP.

    “In the group we have now experienced two women who ended up effected by seriously major existence modifying activities. One misplaced their little one at 18 months old and yet another was diagnosed with throat cancer.”

    The group, named TRIBE, are now elevating funds for both equally the Throat Most cancers Basis and Martin Property Hospice.

    “We’re undertaking a calendar to elevate revenue. For the duration of the pandemic all the perform went on the net and we’ve produced a actually strong neighborhood of women of all ages who search out for each other,” she claimed.

    “They are these a potent tribe of girls. It’s all about getting a shared really like of a thing and in this situation it is retaining suit. It can be about maintaining suit and being potent both bodily and mentally.”

    Terrimarie has been a physical fitness teacher at Health That Fits right here in Leeds for in excess of four many years with her lessons getting to be a support system for people struggling in the course of the pandemic.

    “It was hard to just take the organization from encounter to confront to on the net but this is an awesome team of women of all ages who have poured their coronary heart out to every single other and supported every single other via everything through lockdown,” she stated.

    “We are all mums at household and wives. Housewives essentially do it all so it really is been a really significant assist community.”

    Even with limitations lifting and everyday living returning to typical the courses have remained a aid system for those who go to.

    “We are just active women of all ages who do the job tough, perform challenging and want to get the job done out.” she included.

  • The Best Fitness Tips From Shay Mitchell’s Trainer

    The Best Fitness Tips From Shay Mitchell’s Trainer

    You know her, you appreciate her, you grew up with her on Pretty Minimal Liars, and rooted for her in You (I’m a Peach admirer without end): Shay Mitchell is the relatable-but-stunningly-lovely queen we didn’t know we desired. In spite of her plain fame and multi-million dollar business, she’s relatable sufficient to be our finest buddy (I indicate, she posts herself having pizza, so that’s a thing, proper?). But there’s one more celebrity on her workforce who helps Shay be, very well, Shay, and she’s turning into a celeb in her have appropriate.

    Kelsey Heenan is a movie star trainer, media individuality, keynote speaker, and conditioning host. Most recently, she was featured on Shay Mitchell’s work out collection (it’s like breaking a sweat with Shay for free and from the comfort of your very own household). What amazed me so a great deal about Kelsey is not only that she has a celeb clientele as spectacular as her biceps but also that her complete mission is to enable people really like and accept their bodies via food, nutrition, and state of mind shifts. So, currently being the wellness nerd I am, you know I had to grill Kelsey for all her very best nutrition and fitness guidelines to attain your healthiest overall body at any time. Browse on for nine of her best techniques to crush a exercise session, eat food items that nourish your body, and support you get toned (Shay-Mitchell authorized):

     

    Kelsey Heenan

    Celeb Trainer, Nutrition Mentor, and Co-Founder of HIIT Burn off

    Kelsey has been highlighted in publications like Condition, Women’s Overall health, Forbes, and Nike Coaching, and she operates with consumers to increase their marriage with food items, training, and their bodies.

     

    1. Aim on progressive overload

    In between HIIT, yoga sculpt, or superior previous-fashioned toughness training, there’s a great deal of confusion above the very best kind of work out to get stronger, but Kelsey is a huge believer that strengthening is as straightforward as raising intensity above time, whichever that appears to be like to you. Her #1 suggestion for customers seeking to get stronger is progressive overload. “Over time, maximize the sum of resistance and pressure you are putting on your muscle mass. Uncomplicated illustrations of this are lifting heavier weights or expanding reps of demanding bodyweight strength actions like drive-ups and pull-ups.”

    In other text, be strategic about reps and weights. When you come to feel relaxed with just one bodyweight or rep count, raise a little for a greater obstacle and to fortify muscle groups (but make certain it does not sacrifice variety so you never possibility injury!). Also, be patient. Really don’t start with 10 kilos and hope to get to 30 lbs by the finish of the week. Acquire a couple weeks to really feel cozy with 10 pounds, maximize to 12 to 15 kilos for a week or two, then shift up to 20 kilos, etcetera. 

     

    2. Aim for just 5 minutes

    Even movie star trainers can absence drive. Regardless of whether it’s a active day, a change in seasons that will make you sense lethargic, or just a time period of everyday living exactly where you really do not come to feel like receiving to the health club, Kelsey tells her shoppers that the most essential issue is to do just five minutes of some thing. “During days and seasons where by it feels not possible to stay enthusiastic, commit to going for just 5 minutes,” she stated. “Stretch, wander, or do some squats and force-ups. After you begin transferring, it is usually simpler to maintain likely. If you however are not experience it following 5 minutes, then be performed for the day. Either way, you stayed legitimate to your commitment and did what you explained you’d do.” No, you never need to have to fit in a 60-moment intense exercise session just about every working day to be fit. You just will need to commit to five minutes when you’re lacking enthusiasm.

     

     

    3. Prioritize whole food items, but be versatile

    I’m a huge enthusiast of Kelsey since even although she’s a celeb trainer and a best specialist in wellbeing, her strategy is approachable. You know I experienced to decide on her brain for her best diet strategies (for the reason that I refuse to think that Shay Mitchell eats nothing besides pizza, as her Instagram portrays). Her solution: Prioritize total food items, but be flexible. “Prioritize a person-component foods for the vast majority of your meals like meat, veggies, avocado, nuts, rice, fruit, and so on., but also take pleasure in your preferred foods periodically,” she prompt. Your food plan really should not come to feel restrictive (which is just a recipe for failure), and food should really not be separated into two diverse lists of “Eat This” and “Don’t Take in This.”

    Alternatively, a healthier diet plan is a sequence of aware alternatives to nourish your body and mind as much as doable. Kelsey gave an case in point of being on vacation: If you know you are hitting up a mouth watering pizza location for lunch, opt for a veggie omelet at breakfast rather of French toast or split the French toast with the desk so you can have a couple of bites but nevertheless prioritize nourishing protein and veggies. Bottom line: Make possibilities that make you experience very good while however allowing for your self to take in your favorite foods. “If an tactic to nourishment is as well stringent, it will normally be a implies to an finish.”

     

    4. Make guaranteed you get pleasure from the workout

    No issue what exercise you read is best for body weight loss, firming, or strengthening, it doesn’t subject if you’re not enjoying it adequate to want to do it regularly. When you’re chaotic or unmotivated, you are not going to do a workout you dread or that helps make you bored. Even though Kelsey likes power instruction and HIIT, she said the finest style of exercise routine is the one particular you appreciate most. “There are so lots of means to perform out the greatest a single is the a single you will actually do.” You may possibly have to experiment with numerous styles of exercise sessions, gyms, or even playlists for your each day walks, but try new items till you discover the best components that you glimpse ahead to and appreciate, and modify when you get started to come to feel bored of the regimen.

     

    5. Obtain a harmony of cardio and strengthening (which is appropriate for you)

    As a wellness editor, I get questioned all the time if power instruction or cardio is more significant and if you genuinely need the two. For instance, does a runner really need to have a day of body weight-lifting, or does a gymnasium rat really will need to spend some time on the elliptical rather of just the pounds ground? The natural way, I questioned Kelsey, and she gave me all the tea. “Everyone should really emphasis both of those on having stronger and frequently receiving their hearts pumping, but there are several ways you can do that,” she mentioned.

    Sure, everybody demands a nutritious equilibrium of both of those cardio and strengthening, but that harmony will search different to everyone. For toughness instruction, Kelsey prompt lifting weights, bodyweight physical exercises, or carrying major groceries as means you’re working the muscle tissues. Furthermore for cardio, regardless of whether you are going for a run, going for walks, undertaking HIIT, dancing, spin, hill sprints, or chasing your kid all around the playground, you are going to be improving upon cardiovascular health for lengthy-phrase health. “There is no one particular sort of exercise session that every person has to do to be healthful. Personally, I don’t like likely on extended runs and would rather lift weights even though obtaining in cardio with sprints. I get pleasure from these issues and they align with my objectives.”

     

     

    6. Protein and carbs are key prior to and just after a work out

    So you have now mastered the taking in-whole-foods-with-versatility point? If you are searching to get even much more precise, veggie-filled foods with a balance of fats, protein, and carbohydrates are always critical, but Kelsey suggested particularly focusing on protein and carbs before and soon after exercise routines for energy and recovery. “Before a exercise routine, protein and carbs can give energy, when after a exercise session, they each assistance refuel the muscle tissue,” she mentioned. But before you grab protein powders or processed bars, attempt to refuel working with full food items. Kelsey is a fan of eggs and fruit, hen and sweet potatoes or rice, and a protein shake with some fruit. But additional importantly, get to know what’s appropriate for your body. “Everyone is different, so identifying what food items assist you sense fueled properly is actually crucial,” she stated.

     

    7. Relaxation is very important

    Do you feel like you are lazy or powering if you choose a working day off? FYI, you are not lazy or at the rear of, you’re healthful. We’ve talked a large amount about why rest times are not only essential for recovery, but using time off also assists you be as suit as doable, and Kelsey entirely agreed. “Rest is important,” she stressed. “Rest times help the entire body and thoughts mend and get better as well as support stay away from injuries and burnout.” Acquire at the very least 1 or two days off each 7 days to do light-weight stretching, calming yoga flows, or mild walks. Also, prioritize slumber (certainly, that indicates even just before that early-morning training) and never overdo it with your exercises. Listen to your body when it is inquiring for a crack, understanding that your body cannot be its fittest, strongest, or healthiest without it. 

     

    8. Honor starvation and regard fullness

    Getting toned and healthy is not only about what you consume but also when and how. Kelsey appreciates that legitimate wellness is freeing, so she does not coach her consumers to rely calories, weigh their meals, or have rigorous limitations. Bottom line: If you are hungry, take in. “A lot of individuals test to disregard starvation cues and eat a small food or hold out until finally the next meal since they come to feel like they ‘shouldn’t’ be hungry but then conclude up imagining about food all working day, snacking more, or overeating later on,” she stated. “It’s not a lousy issue to be hungrier on some days than other people. Honor the system by feeding it when it’s hungry, pay back attention to when you are commencing to truly feel entire, and slow down to assess if your starvation is content.”  

     

     

    9. Prioritize your romantic relationship with your entire body

    We have reported it ahead of and we’ll say it all over again: Attitude is every little thing. You can do the job out every single day and eat fully plant-based at each food, but if you really do not have a nutritious romantic relationship with your human body, you are unable to be really balanced. Even if you’re on the lookout to eliminate bodyweight, glimpse extra toned, or modify the way your overall body appears to be like in any other way, you can however settle for your system for exactly where it is now. “There’s very little inherently improper with seeking to make improvements to how your human body appears to be, but even in the midst of entire body improvements, we have to follow respect for our bodies,” Kelsey stated. “Most folks wrestle with entire body impression, but no make a difference your denims size, it’s vital to study to take the overall body.” 

    Why is entire body acceptance so vital, apart from that your mother utilized to convey to you to adore your overall body when you were in middle school? Damaging language about our bodies can slice deep into our self-value. We start out performing out and having wholesome meals as a way to punish or adjust our bodies fairly than simply because our bodies inherently ought to have nourishment as they are. So how do we get the job done on the romance with our bodies? Kelsey proposed gratitude. “No a single is heading to love each part of their physique each and every day, but training gratitude for what our bodies do for us will help us experience much more grace and respect for our bodies.” Now that’s a health and fitness suggestion that I can get driving.

     

    7 Insider secrets To Optimize Your Workouts From a Personal Coach

     

  • Personal trainer gives tips on how to achieve 2022 fitness goals

    Personal trainer gives tips on how to achieve 2022 fitness goals

    NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— With quite a few trying to find superior overall health in 2022, a individual coach, former maritime, author, and mentor gives guidelines and tricks on how to achieve your exercise resolutions with or with out a gym membership.

    Emilio Roman served 8 yrs with the United States Marine Corps and experienced some of the military’s major leaders.

    Together with his practical experience in the marines, he has properly trained athletes from the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros and was the former exercise coordinator for the metropolis of Philadelphia.

    Roman has had chances to work with a assortment of diverse people today, he reported he has a passion to assistance people today obtain their exercise aims.

    “The truth is the persons I appreciate performing with the most are individuals like me, the typical joe who is fired up, but just doesn’t know in which to commence.”

    Roman mentioned several persons make problems when it comes to having into a health routine.

    He said a person of the very first blunders he had recognized is people indicator up for a health and fitness center membership, along with everybody else.

    So he recommends people today to get in touch with the health club and check with what the peak hours are, and steer clear of heading for the duration of the busiest situations.

    Roman also mentioned no a person requires a gym membership in order to fulfill their health and fitness plans.

    “Going to the gymnasium is a major production, statistically the regular man or woman has a gym that is 15 minutes away from people’s homes, then one more 15 minutes again property.”

    Roman stated going to the health club can take absent a whole lot of time, and be rough for some people’s schedules.

    He mentioned you can save that time, by executing quick and simple physical exercises in the convenience of home.

    In this article are Romans 5 uncomplicated suggestions anyone can do:

    • Dancing In Spot for 5 minutes No Gym membership, no just one judging or seeking at you although you reduce loose and allow your identity, free spirit and just savor the second in advance of life receives actual again…crank the new music-up and go for it!
    • The Elastic Bands “Celebrities and titness professionals “go-to” for quite a few causes. They are excellent for maintaining rigidity on the muscle tissues without having the strain injury possible of conventional dwelling/gymnasium machines.
    • The Health and fitness BallIs a dynamic device with about 21 Health and fitness center High quality Workout routines with no assisted equipment. It improves posture, core strength, back muscle groups, and all round body tone.”
    • Walking “If walking was superior plenty of for previous Jefferson, it’s good enough for me. Although quite a few might choose to participate in substantial-risk routines like Crossfit and Bootcamps, our bodies are not designed to endure pounding and jumping for way too long with no opportunity Knee, Neck, and Again injuries. Going for walks is perfect and has proven to outperform most fly by night time health and fitness fads. Get to steppin…”
    • GOD’S Gymnasium (Your Body Excess weight) “The armed service and most athletic associations recognize absolutely nothing will ever substitute utilizing entire body fat and right entire body mechanics to increase power, velocity, and stamina to execute actual life do the job. Incorporate and grasp the essential calisthenics and you will get in the best form of your existence without having getting rid of your shirt You may well want to get a new shirt soon after investing some time in operating out.”

    Roman mentioned it is not usually about the depth and more about the day by day motion.

  • Greenville personal trainer Leah Lewis’s health tips for dining out

    Greenville personal trainer Leah Lewis’s health tips for dining out

    Greenville personal trainer Leah Lewis’s health tips for dining out

    Ingesting out has usually been a big part of Leah Lewis’ social life. But as she approached her 40th birthday weighing in at about 250 pounds, Lewis admits that it was taking its toll.

    “I have struggled with bodyweight my full daily life,” suggests Lewis. “I like foods and like going out to try to eat, but foodstuff has normally been my worst enemy. Just after a actuality verify, I ultimately obtained critical and resolved to get command.”

    Ladies entrepreneurs in Greenville: Bake Your Mark and Bloom & Board fulfill their dreams

    Lewis turned to Renew Your Strength nourishment and physical fitness for assistance on reaching her overall health and exercise goals. Within months, she missing 38 lbs ., won a Transformation Challenge, and obtained the self-assurance to maintain going. In total, Lewis has shed 100+ pounds and is now aiding others as a full-time group health instructor and personalized coach for Renew Your Power.

  • Ab Workout Tips for Strong, Ripped Core: Trainer, Bodybuilder Advice

    Ab Workout Tips for Strong, Ripped Core: Trainer, Bodybuilder Advice

    Nutrition is the most important factor

    Rice with beans and chicken.

    Eating a healthy, balanced diet with plenty of fiber and protein is key.

    Getty


    If there was one recurring piece of advice we heard from fitness experts in 2021, it’s this: You can do all the ab exercises you like, but if you’re not lean enough through your diet, your abs won’t show.

    “If you want to see your abs, you have to drop body fat. You can’t spot train,” Noam Tamir, founder and CEO of TS Fitness in New York City, told Insider.

    Bodybuilder Sunny Andrews said getting defined abs is “70{fe463f59fb70c5c01486843be1d66c13e664ed3ae921464fa884afebcc0ffe6c} diet.”

    Hafthor “The Mountain” Björnsson trains hard, but it was only through losing 121 lbs that he first saw a six-pack.

    “Diet is super important,” he said. “You can train all you want and do 1,000 sit-ups a day, but if your diet is poor, you won’t see a six-pack.”

    It’s also important to keep in mind that defined abs don’t necessarily mean someone is fit or healthy, and genetics play a big factor, personal trainer Ben Carpenter told Insider.

     

    You can get a good core workout using just bodyweight

    Luke Worthington 5

    The stretched out position of a dead bug, demonstrated by Luke Worthington.

    Luke Worthington


    You don’t need weights to develop a strong core and build your abs, Sarah Molloy, a trainer at CrossFit Putney in London, told Insider.

    Try dead bugs, single leg V-ups, and Russian twists, or if you’re more advanced, push-ups, pull-ups, and ab-dips also rely on core strength, she said.

    Planks of all kinds strengthen the core

    A man performing a forearm plank.

    Whether on your forearms or with straight arms, you should push-up through your shoulders and create a straight line with your body in a plank.

    Getty


    Actor Henry Cavill said he swears by planks to keep his abs strong, and has done them for years.

    “To make particularly aesthetic abs or a strong core, then yes, planks have worked for me,” he said.

    Cavill does a variety of planks, including standard ones, stability ball planks, planks with shoulder taps, and side planks, he said.

    It’s important, however, to ensure your technique is on point. A common plank mistake is lifting the hips or collapsing through the shoulders, personal trainer Faisal Abdalla said.

    Sit-ups are effective, but don’t add twists

    Hafthor Bjornsson rowing.

    Hafthor Bjornsson complements his sit-ups with cardio and conditioning.

    Thor’s Skyr


    Bjornsson started doing 300 sit-ups a day to build core strength for boxing.

    “Sometimes I do 50 then rest for 30 seconds or do push-ups before doing another 50 sit-ups, and sometimes I do 200 or even 300 straight,” he said.

    It’s a mistake, however, to add a twist to sit-ups, according to Abdalla — you should stick to one plane of movement per exercise to maintain tension.

    Quality over quantity is key

    woman sit up neck pain

    Focus on mind-muscle connection when doing sit-ups.

    Getty/Tom Grill


    The secret to a strong core, flat stomach, and defined abs is focusing on quality over quantity of movements, according to Jennifer Lopez’s former trainer, Johanna Sapakie.

    So while The Mountain may do 300 sit-ups a day, you can still get excellent results by doing fewer reps by paying attention to your movements (which is known as the “mind-muscle connection”).

    “My best advice for a solid core is to do focused, concentrated ab workouts where you are truly aware of what and how your core should be engaging,” Sapakie said. “Just knocking out a ton of sit-ups or reps of an exercise without any thought is a true waste of your time.”

    Compound movements work the core

    Stephanie Sanzo performing a deadlift.

    Deadlifts require core engagement, demonstrated by Stephanie Sanzo.

    Sweat/Stephanie Sanzo


    You don’t need to do targeted ab exercises to strengthen your mid-section — compound exercises like overhead presses, squats, rows, and deadlifts all activate your core muscles to help stabilize and control the weight.

    Compound lifts are more efficient than crunches or sit-ups alone, since you’re tapping into larger muscles groups and burning more calories, Tamir said.

    L-sits and hanging leg raises work the whole body

    A woman doing an L-sit.

    L-sits work the whole body.

    Getty


    For a super strong core, try holding an L-sit using a set of parallel bars. This is one of CrossFit athlete Sara Sigmundsdottir’s favorite core exercises, because they’re so hard, she said.

    “I close my eyes and think I must have done 20 seconds, but it’s only two,” Sigmundsdottir said.

    Similarly, Andrews swears by hanging leg-raises. “It really engages your lower abs, and with some twists you can engage your obliques,” she said.