5 Things That Are Killing Your Sexy
It's time to shape up and strip down.... Summer is upon us! Be careful that you are not sabotaging yourself by doing these 7 things...
1. You’re Confused about how to workout
Cardio is good… then cardio is bad… then oh wait now it’s good again (AHHH!). What are you suppose to believe these days?
To be honest this is how I workout: I like to get my workouts done in less than 30 minutes.
That means I have to make that 30 minutes count. What do I mean by that? I mean I do really intense bouts of exercise with little to no rest in between sets.
This is called high intensity interval training (HIIT).
I know, I know, this word is overused! BUT, it does work.
You can create a HIIT program with any sort of exercise, including cardio workouts such as running, swimming, cycling, or rowing, as well as full-body strength routines.
For example, yesterday I did this quick workout (mind you I only had 20 minutes!):
Jog in place x 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Mt. Climbers x 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Jumping jacks x 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Burpees x 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
Squats x 20 seconds
Rest 10 seconds
REPEAT (3-4 cycles or as long as your schedule permits!)
2. You Don’t Count Enough Sheep
Are you getting enough ZZZ’s? The American Journal of Epidemiology stated in a recent study “that women who slept five or fewer hours per night were 32 percent more likely to experience major weight gain over 16 years than those who got more sleep.”
In addition, the New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center found that women who got four instead of eight hours of sleep actually increased their ghrelin levels. As ghrelin is an appetite-inducing hormone, these women consequently consumed more than 300 extra calories a day (most notably from the “bad” type of fatty foods).
Pro tip: Put down your cell phone before bed and pick up a book instead! All that artificial light in the evenings is getting your brain all jazzed up before bed!
3. You’re Hooked On The Bubbly
I’m talking SODA here! Overly sugar infused regular sodas are packed with empty calories, which is obviously not something you want when trying to lose stubborn fat.
However, even regular soda’s evil twin sister diet soda isn’t doing you any favors either! According to a 2012 study in the Journal of Obesity, both regular AND diet soda was associated with increased waist size, BMI, and total percentage of fat! We won’t go too much into detail about the diet soda dilemma… but I am sure you know that artificial sweeteners are the culprit!
Pro tip: Cut the soda… DUH!
Grab some sparkling water with lime instead!
Caffeine fiend? Opt for green tea or yerba mate.