Health & fitness

Monday, April 17, 2017

Flat abs in four weeks

When it comes to your middle, it’s basically all about the stuff you can pinch (fat) and the stuff that can cinch (muscle). We’ve brought together the top research on how to burn the former and firm the latter in one radically simple plan. You’ll get the flat belly you’ve been crunching for in four fast weeks. Minus the crunches.

Getting strong, sleek abs takes the right mix of exercises that work together to tone the entire area. And no one knows better which formula works than Michele Olson, Ph.D., a professor of exercise physiology at Auburn University at Montgomery.

You can trust her: Over the past 25 years, Olson has studied countless abs exercises in a lab using electromyography (EMG) technology to measure the amount of muscle activated by each. The resulting superworkout she crafted exclusively for Shape includes the all-stars—moves that scored off the charts for firming the most muscle fibers per rep.

The best part? Instead of cranking out dozens of crunches, we’re about to make-under your ab routine. For the first two weeks, do two to three circuits of the first four moves; together they hit all four ab muscle groups. “You’ll reach your goal faster if your workout builds on intensity and total reps done over time,” Olson explains. These moves get a little harder and the reps get higher for week three, plus there’s an exercise added in. Same for week four, except this time you’ll add two more moves to your session. By that week, expect two to three circuits of seven moves with the max challenge and reps. No sweat—you’ll be ready.

But regardless of how tight your ab muscles are, they can't erase belly fat that lies above (subcutaneous) or below them (visceral fat). Those you'll have to burn off—and according to Olson's research, the best belly fat-melting method is Tabata intervals. Maximum-effort cardio intervals raise your level of adrenaline, the fight-or-flight hormone that's the secret sauce to burning fat.

How it works:
Toning: Do the toning moves ahead in order for the indicated number of reps and sets three days a week on alternate days. Pay close attention to how the exercises and weight of the dumbbells required progress each week. In week four, when the abs routine is most challenging, do it just twice a week.

Tabata drills: Do Olson's Tabata-inspired cardio workout three times a week: Start with 10 minutes of moderately hard, steady-state cardio of your choice, then do a four-minute round. Complete that steady cardio-and-Tabata combo three times. That's 42 minutes total. In week four, do the Tabata drills just twice a week.

1. Bodyweight Single-Leg Stretch

2. Forearm Spider Plank

3. Balance Chop

4. Sit-Back Twist

5. Double-Leg Stretch

6. Spider Plank

7. Half Boat

8. Side Plank with Twist

9. Quarter Squat Crunch

chest Workout at home

1:19 AM Beauty, Fitness, Health No comments

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to queue for your gym’s sole bench to build chest-cleavage worthy of a 1980s cartoon character. In fact, bench pressing isn’t even the best way to do it. First, some (bro-free) science: your pecs’ main function is moving your arms inward towards each other – since it’s literally impossible to do that while you’re holding a barbell, doing nothing but bench for your chest is going to leave you short-changed.

The solution? Do your chest workout at home. This zero-kit home workout designed by strength and conditioning expert JC Santana and composed entirely of press-up variations hits the muscle fibres in your chest and arms from every direction and uses the optimal number of reps needed for growth. Better yet, you can do it in just a few minutes a day. Bonus tip: spend the time you’ve saved working on your pec-dance during your commute – there’s evidence that working on the mind-muscle connection will help you get on the grow.

How to do it

Do this workout once or twice a week.
Do it 48 hours away from your regular bench day or your regular upper-body workout.
Do all the reps of each move back to back (or with as little rest as possible), rest for two minutes, repeat, rest for two minutes and then repeat one last time.

The Workout

Rotational press-up – Reps 20

Start in a press-up position and lower yourself to one side, twisting as you do so most of your weight is on one shoulder.
Press up, then do the same on the other side. That’s two reps.

Shuffle press-up – Reps 20

Get in a press-up position with one hand ahead of your shoulder and one behind. Lower yourself to the floor and press up. That’s one rep.
At the top of the move, jump or walk your hands into the opposite position, then do the next rep. Continue alternating.

Diamond press-up – Reps 10

For this triceps blaster, position your hands together under your chest so your index fingers and thumbs form a triangle, and lower yourself until your chest touches your hands.
Press back up to the start.

Gorilla press-up – Reps 10

Start in a standard press-up position, lower yourself to the floor and then press up quickly, launching yourself off the floor.
Slap your chest quickly before returning your hands to the start position.

One-leg press-up – Reps 10

Raise one leg, keeping your glutes tight, and do a press-up.
Switch legs and repeat. That’s two reps. Now do the rest.

RECOMMENDED: How to get a bigger chest

More Home Workout Chest Moves

After a few weeks of doing that workout, add variety by switching out some of the moves with these ones. Even if it’s just a slight variation on the move it’s always good to hit your muscles in different ways and from different angles to ensure maximum growth. Some of the moves are performed with the use of a box, but if you don't have one at home just grab anything that will elevate your body when your arm(s) rests on it, a large thick book for example.

Corkscrew press-up

Start in a press-up position but with your hands in front of your shoulders. As you bend your elbows to lower your chest towards the floor, twist your hips to one side and then back the other way, keeping your core engaged throughout. Then press back to the start. Starting with your hands further forward works your shoulders harder, while adding a hip rotation with each rep recruits your core and lower abs muscles.

The Perfect Warm Up

Archer press-up

Start in a normal press-up position but as you lower yourself reach one arm out to the side, resting on your wrist. Return to the start. Repeat with your other arm. This variation tests those small but important stabilising muscles of the shoulder that must work hard to support your bodyweight as you lower then lift your torso repeatedly. It also works your core muscles, which are forced to maintain torso stability with each rep.

Divebomber press-up

Start in a press-up position then raise your hips and bend your elbows. Lower your head and chest down and forwards, moving your torso in a smooth arc to raise your head and chest. Reverse the movement to return to the start position. It works your shoulders hard, as well as your core to maintain torso stability.

Alternating shuffle press-up

Get yourself into the classic press-up position. Move your left hand to the right until both hands are next to each other. Then, slide your right hand further right until your hands are back in the original position (shoulder-width apart). At this point perform a press-up and then repeat the move in the opposite direction. That’s one rep.

Dynamic box press-up

Place both hands on a box in the diamond press-up position (outlined above). Lower your body and press as explosively as you can off the box, so your hands are able to land on the floor with the box placed between them. Immediately lower your body and press explosively up so that your hands land straight back on the box in the position that you started in. That counts as one rep. Watch your chin, though – people have been known to catch theirs on the box mid-rep. Not pretty.

One-arm press-up

Quite self-explanatory this one. Perform a press-up with your left hand on the floor and your right hand supported on the box. Switch over arms and then repeat. Remember that counts as one rep, not two.

Cross-over box press-up

Perform a one-arm press-up with your right hand on a box (or any other raised platform). From the starting position, lift your left hand to beside your right, then move your right hand down to the floor keeping your hands roughly shoulder-width apart. Perform a press-up. That counts as one rep.

Hands-on-box diamond press-up

Once again, fairly straightforward. Perform a diamond press-up but this time keep both hands planted on the box.

trump speech after syria's attack

1:10 AM Home, News No comments

President Donald Trump on Thursday night ordered an attack on the Syrian regime, following the Syrian government’s use of chemical weapons. The president spoke to reporters shortly after the strike, which hit a Syrian airbase reportedly linked to the chemical weapons attack. What follows are Trump’s full comments.

My fellow Americans, on Tuesday, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad launched a horrible chemical weapons attack on innocent civilians using a deadly nerve agent. Assad choked out the lives of helpless men, women, and children. It was a slow and brutal death for so many — even beautiful babies were cruelly murdered in this very barbaric attack. No child of God should ever suffer such horror.

Tonight I ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched. It is in this vital national security interest of the United States: to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons.

There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons, violated its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention, and ignored the urging of the UN Security Council. Years of previous attempts at changing Assad’s behavior have all failed and failed very dramatically. As a result, the refugee crisis continues to deepen and the region continues to destabilize, threatening the United States and its allies.

Tonight I call on all civilized nations to join us in seeking to end the slaughter and bloodshed in Syria, and also to end terrorism of all kinds and all types. We ask for God’s wisdom as we face the challenge of our very troubled world. We pray for the lives of the wounded and for the souls of those who have passed. And we hope that as long as America stands for justice, then peace and harmony will in the end prevail. Good night, and God bless America and the entire world. Thank you.

10 Countries With The Most Beautiful Women

1:02 AM Beauty, Home No comments

We come across countless quotes saying that beauty lies within a person, it lies in the eyes of person looking at beauty. it is actually in the soul and so on. Yet we insist that beautiful are things that seem appealing to the eyes. Here is a list of top 10 countries in the world which are said to have the most beautiful women. Let’s take a look:

10 Countries With The Most Beautiful Women

10. Philippines

The Philippines people are well known for their good attitude and sweetness but there is another side to this country. It has the most wins in the “Big Four International Beauty Pageants”. See the top 10 list of most beautiful Filipina female stars.

9. Britain