Who should use Burst Training?
Since high intensity is the key to bursting, only those in decent health who can push themselves really hard should practice burst training.  Always consult with your doctor first.  (I have to say that, don’t I?)

What is Burst Training?
Burst training, also referred to as surge training, is a form of interval training where you exercise at maximum intensity in short bursts of 30-60 seconds followed by a recovery period of about 2-5 minutes. The intervals are repeated for 15-30 minutes. (Sure as heck beats an hour of cardio!) Maximum intensity means you should push as hard as you can and should be out of breath at the end of the interval.  Recovery means your heart rate and breathing should be back to normal and your muscles should stop burning.   

Where do you Burst Train?
Now here’s a cool thing about burst training… You can pretty much do it ANYWHERE! The activity itself doesn’t matter as much as the intensity level, so if you want to do jumping jacks in your living room or sprint down the street, it’s all good. Any multi-muscle exercise performed while maintaining good form will achieve the goal.

Why Burst Train?
To burn fat!! ‘Nuff said? Short burst training burns a maximum amount of calories during exercise and also continues to burn fat calories long after your workout is complete. Oh… And of course, it takes less time than traditional cardio exercise.

When should you Burst Train?
You can burst train whenever it fits into your schedule, which should be a lot easier now that you have shorter workouts. The average recommendation for frequency of burst training is every other day. This gives your body a change to recover completely from your workouts and keeps you from over-training. 

I’ve given this short burst training thing a try. It really kicks your butt!  I always feel like I’ve had a better workout than when I do longer exercise sessions.  Not only that, but I get it done quicker and don’t have time to get bored.  Try it!

First, you must realize that you can NOT spot reduce. Fat burning occurs throughout the body, not in a specific spot. You have to slim down your entire body to slim down your thighs. BUT you can focus on firming, slimming and tightening your problem areas while you burn the fat. And that can give you those thinner thighs you are looking for.

One theory of working out without bulking up is to work the same muscle group for consecutive days. Yes, this is contrary to what you’ve heard before about alternating muscle groups when weight training, but that advice is given to men looking to increase muscle mass and avoid injury while training so hard. (This article is not about weight training or increasing muscle mass.) Just think about dancers or runners and the hard thin thighs they have from doing the same daily workouts and you’ll realize that it works. Just be careful not to overdo it and hurt yourself.

Here are a few exercises you can do at home, that if done correctly and consistently can help create thinner thighs:

Basic Squats – Place your feet hip-width apart, tighten your abs and slowly lower yourself like you are going to sit down in a chair, until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Keep your chest lifted and keep your knees over your toes. Slowly return to standing.

Wide Squats – Do the same motion as the basic squat, but with your legs in a wide stance and your toes pointing slightly outward.

Reverse Lunges – Keeping your torso straight, step one foot back about 18 inches. Bend both knees until your front leg is parallel to the floor and your back knee almost touches the floor. Keep your weight on the heel of your front foot.  Using your back leg, push back to a standing position. Repeat with the other leg.

Tap Lunges - Similar to the reverse lunge, but as you bend your knees, lean your body forward and tap the ground with your hands.

Side Lunges – Step wide out to the side with one leg and bend that knee until your thigh is parallel to the floor. Keep your other leg straight.

(Check out this Thinner Thigh Workout video for a demonstration of the above exercises.)

Freestyle weight training, Pilates and Yoga are also recommended exercises to strengthen and tone without adding bulk. These exercises have the benefit of working more than one muscle group at a time.

Also remember to vary your workout once your body has gotten use to it. Your body will adapt to your routine approximately every four to eight weeks, which could cause your to hit a plateau. Mixing things up keeps your muscles alert and keeps the fat burning.

Slim in 6 is a home fitness series from Beachbody and Debbie Siebers that uses “Slim Training” to help you lose weight and build lean muscle without bulking up. Over the course of six weeks, you gradually increase the duration and intensity of your daily workouts starting with the Start It Up video of 25 minutes, progressing through the Ramp It Up video of 48 minutes, and finishing with the Burn It Up video of 59 minutes.

This program includes excellent documentation on how to best utilize Slim in 6, how to eat healthy, and how to stay motivated. It emphasizes the fundamentals of exercise, building muscle, stretching and eating right in order to lose weight the healthy way. The exercise routine itself is very thorough and targets every major muscle group of the body. There will be no doubt in your mind that you are getting a good workout!

Once you get used to the routines, you might want to turn off the music on the DVD and crank up your own. By the time you’ve done a few days with Debbie Siebers, the “three more… two more… one more” may start to become really annoying. Six weeks is a long time to do anything repeatedly and getting bored with the routine is a possibility.

On a personal note, I found the exercises to be a little hard on the knees. So, it’s important to go slow, watch your form and use the provided modifiers. Push yourself to get great results, but be honest about your fitness level so you don’t get hurt.

Even with making adjustments to the Slim in 6 program I lost 8.5 pounds, a total of 7 inches and one pant size during the six weeks. My friend said I was “shrinking before her eyes”. I continued to lose more weight and another full pant size after I completed the program because I had sped up my metabolism so much. I was also stronger and had a much higher level of endurance then before I started the program.

Slim in 6 is hard. It requires dedication and a strong commitment, but it’s worth it. It does what is says it will do. If you follow the program, you will see definite results.

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So with Summer right around the corner again, so many begin thinking of ways to get in shape for “more revealing” clothing. From tank tops to shorts to bathing suits, it is the time of year we all tend to show more skin. So of course we prefer to be trim and tone. Every Spring we look for ways to achieve this. Though we all know it can be done at any time of year.

There are many health benefits to belly dancing. Belly dance is an exercise that tones and strengthens all the muscles of the body while building flexibility (especially in the hips, spine and rib cage). It also builds arm strength, improves posture, aids digestion, and relieves stress. This dance is known as a “muscle dance” as opposed to a “step” dance. This makes it low-impact, so it is easy on the joints and a good exercise choice for women of all ages.

Belly dance can also help prevent back problems. The back muscles are evenly used as are the muscles around the rib cage. This allows for a strong back while promoting good posture helping to prevent back problems.

By learning to undulate or, roll your stomach, you strengthen the muscles that aid in digestion. These muscles also aid in child birth. The hip moves and shimmies help to strengthen the pelvic muscles which also aid in pregnancy and childbirth.

Other health benefits include muscle control, mind-body coordination, increased balance, mood elevation, a sense of grace, and core conditioning. Belly dancing also benefits the heart. While performing belly dance you will not only tone and stretch your body, but you will also sweat a bit giving you a cardiovascular workout. It can burn over 300 calories an hour once you learn all the moves and really get into all out dancing. This can aid in weight loss. Besides these benefits it has also been shown to increase ones self esteem and body image. Because of it’s ability to achieve this it is a good choice of exercise for teens.

Belly dance offers many health benefits. It is definitely a total body workout. It would seem that with all of it’s benefits, that practically every woman could benefit in some way from this dance form. It can even aid in weight loss and heart health.

About the author: Suzanne O’Brien (Sakkara) has been dancing/teaching belly dance for 25+ years and offers video belly dancing lessons at bellydancingchick.com. Although her videos are not intended for those wanting a cardio workout right away, they do provide a slow, basic and methodically broken-down training for the total beginner/newbie who wants to learn it as the artform it is. A real dance.

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If you haven’t seen the midnight commercials for this product, you are either from another planet or you go to bed really early. Don’t worry. Neither of those disqualify you from starting this program. P90X requires a lot of commitment and determination. I definitely suggest doing a little research before you start to see what you might be getting yourself into. P90X is for people who are already in good shape but are looking to take it to the next level in some way.

The P90X program has 3 levels you can work – Classic, Doubles and Lean (I call it Lean and Lovely). The Classic is for all around muscle gain and weight loss. Doubles seems to be for people who have to get in shape quickly. And Lean is for people who don’t want to gain a lot of muscle but are looking to tone up and gain some definition. P90X comes with a food program but I met a few people who didn’t follow any food program and still saw reasonable results. P90X and Insanity, which is also made by the Beach Body company, are 2 programs that work you so hard, unless you are eating fried chicken all day, you will still lose weight and look pretty good.

I was asked to highlight the benefits of this program from a woman’s perspective since it seems like such a “manly” program or a program geared towards muscle gain. P90X really gives you the ability to create a high intensity program that works for you. The best part of P90X is the fact you can do it at home anytime. For those of us who have to travel for our careers, you can also load the program onto a memory card or stick to take with you so you don’t miss out on a workout. I also feel P90X is a great program to use for women who were active before or during a pregnancy to help with removing the extra baby weight after delivery. For the women who are concerned about “bulking up,”  choosing the “lean” program will give you the chance to tone up and build a reasonable amount of muscle and strength without looking like a WWE wrestler.

The main component of every workout program is dedication and commitment. If you are dedicated to following P90X at least 3 times a week, it will work for you. I look forward to reading about everyone’s P90X experiences and seeing the before and after pictures.

Article submitted by: Season Price, CEO of WhatBoxConsulting.com and ProMobileOffice.com