Getting My Yummy Mummy On: Tone Up for Summer with David Kirsch

I'm making a public declaration: "I'm taking my body back!" I've been pregnant and/or nursing a baby since September 2007 and I'm ready to claim my body for myself and get my "yummy mummy" on. I started by making some adjustments to my diet (drinking more water, cutting out soda, trading in junk food for fruits, veggies, and nuts, and focusing on lean proteins, good fats, and fiber in my meals), and now I'm working on making exercise a regular part of my routine. 

Maybe you are like me and looking to improve your overall wellness and fitness, or maybe the fact that the warm summer months are  ushering in the arrival of bikini season have you motivated to tone up a bit. Either way, celebrity trainer David Kirsch has tips on how to shape up any problem areas you may have, getting you ready for your debut in that teeny-weeny bikini (personally, I just want to be comfortable wearing my one piece suit without a cover-up)!

Windowless thighs? To get rid of thighs that touch, try David Kirsch’s signature Platypus Walk that will tone and slim your inner and outer thighs.

1. Start in a plie squat position, with your hands behind your head and your thighs parallel to the ground.
2. Waddle forward! Right foot in front of you left, stay engaged in that plie squat. Now reverse… (Make sure your knees stay out and your weight stays back in your heels throughout the movement)

Got a second butt? Slim it down with Sumo Lunges: the perfect butt-shaping, hip reducing, lower half-sculpting maneuver!

1. Stand with your legs shoulder length apart. 
2. Lift your right leg from the knee and move it in a circular roundhouse. 
3. Land out to the side, wider than you started and immediately squat down, channeling a real sumo wrestler. 
4. As you come out of the squat, lift your right leg and kick out, leading with your heel. (Each element should flow smoothly into the next. There are no breaks in a sumo lunge!)

Bird wings? If your arm keeps waving after you do, Diamond Push Ups are the answer to tone and sculpt your triceps.

1. Place your belly on a stability ball and your hands on the floor in front of the ball. Walk your hands forward until you are in a pushup position – depending on your strength, your thighs, shines or toes should be on the stability ball. Whichever you choose, don’t let your hips sink! 
2. Adjust your palms so that your forefingers and thumps touch one another, forming a diamond shape. 
3. Bend your elbows in towards your sides as you lower to the floor. Exhale, and return to start position. Repeat 15 times.

Pooch Abs? Tone up that six pack with Stability Ball Hand Offs that will work your upper and lower abs.

1.       Lie flat on your back, gripping your stability ball on both sides. 

2.       Reach your arms and your legs straight up simultaneously. 

3.       Pass the ball from your hands to your legs. 

4.       Lower your legs and arms simultaneously. Now reverse it!

       **Keep your back flat on the floor

 

I was a little bitty thing (5’5.5 and 115 pounds at my heaviest) before I had my oldest daughter, Peyton. That’s definitely not the case now. I never made it back down to my pre-baby weight and after 2 more babies, I’m nowhere close to it presently. I feel like a skinny person stuck inside a not so skinny person’s body; my vision of myself doesn’t mesh with what I see in the mirror. So I’m working towards getting those two images to match. It may sound trivial or vain, but honestly right now, because of my love of food (and I LOVE to cook; there’s nothing more satisfying than feeding your family a good meal) and the insufficient amount of hours in a day (for exercise) losing weight seems to be my biggest struggle. But I'm on my way to making a change; a journey to becoming a healthier, happier, finer woman-a yummy mummy! And I'd like to invite you lovelies to follow me on this journey. So this is officially the first post in the new Getting My Yummy Mummy On" series. Until next time...

Ciao, XxO

Q

PS- For more tips on how to tone up these problems areas, check out David Kirsch’s Butt Book and Abs & Arms Book.