Fit 236 Ab Exercises to STOP doing, How to Maintain Motivation and Meal Habits

The next step you need to take to maintain motivation, ab exercises you need to stop doing and what more can I say about nutrition?

MOTIVATION

Since the last podcast, have you determined what you want most and why? If you need help finding your true deep WHY, contact me to schedule a Power Makeover Session.

Once you know your true deep why, then you can examine what is holding you back from getting what you want. That leads us to discover your limiting beliefs.

In the FitnessMakeover workshops [and yes, I am working on a version for an interactive online version for you] we dive deep into this topic! It is by far the most important reason why you self sabotage!

These limiting beliefs are holding you back from achieving your goals. You can have good intentions and the best programs and diets, but if you have what is called “limiting beliefs”, your success is doomed from the start!

What are “limiting beliefs”? They are those false statements that ricochet in your head and sabotage your efforts. They exist on what is called your “belief window.” This is how you view YOUR world. Whether true or false, right or wrong, your belief window has written on it whatever you think and say.

You need to uncover your the layers in your thought process to find your limiting beliefs and then correct them! Even if you know your WHY for exercising, you can still get off track if your belief window is clouded with the wrong messages.

In my book (now available in paperback) Mindset Motivation: Stay Motivated, Get the Body You Want, Live the Life of Your Dreams! I provide you worksheets and guides to help you determine what is on your belief window and your limiting beliefs and devote a few chapters to this topic too.

Some examples of “belief windows” and limiting beliefs:

False Belief: I always fail.

Really? In everything? I don’t think so! Here’s a few things that I guarantee you do successfully everyday:

dress yourself
maintain hygiene
communicate
breathe
read….

I could go on….you see that by globalizing you created a false belief! This is one of the thoughts holding you back from success that you can change! Here’s how to change that limiting belief:
Power Statement: If I don’t succeed the first time, then I have learned what not to repeat. A new strategy can help me improve.

There’s many more we can go through. Listen to the podcast for a few more examples. I’ll do more in future podcasts.

Here’s what I want you to do:
Start listening to your thoughts and write down any negative or non supportive ones. These are most likely your limiting beliefs. Once you recognize these, begin to change them!

TRAINING

Have you tried the new QuickFit Club workouts? Did you laugh when I slipped off the ball? Well I did….slide off and I did laugh! Gotta laugh at yourself….but what is no laughing matter is the amount of people I see in the gym doing the same useless ab exercises that can be potentially harmful!

In previous podcasts, we reviewed how the hip flexors can be the down side of ab training. They can give you a false sense that you are working your abs, when in fact, you aren’t at all!

Guilty exercises such as Full sit-ups, Leg-raising exercises in a laying position both involve and challenge the hip flexors, with limited involvement of the abdominals. This tends to perpetuate the muscle imbalance between the abdominals (they get weaker) and the hip flexors (they get stronger)in ab movements. Of course, the goal of abdominal training is to maximize the involvement of the abdominals, while minimizing the involvement of the hip flexors.

Lets clear up the ab training confusion…..and although I say this, I am sure you will still see many peple in the gym doing these exercises with the stubborn (limiting) belief that they are working their abs!

Exercise #1 standing side-to-side exercise
Many people think that side-to-side (lateral flexion) bending is a good exercise to shape the sides of the body and waist. Some people think this is working the external obliques. This is not true because deeper spinal muscles can perform this exercise much more efficiently than the abdominal muscles. In fact, the primary mover for this exercise, the muscle that is most active during this exercise is the quadratus lumborum muscle, [for more technical info on this subject, click here see reference article] is actually a pure lateral flexor muscle. By the way, the article is by Dr. Len Kravitz, who has studied and researched quite a bit in the fitness industry. I have attended several of his lectures and am always impressed with his knowledge and accuracy!

Now, you may say you feel sore afterwards therefore it works, but the soreness is actually a result of overstretching these muscles and doing the movements too fast. I can’t begin to tell you how many people I see doing exercises too fast! Slow, controlled, movements are important in every exercise and even more so for ab training.

THE BOTTOM LINE: side bends aka alternating lateral flexion of the trunk is an effective exercise for increasing lateral range of motion for the spine. (not trimming the waist)

Exercise #2 standing rotation exercises
Also ineffective for ab training, yet still done! Most of the time, these movements are performed without resistance and high speed. Add resistance to this exercise and you have a recipe for injury! The rotation and speed can cause stress and wear and tear on the spinal vertebrae. Even though health clubs have equipment which offer resistance to trunk rotation and flexion in the upright and supine positions, there is still room for error and potential harm.

THE BOTTOM LINE: rotational exercises are not going to slim the abs. Better off doing ab exercises that work (see previous podcasts).

Another thought pattern, (limiting belief) is:
If you do many abdominal exercises, will you lose additional body fat in the abdominal region.

Here’s a quote from the reference article by Dr Kravitz, “In a landmark study by researchers at the University of Massachusetts, it was conclusively shown that sit-up exercise training does not decrease the diameter of abdominal adipose cells, abdominal subcutaneous fat (skinfold thickness) or abdominal circumference (Katch et al., 1984). Therefore, you cannot use ab exercises to selectively lose abdominal fat. Instead, to reduce fat content at a given body site, your total body fat will have to be altered.” aka you can’t spot reduce!!!!!

NUTRITION
What more can I say about nutrition?

I’ve explained rations, food combining, nutrients, requirements vitamins etc, meal timing. Be honest with yourself..are you still eating salads and skipping meals? If so, smack yourself in the head!

Are you using the “I don’t have time” excuse?

Yes it is cheaper to cook your own foods and you get more to eat when you cook for yourself….calorie for calorie your own fresh meal will be 2-3x the size of a lean cuisine or weight watchers meal.

Sure those are better choices than other things, such as precooked chicken and even some microwave steak fries have numbers close to the real thing. Having a few of these frozen items on hand for emergency isn’t a bad idea, but don’t make it the mainstay of your eating.

This actually brings us back to your limiting beliefs! Do you believe you have no time to cook? Or that you are a bad cook? I’m not great either but at least I can do the basics! And you should be able to as well, its not hard. Making meals flavorful…well another story, but that is why you find recipes to try.

Which leads me to some questions for you: