Everyone wants to follow the latest diet and fitness regime and be in with the crowd, but the fact is that some of the old fitness routines and diet advice are still the best. That said, they could do with an update. We’ve done exactly that to keep you in shape…

Diet Advice

We’re often told to eat more protein in order to build more muscle and that’s true… to a certain extent. What a lot of today’s fad diets and exercise regimes don’t tell you is that your body can only use so much protein, and after that, those extra protein calories are stored as, you guessed it, fat! Sort of defeating the purpose, isn’t it? Aim instead for 20 per cent of your overall calories to come from protein, i.e. 360 calories per day for a 1,800 calorie diet. Good sources of lean protein include chicken, low-fat dairy and broccoli.

Old Fashioned Workouts

We’ve updated some of the traditional exercises, such as crunches, squats and bench presses, to make them even more effective, taking into account the latest research and information…

For a Tighter Butt

• Squats have always been one of the best ways to tighten those glutes but now it’s possible to improve on them. You’re going to need to do hip extensions, as opposed to squats, to make the exercise work even harder for you.
• Hip extensions help to work 79% more of your glute muscle and 55% more of your hamstrings, says the American Council on Exercise.
• You’ll just need to get on your hands and knees, and keeping your knees bent, lift your heel towards the ceiling and then lower it back down again. Repeat 10 to 15 times, before moving to the other side.

For a Toned Midriff

• Crunches have been credited with helping to sculpt a flat belly, but research shows that Pilates’ moves can actually work better. Specifically, a Pilates’ move called the Teaser helps to use nearly 40% of the muscles that give you a six-pack, and a whopping 266% of your love handles. 
• You’ll need to lie face-up on a mat and lift your legs so your knees are bent 90 degrees and your thighs are vertical to the floor. Raising your hands to the ceiling, lift your body and straighten the legs so your body becomes a V shape. Hold for a short while (a few seconds should do) and then release. Repeat this 10 times.

Tone the Arms

• Bench presses were the traditional exercise for toning the arms, and we’re going to use that as a starting point but go on to develop the exercise further. Adopting the traditional bench press pose, which traditionally has your hands shoulder-width apart, you’re going to move those hands in or out a touch to work different parts of your arms.
• Moving your hands inwards works more of the outer part of your biceps; in contrast, moving the hands out a few inches more helps to work the inner biceps. Make sure to change position after each set to gain a balanced tone.