28 Day Bikini Body Workout For The Body You Have Always Dreamed Of
That adage about diet and exercise being part and parcel to health and a body you can be proud of are, unfortunately, true. Try as we might want to find a magic bullet, this old bit of wisdom is still the best advice for women who are trying to get in shape and build lean muscle.
The thing about a diet is that the word should refer to your overall dietary patterns, not a crash diet of partial starvation. The idea is to make changes that you can stick with for the long-run, otherwise, the results you see will only be temporary.
One of the biggest changes women can make is to reduce the number of liquid calories we take in daily. Most of us don't think about the calories that are in the drinks we consume, but calories they most definitely contain.
If you have a mixed coffee drink, a soda with lunch, and a few glasses of wine with dinner, you could be consuming anywhere between 500-1500 extra calories a day, just in terms of your beverages alone.
Switching to black coffee or herbal tea, drinking water flavored with fruit or sugar-free flavor packets is a great way to ditch those liquid calories without giving up flavor. If you are going to drink soda, consider switching to diet. Also, don’t forget that wine is high in calories and sugar. Choosing white wine and keeping it to a minimum will also help.
Choosing lean protein instead of fatty meats is another great way to reduce your fat and calorie intake while still giving your body the fuel it needs to run properly. Fish and chicken are great choices for protein-rich meat options that are lower in fat and cholesterol than beef and pork. Nuts and beans, as well as other legumes, are also a great choice over red meat.
Another way to help reduce your calorie intake is to do what you can to avoid between-meal snacking. This is one of the areas that most of us struggle with. Those fatty or sugar-laden midday snacks can add to our daily calorie total and we often turn to them because we get hungry after the crash of a fatty lunch. The best way to avoid snacking is to stay full. It is recommended that you eat more frequent, smaller meals, throughout the day, so that you stay full and satisfied, thus reducing your urge to reach for chips or unhealthy candy.
28 Day Bikini Body Workout
Now, onto the workout. This is a 28-day bikini body workout plan that was developed by Guillermo Escalante for Muscle and Fitness magazine.
It is a full-body workout that when followed along with some of the diet tips we described above, makes it possible for you to get that toned, firm bikini body that you have always dreamed of. This is a comprehensive workout routine that gives you a full-body, fat-burning workout that targets the most common problem areas.
This workout routine utilizes both light and heavy weights. Research has shown that alternating between light and heavy weights will maximize fat and calorie burning, making it more effective than simply just using heavy weights all the time.
Additionally, there are both light and hard days. Going back and forth between regular and more intensive routines also helps to jump start the fat-burning power of the body.
It is also important not to overdo it. The body needs time to rest and recover, so this bikini body workout routine provides for one rest day a week. You can choose which day this is, but many people just use Sunday as their rest day. The routine is aimed to combine strength training with cardio in the most effective manner for fat-burning and muscle-building results.
Between lifting days, you will focus on basic cardio. The goal is to get your heart rate to 60-75% of your maximum heart rate and stay there. This means that spinning, using an elliptical machine, or partaking in some other form on basic cardio for about 45 minutes is effective.
You start the week out with light weights, low reps and give yourself breaks between sets of reps.
Monday
Your Monday workout will be light weight training exercises with reps of 10-15 per set for 3 sets, taking 30-second breaks between sets.
Tuesday
On Tuesday, you’ll simply need to do 45 minutes of cardio. No lifting, this is a recovery day for those muscle groups worked the previous day.
Wednesday
Wednesday is your “hard day”. This is when you will use heavier weights (most people go from 5 to 10-pound dumbbells or weight packs). You will also do a higher intensity workout this day.
You will need to power through your set of 10-15 reps and only give yourself a 10-second break before starting the set of reps over. Move through your routine at this higher pace with the heavier weights.
Thursday
Thursday is another cardio day. You just need to get in 45 minutes of basic cardio on this day and you are good to go. Your body needs that rest after the high-intensity training of the day before.
Friday
On Friday, you will want to do a moderate weight training routine. You can go about this in several ways. You can use the lighter weights but do the more high-intensity rep routine where you take shorter breaks between sets.
Alternatively, you can also use the heavier weights but go through the lighter rep count. How you choose to go about this is up to you, but the idea is that you want something a bit more intense than your light day routine, but you don't want something as intense as your high-intensity workout day.
Saturday
Saturday is another cardio day.
Sunday
Sunday is your rest day. There is no weight training nor is there any cardio done on this day.
On weight training days you will have to pick the exercises that you think are best. Consider doing a weighted dumbbell or kettle bell circuit exercise routine.
Conclusion
Ultimately, achieving the bikini body you have always dreamed of comes down to a positive mindset, discipline, and motivation to reach your goals.
Remember to celebrate small victories, enjoy your workouts, and that confidence comes from within. Foster a self-image that will not only make you feel better but will also inspire those around you.
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