Gone are the days of thinking that hundreds of crunches will get you flat abs, now you can get them with simple HIIT moves a few times a week plus lots of clean eating. Even though it has become a cliche statement on Pinterest, when they say “abs are made in the kitchen” they aren’t lying. Before I really jumped into eating clean I always had a flat stomach, but I wouldn’t describe it as toned or defined. Now that I have embraced a clean lifestyle my abs finally have definition and I believe it is due to the lifestyle I have come to know as normal, which is: Clean Plantbased Eating + HIIT Workouts 3 times a week.
UPDATE: I now do Melissa Wood Health workouts in place of Tone It Up workouts 3 times a week, but they could be interchangeable.
I do not work out every day, I do not do crunches every day; there are weekends I don’t work out at all – because I already did my HIIT workouts for the week and am eating so clean I don’t have to. Once I realized that you don’t need to be in the gym every night of the week it was like a lightbulb went off in my head.
HIIT workouts are so intense and such short spurts of energy that you burn so much more than becoming a local gym rat and you have time for other things, like living. Get more information on HIIT and find out my other tips for toned abs below.
HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) //Â Intense bouts of activity followed by less intense activity or rest
I complete an hour-long HIIT bootcamp class at my local gym 2-3 times a week. If I am not able to attend, I do the Tone It Up HIIT workout from their video or the free ones on YouTube >> search for Tone It Up HIIT on youtube as they have a ton of these videos now. During my bootcamp class we do circuits of exercises grouped by movement (Kettlebells, Body Weight, Free Weights, Bosu Ball, etc.), we do three different moves at each station, completing 3 rounds. Between each group you rest for 20 seconds. Once you have completed all groups, 3 times through at each, you complete a cardio which can be anything from jumping rope (the bain of my existence) to running up and down stairs. The class changes every week, but this is a more in depth look at what I do at a class. The HIIT ab moves we do the most frequently in class are: mountain climbers, leg lifts, V-ups with medicine balls and variations of planking.
Now that I am doing the Melissa Wood Health workouts 3 times a week, I realize that the ab movements she uses are the same as those from the bootcamp class I used to do, but hers are slower and more pilates / yoga inspired. However, both workouts are targeting the same spots in your abs so you see very similar outcomes.Clean Eating //
I feel like all I post about on Instagram is clean plantbased eating, but to get toned abs it is so important that you eat clean, non-processed foods. Put crap in, get crap out. I believe that what we eat is 80% of how you look, and the 20% is your workout. When I used to eat whatever I wanted and binge-drank frequently I was still thin (skinny fat), but I lacked energy, couldn’t sleep, had a lower immune system and was missing that glow I longed for.
Since I have transitioned into a clean and lean lifestyle all of these issues have changed. I don’t eat clean to be skinny, I eat clean to feel my best. It just so helps that it also makes you look your best too. It depends where you are on your journey, but all it takes are some minor tweaks to change to a more clean and lean plantbased lifestyle. I am not saying you are going to become raw till 4 overnight, but some ways you can make steps in the right direction are by:
Practicing more meatless Mondays,
Adding greens to your diet every day and
Stop buying processed frozen and packaged foods.
I promise you can change your taste buds and ultimately change your life by adopting a clean eating lifestyle. Not to mention, when you eat clean your abs will seriously thank you for it. For ideas on how to eat clean, check out What I Eat where I detail my plantbased food diaries and what I typically eat.
Water.
Somewhere along the line water got a bad rap and people believe it bloats them. Not true. The more water you drink, the more you pee which releases toxins from your body and then the more your abs can show through. Drinking a ton of water also promotes clear skin, less headaches and better digestion. Try to drink half your body weight in water a day – this is so important. I keep a large tumbler at my desk and try to drink 3 of them during my work day.
The only drinks I have EVERÂ are: water, 1 cup of coffee a day and the occasional cocktail. Replace your crappy drinks (iced tea, soda, etc) with water and I promise you will start to not only look better, but feel better. If your juice isn’t fresh-squeezed, don’t drink it and don’t even get me started on sodas and energy drinks. I see so many women at my gym drinking energy drinks during our HIIT workouts and it’s just adding sugar to your system, which will only slow you down and make you fat.
I hope these tips for toned abs help you. If you have more questions, feel free to ask me anything! xx, Beth
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