Workout and Diet Advice for Women over 45

This is the second in the series of posts I call “Tips from the Road”.   They were inspired by my extended travel during July, when one business trip started just as another finished.  And while my regular workout schedule and time were disrupted, I got ideas for exercise and or diet, which I thought would be great to share.

There are occasions when I just could not get to a gym (time or circumstance left me feeling a little frustrated in my hotel room).  Perhaps I had only 15 to 30 minutes – which is not long enough to drive to a nearby gym – and the alternative is to use the bike/stairstepper/treadmill in what passes for a “fitness center” at the hotel, and then do some abs in my room.

You’ve now moved beyond the basic plank from previous posts (or you were already doing the Plank anyway).  Here are some more interesting and more advanced Core exercises.

These will help you to flatten your abs; work the core beyond your sixpack – such as the obliques (see the side plank); and also make you focus on balance (see the lunge in 1.)

1.        Lunge with Rotation

lunge rotation

Going back to basics.  I thought it would be a good idea to present some basic exercises – and the best place to start is with the Core.  Building a strong core is indispensible – for weight training and all other forms of physical activity.

I will do periodic posts in this series of basic exercises, and each time I will make sure to note that it is the “next in the series” so anyone interested can build their own set of exercises from the posts.   Some will come from outside sources (where I find just the perfect photo to demonstrate) and some I will develop with my own photos.

I have had personal trainers for short periods occasionally over the years, and I have been a personal trainer.  I have seen what works and what doesn’t work from both sides.  I am also a keen observer of current personal trainers when they are training others.

The title of this post comes from a sentence in an article on abs from a guy with really great abs.  Yeh, I know there are a lot of hot guys with great abs – see the plethora of calendars, online and offline, making the rounds now that 2010 is in sight.  You haven’t seen them? Maybe I can find some links to help you out.  In the interim – our focus is on our own sixpacks!  Or on our journey there.  The “hot guy” contends we all have Sixpacks!