Here is a GREAT, SAFE, EFFECTIVE and SIMPLE exercise you can do to tighten and tone up that behind!!! You don't need a machine....or any equipment at all! You can do this exercise ANYWHERE! Your living room floor, a hotel room, any place you have floor space to lie down! Focus on building up to 3 sets of 25 reps and you will feel your butt BURNING!!!! Start slow,with 1 or 2 sets of 10 if you are a beginner. Go up slowly (do not use your low back! Squeeze your butt at the top and hold for 3 to 5 seconds, then slowly lower to floor. Repeat! Happy Butt Bridging!!!

Combine frozen peaches and protein powder for a sweet, creamy lean muscle building benefit!

Peach Power Whole Food Shake

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 cup frozen peaches
1 scoop of vanilla whey protein powder (whole foods market has the BEST, cleanest organic ingredients that is minimally processed)
1 tablespoon unsalted almond butter
1/2 tablespoon pure raw maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2-3 ice cubes

Place all the ingredients in a blender and mix till smooth.  Add more ice as needed to get desired consistency.
Nutritional facts: calories, 306, total fat 13 grams, protein 26 grams, carbs 25 grams, fiber 4.5 grams
YUMMY!!!!

Going to the gym without eating first??? Here is a new incentive: A study published in the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport showed that women who ate a high-protein meal an hour before their workout burned more calories per minute than women who ate a low-protein meal or no food.  The additional calorie burn amounted to 185 calories over the following 24 hours & could add up to a 15 pound weight loss within a year! Happy Eating!

When you want to achieve it all - fat loss, lean muscle maintenance and improved metabolism, your nutrition becomes a VERY important part of the equation: cardio work, strength (weight training) and diet.  After all, anyone can lose weight by drastically cutting calories.  But that doesn't mean it is the best (in fact, that is the worst!) & most effective strategy for losing body fat (and keeping it off!) Severe calorie restriction leads to a loss of muscle tissue and water weight. This means its easier to add body fat when you return to your normal eating patterns. Three crucial tips are all you need to know to get the most from your daily diet: body fat loss, lean muscle maintenance and metabolic support.

1. Only cut calories moderately - You should only reduce your calorie intake about 20% below your baseline for body weight maintenance.  That means an active woman who consumes 2,000 calories a day should consume no fewer than 1,600 calories per day.  The good news is that you will keep muscle, lose body fat and you won't starve yourself, either.

2. Eat multiple small meals per day - Taking in six meals a day will help you in multiple ways.  First, it will keep a steady stream of nutrients in your body.  Second, it will help keep you from feeling hungry.  Third, it will rev up your metabolic rate so you burn more fat round the clock! Tidbit: It will also help you burn more calories because digesting food takes calories! It's called the thermal effect of food.  The more often you eat, the more you burn. That explains why the flip side, eating only one meal a day, leads to body fat storage, as its starving and holding on to that food for fat storage.

3. Consume more fats and protein - Fats provide satiety, and protein gives you amino acids that help prevent muscle-tissue breakdown.  In addition, consuming protein also boosts metabolic rate, increasing your body's ability to burn body fat.

HAPPY LOSING!!!