1. Ditch the split

Hitting the weight room with a list of 20 arm exercises in hand is a little daunting. While body-part splits (targeting a different body part each day at the gym) are helpful for bodybuilders working to sculpt their bodies before a competition, they are unnecessary for the average woman. If you’re trying to fit in weight training with other planned workouts, it’s much simpler to do 2-3 days of full-body lifting each week. By using compound lifts that work your whole body, you can usually get out of the gym in under 45 minutes. And if you lift on a Mon-Wed-Fri (or similar) schedule, you’ll still have the rest periods you need for muscle to recover and grow.

2. Maximize your cardio with High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

Once or twice a week (and no more than that!), try swapping a longer cardio workout for some HIIT. This is a great way to get in a really intense fat-burning workout when you have 30 minutes or less to spare. HIIT can be done at the gym (on a treadmill, stepmill, elliptical) or at home or outdoors with almost no equipment. A basic HIIT routine on a stepmill might look something like this:

• 5 minute warmup
• 60 seconds high intensity stepping at near maximum effort
• 90-120 seconds low intensity for heartrate recovery
• repeat high/low intervals for up to 20 minutes
• 5 minute cooldown

You can also check out this infographic for different styles of HIIT.

3. Add a workout you really look forward to
Your options are endless here. For me, it’s a yoga class with my favorite instructor, but for you it might be a long run, a spin class with an awesome playlist, or a Friday night Zumba party. The key is to make sure that your routine includes something fun to look forward to. Finding an activity that calms your mind or energizes you will benefit both your physical health and your stress levels. You don’t have to do the most complicated routine in a magazine or the trendy new gym class if you don’t enjoy it. If hiking or a game of tennis with a friend makes you feel good, then get out there and do it!

What do you do when you’re fed up with your workout routine? I’d love to hear some new ideas, so feel free to share in the comments!

It’s Friday! I’m sharing some weekend (or unproductive Friday afternoon at the office anyway) reading about women’s fitness. These are links I’ve seen tweeted on @StrongBride or have read on my favorite blogs. I hope you enjoy the links and your weekend!

How to Track Progress - @SteveKamb at NerdFitness offers a very thorough approach to tracking your progress. He offers tips on how to track food intake, workouts, and weight loss (by ditching the scale!) Remember the fitness mantra: what gets measured gets improved!

The Secrets of Fit People - @MizFitOnline, blogging here for FitStudio, reveals the “secret formula” that all fit people know. Clearly, you won’t want to miss it!!

What’s Holding you Back with Weights? - @WorkoutNirvana busts some more weight training myths for women.

It Might not be your Back - A great reminder that low back pain isn’t always what it seems. I had low back pain from age 16 until I started lifting about 10 years later. Weak glutes are common for almost everyone with a desk job and learning how to strengthen and activate them can relieve lots of back pain. The exercises described in this video are extremely beneficial.

Fitness magazines are always trying to let you in on their special weight loss secrets. But the magazine industry has 5 secrets that they don’t want you to find out about. Fitness magazines can be great for keeping you motivated or coming up with new ideas, but always keep a clear head about what they are really trying to sell you.

1.    You don’t have to do complicated exercise routines

Unfortunately, many brides panic in the face of a looming deadline and begin their married lives in a very unhealthy state. You want to avoid restrictive and unrealistic diet plans when prepping for your wedding day.

There’s nothing wrong with being inspired by your wedding day, but make sure it’s for the right reasons. It’s far more important to be a healthy bride than to weigh what you did at senior prom. Here are some safer strategies.

If you wait until the last minute, have realistic expectations.

It’s great to get a big head start if you’re trying to lose weight before your wedding, but that doesn’t always happen. So if you’re feeling like you’ve waited too long to start, remember that you can make the choice to be exactly where you are now on your wedding day, or you can be a little healthier and leaner. The most weight you can safely lose per week is 2 pounds, and 1 pound is even more realistic. Even if you only start one month out, a smart diet and healthy training plan could put you 5 pounds closer to your goal.

Don’t be too restrictive with your diet.

If your 90-day diet says no pizza, soda, ice cream, or bread, you can bet that your first few weeks of married life will be spent drinking coke floats at the pizza parlor. As with any new diet, it’s best to start making sustainable lifestyle changes instead of a radical overhaul. Start adding greens, reducing sugar, and upping your protein instead of going on the cabbage soup diet. Sure, you might have lost a few extra pounds of water weight on the extreme diet, but a sustainable plan will help you keep the weight off for years after your wedding.

Find a fitness routine you can stick to.

Don’t let your pre-wedding fitness plan exhaust you. The last thing you want is to feel run down and fatigued on your wedding day. If you push yourself too hard leading up to the wedding, you’ll want to quit exercising as soon as the event is over. Instead of setting a 90-minute timer on the treadmill every day, find a routine of things that you enjoy. If you plan a balanced routine of healthy activities, you’ll want to keep it up when you’re back from the honeymoon. For a healthy balance, think of mixing up weight training, cardio, yoga, pilates, and outdoor activities like biking and hiking. Remember that it’s important to take rest days and that an intense 30 minute workout is more effective than a lazy hourlong routine.

Another good approach is to set a fitness goal that isn’t wedding related. Find a race to run a few weeks before the wedding and train for that instead of just running to burn calories. Or if that’s not your thing, set a personal strength goal like working your way to 5 chin ups or doing a push up challenge.

A wedding is a great reason to be motivated, but there’s no reason to stop there. Your health, much like your marriage, isn’t all about your wedding day; it’s the rest of your life.

The cheat meal, cheat day, and cheat weekend are all familiar obstacles to brides following a wedding day diet. While it’s important for all diets to have some wiggle room, there are a few problems with the “cheat” system. The emotional drawback is that cheating has a negative connotation. The physical drawback is that too many cheats can derail a week of hard work.

Cheater’s Guilt

You’d feel guilty if you cheated on a test or on your husband, so don’t feel surprised when you find yourself feeling guilty about pizza night. Guilt is a dieting no-no because it leads to self-sabotaging emotional behaviors. Emotions (positive and negative) should be kept far away from your eating habits. A cheat of any size is never a reason to punish your body by binging or by starving yourself.

I find that “treat” works a lot better because, hey, you deserve to have a treat every once in a while! It’s also best to stay mentally aware while indulging in a treat. By acknowledging that your treat is allowed and deserved, you won’t have any reason to punish yourself.

Cheaters Gone Wild

Now that you’ve recognized that you’re deserving of a treat, let’s do a quick reality check. Treats are great, but they can derail your weight loss efforts when done incorrectly. A Monday to Friday diet with crazy weekends won’t net much of a calorie deficit (it may even create a surplus). Even a full treat day can quickly get out of control. The safest strategy is the treat meal. Make sure that your treats are foods that you truly enjoy or you may find yourself fighting the urge to treat yourself again the next day. You may find that as you adopt healthier overall eating habits, your definition of a treat may change. As long as you are enjoying the meal and taking time to not worry about your diet, then the treat meal is working for you.

Treats are an important part of all diet plans. If the plan you’re currently following doesn’t allow you to have a night or two off, then it’s probably too extreme. There is always room to treat yourself as part of a moderate diet.

Clear your Mind

You won’t see any of these myths on magazine covers, but these are implied myths. We absorb these from the media and general negative body image discussions. We hear them so often, that we begin to believe them ourselves. It’s important to  make sure that your mind is as healthy as your body, so let’s set some of these myths straight right now.

1. The point of diet and exercise is to be skinny – Being skinny does not mean being healthy. Skinny is often “skinny fat” in disguise. Some women are genetically more likely to be skinny and some aren’t. Just remember that fighting genetics is a losing battle. Being active, eating nutritious foods, and adding muscle are things you can do regardless of your frame size and body shape.
2. You have “good” days and “bad” days – I’ve never heard a man say that he’s been “bad” when it comes to diet. I wish “good” and “bad” would be removed from the diet lexicon. Food is fuel for your body, so as long as you’re not malnourished, you’re doing well. It’s best to take the emotions out of it. I know that’s easier said than done, but I can recommend some helpful books if this is an issue for you.
3. You should feel guilty after doing something bad – Guilt often leads to sabotage. Acknowledge when you’ve been skipping workouts or gone off your eating plan and then move on. With a positive attitude, you’ll be able to pick up right where you left off.
4. When you do something bad, you should eat ice cream – Any “bad” day can be salvaged. You polished off a pepperoni pizza for lunch? It’s not the end of the world. There’s no reason to spend the rest of your day wallowing in guilt and a bucket of ice cream. Just because lunch wasn’t a huge success, doesn’t mean you can’t provide your body nutrients for dinner.
5. When you do something good, you should eat ice cream – Try not to let food be an incentive for reaching diet and fitness goals. I’m all for treating yourself, but a new pair of shoes or a massage are safer motivators than a banana split. Making food a treat just reinforces emotional attachments. Being healthy and taking care of your body are good rewards also!
6. When you do something bad, you should stop eating for the day – This is the worst option. I know you may be able to salvage your daily calorie count goals by skipping lunch and dinner after eating too many donuts for breakfast, but this is a dangerous habit. Never get your body or your mind started on a binging cycle. After an unplanned “cheat” meal, it’s best to go back to normal, healthy meals for the rest of the day. Skipping meals punishes your body.
7. Diet and exercise are all or nothing  - This attitude is a guarantee for failure. Life happens and it’s ok to slip up or take breaks (planned or unplanned). A smart plan is to make healthy lifestyle changes. As long as you’re generally taking steps in the right direction, it’s ok to be thrown off course every once in a while. Don’t let any routine or strict diet plan make you feel like a failure because you weren’t “perfect” 100% of the time.
8. The scale is the only way to measure progress – Your weight in pounds isn’t the most accurate measure of your success. First of all, it doesn’t take all of the health benefits of diet and exercise into account. But even allowing for some vanity, looking in a mirror and the fit of your clothes are better measures of progress. Maybe you weigh the same because you’ve lost fat and are gaining muscle, but I guarantee you will look better naked and your clothes will fit better.
9. A certain diet and exercise plan can make you look like Jennifer Lopez/Madonna/Kim Kardashian – Not unless you happen to be one of their sisters. No diet or routine can make you look like someone else. It’s better to spend less time trying to look like a celebrity and more time trying to look like the best possible version of you.
10. You can lose 10 pounds in a week (or even 5) – You might do this (especially if you have a lot of weight to lose), but it isn’t fat loss. Eliminating carbs and salt can cause you to lose water weight rapidly, but once you return to old habits, you will gain it back. It is more realistic to expect to lose between .5 and 2 pounds per week with diet and exercise. Don’t let sensational magazine headlines and supplement marketing materials make you feel discouraged by your “slow” progress. That slow, steady weight loss is sustainable and you just might keep it off for the rest of your life! Always keep your expectations in check and be proud of your accomplishments, no matter how small.

1. 1,200 Calories = Weight Loss – I’m not sure where the “magic number” of 1,200 calorie diets started. The reality is that every woman is different. Your daily caloric needs depend on your height, weight, daily activity level, and goals. But even a short, petite woman can usually stand to eat more than 1,200 calories a day. It is always best to lose on the smallest deficit possible. If you go straight from 2,500 calories to 1,200, your body will eventually adapt to only receiving 1,200. You will eventually plateau and then you won’t be able to lower your calories any more.
2. You have to go low carb – Definitely not. It works for some but not for everyone. If counting calories alone hasn’t worked, it’s ok to start experimenting with going lower carb to see if you can reduce body fat. But never eliminate carbs entirely; they are necessary for fueling your brain and muscles. Eating low carb should never mean cutting out nutrient rich foods like fruits and vegetables. A sensible low carb diet will eliminate empty carbs like sugar, white flour, and other processed foods.
3. You have to go low fat – This is rarely a good idea. Dietary fat makes us feel full and satisfied. Healthy fats are an essential part of a healthy diet. Make sure you’re getting fat from sources like fish, avocado, olive oil, flax seeds, and coconut oil. Remember that all of those “low-fat” packaged foods typically swap sugar for fat so that the product still tastes good. When you see “Low-Fat” all over the package, be sure to read the label to see what you’re getting in lieu of fat.
4. Drinking more water will make you lose weight – First, let me say that I’m definitely pro-water. But, it’s not really a weight loss tool. This really only works if the extra water is replacing caloric drinks like soda and juice. If you’ve already eliminated those from your diet, don’t expect to lose weight just by drinking a gallon of water a day.
5. Just eat yogurt – I’m all about yogurt (especially protein packed Greek yogurt), but it isn’t some ladies’ diet secret. Eat it if you enjoy it, but remember that yogurt and dairy companies pay for those TV commercials instructing you to eat it. This myth really applies to a lot of foods (acai berries come to mind right now): there is no miracle weight-loss food.
6. Just do a cleanse – Completely unnecessary. Your body knows how to cleanse itself (I’ll spare you the details). No 3, 7, or 14 day “cleanse” is going to help you lose weight or look and feel any better long term.  The best cleanse is to eliminate processed foods from your diet and to focus on nutrient dense and fiber filled foods.
7. Protein shakes will help you lose weight – Protein shakes are helpful tools in the fitness world, but not necessarily for weight loss. I read about women complaining that they’ve been having a protein shake for breakfast every day and haven’t lost weight yet. Protein is essential for muscle growth, but be sure to check labels before assuming it’s designed for weight loss. Some bottled shakes are loaded with sugar and some powders are targeted at men who want to gain weight.  Protein does help you feel full longer, but it doesn’t have to come in a powder. Meat, eggs, and dairy will do the job too.
8. Eating fat makes you fat – Only true if your fat intake puts you in a caloric surplus. Eating too many calories causes weight gain, not grams of fat. You can eat a fat-rich diet and lose weight as long as you remain in a caloric deficit. For your health, it’s still important to make sure you are eating mostly good fats.
9. Do a detox to jumpstart your diet – There is no need to do anything special to jumpstart a diet. A detox is not sustainable and you will gain back any lost weight very quickly as soon as the detox ends. The best way to start a diet is to start right away by making sustainable changes. Can you imagine eating only egg whites and grapefruit for the rest of your life? Then don’t bother wasting 28 days doing that either. Can you imagine eating less processed food but more greens, fruit, and lean protein? Exactly. The best diet plans are healthy lifestyle changes.

Seek the Truth

There are lots of myths and fuzzy logic about women’s health and fitness. So many, in fact, that I decided to divide my women’s health myths post into 3 categories.

Today we’ll kick things off with myths about women and training.

1.    Heavy weights make women bulky– Number One for a reason! Women don’t bulk on accident and there’s no reason that we can’t lift heavy. Even (non-steroid-using) men who are eating extra calories and have more testosterone have to work hard to gain muscle mass.

2.    Muscle weighs more than fat – Remember being tricked by “which weighs more: a pound of bricks or a pound of feathers?” when you were little? (No? Just me?) Well, this is the same concept. Muscle doesn’t weigh more than fat. It does, however, take up less space than fat. So losing a pound of fat and adding a pound of muscle will make you look smaller, even though you may weigh the same.

3.    Lifting weights turns fat into muscle – Nothing turns fat into muscle. You can burn fat and add muscle but that’s about it. Be careful, though, because if you diet too much without lifting weights, you will burn both fat and muscle. This is what results in being “skinny fat.”

4.    Women should lift low weight/high reps – This is part of the toning myth. Lifting heavier weights for low/moderate reps is more effective and will build strength while producing visible results more quickly.

5.    Women should do more isolation moves – There are certainly men guilty of this too, but so many women think that they need to do every single-muscle machine at the gym. Most gyms have several machines each for triceps, biceps, shoulders, chest, quads, hams, glutes, etc. There is no reason to take the time to do this when you could focus on compound lifts. And for all of my Strong Brides, don’t you have a wedding to plan? Why waste your time doing 40 reps of 5 different triceps exercises. Try doing pushups instead.

6.    Women shouldn’t lift weights – I tend to hear this from men who are trying to flirt with women by making them feel like delicate flowers. Um, no thanks. We’re not lifting weights to satisfy some gym rat’s taste, women need to lift weights to be healthy—it’s great for strengthening bones and helping with signs of aging.

7.    Women should only use machines (or: Free weights are for men) – Why should we lift any differently? Machines are generally not the safest way to train because they put your body in an unnatural fixed plane of motion. I say ditch the “ladies area” of your gym that only has 1-5lb dumbbells and ab machines and go join the boys in the free weights area.

8.    Women should squat on the Smith Machine­ – Danger! No one should squat on the Smith Machine. Women tell me that they use it because they think it’s safer or that they’re too intimidated to use the squat rack. Well it isn’t safer and you shouldn’t feel intimidated in the gym! Smith Machines force your body into a fixed plane of motion (see above). It’s best to use less weight and do a true back squat with a barbell. As a bonus, the instability caused by using free weights strengthens your core!

9.    Women need personal trainers – Well, not more than anybody else does. Some personal trainers gain clients by making female gym members feel helpless. I rarely see male personal training clients at my gym (though that’s partially an ego thing, I’m sure), and I think it’s because the trainers know they can’t prey on them. You’re a woman and you may be inexperienced, but you’re not stupid. Trainers can be great, especially if you take the time to find one who is a good match for your goals. But don’t let a trainer scare you into paying for his services. There are plenty of ways to ensure that you lift safely. Read books, follow training plans, and watch videos online to study form.

10. The triceps kickback is the holy grail of weight lifting – I’m not sure why women think this is the only way to get toned arms. Or why there is a need to do this exercise everyday (never a good idea); it’s just one muscle being worked here. If you already have low body fat and are very strong (if you have been lifting a long time or have bodybuilding goals), then they can be a good way to get your triceps to look more defined, but that’s rarely the case for a beginner. Make some strength gains that benefit your whole body (arms included) first.

11. Yoga and Pilates will make your muscles longer – Let’s just say that if this were true, I wouldn’t be 5’0” anymore. I think these are both excellent complements to weight training, but nothing can lengthen your muscle.

12. Crunches will give you a flat stomach – Again, wouldn’t we all just crunch all day long until we had flat stomachs? Having a strong core is important, but crunches aren’t the best way to do that. Strengthening your core has nothing to do with flattening a flabby stomach. Which leads me to…….

13. Spot Reduction – It does not exist. Crunches won’t give you a flat stomach. Lunges won’t get rid of the fat on your thighs. Triceps pulldowns won’t get rid of “batwings.” The only way to lose fat on your tummy/thighs/arms is to lose fat all over and hope that it comes off of your trouble area. Unfortunately, trouble spots are usually troublesome for a reason: they are the first to gain fat and the last to lose it. Diet is the best way to lower body fat.

14. Keep your heart rate in the “fat burning zone” on cardio machines – Cardio equipment at the gym sometimes has a little sign on it that lists target heart rate zones by age. These are usually divided into “fat burning zone” and “cardio zone.” The fat burning zone is typically a very low number and not high enough to produce fat loss results. Most machines use an outdated formula for calculating target heart rates. Remember that with exercise, you get out of it what you put into it. There’s no reason in wasting an hour on the elliptical if you can still carry on a cell phone conversation while you’re doing it. By putting in the effort to keep your heart rate elevated, you’ll burn more calories.

15. Do steady state cardio for as long as you can – There’s really no reason in doing steady state cardio for more than an hour (unless race training dictates it). For health benefits, 30 minutes of heart pumping cardio has plenty of benefits. For fat burning, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) gives better results. There’s also no need to do it every day if it’s not something that you enjoy.

16. More is more when it comes to weight training and cardio – This myth is dangerous and can sabotage your results. For weights, remember that muscle grows during rest days (as torn muscles repair and rebuild). For cardio, HIIT and tabata training can produce better results in less time. There’s no reason to risk burnout because you feel you’re “supposed” to spend lots of time on machines. Training is for your health and sometimes your body needs a break!

We’re just getting started here at “Myth Week,” but if you have any questions or need any myths dispelled, please ask away in the comments!

“How often should I weigh myself?”

This is different for everybody, but I find that weighing every day doesn’t work for most people. If you have any kind of past or current emotional eating habits, weighing every day can cause obsessive tendencies. Some days you will just weigh more for any number of reasons. For a lot of women, seeing the scale go up is depressing and discouraging. There is no accurate way to track weight gain trends on a daily basis. Weighing once a week works best for me, but I know plenty of women who weigh monthly or even less frequently.

“When should I weigh myself?”

Once you’ve decided if you’re a daily, weekly, or monthly scale checker, it’s best to stay consistent. If you are comfortable with weighing every day, do so at the same time of day. You will generally weigh less (sometimes a few pounds) first thing in the morning than in the evening after you’ve eaten. It doesn’t really matter what time, although upon waking would be the most consistent because you would typically have an emptier stomach. If you weigh weekly, aim for the same day of the week and same time of day. For monthly weighers, stick to the same time of the month, especially as it relates to your cycle. Don’t weigh yourself mid-cycle one month and then right before you start your period the next. Actually, I generally recommend never weighing yourself right before your period because who wants to have to acknowledge those few extra pounds?

“I’ve been tracking my weight and it looks like I gained 3 pounds on Monday, lost 2 on Tuesday, and gained 1 back today! My diet hasn’t changed, what’s wrong?”

Nothing is wrong! Take a deep breath. This is why daily weigh-ins can be a bit stressful. Unless you truly had a massive eating session (probably more than you could comfortably stomach), you won’t gain 3 pounds of fat in one day. Similarly, no amount of dieting done in one day will cause you to lose 2 pounds of fat. And fat gain and loss is what we really care about, right? The daily fluctuations are typically water weight. These little changes can be caused by: muscles retaining water (typically when starting a new routine), being near or on your period, salt consumption, stress, and bowel regularity. I typically don’t worry about weight gain until it reaches the 3-5 pound mark AND it has lasted more than a couple of weeks. So if I weigh 122 on Wednesday and 125 on Saturday, I won’t sweat it (it’s probably from Friday’s salty pizza). But if I weigh 122 today and weigh 125 this weekend, 124 in 2 weeks, and 125 a month from now, then I’ve probably been too loose with my diet and really gained the weight.

“I don’t have a scale/ I threw my scale out/ I don’t want to become obsessed with a number…how can I make sure I’m not slipping?”

My favorite method is a technique I like to call Stand Naked In Front Of The Mirror. SNIFOTM isn’t complicated! Am I looking firm or soft? How’s the stomach pooch? Again, this isn’t so reliable if you do it every day. In fact, my tummy is usually flattest the morning after happy hour (because I’m dehydrated from the liquor). But if I take a good look every so often, I can tell if some fat is being “replaced” by muscle. Lots of women go by how their clothes fit or by taking measurements.

A final note about weight goals

Please remember that there are plenty of non-aesthetic ways to track progress too. You can run a mile farther than you could last month? Success! You’ve added 20 pounds to your squat? You’re definitely improving your muscle strength! I find that goal-based training often leads to the best aesthetic results. It’s like your body can perform better when your mind isn’t worried about a certain weight or thigh measurement. Find a goal that works for you. Some of mine (that resulted in health and visual improvements) were: run a 5k, run 5 miles, do unassisted chinups, squat my bodyweight, gain flexibility through yoga. For you, maybe it’s improving your mile time, perfecting your serve in tennis, or completing a century bike race.

I would love to hear your thoughts on weighing and what works for you. Also, please feel free to use the comments as an open thread for sharing your performance related goals!

She'll take as many as she can carry

Functional strength is a hot term in the fitness industry. Today on the TVs at my gym, I saw a tidbit claiming that functional strength training exercises are not complicated (true) and can be performed with equipment like a BOSU ball, resistance bands, and TRX equipment (what?!). Since I was reading this while panting resting between sets of back squats, I was a little more skeptical than usual. What about a BOSU ball is functional or can be replicated in everyday life? This got me thinking about the fundamental strength training moves that make a functionally strong bride.

Functional training usually just requires a barbell. Almost every weight machine has a better, safer free-weight alternative. And every overly complicated isolation move targets a muscle that can be more simply targeted in a compound lift.

Bridal Situation - Hoisting your heavy carryon bag into the overhead bin as you head out on your honeymoon
Functional Move - Military Press
Dysfunctional Move - Light shoulder presses on a BOSU ball.
The Difference- I say light weights because when doing any weight training on a BOSU ball it is only safe to use light weights. Using heavy weights would be dangerous as your body is not in a natural, stable position. The ability to press 5 pounds while standing on a wobbly surface probably won’t come in handy too often. However, being able to hoist 40 pounds of luggage overhead (as you do in military press) will ensure that all your cutest bikinis make it to Playa del Carmen.

Bridal Situation - Bending down and picking up all your heavy wedding presents (really, who wraps a vacuum cleaner?!)
Functional Move - Deadlift
Dysfunctional Move - Hip Adductor/Abductor Machine
The Difference - Deadlifts target your hamstrings, glutes, back, hips, and even forearms. That’s pretty impressive results for such a “basic” lift. Ever heard anyone say “lift with your legs, not with your back?”, this is exactly what deadlifting reinforces. It is a true full-body powerhouse. The hip adductor/abductor machine, however, is viewed by the fitness industry as a waste of time. I have read interviews with gym owners who admit to buying the machine only to attract female clients. Since you can’t spot reduce, this machine isn’t going to do anything to shrink your thighs. Unfortunately, it’s not going to do much of anything else either.

Bridal Situation - Dipping it low on the dance floor for 6 hours (and counting)
Functional Move - Back Squat
Dysfunctional Move - Leg Press
The Difference - We squat all the time in our everyday activities, but we rarely (never?) lie on our backs and push a heavy weight away from us using our feet. Need proof that squatting is natural? If you’ve ever spent time with babies and toddlers, you’ll see that they spend lots of time in the bottom position of a perfect squat. The barbell back squat is the simplest and most effective way to strengthen your quads and butt. That added muscle will add hours to your time spent pain-free on the dance floor at the reception.

Full disclosure, there are certainly plenty of other moves besides these 3 that are safe and extremely effective for getting in shape before your wedding. Push ups target most muscle groups and are (or should be) a weight training staple, but they aren’t exactly a natural motion. So don’t limit yourself to just these 3 lifts, but do remember that even though some personal trainers and magazine articles may make you think otherwise, simple lifts that replicate real life motions are often the best.