* Mix Up Your Cardio * Aim for 75-150 minutes per week. * Keep your body guessing! Alternate between low, medium, and high-intensity training. * At the gym, switch machines every 10 minutes to keep your body from getting bored. * To scorch calories and tone your legs, glutes, and core, crank up the incline on the treadmill, alternating between 3-15% inclines every minute or so. * Aim to either walk, jog, or run at each level of incline for an extra calorie-burning boost. * Make it fun by going out dancing after dinner (or dance around at home to your favorite music). * Make it social and rejuvenating by taking long walks on the weekends with your friends or your favorite playlist. * Work Your Core * Take a yoga (vinyasa or flow) class to work your core, increase your balance, and learn proper form that can be incorporated into other workout sessions at home or at the gym. * Alternate your core-building exercises between crunches, planks, pull-ups, flat or hanging leg-raises, and pushups. * Try this quick, energizing routine to work your heart and your core: * 30 jumping jacks * 10-20 pushups * 20 leg-raises (while laying flat on your back) * 30 second plank * 20 jumping jacks * 10-20 pushups * 20 crunches * 60 second plank * Repeat this sequence at least 2-3 times (or until you work up a sweat) * Flex your abs throughout the day (pulling your belly button in toward your spine) while driving, working, or running errands. This simple isometric flexing increases your muscle definition, improves your posture, and can even reduce any back strain by letting your muscles carry most of your upper-body weight. * Don’t Skip Weight Training * Weight training builds muscle and increases your metabolism, which keeps your body burning fat and carbs at a steady pace even when you’re not exercising. * Using free-weights incorporates more muscle groups than weight-machines by incorporating your core-balance and range of movement. * Alternate muscle-groups each day, focusing on opposite muscle groups within the same session. * Day 1: Biceps and triceps, lats and pecs * Day 2: Quads and hamstrings, Glutes and hip-flexors * Another option is to work “pushing” muscles on one day and “pulling” muscles on another. * Day 1: Chest, Shoulders, Triceps * Day 2: Back and Biceps