Flatten Your Belly with This Killer Ab Workout

Get a tight stomach in just six weeks without doing a single crunch. This may be the easiest workout we've ever printed

Get ready to whip off your cover-up: This workout, created exclusively for Women's Health by Rachel Cosgrove, C.S.C.S., owner of Results Fitness in Newhall, California, combines fat-burning cardio with moves that target your entire core rather than individual muscles (wouldn't it be great if there was a magical lower abs workout?), so you'll burn more fat while toning up.

Directions
Do these workout moves three nonconsecutive days a week. Start with the Basic Workout (moves 1-4 at right) to prime your muscles. After three weeks, you'll be ready to graduate to the Advanced Workout (moves 5-8). For maximum fat burning, perform the exercises as a circuit: Do one set of each move in the order shown, resting for 30 seconds between exercises. Then rest for a minute and repeat the circuit from the beginning.

The (15 Minute) Belly Blasting Workout

Even women who are otherwise slender and fit can end up with a belly pooch due to underworked lower abdominal muscles. This workout will tap into the deep abdominal muscles—the transverse abdominis—that pull in your waistline like a corset. Do these moves one after another with no rest in between. Then repeat the circuit so you're performing it a total of two times.

Stability Ball Pelvic Tilt Crunch

The Best Workout Ever: Have Your Own Coregasm

A very fortunate 10 percent of women experience orgasms while working out. Meet one of them.

From Big Ow to Big O

If you think about it, exercise has a lot in common with sex: You get nice and sweaty, a killer playlist makes you want to work harder, a towel always comes in handy, and a tall glass of cold water afterwards feels mighty refreshing. But lately, my workout routine has been mirroring my hanky panky in one very special way: I can't seem to crank out a set of abdominal moves without having an orgasm.


Yes, while most women leave a hardcore workout feeling the Big Ow, lately, my Plank Swipes and Single Leg Stretches have been delivering the Big O. It all started when a friend loaned me her Tracy Anderson Post-Pregnancy Workout DVD; once my OB/GYN cleared me to resume abdominal work following my C-section, I popped that sucker in, laid a towel down on our living room floor, and got to work. The video started innocently enough: an easy crunch here, an impossible pike series there. But about seven minutes in, I noticed this routine was feeling a lot, umm, hotter than most. And it had nothing to do with friction -- it seemed the harder I contracted my abs, the better it felt. Before I knew it, I'd eked out about eight orgasms, while my husband toiled away in the nursery just a few feet away, changing our newborn daughter's ninth poopy diaper of the day.

Benefits of Pilates

When it comes to Pilates, most women either are die-hard enthusiasts or have never stepped foot in a Pilates studio. Are you in the latter group? Tons of research on the benefits of Pilates would suggest you switch camps. Check out the uniquely awesome power of Pilates.

 Benefits of Pilates: It's Ah-Mazing for Your Abs

Pilates hits your core (or, in Pilates speak, your "powerhouse") unlike any other workout. In fact, after completing 36 weeks of Pilates training, women strengthened their rectus abdominis (the muscle responsible for six-packs) by an average of 21 percent, while eliminating muscle imbalances between the right and left sides of their cores, according to a Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise study.

 Benefits of Pilates: It Can Ease Back Pain

A stronger core equals a better back, says Tracy Zindell, Flex Pilates Chicago founder and master instructor. That's why those with chronic lower back pain who practiced Pilates for just four weeks experienced more relief than those who visited a physician and other specialists, says a Journal of Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy study. What's more, their pain stayed away for a full year post-Pilates. Researchers believe that by stabilizing the core's lumbar-pelvic (lower-back) region, Pilates alleviates stress on the area and ups mobility.

How to Banish Belly Bloat

5 Ways to Stop Stomach Bloat

We've all been there: days when you feel as bloated as the blow-up Shrek in the Macy's parade. Okay, sometimes you know that having that third helping of your sister's peach cobbler wasn't the best idea. But when you're eating right and exercising regularly but still can't zip up your skinny jeans, what gives? "One of the main causes of bloat isn't how much you eat; it's eating certain foods that are difficult for your stomach and intestines to digest," explains Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a dietitian in Sarasota, Florida, and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. "These substances then pass into your colon, where bacteria feed on them, producing the gas bubbles that make your stomach swell up." About 20 percent of adults experience bloating, according to one study from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, but "anecdotally that number is much higher. Most women I see in my practice complain about bloat at one time or another," Dr. Gerbstadt says. "The good news is that with some simple diet and lifestyle changes, you can reverse that bloated feeling, fast." Start with these smart tips, which can help you flatten your belly for good.

4 Ways to MakeFitHappen—Every Day

Experts share their tips at FitBlogNYC, where we brought together the top bloggers and trainers in the industry for a day fitness and fun.

A funny thing happens when you fill a room with endorphins, ambition, and fitness buffs: you become majorly motivated. That's how we felt after FitBlogNYC Meet & Tweet, an annual event where we unite the best in the fitness biz to talk exercise, food, and more. Here are some fitspiring highlights from the day.
Make Time for Fitness (It's Easier Than You Think)

Short on time? BeenThere. Consider what's going to give you the most bang for your exercise buck. "Work out smarter, not longer," says celebrity trainer Holly Rilinger, who recommends resistance training with minimal rest in between sets, even if you only have 20 minutes. We suggest these strength-building workouts.
Forget the Haters