's MOTD Thurs Dec 21, 2006

[Guest guest]

's Daily MessageThursdayDecember 21, 2006

SURVEY SAYS!

When most people write me, they tell me that the area of their bodies that bothers them the most are their bellies, their stomachs, their pouches that make them crouch, their "muffin tops." And, to be honest with you, when I was obese, it was the area of my body that I hated, too.

But I did something about it and I still do them everyday, no matter where I am. We`re talking about sit-ups, here. When I watched TV as a kid, I remember seeing the news clips of all those men in the Army getting into shape.

There would be hundreds of them spread out over a huge open field. First, they would run in place and from there, they`d move on to jumping jacks. And finally, they`d hit the ground, roll over onto their backs and do hundreds of sit-ups! Now I`d try just one sit-up and immediately have an asthma attack!

The reason you have extra fat in the tummy area is that you have eaten too much over the years and "developed" very lazy abdominal muscles. And when you sit in the bathtub, your belly looks bigger. LOL!

The only way to decrease the size of your tummy and waistline is to eat correctly, hit the ground, roll over onto your back and do your ab workouts. I never worked out my abs until I opened Slimmons and researched how to do them correctly and safely. I include a good ab workout in many of my videos and DVDs.

My current DVD, Totally Tonin' (http://www.richardsimmonsstore.com/ ), contains a great, solid abdominal workout at the end. You`ll see that all of the abs movements in it are small and precise. When starting sit-ups, everyone has a tendency to jerk on their heads and neck to pull themselves up. But that`s a no-no. Let your abs do the work and you`ll see the results. If you have a big tummy, you may not be able to see your abs working but, trust me, they are.

Now, here`s the curse of the sit-ups: If you miss even a day, it`s like starting all over. You must do an abs workout daily. The first couple of weeks, your abs will be sore and you`ll want to quit but don`t you dare!

Hang in there with those little devils. Not only will you see your belly go down but you`ll see and feel improvements in your posture, too.

You can only hold your tummy in for so long, you know. So I say get red of it! Start today, crunch away and work those abs during the holidays!

Love,