Anytime I have seen something that says “Get Slim Fast”, “Get Results Fast”, etc… I’ve always been all over it to see what the deal is. But more times than not, it’s been a gimmick or ad for some weight loss product which to work you still need to eat + exercise regularly! I think we’ve all been looking for that magic pill, but honestly it does not exist. It’s plain + simple – to lose weight we need to eat healthily 80% of the time + get moving (exercise) the other 20%.

So what are the 2 exercises that tone fast?

Here they are- these exercises absolutely will give you results fast!! How do I know? Because I do them myself!

The Squat

Within the first few days you will start to feel a difference (as well as a little soreness if you don’t exercise regularly)! But if you continue to increase your squats every day, you will see + feel the change in your legs fast. They are simple, can be done anywhere + you can spread it out over the day. I currently do 125 squats a day (my goals is 250) but I do 20-30 in the morning while brushing my teeth, another group while watching my soap opera (yes, I still do that; it’s my guilty pleasure LOL) and then another set while I am watching an evening show with the family. The great thing—my kids see me do this, ask questions + see the results so they want to do them to!

 Bicep Curl, Shoulder Shaper + Overhead Raise (Rotate)

Doing arms exercises with handheld dumbbells increased strength + tones fast. Feel free to do all on one day or rotate them, but the KEY Is to do something every day. Be sure to start our slow, especially if you are not currently doing any arm exercises + expect to feel it later in the day. But remember that’s a good thing!!  Start out doing 3 sets of 10 repetitions of one exercise. If you feel you can do more, go for it. I suggest starting with a 3lb set of dumbbells. When this becomes too easy, move up to a 5lb set.

The best part about these exercises? You can do them anywhere, anytime during the day + get results. If anyone saw me walking my puppy late at night in the backyard, yup, they would see me doing squats!! Hopefully this gave you a little laugh, but more so I hope it helps you to get moving + get results!!

As I was getting my morning supplements together—some Turmeric, Magnesium, Iron, Vitamin C + Adrenal Support I realized that it’s been 2 years since I’ve had to go back to bed after the kids went to school. I realized that I am pain free 95% of the time. I realized how much my life has truly changed + I owe it all to the Institute for Integrative Nutrition! Stumbling upon their website during my search to “fix” myself brought me to IIN. I had had it with medicine + side effects. If I hadn’t found a way to heal myself I honestly believe I would still be in bed watching the kids play + sunny days go by without me.

Making that shift in mindset was hard. Instead of thinking “poor me”, “why me?” or “what am I going to do?”- I took action! I was tired of being in bed every day; I was tired of my legs being in severe pain, my joints aching, of dealing with overwhelming fatigue all the time yet insomnia at night. I was miserable, I couldn’t enjoy my kids, my husband, I was gaining weight, I was stressed + couldn’t function—and the kicker, no one outside of my family knew! I was still a room mom, a PTA president + in graduate school plus Mom + wife.  Learning about health + nutrition in a “whole” sense changed everything. Changing my food, my lifestyle choices + how I viewed everything my body + mind are in touch with healed me. And it heals my family too. My boys’ asthma + allergies are the least active they have ever been in their entire lives!This is HUGE!! I am talking no more family in a bubble lifestyle. Instead of wondering what to do with the kids inside with a/c we are taking family walks, hikes, tossing the football + enjoying time with friends outside! We used to live indoors ALL THE TIME-it was so isolating + expensive. I mean literally my children collectively won 2 Wii’s, a PlayStation, a GameCube system, an iPod, a Kindle, Dr. Dre Beats + tons of other chach-kees at various arcades over the last 5 years. That’s a lot of time + money spent on tokens. At least my kids will be world class gamblers later in life with some of the skills they’ve acquired! All humor aside—this transition is amazing.

What I really wanted to write about was how grateful I am for the experiences I have had over the last few years. We see stories about people changing their lives + think “I wish I could do that!” I’ve never considered myself a story that someone might read about + think similarly. But I realized today, I do have a story that will INSPIRE! If I can do it—free myself of years of pain + being reduced to being in bed more hours of the day than not—then you can too! I know it’s hard, it’s scary but you can start making small changes everyday!

I promise you won’t regret it—I sure don’t!!

Have a healthy + blessed day~
Heather