Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.

in the garden of delights..

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Photography & Art

..art comes from suffering..

Youth is happy because it has the ability to see beauty. Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.

The deepest definition of youth is life as yet untouched by tragedy.

Easy Ways to Cut Calories

1. Spread 1 tablespoon of all-fruit jam on your toast rather than 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter.

2. Replace 1 cup of whole milk with 1/2 cup of nonfat milk.

3. Eat 2 poached eggs instead of 2 fried eggs.

4. Replace 1/2 cup of granola with 2 cups of Cheerios.

5. Instead of using whole milk and eggs to prepare 2 slices of French toast, use nonfat milk and egg whites.

6. Snack on an orange and a banana instead of a Snickers candy bar.

7. Munch on 35 pretzel sticks instead of 1 ounce of dry-roasted peanuts.

8. Replace 1 cup of sweetened applesauce with 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce.

9. On your lamb-and-vegetable kabob, replace 2 of the 4 chunks of meat with fresh whole mushrooms.

10. Dip an artichoke in 1 tablespoon of low-fat mayonnaise instead of 1 1/2 tablespoons of regular mayonnaise.

11. Steam your asparagus rather than sauté it in 1 tablespoon of light butter.  (What i do for steaming,is that i only put one tiny drop of oil and as its steaming i add water)

12. Instead of a 5-ounce glass of wine, opt for cherry-flavored sparkling water.

13. For a chewy snack, have 1/2 cup of dried fruit rather than 9 caramels.

14. Replace 3 slices of bacon with 3 slices of Light & Lean Canadian bacon.

15. Eat a Lender's egg bagel instead of a Sara Lee egg bagel.

16. Select 1 cup of home-style baked beans instead of an equal serving of baked beans with franks.

17. Replace 2 biscuits with 2 dinner rolls.

18. When making a sandwich, use 2 slices of Roman Light 7-grain bread instead of Pepperidge Farm wheat bread.

19. Eat 1/2 cup of steamed fresh broccoli instead of 1/2 cup of frozen broccoli in cheese sauce.

20. Make a burrito with 1/2 cup of fat-free refried beans and 1 ounce of nonfat cheese instead of the same amount of traditional refried beans and cheese.

21. Replace an apple muffin with a high-fiber English muffin.

22. Reduce a typical serving of chocolate cake (1/8 of a two-layer cake) by one-third.

23. Switch from 1 cup of whole-milk hot chocolate to 1 cup of steamed 1% milk flavored with a dash of almond extract.

24. Replace 1 cup of caramel-coated popcorn with 2 1/2 cups of air-popped popcorn.

25. Switch from 1/2 cup of yogurt-covered raisins to 1/2 cup of plain raisins.

26. Snack on 1 cup of nonfat plain yogurt instead of 1 cup of custard-style yogurt.

27. Top your celery sticks with 2 tablespoons of fat-free cream cheese instead of 3 tablespoons of regular cream cheese.

28. Replace 2 fried-chicken drumsticks with 2 roasted drumsticks and a cup of peas and carrots.

29. Instead of eating 5 chocolate-chip cookies, savor the taste of 2.

30. Lighten your 2 cups of coffee with 2 tablespoons of evaporated nonfat milk instead of 2 tablespoons of half-and-half.

31. Replace a 12-ounce can of cola with a 12-ounce can of diet cola.

32. Thicken your cream sauce with 1 percent milk and corn starch instead of a roux of butter and flour.

33. At the appetizer tray, choose 4 fresh raw mushrooms instead of 4 batter-fried mushrooms.

34. Use 2 tablespoons of fat-free sour cream instead of regular sour cream (on baked potatoes or in stroganoff). If done twice in the day, 100 calories will be cut.

35. Reduce the size of your steak from 4 1/2 ounces to 3 ounces.

36. Grill a cheese sandwich with nonstick cooking spray instead of margarine.

37. Replace 1 cup of chocolate ice cream with 2/3 cup of nonfat chocolate frozen yogurt.

38. Snack on 2 ounces of oven-baked potato chips instead of regular potato chips.

39. Instead of topping your salad with an ounce of croutons, get your crunch from 1/4 cup of chopped celery.

40. Instead of 1 cup of macaroni salad, eat 3 1/2 cups of spinach salad with 2 tablespoons of low-calorie dressing.

Exercise In The Morning!

Some mornings, you may just be able to fit in a 10 minute walk, but it's important to try to do something every morning.

So why mornings?...

1. Over 90% of people who exercise *consistently*, exercise in the morning. If you want to exercise consistently, odds are in your favor if you exercise first thing in the morning.

2. When you exercise early in the morning, it "jump starts" your metabolism and keeps it elevated for hours, sometimes up to 24 hours! That means you're burning more calories all day long just because you exercised in the morning!

3. When you exercise in the morning you'll be *energized* for the day! Personally, I feel dramatically different on days when I have and haven't exercised in the morning.

4. Many people find that morning exercise "regulates" their appetite for the day...that they aren't as hungry and that they make better food choices. Several people have told me that it puts them in a "healthy mindset"

5. If you exercise at about the same time every morning... and ideally wake-up at about the same time on a regular basis, your body's endocrine system and circadian rhythms adjust to that, and physiologically, some wonderful things happen; A couple of hours *before* you awaken, your body begins to prepare for waking and exercise because it "knows" it's about to happen...why? because it "knows" you do the same thing just about everyday. You benefit from that in several ways...

a) It's MUCH easier to wake-up. When you wake-up at different times everyday, it confuses your body and thus it's never really "prepared" to awaken.

b) Your metabolism and all the hormones involved in activity and exercise begin to elevate while you're sleeping. Thus, you feel more alert, energized, and ready to exercise when you do wake-up.

c) Hormones prepare your body for exercise by regulating blood pressure, heart rate, blood flow to muscles, etc.

6. For many people, that appointed time every morning becomes something they look forward to. It's time they've set aside to do something good for themselves...to take care of their body and mind. Many find that it's a great time to think clearly, pray, plan their day, or just relax mentally.

7. Research has demonstrated that exercise increases mental acuity... on average it lasts four to ten hours after exercise! No sense in wasting that while you're sleeping. :)

8. Exercise first thing in the morning is really the only way to assure that something else won't crowd exercise out of your schedule. When your days get hectic, exercise usually takes a backseat!

9. If finding time to exercise is difficult, anyone can get up 30 to 60 minutes earlier to exercise (if it's a priority in your life). If necessary, you can go to sleep a little earlier. Also, research has demonstrated that people who exercise on a regular basis have a higher quality of sleep and thus require less sleep!

10. You'll feel GREAT! DO IT! :)

Tips From a Star Trainer

Source: AOL,by Myatt Murphy

When Hollywood's biggest names want to get in shape, they turn to fitness expert Michael George. Here, the sought-after trainer reveals the top tips he gives his star clients to help them slim down and stay lean for the big screen.

The Rainbow Method
Prior to working with George, Reese Witherspoon's eating habits were generally healthy but lacking in fruits and vegetables, which are loaded with water and filling fiber. George suggested Witherspoon start eating one or two servings of fruits and veggies from each of six color groups: green, red, blue, purple, yellow and orange. Since each color is packed with certain vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, the combo ensures getting every nutrient needed.

Increase the Cardio
In between filming 'Spider-Man' movies, Tobey Maguire put on a few pounds and looked to George for help before shooting the third installment. His assessment? Too much strength training in his fitness plan and not enough of a cardio component: George recommended starting with a bare minimum of 20 minutes of cardio three times a week and working up to 30 to 45 minutes of moderately intense cycling, running and stair climbing five days a week. After just a few weeks on this regime, Maguire's weight came off and he felt energized for his first day of filming.

Mini Meals
Before teaming up with George, Julianne Moore tended to eat large meals. The problem with that? Filling up on heavy meals raises your blood sugar, which causes your body to release insulin and store any excess calories as fat. His advice to Moore: Cut your meals by 30 percent, then make up for those missing calories with between-meal snacks. Eating more frequently keeps her feeling full, her metabolism stoked, her energy high and her blood sugar levels steady.

Rethink Carbs
Meg Ryan has always been a healthy eater, but changing when she ate her carbs is what helped her weight become a non-issue. Rather than ban all high-glycemic carbs (ones that are high in sugar), George suggested she eat moderate- to high-glycemic carbohydrates earlier in the day (either during breakfast, a mid-morning snack or lunch), then taper off her carbohydrate intake so that her last few meals of the night were made up of mostly protein, healthy fats and some type of low-glycemic carbohydrates (like a serving of broccoli, green beans, spinach).

Watered Down
When client Christian Slater was looking to drop a few pounds, George's first tip was to have him drink more water than usual. Though the general rule of thumb is to drink eight glasses of water (roughly 64 ounces) a day, George prefers his clients drink at least between 64 and 100 ounces a day. This easy-to-do diet trick is often ignored, yet it's one of the fastest all-day ways to boost your energy levels, plus help curb your appetite by allowing you to stay fuller for longer periods of time.

Protein Power
Sela Ward went to George looking for ways to get in shape and stay energized on the set. After poring over her routine, George realized Ward's diet was lacking in protein and too high in carbs. Eating a snack or meal of pure carbohydrates delivers a quick increase in energy, followed by a crash. Having some protein with your carbs, such as nuts or fish, helps the body release sugar more steadily so energy is consistent throughout the day. Some snacks he recommended for Sela: 10 to 12 almonds with a medium-sized pear and turkey and provolone wrapped in lettuce.

..I know this was a loong post,but that's it.I promise =)

Thinspiration

..weird eyes=)

Stay Strong!

Food isn't more important than being thin and happy.

"Wanting something is not enough.You must hunger for it.Your motivation must be absolutely compelling in order to overcome the obstacles that will invariably come your way."

Eating Out the Healthy Way

Whether you're on the road, in an airport, or in your neighborhood, you'll find that nearly all restaurants offer healthy choices for discriminating diners. When eating out, you can almost always find a nutritious salad, grilled chicken sandwich, or cup of soup that will satisfy your hunger without excess calories. (Just watch out for "all you can eat" buffets that tempt you into eating more than you should.)

At restaurants, "have it your way" -- ask for the food to be prepared the way you like it. And be picky when scanning the offerings at parties, picnics, or barbeques. When eating with friends at a party or a picnic, your best bet is bring a healthy dish to share. That way, you can be sure there's something nutritious for you to eat.

Experts offer the following tips to help you make the most nutritious and healthy choices when you're eating out:

• Have sauces served on the side.
• Choose light salad dressings or vinaigrettes, served on the side.
• Go for foods that are baked, broiled, roasted, grilled -- any preparation other than fried is the best choice.
• Select broth-based soups.
• Have tomato or vegetable toppings on pasta.
• Go easy on the cheese.
• Limit bread, chips, or whatever is in the basket while you await your meal.
• Order fresh fruit or fruit sorbet for dessert.
• Choose grilled chicken or lean meat sandwiches.
• Hold the french fries; substitute a side salad (easy on the dressing).
• Skip the casseroles unless you know what they contain.
• Choose simply prepared foods without lots of extra ingredients and calories.
• Enjoy as many simply prepared vegetables as you like.
• Keep portions small.
• Avoid mindless hand-to-mouth eating.
• Enjoy a salad and an appetizer in place of an entree, or take home half your meal for tomorrow's lunch.

Snack Attack!

Got cookies? How about chips? Chips, cookies, ice cream, candy bars, and crackers are the most popular snack foods. It comes as no surprise that they are generally our higher calorie, higher fat or sugar snack choices.

Do you feel guilty when you get a snack attack? You are not alone. Snacking has gotten a bad rap in the past but it isn't the act of snacking that gets us into trouble, it's the type of foods we tend to snack on that quickly puts us into fat and calorie overload.

Actually, eating smaller, more frequent meals/snacks can be particularly helpful. Small meals/snacks eaten about every 2 1/2 to 3 hours tend to translate into more stable blood sugars throughout the day. When you graze instead of gorge, you avoid extreme hunger and tend not to overeat at any one meal.

Our 2 Biggest Snack Mistakes

Mistake #1
We choose calorie dense, high-fat/sugar snacks that, while they have a lot of calories for a relatively small amount of food, aren't satisfying in the long run (such as candy bars and chips). Aren't we still hungry after we eat a small bag of chips or a 2 ounce candy bar? Was that 320 calories well spent?

Mistake #2
We choose high-carbohydrate snack foods (such as pretzels, bagels, or apples) that go through the digestive tract fairly quickly, staving off hunger for only a short amount of time. If we balance our quick carbs with some protein and some fat, the snack will be more filling and satisfying and will take longer to get through the digestive tract.

To snack and lose weight, it's important to choose snacks that:

• are higher in fiber and important nutrients. Whole grains, beans, and fruits and vegetables contain fiber plus nutrients, and low-fat dairy and lean meats contain important nutrients, so your snacks aren't just contributing "empty" calories (calories without nutritional value).
• include carbohydrates with lower glycemic indexes (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and nuts) so the energy from the snack won't hit your blood stream quickly and all at once, thus triggering another craving when it wears off.
• are balanced with small amounts of protein and some of the more heart-helpful fats such as monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids. These more balanced snacks tend to feel more satisfying and filling, take longer to digest, and supply energy over a longer period of time. Plant foods such as nuts and seeds, soy foods, avocados, and olive and canola oils offer these helpful fats, and the nuts and soy also offer protein to balance carbohydrate-rich foods

The Snack Attack Plan

So, let's make a new Snack Attack Plan, shall we? To do this, we don't necessarily need to trade all of our Chips Ahoys in for carrot sticks or our carton of ice cream for a carton of yogurt. We can start by making smarter snack choices most of the time. Here are my 10 tips on how you can do this each day:

Tip 1: Soluble Fiber to The Rescue!

Foods rich in soluble fiber make for great snacks because soluble fiber leaves the stomach slowly, encouraging better blood sugars and making you feel satisfied longer. Here are some possible snack ingredients that are high in soluble fiber:

• peas and beans (make a quick bean dip in the microwave with some vegetarian refried beans or have some cooked "edamame" soybean pods ready in the refrigerator)
• oats and oat bran (make a batch of oatmeal flavored with low-fat milk, a little vanilla extract and cinnamon in the microwave -- or freeze a batch of blueberry oat bran muffins so you can grab one when you need a quick afternoon pickup!)

"We don't necessarily need to trade all of our Chips Ahoys in for carrot sticks or our carton of ice cream for a carton of yogurt. We can start by making smarter snack choices most of the time."

• some fruits (apples, peaches, citrus, mango, plums, kiwi, pears, berries)
• some vegetables (artichokes, celery root, sweet potatoes, parsnips, turnips, acorn squash, brussels sprouts, cabbage, green peas, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, asparagus, beets)

Tip 2: Eat Slow-Release Snack Foods

The following foods, even in large amounts and if eaten alone, are not likely to result in a big rise in blood sugar. (Remember, we don't want food to hit your blood stream quickly, otherwise you're just going to feel hungry again shortly after.)

These are based on the American Journal of Nutrition's international table of glycemic index and glycemic load values. (Glycemic load considers the glycemic index of a food and the grams of carbohydrate that a reasonable serving size of that particular food contains)

• meat
• poultry
• fish
• avocados
• salad vegetables
• cheese
• eggs

Tip 3: Go Nuts!

An ounce of nuts is a perfect healthy snack. An ounce of most nuts will add about 170 calories, 7 grams of carbs, 6 grams of protein, and 15 grams fat. (The higher amount of fat in nuts will take longer to digest and will help the snack seem more satisfying.)

• hazelnuts and almonds are lowest in saturated fat
• macadamia and hazelnuts are highest in monounsaturated fat (this is a very good thing)
• pistachios and macadamia nuts are highest in fiber (about 3 grams per ounce)
• walnuts have the most omega-3 fatty acids (also a very good thing).

Tip 4: Calling All Yogurt Fans

A container of light fruit yogurt (low fat and with artificial sweeteners) is a great snack at work or on the go. A 7-ounce container has about 13 grams of available carbohydrate and a glycemic index of 20, adding up to a glycemic load of only 2! Remember Tip #2 about the benefits of slow-release foods? Add some fresh fruit, ground flaxseed, or reduced-fat granola to yogurt to make a fun snack parfait!

Tip 5: Portable Fruit

Fruit can travel well in your car or briefcase and come in handy for a quick pick-me-up, many offering just enough carbohydrates with a nice dose of fiber. You can make a more balanced snack by enjoying your fruit with cottage cheese, yogurt, or some cereal and milk.

The following fruits have a low glycemic load (5 or less per serving):

• Cherries, glycemic load of 3 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Grapefruit, glycemic load of 3 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Kiwi fruit, glycemic load of 5 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Oranges, glycemic load of 5 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Peaches (fresh or canned in juice), glycemic load of 4 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Pears, glycemic load of 4 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Plums, glycemic load of 3 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Cantaloupe, glycemic load of 4 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving
• Strawberries, glycemic load of 1 per (4 1/4 ounce) serving

Tip 6: Get Your Whole Grain Snacks

The latest research suggests that people who eat whole grains have the lowest incidence of diabetes. They appear to increase the efficiency of insulin so that less is required to metabolize the sugar. (Lower levels of circulating insulin are believed to help discourage weight gain.) Use snack time as a time to work in some whole grains!

Tip 7: Eat Your Veggies

Cut up fresh, raw vegetables and serve them with a light ranch dressing, or with peanut butter, reduced fat cheese, or cottage cheese. Look past the basic salad greens and baby carrots and try jicama sticks (a refreshing, crispy white root), zucchini coins, bell pepper rings, or lightly cooked and chilled snow pea pods or green beans.

Tip 8: Try Trail Mix

The dried fruits in trail mix give you some fiber and carbohydrate calories, but the nuts help round the snack off with protein, fat, and some more fiber. (Tip: Stay away from those that include ingredients such as sesame sticks or dried banana chips that may contain trans-containing hydrogenated oils. If you choose a trail mix with chocolate chips or M&Ms, just make sure there is just a sprinkling).

Tip 9: Don't Shovel Down Your Snack

Snacks need to be eaten slowly, too, just like meals. Don't forget that it takes 20 minutes for your brain to get the message that you are full. Give that message time to work before you decide the snack didn't do the trick. Make a point of enjoying a flavored mineral water (the unsweetened, no-calorie kind) at the same time. This will help you eat the snack slower, too.

Tip 10: Don't Make Your Snack a Meal

Snacks should be around 150-200 calories -- just enough energy to tide you over until your next meal but not so much that it contributes as many calories as a meal.

Try half of a whole-wheat bagel toasted with a slice of reduced fat cheddar instead of the whole bagel (160 calories vs. 300). Or try a cup of minestrone soup instead of a big bowl for a snack (150 calories vs. 300)

THINSPO TIME

FIN!

Here's the link to my new personal page:  http://le-petite40.xanga.com/

They always say time changes things,but you actually have to change them yourself.  -Andy Warhol-

The Smoothie Diet for Weight Loss

How Does the Smoothie Diet Work?

Breakfast the most important part of the day. It is the time when the metabolism kicks starts for the days calorie burn. The trouble is most people leave their breakfast meal filled with quick burning carbohydrates, which leads to snacking only a few hours later and a huge onslaught of unneeded calories. The diet breakfast smoothie is created from whole fruits and yogurts and soy or whey proteins that help to start off the day with a increase in calorie burning power.

The method of combining just the right fats, proteins and natural fibers helps the dieter fights the urge to eat later in the morning. The stomach feels full straight through lunchtime, eliminating the extra calories consumed during those mid morning snacks.

At the heart of fighting the hunger is the diet smoothie recipe. The slow metabolizing carbohydrates offer a blood sugar balance that keeps hunger away. There are no quick burns and crashes like those experienced with the more traditional high sugar, high simple carbohydrate breakfast choices. When glucose or blood sugar levels are balanced, hunger is kept at bay allowing for quicker weight loss results.

The Smoothie Diet and Other Diet Plans

The Smoothie Diet can be incorporated into many of the most popular diet plans being tried today. The You on a Diet smoothie is a very popular choice as is the Smoothie King diet. The easier a diet plan is to follow, the more apt the dieter is to stay on the plan. The key is to find a power diet smoothie that tastes great and keeps the dieter felling fuller, longer.

Diet smoothie drinks are just the first stage of the Smoothie Diet. As the body becomes more accustomed to the fiber and healthy nutrient levels, there will be natural diet changes that take place. The dieter will like the feeling given by these healthy green Smoothie Diet drinks and will choose to add more and more of these same types of foods to other meals throughout the day.

Smoothie Diet Daily Menu Plan

When you choose the Smoothie Diet, you will be choosing a huge range of healthy foods. A sample menu may look like this.

* Breakfast

Jump-start your metabolism with a protein rich fruit and yogurt shake.

(Sample Recipe)

1 Frozen Banana
8 ounces of plain yogurt
1 TBSP Protein Powder
6 Ice Cubes
1 1/3 cups water
Handful of Frozen Strawberries

Place the ingredients into a blender and puree until smooth. Enjoy!

* Mid-Morning

One serving of fruit or homemade fruit juice.

(Sample Homemade Fruit Juice recipe)

8 ounces diet ginger ale
1 cup whole fruit juice

* Lunch

Another fruit Smoothie Diet drink.

* Mid-Afternoon

One serving of fruit or fruit juice.

* Dinner

A whole food dinner of your choice. The caloric intake will depend upon your dietary needs, but should aim to stay within the 500 to 600 calorie range. The dinner meal should provide a healthy source of lean protein and healthy fats. The simple carbohydrates should be kept to a minimum so if a starch is needed, aim for a sweet potato versus a white potato.

The Smoothie Diet is a whole food diet, which means that the shakes can be consumed at any meal. Replacing the afternoon or evening meal with a Smoothie Diet recipe can mean added weight loss and added reduced hunger. The total caloric intake of the Smoothie Diet drinks can be adjusted as per the recommended daily calorie intakes for weight loss that is appropriate for each dieter.

The protein Smoothie Diet is quite similar to the Slim Fast diet, but without all the added sugars. Many Slim Fast shakes are laden with quick burning sugars and thus empty calories. They are also very expensive to continue buying week after week. The Smoothie Diet recipes are easy to make and total customizable. You can choose from many different fruits, yogurts and protein flavors and cut the simple sugar levels to near zero, while keeping the cost of the diet low. The whole fruit juice can be prepared early in the week and kept ready to make in the fridge for the entire week making the Smoothie Diet easy and quick each and every day.

All in all, the Smoothie Diet is a diet that is sure to keep the hunger quenched and the weight falling off . The longer the Smoothie Diet is utilized as a part of your everyday eating plans, the more weight you will lose, especially if combined with a good exercise plan . There is nothing like starting off the day with a diet smoothie drink to boost that metabolism, provide healthy, low sugar nutrition and prevent those mid morning hunger pangs. Losing weight has never been so easy as when using the simple Smoothie Diet drinks for your morning meal and more.

10 Exercises to Thinner Thighs

How to Get Thin Thighs?

Thinner thighs are the dream of many women. Unfortunately, to obtain them it is needed effort, time and patience, and of course, the right exercises to do the job. As with all exercise plans you should have a good weight loss plan.Based on our research, here we present 10 exercises to obtain thinner thighs.

1. Chair squat

Among the most beneficial exercises to calves, thighs and buttocks, we have the squats. There are several types of squats. To perform the chair squat, a person must stand in front of the chair with the back toward the chair. Then slowly sit down in the chair, to finally return to the starting position but with the legs not totally extended.

2. Dumbbell squat

The movement of this exercise can prove to be difficult to master. The starting position is stand up straight with the feet shoulder width apart. With the dumbbells in the hands and the arms relaxed falling naturally from both sides of the body. Then slowly lower the body, until thighs are parallel to the floor. The back should be straight at all times.

3. Power walking

This exercise to obtain thinner thighs is one of the easiest to accomplish. It is just walk at a faster than normal rate, but not like a walking race, it’s more about that every step is a strong one, rather than a fast one. Strides at the beginning are going to be probably short and fast, but with time, a longer stride will be developed. Thirty minutes every day for 3 or 4 days a week will be fine. Don’t walk on incline roads or hills, because this can make leg muscles grow and they will look thicker.

4. Dumbbell lunges

In this exercise, the person will work one leg at a time, in series. The starting position is standing straight with the feet close, and holding a dumbbell in each hand, arms naturally on the sides. The movement is as follows for the right leg: take a large forward step with the right leg while at the same time lower the left leg almost until the knee touches the floor. It is very important to maintain the back straight at all times. After the movement, slowly return to the starting position and switch legs.

5. Walking lunges with dumbbells

This exercise is pretty similar to exercise number four, but with an important difference. In the previous exercise all the motion happens in the same place, in this exercise, the person should walk with every large step, the movement implies real advancement.

6. Stationary bike

Before doing stationary bike, it must be properly configured. Seat should be set up in such a way that when the leg is extended to the bottom of the pedal stroke, there is still a slight bend in the knee. The handlebar then can be adjusted to comfort, but never too low as to cause back pain. 30 minutes every day and four days a week should be fine. Don’t stop during the 30 minute pedalling, so it is important to use a resistance that can be handled, increasing it gradually but never to its maximum. It is most important to maintain a high pedalling rate.

7. Leg Press

This exercise must be done with the help of a leg press machine typically found on every gym. Back must be firmly pressed against the back seat, and feet can be positioned differently depending on which part of the leg is working. This exercise is very simple with the help of the machine, it is important to remember the slow movement, flexing and then extending legs completely to achieve better results.

8. Fitness band standing leg adduction

The starting position of this exercise is with the fitness band attached to a door and to the left ankle. With the help of a chair and the weight over the right leg, the idea is to contract the inner thigh muscles, moving the left leg past the right one, until a contraction is felt, and then slowly return to the starting position. 20 repetitions for each leg will do the job and one more step to obtain thinner thighs will have been taken over.

9. Lying leg adduction

This exercise, although very difficult, can be done with some effort. The starting position is lying on the right side where the upper body is supported by the right arm. Also, the right leg should be straight while at the same time the left leg should be bent. The movement consists in lifting the right leg until a contraction is felt on the inner thigh muscles. The movement should be repeated 20 times slowly for each leg.

10. Ankle leg standing leg adduction

This is another difficult one, and needs the help of an ankle weight. The starting position is like this: with the ankle weight on the left ankle, a person should stand straight with all the weight on the right leg. The movement consists in moving the left leg past the right leg, making the inner thigh muscles work. Finally, to complete the exercise the left leg should return to the starting position stopping when it is in front of the right leg. Between 15 and 20 repetitions a day are fine for a person who wishes to obtain thinner thighs.