Six Steps to Sexy

Last time we talked about sexiness and how it’s about gaining confidence on the inside and out. It’s not a Photoshopped pin-up figure flaunting a barely there bikini and high heels on the cover of a magazine or a muscular manly man flexing well-greased six-pack abs on the beach. Sexiness is about walking tall, building strength, and kicking butt. Or to paraphrase the Performance Fitness mission statement, “sexy” means living a better life as a better you.

I want to give you some tips on embracing your sexy side, so let’s get started.

Become a Stand Up Gal

Let’s address the easiest way you can channel your inner and outer sexy: Stand up straight!

Slumped shoulders, a rounded back, a head that hangs down, and shifted weight can lead to some pretty brutal physical ailments down the road, including weak mid-back muscles, back pain (particularly in the lower and upper back), neck pain, and tightness in the shoulders. If you are hanging your head down staring at the ground you aren’t exactly exuding self-confidence.

In addition, when you slouch, your internal organs have nowhere to go but out and down, which results in your mid-section looking bigger. AND let’s not forget the misaligning effect that poor posture has on other joints like your hips, knees, and ankles. All of this can lead to pain in the long run, and people in pain rarely look or feel confident (aka – sexy).

People who aren’t confident tend to collapse in on themselves like a turtle, while people who are confident tend to take up space. They not only stand tall, but they keep their shoulders and chest “wide and open”. Confident people take on a (sexy) here-I-am-world stance. The best thing is that when you take on this kind of space-filling posture, you read as self-assured, no matter how you feel on the outside. Just this posture alone can help you gain trust and respect from others. What person doesn’t feel “sexy” when they know they’re respected?

So how do you stand tall, gain confidence, and show some sexy? First it starts with building body awareness and practicing (over and over again) the postural positions I mentioned above. Next, you’ve got to strengthen your “sexy” muscles in order to make those postures easier and more natural.

I’ve got six exercises for you to try. And for all of you working a desk job slumping over a computer all day, these tips can help you out even more.

1. Bring On the Deadlifts

Here’s an exercise that will strengthen your entire body, ensuring that you don’t have just one sexy and strong feature. This exercise tackles your posterior chain and beyond, from your calves all the way up to your shoulders. Although the primary muscles worked in deadlifts are your hamstrings and glutes, you’ll even tone your arms in the process as you hold onto the weight. And, doing deadlifts will make lifting heavy things off the floor (like that ever-sexy laundry basket lift) so much easier.

Try this deadlift variation, the Kettlebell Deadlift. It’s good for beginners and can be scaled up for more advanced exercisers:

When you are doing deadlifts, make sure you use proper form and don’t overdo it on the weight or number of repetitions.

After trying these, your posture will get a lift, and you’ll be feeling sexy no matter the activity.

2. Confident Chest Builder: The Decline Push-Up

Push-ups aren’t going to make your breasts perkier or bigger, but they will make your chest, shoulders, and triceps stronger and more defined. And if you challenge yourself with one-arm push-ups or decline push-ups, you’ll feel like the strongest, sexiest badass on the block.

Commit to the decline push-up:

With push-ups you’ll be strengthening your upper body and core muscles such as the pectoralis major (chest), anterior deltoid (front of shoulders), triceps (back of arms), and tranversus abdominis (the deepest layer of abdominal muscles), and the rectus abdominis (aka “six-pack” muscles). Talk about sexy muscles!

As a bonus, working multiple muscle groups at one time saves time during your workouts and helps your metabolic rate increase. You burn fat even after you’re done with your push-ups.

A multitasking fitness regimen will certainly make you feel sexier!

3. Walking Tall with Walking Lunges

It’s time to talk about your quads. I can bet that if you give your legs some attention during your workouts that you’ll be feeling like one sexy mama when you rock those short-shorts this summer.

Meet the Walking Lunge:

According to AZ Central, walking lunges are one of the most beneficial exercises for building strength, stability, and endurance. This exercise will strengthen the lower half of your body and build your quads, glutes, and hamstrings. You’ll be stronger and faster if you put these into practice. No wonder it does amazing things for building that sexy body and outlook.

4. Be a Sexy Swinger…with Kettlebell Swings

I love kettlebells. I think they are one of the best ways to stoke your metabolism and see results from your workouts. Results are sexy! Rather than logging mile upon mile on the treadmill, channel your love for kettlebell swings for a lean and mean body.

Kettlebell swings will help you regain your posture and strengthen your posterior chain, tackling the negative effects of sitting.

Bring on that swing!

5. Getting Your Sexy Back with Pull-Ups and Body Rows

Next to deadlifts, pulls are the ultimate sexy badass exercise (IMO). I know you’re thinking, “I’m a girl (if you are indeed a girl), I can’t do pull ups.” But I’m here to tell ya that girls are strong, and with practice, patience, and time you can do pull-ups. You’ll be working your latissimus dorsi (mid back), biceps, rectus abdominis (six-pack muscles), and tranversus abdominis (the deepest layer of abdominal muscles).

Once you’ve been working at these for a bit, you’ll own that sexy back (aka the V-taper—slightly wider shoulders and mid back with a tapered smaller waist) and have strength to stand tall even if you’ve been sitting all day. Plus, you’ll have one amazing core and some sculpted arms.

Check out this comprehensive tutorial from Girls Gone Strong to get started doing pull ups. And if you can’t do one of the regressions yet, you can start with body rows:

6. Glutes of Glory

You didn’t need Meghan Trainor or Snoop and Jason Derulo to tell you that big booties are sexy, right? But let me get a little personal, here. There’s no way I’ll be working on making my butt bigger (BGB for more info), but if you want to build a round and perky rump, I recommend tackling bodyweight glute bridges and/or bodyweight Hip Thrusts. Even if you aren’t going for an aesthetic change to your backside, I can vouch for the strength that these build, too. And you can use that killer strength to swing a heavier kettlebell or deadlift a heavier barbell. Now that’s HOT!

Check out “The Glute Guy” (aka – Bret Contreras) website for all things gluteus maximus.

Need more reasons to try these out? You’ll be building the biggest muscle in your body, which will result in burning more calories and fat during your workout. You’ll have more power for jumping, be better at sprints, counteract the negative effects of sitting, and strong glutes can mean a stronger pain-free lower back.

There you have it. Six exercises to channel your inner and outer fox. You’ll be one confident and sexy mama before you know it.

Want to do these exercises and more with a group of expert certified trainers?

Join us for the summer edition of our 12-week Get Sexy Fit and Lean Transformation Project. You’ll get a full program including fitness, nutrition, and accountability and make summer 2015 your “sexiest” most confident season ever.

Go here to claim one of the 10 spots: https://performancefitnessllc.com/event/fit-lean/