Summer is officially over, and fall is here with delicious recipes. You probably already have meals planned for the rest of the year. These include Halloween parties, Thanksgiving, and other holiday feasts. In addition, you may plan to invite your family over or to visit them during the holidays. Naturally, that means you’ll eat more and move less. Instead, check out my 5 tips for a strong, lean core for over 50s!

If you would like to get started in a program that helps you achieve the goals I talk about today, then join Pursue Your Spark Blueprint to help you lose stubborn belly fat, get more energy, feel more confident, control your cravings, and fully embrace your second half of life. Applying Intermittent Fasting strategies tailored to women over 50 and Pilates exercises that don’t hurt your knees.

The bottom line is that there seems to be a pattern between weight gain and the holidays every year. So I want you to start this end of the year a bit different than other years by starting to strengthen your core. It is helpful when you schlepp your luggage through the airport and lift a grandkid in the air and play active games with your grown kids. Strong abs and core have so many health benefits, especially as we are getting older. I’m also sharing my 5 top core exercises that anyone can do. 

Will you lose weight and strengthen your abs? No. But we are not training for a certain time of the year. We often hear about the summer body (it seems we only need to look and feel great in a bikini), but we are strengthening for the second half of life.

What’s the difference between core vs. abdominals? 

The major muscles of your core include your transverse abdominis, multifidus, internal and external obliques, erector spinae, diaphragm, pelvic floor muscles, and (of course) your abs, the rectus abdominis. Your minor core muscles include your lats, traps, and (to the surprise of many people) glutes. So there is more to a strong core than meets the eye.

Why is it important to have strong abs and a strong core?

• Strengthening the core can help with relief and prevention of back pain
• Increases pelvic stability
• Supports good posture
• Aids balance and stability
• Improves ease of movement
• Reduces the risk of injuries and falls

What does it take to get a strong and lean core?

You’ve heard that saying that getting lean abs is 80% diet and 20% exercise. Unfortunately, there is some truth to that idea because if you eat an unhealthy diet that’s loaded with unhealthy fats, sugar, and processed foods, you can do as much ab work as you want, and you’ll never see the difference.

However, the look doesn’t determine the strength. How bad do you really want it? I ask my clients this when they want strong and lean core abs. You can get a six-pack or washboard abs, BUT it requires a 1000% commitment from you from exercise, lifestyle, and nutrition choices. 

Even though our skin is a little less toned and perhaps a little more wrinkled, or as some women tell me, “I got abs they are just under my bodyfat”! Of course, fat loss is different than getting a strong core, but both can work together to create a healthy body.  

Is there such a thing as flat abs?

You might hear, more often than not, someone talking about “getting flat abs,” and that’s your goal. Let me tell you there are NO flat abs, and here is why! Naturally, the rectus abdominals are a rounded muscle that will never be flat because of how it’s attached. However, you can get stronger and more defined abs by exercising and eating the right way.

5 Tips For A Strong and Lean Core For Over 50s

1. Adopt healthy eating habits

Eat healthy and balanced meals.

• Include mostly non-processed carbohydrates like vegetables instead of pasta or bread but minimize fruit if you want to lean out.
• Eat lean protein with every meal – fish, chicken, beans
• Opt for healthy fats like avocado, nuts, and seeds, and include them in every meal

Be mindful of drinking alcohol

Extra calories end up stored as fat in the body. Consuming foods and drinks high in sugar can quickly lead to weight gain. We can’t choose where all that extra weight ends up. Unfortunately, the body tends to accumulate fat in the abdominal area.

Portion control

It is often overlooked when it comes to getting lean abs, and we think that we are eating healthy foods should do the trick. I use the hand-measure technique with all my clients. Use your hand to measure the quantities of each you should have in a meal.

• Your protein is the size of the palm of your hand
• Make a fist; these are nonprossed carbohydrates
• Your thumb is your healthy fats like avocado
• Cup your hand and fill to the middle; that is the amount of grain you add to your meals.

So far, we have talked about getting lean abs now; let’s dive into how to get strong abs and a strong core!

2. The 5 best abdominal exercises for over 50’s 

Don’t panic! You don’t need to suffer through sit-ups to strengthen your core! Pilates is the perfect low-impact way to build strength, balance, and flexibility. By creating a strong core, you increase the range of movement in the rest of your body and prevent degeneration of joint and connective tissues. People often come to me for pilates to strengthen their core and help back pain. I created a short video for you to follow along with no matter what fitness level you are.

• 100’s
• Plank
• Side Plank
• Dead Bug
• Criss Cross

 

3. Cross-training

Eating healthy and doing specific core or ab exercises are a great start, but I’m a huge fan of cross-training. In essence, we are not doing the same thing repeatedly; rather, we need to vary our workouts. For example, after doing cardio, i.e., walking, running, biking, etc., you’re also doing a Pilates core workout three times per week (it’s going to take about 10 minutes). Then maybe add some resistance training with bands or weights on another day. Again, this means you are doing something different every day. 

Adding lifestyle activities is super important. Getting up to stretch every 50 minutes from your computer, parking the car further away, taking the stairs instead of the elevator. We don’t give ourselves enough credit for these activities and don’t count them as exercise, but they are!

4. Consistency is key

How to be consistent and why it’s not happening overnight.

We are introducing new habits and perhaps a new lifestyle for some, and that takes time. So often, I hear, “I have no motivation even to get started!” Here is the thing. If you don’t start then, you’ll never make a change, which turns into a hamster wheel for feeling guilty and defeated. I want you to make changes so small that you don’t even notice them.

What does that look like?

• Instead of pasta, you make cauliflower. Roast it in the oven and add it to your lean protein
• Don’t like to exercise? Get off your buttsky and walk around the house for a bit (it’s exercise) or turn on some music and dance, or garden for a bit.
• Keep doing the Dead Bug exercise until you feel that your getting stronger, not getting good at it, but feel that your core is tightening.

So you see, consistency doesn’t have to come in big chunks; instead, baby steps, and every bit counts.

5. A supportive community

Ask a friend, coworker, husband, partner, or even your grown kids to support you in your mission to a stronger and leaner core. Tell them what your plan is. Don’t overcomplicate things by telling yourself it’s too hard, you’re too old, and you can’t do it. Instead, get their support for those moments when you feel one of those roadblocks come your way.

You can have a strong and lean core as well as great-looking abs at any age. Remember that everybody is different, but what we are willing to do to get those abs looking the way we want can be a huge commitment. So instead of thinking about washboard abs, think: health and fitness and using that strong core for adventures during your second half of life.

If you would like to get started in a program that helps you achieve the goals I talked about today, then join the Pursue Your Spark Blueprint to help you lose stubborn belly fat, get more energy, feel more confident, control your cravings, and fully embrace your second half of life.