Women look and feel beautiful when they are physically fit and healthy. A woman, who has an optimum weight that is proportionately right at the right places, automatically looks attractive. Sometimes, due to some reason or the other such as a bout of illness can make a woman lose all her curves giving her an emaciated and dull look. In these times, she needs to pull up her socks and try her best to gain weight in a methodical and healthy manner. Following a workout routine that is fit for women can work wonders in gaining weight at the right places. Proper nutrition compliments these fitness exercises bringing the body back to its curvaceous shape slowly but surely. Many women seek quick solutions for weight gain such as weight gaining pills and diet foods. These can have a deleterious effect in the long term and women should refrain from taking such disastrous short cuts.
Neck and chin
Neck rolls are the right stretching exercise that help keep your neck flexible and toned. Neck rolls can be done either in the sitting position or the standing position. All you have to do is roll your neck from one side and rotate it completely in the clockwise direction. Repeat this five times and then roll your neck in a similar fashion in the anti-clockwise direction.
Next, turn your neck completely to one side and then gradually towards the other. Care should be taken to do this carefully. Now, bend your neck towards the chest and then towards the back by looking upwards and behind. These exercises not only help the neck muscles, but they also help tone the chin to remain firm and strong.
Arms
To tone the arms, all a woman needs is a pair of dumbbells weighing around five to seven pounds. Since the arms support the back and shoulders, it is important to have well toned and fit arms. Simply lift a dumbbell weighing six to eight pounds in each arm and swing them up and down about 15 to 20 times. This can be done twice a week and the results will soon be seen in just a week or two with well toned arms supporting your beautiful frame. Arm exercises can be done anywhere and do not require costly equipment or space to perform them.
Arm rotations
Arm rotations significantly improve your back strength and posture with very little movement during the exercise. You can do this exercise by lying down on the floor with your feet flat on the floor and knees bent. Keep your arms at the side with the elbows perpendicular to the arms. Maintain an erect posture and then rotate your arms simultaneously for about one minute. Arm rotation is good for the rotator muscle as well as for the back. It also helps tone the arm muscles.
Modified push ups
These are similar to push ups with a slightly modified touch. The push ups need to be done by getting down on your hands and knees directly in line with the hips. The difference is that every time you bend downwards you need to inhale and when you are pulling up you need to exhale. This helps in the toning the chest, triceps and shoulder areas.
Barbell bench press
The barbell bench press is a great exercise for toning the pectoral muscles. The bench press machine is an ideal way to help in chest building. Place yourself on the bench press and grip the bar at a width slightly more than the shoulders. Now gradually take the weight off the bar and bring it down towards the chest for a few minutes. This helps in proper toning and strengthening of the chest muscles. The barbell bench press can be done in a nearby gym where the machine is installed for regular use. You can also install the barbell equipment in your back yard if you have enough space.
Arm crunch
The arm crunch is one of the most preferred exercises to tone the abs. To do the arm crunch exercise effectively, you need to curl your shoulders inwards and bend towards the knees. Keep your arms overhead while maintaining the posture for at least 5 seconds. You need to be careful not to overstretch the abdominal muscle. You can also do the long arm crunch by lying flat on the floor and extending your arms straight behind the head with both your hands clasped firmly. The arms should maintain a position close to the ears for better effect.
Air biking
Air biking involves cycling in the air while lying flat on your back. This exercise is especially good for women who have weakened back muscles post-child delivery. The skin in this area becomes flabby and stretched and air biking helps in bringing back the rigid tone of the loose abdominal muscles. All you need to do is lie on a mattress and swing your legs in a cycling motion for at least 5 minutes. It also reduces the excess fat that is stored in the wrong areas. The hands should be tucked next to your hips and care should be taken to see that they do not fall out of this line. While undertaking air biking, one needs to warm up sufficiently to ensure proper blood circulation in the entire body. The other important factor is that it should be done on an empty stomach.
Barbell squat
The barbell squat is the ultimate choice for muscle toning. This can be done on bars with the entire weight of the bar on your shoulder back. If it is uncomfortable, you can use padding to alleviate the discomfort. After ensuring that a proper position is taken, squat in a gradual and controlled motion till the buttocks are parallel with the knees. Slowly come back to your start position. Repeat this 5 to 6 times every day. The barbell squat may seem difficult initially since you would have been drained of energy due to weight loss. However, gradually increasing the number of squats can work wonders.
Pelvic thrusts
Pelvic thrusts involve exercising of the core pelvic muscles that consist of the hamstring and the gluteus muscle, muscles of the lower back and the pelvic floor muscles. This exercise does not need any equipment. All you need to do is to lie on the floor and thrust the pelvic muscles out and remain in this position for 5-10 seconds. Repeat the pelvic thrusts beginning from 5 thrusts and then gradually increasing up to 20 per day. The pelvic thrust is a very popular exerecise and is easy to perform too. You can simply make it a habit to do this first thing in the morning lying in bed and see a marked difference in the muscle tone of the pelvic region.
Dumbbell bicep curls
As the name suggests, this exercise tones the biceps area. Just take a pair of dumbbells and do the biceps curl alternating both arms. Beginners can perform this exercise slowly to avoid pain in the biceps. Once you get used to it, you can increase the number of biceps crunch. There are various dumbbell crunches such as incline biceps curl, seated alternate biceps curl and many more. This is a relatively easy exercise and does not require much time or space to perform it. If you are a busy person with not much time to spare for the gym, you can do the dumbbell biceps crunch in the cool comforts of your homes and yet gain weight in a healthy manner. Moreover, they are cost effective too.
Leg raises
The leg raising exercise is a simple and effective way to tone and tighten the lower half of the body. It also helps in proper circulation of blood in the legs and strengthens the leg muscles. To do the leg raise, lie flat on the floor and slowly raise one leg towards the ceiling as high as you can. Bring it down and now raise the other leg in a similar fashion. Repeat this five times for each leg. Now, try to raise both the legs together and maintain the posture for a minute. This not only helps the leg muscles, but it also strengthens the muscles supporting the pelvic girdle. This is especially helpful for women who have undergone abdominal surgeries such as hysterectomy. Post partum women can also make use of this exercise to come back to shape quickly and effortlessly.