Atlantic Ave Magazine - April 2020 Issue

health & beauty | body beautiful
By ashley sica-de souza
Spring Clean Up!
The hot weather is here, and bathing suit season is upon us.
If you haven’t shed that extra layer yet, now is the time! I’m
sure most of you are familiar with the layer I’m talking about.
That “layer” from the holidays that you swore would be off in
time for summer. It’s never too late to get that body in gear!
Here are some tips to kick-start your spring and have you
feeling ready for that summer wardrobe!
The first and most component of shedding that unwanted
layer is nutrition. Keeping a daily food log of exactly everything
that you are consuming is highly recommended…
the good the bad and the ugly! This will help you easily
pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses. Be brutally
honest and make sure to write it ALL down!
Next, try your best to eliminate processed foods
from your diet and stick to 70-80% homemade
prepared meals (yes,…you can do it!). Food
prep is 100% essential in helping you reach
your goals! These meals should consist of
lean proteins, healthy fats, complex carbohydrates,
fruit and of course lots of veggies.
Having healthy food on hand at all times is
a game changer. The other
nutrition component is
water! Your body won’t
burn fat if it is dehydrated.
It’s such a simple
thing many people
don’t do. Drinking
proper amounts of
water will also help
to keep you feeling
full, help flush out
toxins and help decrease
bloating!
The second component is weight lifting. It
has to be done…period. Weight lifting is essential
to fat burning and your metabolism.
The more muscle you have, the more calories
your body will burn at rest. Ladies, I
promise you will NOT get bulky from lifting
more than five pounds. I compare
weight training to a sculptor taking a
piece of round clay molding it in to a nice
shapely figured. That’s what real work
does to your body. It gives your body the
“shape” most are looking to achieve and
that will not happen without picking up some sizable weights! I
know a lot of people who think cardio alone will do this and that is
the farthest thing from the truth. Although cardio has its time and
place (more about that next) resistance training is essential.
You should aim to get in 4-5 sessions a week, lasting no
longer than 60 minutes.
The last component is performing the right type of
cardio. High Intensity Interval Training also known
as HIIT is the fastest and most effective way to
decrease your body fat and show off all the resistance
training that you’ve been doing. The
best thing about this type of cardio is that
you don’t need more than 20-30 minutes
per day. The days of super long and slow
cardio sessions are OVER! HIIT will keep
your body burning calories for hours after
your actual session. This type of training
involves alternating between intense
bouts of exercise followed by low intensity
exercise. If you’re a beginner, you
may want to start with a 1:1 work ratio.
One minute on, one minute off. HIIT can
be performed anywhere…. outside using
sprints or stairs, on the treadmill, at
the beach etc. Depending on what your
goals are and what your body fat is, aim
to perform HIIT cardio 2-3 times per
week. If you’re performing it correctly,
that’s all you’ll need.
Take these 3 components of
eating clean (do that food prep!)
weight training, and proper cardio
and you’ll be summer ready in no
time. There’s no better way to welcome
the summer heat than with a
healthy, more confident you.
Ashley Sica Fitness
Transformation Studio
7400 N. Federal Highway
Boca Raton, FL 33487
561-445-7445
Ashleysica@gmail.com
52 | april 2020 | www.AtlanticAveMagazine.com