By Laurel House 
Just tying on your bikini can instantly ignite a stress fest as you focus in on each of your now very exposed flaws in hopes that your tan will quickly create the illusion of a slightly slimmer you. Doesn’t matter how fab or flab your body is, pretty much every woman experiences at least a bit of insecurity around donning a bikini. So what’s a girl to do? Workout… at the beach!
The beach might not be the place that makes you feel like slipping on your sneakers and kicking up sand as you pitiably sprint through throngs of spirited sunbathers. Thankfully there are other beach exercises you can and should do that will increase your confidence when it comes to slipping on that teeny body-baring bikini. And here’s the best part: they can take as little as 5 minutes and you don’t have to change out of your suit or even leave your sunbathing spot! That’s right, no running shoes, exercise shorts, or even a shirt are required because the best beach exercises are all about honing in and toning up specific bikini-centric spots with nothing more than your own body weight to resist you.
Spot Training vs Spot Toning
While you can’t spot train in terms of burning fat (fat burns equally off the entire body), you can spot tone. In other words, you can hone in on a specific muscle group and tone it through focused exercises. When the muscle is tighter, the skin above it is more taut, and you appear slimmer.
When it comes to bikinis, there are certain highlighted areas that are perfect for spot toning, including:
-Booty bulge that bubbles up along your favorite Brazilian bottoms
For a few booty bulge exercise ideas, try Desi
Bartlett’s Beach
Bum mini workout
(below)
-Belly jelly that jiggles as you strut
For a few belly jelly exercise ideas, try Jenna Phillips’ Sexy Summer Abs mini workout on ExerciseTV
-Chest excess that folds over your triangle top
For a few chest toning exercise ideas, try Jillian Michaels' Best Chest mini workout on ExerciseTV
-Upper back fat that flops across your halter top ties
For a few back fat fighting exercise ideas, try
Jillian
Michaels' Get
Back mini workout on ExerciseTV
Total-Body Beach Tone-Up
According to ExerciseTV trainer Desi Bartlett, exercising at the beach is a great way to get more bang out of your exercise buck. “When you train on the beach, the resistance of the sand acts as your weights (or dumbbells). Every time you take a step in the sand your muscles have to lift the weight of your leg out of the sand which is creating added resistance.” To blast fat and tone your muscles fast, Desi suggests Walking Lunges. “Walking Lunges on the beach can be a great lower body fat blaster and give you a lifted Brazilian booty and a flatter bikini belly. You can also do this exercise in the shoreline and get the resistance of wet sand (this is a great option for athletes and advanced exercisers).” Lift your arms over your head to add the upper body.
Combine these with the bicycles in Sexy Summer Abs workout, Jillian's Best Chest pushup variations, Supermans from Jillian's Get Back workout for a fully sculpted bikini body.
Now slip on your bikini, head to the beach, and tone your body into strutting shape.
***Get a special discount off ExerciseTV's 3 favorite Surfer Girl DVDs. Just click on the image, add the workout to your cart and strut your stuff in that bikini.***
