Use It or Lose It!

Muscles become soft, flabby and weak if they are not being used. Strength training is something many people want to shy away from because they immediately think of lifting heavy weights and long workouts.

It doesn't have to be that way. Do some pushups on a exercise ball and you will give your upper body and your core muscles a heck of a good workout. For your legs, running is great and stair climbing is excellent as well. Jump on a bike or a stationary bike.

Go to the stairs and on the first stair, do full calf raises. Push up on your toes as high as possible and allow your heels to go as low as possible on the down portion. Excellent.

The lunge is a good overall exercise for your legs and your lower body.

You don't have to hit the weights but you should be doing some form of strength training at least 3 days a week.

Squat

It's true. The squat is a powerful body building exercise. You'll see almost all bodybuilders are using it and for a reason - it works!

However, a word of caution here. If you have knee problems, don't do it. There is a lot of stress placed on the knees. You might consider doing a partial squat and not going down to a full squat finish. But if you're knees hurt, I would pass on this exercise.

If you do a squat, you want to make sure your knees do not extend beyond your toes. That is an important exercise tip and you should follow that advice if doing lunges as well.

Pelvic Lifts

To strengthen your pelvic muscles and your butt muscles at the same time, lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Hands are by your side and your palms flat on the floor.

Now clench your butt muscles and raise your pelvic off the floor, making certain you keep your butt clenched the entire movement.

Hold a second, then repeat for the number of repetitions you choose.