Are YOUR Weight Worries Holding You Back In Bed?

Tracey Cox reveals the three fears that are ruining women's sex lives (and why they shouldn't)

• Sexpert Tracey Cox says women worry so much they can't enjoy sex
• She says bad body image is ruining the experience for many women
• But the sexpert reveals why there is really nothing to worry about

Sex is meant to be one of life's greatest pleasures.

So why do lots of women spend the whole time worrying rather than enjoying themselves?

Here are the top three things most women stress about in bed - and shouldn't.

YOUR BODY

Most women are paranoid about their bodies and it's not just our self-esteem which takes a miserable dive every time we succumb to obsessing about our muffin tops.

A bad body image has a direct effect on our ability to enjoy sex.

Numerous studies have shown body self-conscious women are more timid, less likely to initiate sex, try new positions or talk about their needs than women who are happy with their bodies.

But the reality is most men don't look at your bottom and think 'Dear God! Look at those Godawful lumps!', they think 'Let me get my hands on that!'.

Research continually shows that men in love are almost universally positive about their partner's body.

You see fat, he sees curves.

Sex is about what's happening on the inside not the outside. It's about feeling sensations, feeling connected and loved - and having orgasms.

Lying there stressing about how you look and feeling paranoid means none of the above is going to happen.

NOT HAVING AN ORGASM EVERY SINGLE TIME 

Reputable US research suggests 75 per cent of men always reach orgasm during sex while only 29 per cent of women do.

If that wasn't depressing enough, another comprehensive study (Elisabeth Lloyd, US) analysed more than 30 years of studies of female orgasm to conclude they're 'a happy accident' rather than a regular event that's guaranteed to happen.

Yet women still feel under incredible pressure to pretend they climax almost every time and are plagued with guilt and feeling 'not good enough/sexy enough' when it doesn't.

Men's orgasms are reliable and automatic; our are sporadic and dependent on a multitude of factors.

The mood we're in (fat/thin/bad hair/good hair/am I feeling desirable day), what's happening in our lives and relationships (he's being a b*****d again), the amount and type of foreplay and the amount we've drunk and eaten: all these factors affect whether or not we climax.

But - and it's a big one - more often than not, the main reason we don't orgasm is down to not enough foreplay, the wrong type, an ineffective foreplay technique or a terrible combination of all three.

Women have no need to be embarrassed if an orgasm doesn't happen - but if our partners are guilty of any of the above, perhaps they should be!

+3

She adds that men and women have different types of desire that are more noticeable at certain times

NOT WANTING SEX AS MUCH AS HE DOES 

'They're all over you in the beginning but stop wanting it at all once you've been together for a while.'

How many times have we heard this one? (How many times will it be written in the comments section by men?)

The claim: women only seem to like sex at the beginning. Once the relationship is serious, we lose interest.

Some men think it means we're just not interested in sex at all. We fake it in the beginning until we've 'got him', then drop the act.

But there's a far less sinister, more plausible reason, according to research findings.

Men are more likely to feel 'spontaneous desire': they'll feel like sex before they start having it.

Women are more likely to feel 'reactive' desire: we might not feel like sex at the beginning but get aroused and enjoy sex once we start having it.

(Though, again, this will only happen if our partner's sexual technique is effective and enjoyable.)

Both sexes feel more spontaneous desire at the start of a relationship because that's when love and sex hormones flood our brains, as Mother Nature tries desperately to get us to have lots of sex to conceive.

Between nine and 18 months later, those hormones (necessarily) dry up and we fall back to our natural libido resting state.

This is when mismatched sex drives become apparent.

It's not women pretending to like sex to hook their men that causes a drop in desire.

It's to do with the different types of desire each gender experiences becoming more noticeable with time.

What also becomes apparent the longer you're together is that it's rare that both of you will feel like sex at the same time anyway.

If we were all a lot less hung up on sex having to be 'spontaneous', most people's sex lives would be in a much better state.

Put in the same 'spontaneous' planning you did at the start - plan nice things to do together, make sure you both look great, think up new things to try together in bed - and you might just find there's more than a flash of 'just-met-sex' in the next session.

Source: dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3185738/Are-weight-worries-holding-bed-Tracey-Cox-reveals-three-fears-ruining-women-s-sex-lives-shouldn-t.html#ixzz3hwpTVTPj 

How Weights and Cardio Cut Breast Cancer Risk

Working out with weights may do more than just build beautiful muscles. While all types of exercise substantially reduce your risk of both breast cancer and lung cancer,according to two new studies presented this week at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, women who work out vigorously—incorporating a variety of weights and cardio several times a week—reduced their risk of lung cancer by one-third and breast cancer by 30 percent. Even better, fit ladies saw these benefits even if they had other risk factors for the cancers, like a smoking habit or being overweight. 

The question researchers are trying to answer now? Why exactly exercise can fend off cancer—and just how much you need to sweat to see the benefits.

One potential explanation: Exercise may reduce the number of fat cells that produce estrogen, a hormone which in excess has been shown to fuel breast cancer, Jyoti Patel, M.D., spokeswoman for the American Society of Clinical Oncology, said in a press release.  And it appears that strength exercises like squats, bicep curls, and chest presses may be particularly good at this. A 2012 Harvard studyfound that muscle-strengthening exercises cause the body to produce a hormone called irisin, which then travels through the body and alters fat cells in a way that speeds up the metabolism, ultimately burning more calories.

For lung cancer, the explanation is a little less straightforward, said Ange Wang, M.D. student and the lead author of the Stanford paper. "Physical activity might specifically help the lungs by improving lung function and limiting the deposition deep in the lungs of inhaled cancer-causing agents," she noted. Wang also added that exercise boosts the immune system and helps people lose weight—things that have shown to protect against cancer.

Both research teams also noted that the more minutes a woman spent exercising, the more protection she had against cancer, regardless of the type of workout or other risk factors. In the studies, the women exercised an average of four to seven hours per week. And any level of intensity can help: "Our research seems to indicate that you don't have to kill yourself," Wang said. "It doesn't need to be strenuous. You just have to put the time in." 

So if you want to have a beautiful, healthy chest inside and out, think about incorporating weight lifting and other muscle building exercises into your routine. We recommend starting with the basic pushup—not only will it lift and define your chest muscles (and core, back, and arms!) but it can also help build a body suited to protect you from disease.

Source:shape.com/fitness/cardio/how-weights-and-cardio-cut-breast-cancer-risk/?utm_source=fbweightsandcardiocutcancerriskutm_medium%3Dsocial&utm_campaign=facebook

The Gift of Walking

8 Minutes to Get Rid of Your Upper Body Wobbly Bits

Whether it's the little black dress in winter or, for men, stripping down to your shorts in summer, those wobbly bits around the upper arms, chest and back can easily spoil the look. Here's our 8 minute body toning workout to banish the wobbly bits.

Equipment Needed

Any exercise aimed at toning your body needs something to provide resistance for your muscles to work against. Most of the exercises below use hand-held weights to provide resistance: these can be as simple as water bottles (or even tins of food) you can grip comfortably, or dumbbells in the range of 1lb-5lb/0.5-2kg.

Timing and Repetitions

10 reps of each exercise should take about 8 minutes. As with all exercise you should warm-up first. Marching or jogging on the spot for a few minutes interspersed with some gentle stretches will do the trick.

Caution

Body toning exercise can be a pretty painful experience if muscles have lain dormant for a while. The problem is, it's not until 24-48hrs after your workout that you'll realise you've overdone it! Body toning exercise should not be painful while you are doing it - if it is you're using too much weight.

If you've not been exercising your muscles recently it's best to start with a weight that feels "very easy" and build up gradually from there.

The Workout

Exercise 1 - Chest and Shoulders

Lie on your back and grasp your weights with the palms of your hands facing up, and your arms outstretched to the sides. With your elbows slightly bent, lift your arms above your chest until your hands are almost touching. Return to starting position and repeat.

Exercise 2 - Chest and Shoulders

Lie on your back and grasp your weights with the palms of your hands facing up, and your arms outstretched above your head. Grip your weights and bring them over your head and down to your hips, by your sides - a semi-circular motion. Lift back to starting position and repeat.

Exercise 3 - Chest and Back

Sitting with your back straight (preferably supported) and legs straight out in front of you, hold your weights in at your chest with your elbows out to the side (parallel to the floor). Push your arms out straight in front of you then pull them back in. Repeat.

Exercise 4 - Back and Shoulders

Stand with feet shoulder width apart and arms by your sides, gripping the weights with palms facing outwards. Making sure your movements are slow and concentrated, tense your shoulder and upper back muscles, then slowly "shrug" them up and down.

Exercise 5 - Shoulders and Upper Arms

Stand with feet shoulder width apart and arms raised straight up above your head, grip your weights with your palms facing behind you. Slowly bring your arms forward and down, without bending at the elbow, until level with your shoulders. Lift back to starting position and repeat.

Exercise 6 - Upper Arms, Shoulders and Back

Standing with feet slightly apart, grasp your weights and bend at the waist until your torso is parallel to the floor. Extend your arms towards the floor with palms facing outwards. Lift your arms out to the side, keeping them straight, until parallel to the floor. Return to the starting position and repeat.

Exercise 7 - Upper Arms, Shoulders and Back

Standing with feet slightly apart, position your arms straight down in front of you almost against your body - with your weights almost touching. Bend your elbows and lift your weights towards your chin, bringing your elbows out to the side, in line with your shoulders. Return to the starting position and repeat.

Exercise 8 - Arms and Chest

The classic push up. With your hands shoulder width apart place your palms on the floor. Stretch out your body with either your knees on the floor, or if you're feeling ambitious, your toes - so you are supporting your body weight. Keeping your back straight and using your arms lower yourself gently toward the floor until you are hovering just over it. Push yourself slowly back to your starting position and repeat. Remember - don't lower yourself to the point where you come into contact with the floor, it'll be much harder to push back up.

Exercise 9 - Arms

In a sitting position with your back straight, relax your arms in line with your body. Grip your weights with your palms facing upwards and curl them up towards your shoulders, then back down again. Repeat. Keep your torso still and back straight, let your arms do the work.

Exercise 10 - Forearms

Holding your weight with your arm outstretched in front of you, tilt your wrist up and down repeatedly. Try doing this with both an overhand and underhand grip on your weight. Do one arm at a time.

Results

The secret of successful body toning is regularity. If you do this exercise sequence every other day you'll start to see results in a few weeks. 

Source:weightlossresources.co.uk/exercise/body_toning/upper_body.htm

Tone Your Body With This Simple Exercise

This one simple exercise can tone the whole body 

4 Exercises to Lift Your Boobs

Nothing short of surgery or gaining body fat can actually increase the size of your breasts. As for making them look bigger, well, that's why the chunk of change we spend on bras each year is larger than the GDP of Iceland.

Push-ups and padding aren't your only options, though. "Developing the muscles underneath your breasts will enhance the look of your breasts and make them appear larger," says Jen Comas Keck, a certified personal trainer and former figure competitor.

Let's be honest: This workout won't turn A cups into Bs or beyond. But if—like most women—you rarely train your chest, then you're missing out on a natural way to add a little extra oomph.

The following workout was created by Comas Keck specifically for women. "Working the chest from multiple angles with enough weight ensures plenty of stimulus to increase strength and develop the muscles," she says. "This can add beautiful shape to the chest."

The key to making this plan effective: Make sure to choose weights that are heavy enough. You should feel like you could do about two more reps at the end of each set, but no more. "It’s important to challenge yourself with heavier weights in order for muscle growth to take place," says Comas Keck. Perform the following routine twice a week.

MOVE 1Dumbbell Bench Press

BETH BISCHOFF

Lie faceup on a bench with your arms straight, a dumbbell in each hand(A). Lower the dumbbells until they’re close to the sides of your chest (B), then press them back up to the starting position. That's one rep. Do 10 reps, then go to move 2 without rest.

MOVE 2Pushup

BETH BISCHOFF

Start on all fours, your palms slightly wider than your shoulders, feet close together. Your body should form a straight line from head to toe (A). Lower down until your chest almost touches the floor. Keep your upper arms at a 45-degree angle to your torso (B). Pause, then push back to the starting position. Do 10 pushups and rest 90 seconds.

Repeat moves 1 and 2 one more time (so you'll do each exercise twice). Rest 90 seconds before move 3.

MOVE 3Incline Dumbbell Bench Press

BETH BISCHOFF

Sit on an adjustable bench set to a low incline (about 15 to 30 degrees) and place your feet flat on the floor. Grasp two dumbbells and hold them up above your shoulders, arms straight (A). Slowly lower the weights down to the sides of your chest (B). Pause, then press the dumbbells back up toward the ceiling. Do 10 reps, then go to move 4 without rest.

MOVE 4Dumbbell Fly

BETH BISCHOFF

Lie faceup on a flat bench with your feet flat on the floor. Hold a pair of dumbbells above your shoulders with your elbows slightly bent (A). Keeping the slight bend in your elbows, lower the weights until your elbows are even with your chest (B). Keep the same bend in your elbows as you press the weights back up. Perform 10 reps. Rest 90 seconds.

Repeat moves 3 and 4 (you'll do each exercise twice).

Source: womenshealthmag.com/fitness/breast-lifting-exercises?icid=OBtrafficPV_TBD_SB2