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Jillian Michaels Fitness: Celebrity Trainer Shares Her Weight Loss Tips

Celebrity Trainer Jillian Michaels' Top Tips To Lose Weight

Psst — the secret to losing and maintaining a healthy weight is something you already know how to do.

A combination of a wholesome diet, consistent exercise and pinpointing the root of why you want to lose weight, are all ways to stay fit and maintain it, says celebrity personal trainer Jillian Michaels.

Michaels, who will be starting her "Maximize Your Life" tour in Winnipeg, Man. on April 4, says the most common fitness mistakes people make is falling for health scams.

"They buy into the scamsters who pray on people's apathy with false messages like 'you don't have to count calories.' This is utter crap," Michaels tells The Huffington Post Canada. "The fact is you do. Trendy diets don't work in the long run and usually have harmful repercussions like yo-yo dieting, which slows your metabolism."

Other times, people run into excuses like not having enough time to workout or go to the gym. As a trainer, Michaels has heard it all.

"I know how hard it can be to find the time to get a workout in. But it is important to do it. They key is workout hard and make the most of the time you have," she says.

One way to make your workouts more effective is to work on multiple muscle groups at the same time (like bicep curls with lunges) and focus on high intensity interval training. This type of training is known to be efficient, burn more fat and lead to a healthier heart, according to Shape Magazine.

Where you workout shouldn't matter either, Michaels says. So if you can fit in four 30-minute sessions either at your local gym or the home gym you crafted in your basement, it should be sufficient to get you into great shape.

Jillian Michaels' six tips for getting fit:

Stay Consistent

Jillian Michaels' Top Fitness Tips

Stay Consistent

"New research suggests that the best time of day to work out is the same time, every day," says celebrity personal trainer Jillian Michaels. Then your body gets used to releasing energy and muscle-building hormones like testosterone that aid in fitness performance and help metabolize fat. "The most important thing is that you DO work out regularly, no matter what time of day," she says.

Think About Strength Training

"I pair small muscles together with big muscles in the same exercise. Synergizing multiple muscle groups simultaneously requires a tremendous amount of energy and produces higher calorie burn," says Michaels. This way, your workouts are more effective in less time.

Inch Up Your Incline

"All it takes to torch 15 per cent more calories on the treadmill is a little incline," says Michaels. Turning the treadmill up to a five per cent incline and walking can make a huge difference as well. "The higher you go, the more calories you burn at any speed, without tacking more time onto your workout."

HOW TO: Boat Pose Into Hollow Man

Sit on the floor with your legs extended. Lean back so that your torso and thighs are angled at about 45 to 50 degrees, so your body forms a V-shape. Lengthen your tailbone into the floor and slowly straighten your knees, raising the tips of your toes slightly above the level of your eyes. If this isn't possible, keep your knees bent, perhaps lifting your shins parallel to the floor. Next, slowly bring your legs and torso towards the ground until your shins and shoulder blades are hovering two to three inches off the ground. Rise back up into the V-shaped start position and repeat.

HOW TO: Pike Push-Up

Start in a push-up position with the balls of your feet on an elevated platform or workout bench. Next, place your hands in a prone push-up position on the floor. Lift your body up into a pike position so your hands are directly under your shoulders and the top of your head is pointing toward the floor. Make sure you bend your elbows and lower your body back into a starting push-up position. Repeat.

HOW TO: Cross Over Lunge

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Step your right foot diagonally forward and across the left foot. Slowly lower your left knee until the right leg is parallel to the floor. Then using the right leg, exhale and push yourself back into the starting position. Repeat the same move with your left leg, this time bringing your left leg forward and over.

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