I don’t know about you, but whenever I have one too many PB&J sandwiches (or bowls of ice cream in the caf) it goes straight to my thighs. I can almost feel the glucose molecules shimmy their way down to my legs…and then I’m left shimmying into my favorite pair of Sevens. It’s uncomfortable, it’s frustrating and it leaves me feeling guilty.

Which is why this week, in honor of post V-day chocolate consumption and cold weather, here are a few easy at-home workouts that not only target everyone’s least favorite trouble spots (i.e. the butt and thighs), but you can bust out during HIMYM commercials! Who said getting fit had to be hard??

1. Inner Thigh Pulses

Muscles Targeted: Adductors, Gracilis
Reps: 3 sets of 10 counts ( 3 pulses = 1 count, 30 pulses/10 counts = 1 set)
How to: Begin lying on your side, with your elbow directly under your shoulder for support. Place your top leg in front of your hip, using your free hand to hold it in place. The bottom leg will be doing all the work. All you’re going to do is pulse that lower leg upwards three times. Keep your leg straight and aim to go one inch higher every time you pulse.

2. Hip Thrusts with Leg Extension

Muscles Targeted: Gluteus (butt) muscles, Quadriceps, Abs
Reps: 3 sets of 20
How to: Begin lying on your back, with your legs bent and hands placed to the side of your body. Keep your feet directly under your knees for ultimate support. Raise your hips into the air creating a diagonal line from your knees to your shoulder. In one hip thrust, you will lower your hips about 2 inches from the ground and then raise it again. By not letting your hips touch the ground, you are engaging all of your lower body muscles. Squeeze those butt and core muscles throughout the duration of the exercise for maximum results.
Challenge: If you’re ready for it (which you are), raise one leg into the air while performing your hip thrust. This will really strengthen the supporting leg because it takes more effort to hold up the raised leg. Look at you go!

3. Hip Extensions

Muscles Targeted: Gluteus, Hip Extensors
Reps: 3 sets of 20
How to: Begin in a prone position and get on all fours. Be sure that your knees are directly under your hips and your wrists are directly under your shoulders. Extend one leg back so that it is straight and parallel to the ground. Work those gluteal muscles by extending it a little farther back. You can hold it here if that’s enough of a challenge, but if you want to go even further, go ahead and add some pulses to this move.

By the end of these workouts, you should really be feeling the burn. Literally, these exercises will burn your butt muscles! If you work these into your weekly routine (especially during Jersey Shore…there’s enough commercial breaks to tone your entire body!), you’ll have buns of steel in no time.

What do you want to see next time? Tweet me @jackelynho and like a genie in a bottle (babay) I will grant all of your fitness wishes.

Katrina doing the Fitness Model Circuit Workout

Do you ever look at pictures in Shape or Self magazine and wonder how the models get their perfect bodies? Well, most likely they have been Photoshopped to perfection, but in real life, they are not far from it.

When I was in California recently, I was lucky enough to have Karena Dawn, a fitness model, show me and my pal Katrina the workout she used to get in shape for a recent shoot with Shape Magazine. It’s a total body fat burning circuit workout you can complete in just 20 minutes! Try this routine three days a week and you will have a magazine-cover body in no time.

Self Magazine Fitness Model Workout

This workout is 20 minutes, and includes a resistance move followed by 30-60 seconds of cardio, like running up stairs, jumping rope, running, or even jumping jacks. Best part: you do not need any equipment or a gym membership to complete this workout. You have no excuse not to get in shape!

1. Push ups (20 reps)
To make this move more difficult try putting your feet up on a stair. To make it easier, place knees down on the ground.

To make sure you are doing your push ups properly, start out in a table top position with your spine in neutral. Extend one foot back, then the other. If you feel more comfortable placing your hands wider than shoulder width, then feel free to do so for your own comfort.

-  60 seconds of Cardio.
This is up to you. Choose any sort of heart pumping cardio you like and do it up for a full minute.

2.  Jump Squats (20 reps)
With feet hip distance apart, squat down bringing arms down by sides. Once your thighs are parallel to the ground, swing your arms back and jump up raising your hands high above your head. Land on your toes lightly and bend your knees going directly into your next squat. DO NOT lock your knees when you land. Not only does this defeat a lot of the workout, but it is horrible for your joints.

To make this move easier, simple do not jump, just squat.

-  60 seconds of Cardio.

3.  Tummy Tucks (20 reps)
Starting out in plank position (which is the position you’d hold before doing a push up), bring your right knee to your right elbow shifting your core weight with your leg. If this is too hard simply bring knee into chest rather than out to the side.

-  60 seconds of Cardio.

Now find a bench or something that is at least 2 feet off the ground for the last resistance move.

4. Tricep Dip (20 reps)
Place hands on the edge of the bench. For a harder exercise, extend legs out straight. Beginners can keep knees bent. Lift yourself off the bench and hang your butt just a couple inches in front of the ledge. Lower your self down towards the ground using your arms (NOT YOUR LEGS!) and push yourself back up using your triceps. (This is the best workout for getting rid of that unwanted under arm flub.)

-  60 seconds of Cardio.

You have now completed the circuit. Tired? Well, you gotta do it two more times for the full 20 minute workout.

If you are unsure about any of the moves, watch the video version of this workout below. Don’t worry; it’s only 4 minutes, which is just enough time to show you all the moves. Enjoy that rockin’ new body, ladies!

[If you liked this workout, don't forget to subscribe to DietHealth on YouTube for free and check out my blog updated weekly over at Examiner.com! It's like having your very own personal trainer at no cost. Could there be anything better? Have a question? Ask me on Twitter.]

While most people tend to focus on the right types of cardio to get their most successful workout on, it’s not the only way to tone, shape and define our bodies into what we want them to be.

Lifting weights can often get a bad rap; lots of women think that weight lifting is designated for those big, steroid looking macho men that hang around the gyms. But, little do some know, weight lifting is perfect for all shapes and sizes; it’s just a matter of finding what works for you.

According to the lovely safe-weight-lifting-for-women.com, weight lifting can help women:

• Have easier weight loss or weight maintenance

• A leaner, stronger body

• Improved appearance

• Better posture

• Lower blood pressure

• Increased resting metabolism rate

• Improved balance and coordination

• Stronger bones, and protection against osteoporosis

Bet you didn’t know that, eh?

What is the best way to incorporate weights into your workout to become a toned, but feminine buff chica?

If you don’t belong to a gym where you can use the free weights, go to a sports store and buy 5lb and/or 10lb hand weights. Then, grab a chick 8-minute Workout DVD, or go to an online workout website like FitSugar.com, where there are various videos demonstrating tutorials on how to workout. If you have a gym membership, talk to a trainer or try a weight lifting class, like Muscle Jam or Boot Camp.

Whatever you choose, make sure to incorporate weights into your weekly routine. Cardio is great, but it is by no means the only workout you need to get into tip top shape.

Working out at the gym:

Pros: It can be great motivation to see people you know, or strangers, pushing themselves to lengths that you want to push yourself too. Creating a sense of unity, a gym can group individuals together that have the same mentality: getting and staying healthy. You can even make gym dates with your friends or spouse as a way to bond, workout, and push each other. Additionally, there’s more of a variety at a gym; you can take classes or use machines that really work for you.

Cons: The competition can get to you. Some people go into gyms to flaunt their bodies, while sizing up the other men and women, making you, say a less healthy or thinner individual, feel inadequate. Some people view gyms like sororities; you have to look a certain way to fit in. Also, there can be lines for specific equipment, which can cause a time constraint. Depending on where you join, a gym can cost you an arm and a leg; the local gym by me is $100 bucks a month – yikes!!! Too rich for my blood.

Working out at home:

Pros: You can work out when you want, however you want, in your sweats or in your undies. Yes, buying equipment is expensive, but the lump sum you pay will add up to less than a annual gym membership. I splurged three years ago on a treadmill for the holidays, which ON SALE, cost me $500 bucks. However, three years down the road, it’s still alive and kickin,’ which is more than I can say for my uber expensive monthly gym membership.

Cons: It’s hard to motivate yourself. When you know the couch, a bag of potato chips, and the boob tube is on just a few feet away, you’re more likely to say ‘’ah, screw working out today,” than you are in the middle of a gym. You also can get bored of the same routine workout, which is more likely to happen when you’re at home with one or two machines, versus a whole slew of them at a gym.

Whether at home or at a gym, working out is an important asset to staying healthy. So, find the right location that works for you and get to it! If you’re used to working out at home, try a monthly membership at the gym and see how it makes you feel. You may love the classes offered (sometimes, a free personal trainer session is thrown in – who knows!) and wind up kicking your at-home workout habit. For you gym buffs, cut your membership short and invest in your favorite piece of equipment or some at home workout DVDs; the convenience of your at-home gym will create an ease from the crazy gym lifestyle.

What do you prefer?