Get Wedding-Ready Abs With These 3 Exercises and 3 Foods

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Fact: Good posture comes from your core. Horsham Athletic Club‘s Jewel Kessler offers three abs-shredding moves for posture-perfect pics on your wedding day and beyond (hello, honeymoon!). Do two sets, four times a week for killer results.

Superman to Banana

Works: Abs, obliques, quads, shoulders, back, glutes, hamstrings. Form: Lie on your stomach with arms extended overhead. Lift your arms, chest and legs from the floor while squeezing your glutes. Keep gaze on the floor, hold for five seconds, and release. Roll over on your back, keeping your arms overhead. Lift arms and legs to 45 degrees and hold for five seconds. Flip over and repeat. Count: One minute total, holding for five seconds on each side.

Push-Ups to Mountain Climbers

Works: Chest, shoulders, back, abs, legs, hips, glutes and arms. Form: Get in push-up position, with hands just outside the frame of your shoulders. Perform eight push-ups, bringing your chest two to three inches from the floor. after the final push-up, complete eight alternating-knee mountain climbers, driving your knees toward your chest. Keep your stomach lifted from your waistband the entire time. Count: one minute total, for approximately four to five sets.

Mason Twists

Works: Abs, obliques, legs. Form: Sit with knees bent and heels on the floor, and lean back to 45 degrees. Pull your shoulders back and clasp your hands together in front of you. Lift your feet off the floor and, using your obliques, twist side to side quickly, tapping the floor with your hands next to your hips each time. Count: 50 reps per side.

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Buh-Bye, Bloat Keep your belly flat and happy with these yummy no-bloat foods.

Avocado >> The heart-healthy fat will fill you up without packing you out. Philly fave Pure Fare’s avocado key lime smoothie, which sneaks in some baby spinach, is a terrific choice.

Cucumbers >> The high water content keeps you going—literally. The more you, um, go, the flatter your tummy will be. Try the zingy cukes-and-tomato gazpacho at Jar Bar in Radnor.

Greek Yogurt >> Here’s a protein-packed snack that won’t puff you out. At Philly’s newest fro-yo spot, the Igloo, it’s fat-free and delicious. — Emily Leaman

To read more about bridal health and fitness, go here.

This article originally appeared in the fall/winter 2013 issue of Philadelphia Wedding.

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