Joyce L. Vedral - Toning for Teens: The 20 Minute Workout That Makes You Look Good and Feel Great

Neither this exercise program nor any other exercise program should be followed without first consulting a health care professional. If you have any special conditions requiring attention, you should consult with your health care professional regularly regarding possible modification of the program contained in this book.

Copyright 2002 by Joyce L. Vedral

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in any database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Warner Books

Hachette Book Group

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First eBook Edition: December 2008

ISBN: 978-0-446-55353-7

Warner Books and the W logo are trademarks of Time Warner Inc. or an affiliated company. Used under license by Hachette Book Group, which is not affiliated with Time Warner Inc.

Book design and text composition by Ellen Gleeson Cover photo by Deborah Boardman

To you, the future generation of young women
who will thankfully be free of endless dieting and
preoccupation with your bodiesnow that you know how to
work out the right way! Im with you all the way.

T hank you to Sandra Bark and Amy Einhorn for your enthusiasm and help with this project, and to my agent, Mel Berger, of the William Morris Agency, for going the extra mile. Thank you to Deborah Boardman for the fine photography and a sense of humor. Thank you to Callie Lefevre, Sara Besnoff, Maureen Bolger, Lauren Szygiel, and Ashley Johnson for doing the workout and the inside and front cover photos. And a special thank you to Jenny Jones and the Jenny Jones TV showit was the e-mails I got from thousands of teens who watch your show that literally forced me to write this book!

O ne of the best ways to ensure health and fitness is a balanced exercise program. As a pediatrician, it is my pleasure to see Toning for Teens being published. In it, teens will find a balanced, healthful, safe way to work out with weights so that they will not only get stronger, but acquire balanced musculature as well.

This workout can help remedy the many hours too many of our young adults spend in inactive pursuits. This workout can also help increase the basal metabolism, so that overweight teens will be assisted in weight loss. As they follow this workout, along with a balanced diet such as is found in this book, they will lose excess body fat and eventually arrive at their ideal weight. Whats more, we now know that the teen years are crucial in building a bone base, and weight-bearing exercises are the key.

In short, with the permission of your teens pediatrician, I highly recommend this workout to any young adult.

George M. Azzariti, M.D., F.A.A.P.

Dr. Azzariti is a pediatric specialist who has run the weight control center for pediatric and adolescent patients at Holy Name Hospital for fifteen years. The president and founder of Pedimedica P.A., a group of pediatric practitioners with offices throughout New Jersey, he is a fellow in the American Academy of Pediatrics and has a practice in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

P arents, Im so happy that your daughter has chosen to look at getting in shape in a positive wayand just as overjoyed that you are taking the time to read this note. As a former high school teacher (I taught teens for more than twenty years), Ive agonized over how young girls become obsessed with losing weight, and how often Ive seen them become emaciated and actually less attractivethe opposite of their goal. Ive also felt great compassion for those girls who are overweight and just cant seem to get the weight offno matter what they dobecause theyre going about it the wrong way.

As you may already know, Im not just a former high school teacher. Im also a New York Times best-selling fitness author who for years has done the talk show circuit. My workout books and videos have sold more than three million copies! So for me, writing this book for teens to get in shape is the perfect marriage of my lifelong experiences. But let me explain to you why I chose to do it now.

When I appeared on the Jenny Jones TV show to talk about fitness for women, I gave the viewers my e-mail address, thinking that Id get responses from women of all ages. But instead, I got so many e-mails from teenagers that my e-mail continually shut down. Even though I sat at my desk for ten hours a day, I could not keep up with it. Virtually all of the e-mails were from teenagersranging from eleven through nineteen, with the large majority being thirteen to sixteen.

Here are a few in abbreviated form, just so youll have an idea.

I want to lose weight on my fat thighs and stomach so I can wear a bikini at the pool and the beach. Ive tried dieting and exercising but I dont know what Im doing. Help!

Sweetie (11 years old)

Im 12 years old and weigh 177. How can I get a balanced diet and lose weight? I really need your help because Im starting junior high school and I want to lose 37 pounds. Please help me, Im begging you.

Angel (12 years old)

Im 13 years old and weigh 160 pounds. My mom weighs only pounds more than me. I was wondering if your exercise program is safe for kids.

Katy (13 years old)

Im 14 and weigh 185 pounds. I have a loving family but when I get bored I eat and eat. I want to lose 20 pounds by the beginning of school. Im not taking PE because I have a computer class, so without your help Ill be fatter than usual. Can you help me? I dont know where to start.

Amy (14 years old)

Im a 15-year-old who is past being overweight. Im 5 3 and 184. Im really fed up with diets they dont work. I need to lose weight so I can be healthier, have more energy, and be able to have more fun.

Lilly (15 years old)

Im 15 and not really overweight by the scale, but I feel fat because my body is so soft. Is there anything you could do to help me?

Tanya (15 years old)

Im 16 years old and Im almost as big as my father. Im sick of living my teenage life with this big fat body. Im so depressed. My friends say Im pretty but they are just being nice. My life has become hell because of my weight. What can I do?

Diedre (16 years old)

Im really insecure about my body. I hate my thighs. I want to wear a bikini but people would make fun of me since Im 190 pounds and 5 feet 8 inches. Is there a workout I could follow or a diet?

Kim (17 years old)

Im 18 years old and all my life Ive had this dream of joining the national guard. But I cant get in unless I lose the weight and get myself in shape. This weight issue has been a lifelong struggle for me. Do you have a plan that I could follow?

Rita (18 years old)

After reading these letters, you may be thinking, Isnt it a shame that these poor girls are already worried about their bodies? You might even be saying, Its wrong to let society put pressure on them when they are so young. But chances are youre also thinking that it would be good to see our youth being fit and healthy.

That is my reason for writing this bookto see our young women become healthierand not just physically, but mentally, too! Notice how the girls sense of self is so affected by their bodies.

My goal is to empower young women by showing them how to take control of their bodies through specific actions. The end result will be a beautifully shaped, strong, healthy body, and also a new mind-set that will carry over into every part of their lives. Self-esteem is improved when people feel empowered.