Ah cellulite; that orange peel, dimple-ridden skin that makes us look like we’ve been lying on a pebbled beach before we’ve even pulled down our trousers. Contrary to how you might feel, cellulite is not a curse. It has nothing to do with your weight or what you eat, it is simply caused by the loosening of muscle so by completing the following series of moves aimed at toning and firming targeted muscle groups, you’ll soon be strutting around like J-Lo or even Kylie!

(Of course we want the rest of your body looking beach-fabulous too so we’re also covering  stomach and arms too! )

Tip 1: To get the full benefits of the below moves, do them until you start to feel the burn in your muscles. Don’t push yourself to the point where you can’t sit down on the toilet without wincing. Little and often is better.

Tip 2: Throughout the exercises, engage your core. This means suck in your stomach a la ‘George Clooney is heading this way and I need to look tall and skinny’. This will support your back and ensure you don’t pull anything you are not supposed to…except George Clooney should he really happen to walk by.

Tip 3: For best results, do these 7 moves in 7 minutes for *7 weeks!

Music = anything with a good beat around the pace of Olly Murs’ Dance With Me Tonight.

Bum work (3 minutes):

Move 1:

• Position yourself on all fours, with your elbows to the floor for stability and straighten the leg to be worked.
• Raise the leg no higher than hip height for counts of two and then lower for counts of two.
• Repeat for a total of 8.

Move 2:

• Keep the straight leg out at hip height and bend the knee in and out again for single counts.
• Repeat for 16.

Move 3:

• Keep the knee bent with the sole of the foot flat to the ceiling.
• Raise and lower the leg (back to hip height) for single counts.
• Repeat for 16
• Now pulse the leg for 8.

Repeat moves 1,2 and 3 on the opposite leg.

As the weeks go on, you will be able to repeat the sequence on the same leg for up to a maximum of three times.

Side leg and inside thigh (2 minutes):

Move 4 (side leg):

• Lie on your side with your bottom leg bent for stability. You can lie flat or prop yourself up on your elbow.
• Raise your straight top leg up for counts of two and down for counts of two.
• Repeat for 8.
• Hold the leg and pulse it for 16.

Move 5 (inside thigh):

• Straighten both legs. Now bend the top leg you have just been working and put the foot flat on the floor, behind the knee of the bottom leg.
• Raise the bottom leg up for counts of two and down for counts of two.
• Repeat for 8.
• Hold the leg and pulse it for 16.

Now turn over onto the other side and repeat moves 4 and 5 on the other leg.

Although not technically designed for banishing cellulite, the following two moves will target arms and stomach – firming up the muscles so that when you have that cocktail in hand, you only have to think about raising it to your lips without worrying about how you look while doing just that. The press ups will also help your breasts become a little more pert, if they are not fabulously pert already!

Arms (1 minute)

Move 6:

• Position yourself onto all fours once more.
• Keep your hands shoulder-width apart with your fingers at a slight angle facing inwards.
• Take your weight slightly forward, so that your arms are doing all the work .
• Lower your nose to the floor for counts of two and raise for two.
• Repeat for 8.
• Lower and raise for single counts of 8 for extra pertness.

As the weeks go on, you will be able to repeat the sequence for up to a maximum of three times.

Stomach (1 minute)

Move 7:

• Prop yourself onto your forearms and lie flat on the floor, with your toes turned under ready to go.
• Tense your stomach and engage your core to lift you around two inches off the ground, ensuring that your back is flat a la a plank, and hold until you start to quiver.
• After you start quivering, hold for a further 10 seconds.

A variation on the above is to allow your knees to touch the floor for extra support. You will still be working your core and you will still quiver if held for long enough.

So there we are you beautiful ladies, there is how to tone up your fabulous bodies in around *seven weeks, at seven minutes a time. Remember to keep hydrated and eat a balanced diet to aid your bikini-body MOT, which can incorporate wine and chocolate in moderation…happy sunlounging!

LAUREY BUCKLAND set her first SUNLOUNGER story – Divine Intervention - in Cambodia. Her SUNLOUNGER 2 story – Magic Eight - is set in Bruges.