When my daughter saw a solid and strong “man-in-black” at a family gathering, her child-like curiousity got the best of her. “Are you a security guard?” she asked. “No,” he replied, “I’m your cousin!”

As it turned out, he was not only a cousin, but a former Navy SEAL. Confidence poured out of him–no doubt a result of his top-notch training.

What? You’re not ready to join a block ops unit or the French Foreign Legion to earn that hot bod? You don’t have to. Here are five tips to get going:

1. Ditch the cliche’ curls and try the tris. Unless you want to beat your husband at arm wrestling (who doesn’t), you probably just want good muscle tone. Next time you tackle that push-up, try keeping your elbows in towards your body so your arms track along your ribs. The backs of your arms will take the heat and tone-up quickly.
2. Respect the pecs. Victoria has a secret–you paid too much for your memory foam bra! Stop cursing gravity and embrace it: the push part of a push-up begins with some rack action. Squeeze your chest right before you straighten your arms for a free boost.
3. Find your lost neck. It’s in there somewhere between your ears and your underwire. Make it a point to push the crown (you’re the queen) of your head away from your shoulders, as you press your shoulders towards your hips. You’ll feel less tension in your neck, and turtles will stop trying to mate with you.
4. Dear abbies. Crunchies are so last year–even worse, they can actually make you bigger. A body buzz kill! Instead, use a mind-body minimizing method. Press the small of the back into your mat, as you engage the pelvic floor and pull your “innie” (or “outie”) back towards your spine. You won’t need to photoshop the Christmas card this year.
5. Don’t be a slouch potato–stand up tall. Ballet dancers have a trick to looking taller–they “lift out of their hips”. You will feel what this is like if you; keep your hips parallel to the floor, lift your ribs, and draw your shoulder blades back and down. It’s exponentially harder if you actually lift ribs over your head too. Just sayin’.

Now that you know what to do, go for it! What are you waiting for? Permission?