Shakira gym workout

Shakira was in Ibiza this week for a photo shoot where she unveiled her amazing abs.

To get that gorgeous midsection, Shakira has been training with celebrity trainerTracy Anderson.  A typical workout (6 days a week) consists of 60 minutes of strength straining and then 40 minutes of cardio dance with new workout routines every 10 days.

In addition, as we know, Shakira includes a lot of belly dancing in her dance routine, which obviously helps her maintain those beautiful abs.  Indeed, lots of celebrities have been using belly dancing to stay fit.  Kaeshi Chai of Bellyqueen provided a few tips to Hollywoodlife on how anyone can workout with belly dancing.

Build a foundation. “Practice the foundation moves of belly dance, which include figure eights, circles, slides and shimmies,” Kaeshi says. “Any contraction utilizing the rectus abdominus (stomach), obliques and quadratus lumborum (side muscles) and back muscles will help tone and exercise the torso region. Most foundation belly dance movements activate the torso muscles of the body.”

Try squeezing your core for 10 seconds at a time throughout the day – when you’re sitting at the computer, watching TV, or standing in line. Do these about 10 times. Repeat throughout the day. As you strengthen your core, you can increase the duration of each rep and/or increase the number of repetitions.

Cross-train. “The ideal combination is to cross train with yoga and pilates to build flexibility and strength,” Kaeshi says. Also, try “meditation to practice moving your breath through your body which will make your dancing seem effortless.”

Pilates will help strengthen your core, while yoga will help with your flexibility – each of which are absolutely critical for serious belly dancing.

Dance every day. You can do it anywhere! “A person can dance a little everyday — when they are washing the dishes, brushing their teeth or even talking on the phone,” Kaeshi says. Just pop your hips!

One of the reasons why belly dancing is becoming a popular workout alternative is that it doesn’t require any equipment or large blocks of time and it could be done just about anywhere.