Tight tummy tips from a medal-winning mum

Olympic Gold medallist and working mum of two, Denise Lewis OBE, believes the key to a happy home life lies in finding a realistic balance between family and career.

"With two kids, a husband and me coming and going all the time, I literally have to have Monday to Sunday planned - if not it would be complete and utter chaos!" admits the one-time golden girl of British sport.

"But if I was just at home with the children every day I honestly don't think I'd be completely fulfilled.

"I think life is all about getting the best out of everything for you and for your kids, and when I'm busy and active I think they get a better mum at the end of the day because I'm a happier, more rounded person," she says.

West Midlands-born Denise, who lives with her property developer husband Steve O'Connor and her two children - Lauryn, from a previous relationship with Belgian sprinter Patrick Stevens, and young son Ryan - says that working mums just need to find an individual formula that's right for them.

"When you're not feeling great you need to look at why that is and then make the necessary changes in your life," she advises.

"Let's face it, life isn't terribly long and you've got to make the most out of every moment."

The former record-breaking heptathlete, who was forced to retire from international athletics two years ago with injury problems, wowed the public in the second series of BBC's Strictly Come Dancing.

The day we spoke she was due to start training with partner Matt Cutler and was a little apprehensive. "I get very nervous because, although I've done it before and I loved it, it's still not what I've grown up doing, so I find it a real challenge.

"Obviously I want to do my best - at the end of the day it's a competition," she adds with a grin, "We're not just dancing for fun, and it's all live as well so there's no room for any errors whatsoever. I admit, it's very scary!"

Despite being at the top of her game for the best part of a decade, having retired from athletics and given birth to baby Ryan, 35-year-old Denise confesses she found losing the baby bulge a real problem.

"The first time round it was a breeze but then I was still a professional athlete and I was training all the time, but the second time with the little one, Ryan, I found it really difficult," she says.

"It's funny because you don't notice until you're already overweight. One minute you're in one place and the next you're somewhere completely different and it was like that for me.

"I can remember looking at photos of myself and thinking, 'Wow I look different' and I must admit that I found myself at a bit of a low point.

"In the end I had a word with myself and developed a programme of safe exercises that anyone can easily do at home."

Indeed, rather than sitting around and bemoaning her post-baby figure, Denise instead wrote The Flat Tummy Book - a completely-customisable exercise programme for busy people who are strapped for time and who don't fancy the whole idea of working out with Lycra-clad, superslim gym bunnies.

"I worked through the book post-pregnancy and post-retirement when my body was drastically changing and it really helped me to regain my shape," she reveals.

"When you get to your 30s, your metabolism automatically slows down but if you want to try to reduce the effects of this and get a trim midriff, the book sets realistic goals for everyone, no matter what their level of fitness to begin with.

"The real beauty of it is that you don't need loads of space or masses of fancy equipment; you can do it anywhere you like really," she adds.

The Buckinghamshire-based star explains that she was inspired to write the easy-to-follow book after realising that most people don't give their exercise programme enough time to work and simply end up giving up altogether.

"Everybody wants a quick fix these days but it takes a while to see progress and to see change," she encourages.

"Any form of exercise is a process and something that you need to include as part of your everyday life as opposed to fad exercise phases.

"The trick is little and often and making sure that you find space within your week to put some effort in."

But before you start to panic, Denise is quick to point out she isn't talking about engaging in an exercise programme fit for an elite athlete, rather just half an hour a few times every week.

"Realistically you need to be exercising twice a week, three times if you can, for about an hour and a half in total," she advises.

"Everybody's muscles respond to exercise differently, so I can't say that in three months you'll have the perfect body, but I guarantee that if you are committed and put your goals in place you will definitely see a positive change in six to 12 weeks," she smiles.

Meanwhile, when Denise isn't working out her abs, practising her dance moves or spending time with her young family, she remains a committed ambassador for London's 2012 Olympics.

"I'm hoping to be in Beijing this year with the British Olympic Association, and then it will be the start of what is a very exciting time for British sport," she says.

"We're on stage, it's our time, and we really need to be plotting how we're going to make our Olympics bigger and better than everybody else's.

"Everyone's had their wake-up call in terms of being prepared, they all know what they have to do, and the athletes themselves know that this is really a once-in-a- lifetime opportunity."

Top tips to keep going

1. Exercising will get easier as you progress.

2. If you are finding it hard to keep going, get a friend involved - a mutual appointment to exercise can be all the encouragement you need.

3. If you have never kept a diary before, you may find this a useful tool. I kept a training diary over 15 years, recording my training and competition results, my eating patterns, my mood and general well-being. Keeping a diary is a great way of monitoring your progress and will give you the opportunity to discover patterns in your week that you may not have noticed otherwise.

4. After a few weeks, the rewards of staying with it will be there for you to see with your own eyes because you'll be looking good. Hopefully this will be all the encouragement you will need.

5. Maybe you could introduce other forms of exercising that suit you like joining a gym that offers a wide range of fitness classes. You might try adding prolonged cardiovascular exercises such as jogging, cycling or swimming. These are general forms of conditioning and can go a long way towards controlling your overall weight. They are complete body workouts and good for the heart and lungs.