So you’ve resolved to eat right this year and get regular exercise, right? Slimming down and getting healthier are common New Year’s resolutions, but following through on the commitment is an uncommon accomplishment.

There are many pieces in the weight management puzzle. Emotions, appetite, will-power, self-image, and confidence all play a part. The road towards healthier eating usually starts with some simple lifestyle changes. Make healthy eating and regular exercise part of your everyday life. Sound easy? It’s not. You have to work at it.

In terms of exercise, the most important thing is to choose activities that are fun and that you can do on a regular basis. Instead of watching TV after dinner, go out for a brisk walk around the neighborhood. Recruit a friend or family member to keep you company.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

Snow Fun!

PT Tips that can help lead to a healthier new year:

• Eat three meals a day that are low in saturated fat. Meals should include a variety of fruits, vegetables, fish, lean meats, grains, cereals and low-fat  dairy products.
• It’s okay to snack if you snack smart. Include fruits and veggies with fun dipping sauces. Fruits and veggies are low in fat, packed with nutrients. Smart Snacks
• Choose a variety of foods to get enough carbs, protein and other nutrients.  
• Eat only enough calories to maintain a healthy weight for your height and build. If you’re training, take into account the extra calories you’re burning.

Here’s to a healthy, happy 09!

Filed under: 101-Basics, Exercise, Health, Nutrition by jane
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December 18, 2008 - The S2 fitness bike explores an unusual route to get you fit - “virtual reality.” There is a display mounted at the top of the fitness bike which lets you experience different types of riding environments, as well as play some games. The pedal resistance even changes with the terrain on the screen.

If that doesn’t make things more challenging, you can also connect online with the S2 to compete with friends in a “side by side” competition. Of course the bike will also give you the usual real-time feedback that you would expect with a fitness bike - it will show you the distance, time, heart rate, calories burned. The S2 is available as a recumbent or a regular upright bike for around $8569 (steep anytime but especially in this economy).

Still pricey but less expensive at $1699, the X-Bike 1000 is an excercise bike that works your entire body. Its handlebars move from side to side, makeing you feel as if you’re actually riding a non-stationary bike. The bike also has seven levels of resistance that will help strenthen your arms. Though the price tag is steep, Lance Armstrong uses one of these, so it might be worth a look.

(thanks to ChipChick for the recommendations)

Filed under: Cycling, Electronics, Exercise, Training by jane
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September 11, 2008 - If you’re taking a trip to Portland, Oregon anytime soon,  visit the Alberta Arts district and check out the Green Microgym.  This new exercise facility utilizes energy generated by users to help power the building.  A total of 40% of its own electricity comes from solar panels and exercise machines like stationary bikes.

Green Microgym uses only energy-efficient lighting, ceiling fans and televisions. It also has a mostly paperless membership system. Its five elliptical machines are non-motorized and don’t require electricity.

An LA Times article called Calories come off and lights come on profiles the people-powered gym. There’s a prototype for an exercise machine that consists of four spin bikes attached to a small generator (pictured above). When the human-powered bikes are pedaled, a digital readout shows the amount of watts (a measure of power) produced by pedaling and turning an arm crank that strengthens the upper body. As many as four riders can propel the prototype system, which can produce 200 watts to 600 watts of energy an hour. Cool, huh?

If you can’t make it to Portland, here are some tips for making your workout greener:

Go Carless to the Gym: One mile in a car can equal up to 1 pound of carbon released into the atmosphere. Walking or jogging to the gym not only reduces your carbon footprint; it is a great way to warm up. By the time you get there, your muscles are stretched and you’re ready to jump right into your workout.

Stay off the Treadmills: Treadmills are major electricity guzzlers, but most other machines are self-powered or use no electricity at all.

Buy a Reusable Water Bottle: Whether you buy a plastic or metal bottle, this tip is a no-brainer. Keep hydrated without loading the landfills.

Think about it. It’s easy to  shrink your waistline and your carbon footprint - all at once!

Filed under: Charity/Cause, Eco/Green Living, Exercise by jane
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June 17, 2008 - Waking up at 5:45 am isn’t exactly my favorite thing to do. In fact, I think I’d rather stay awake until 5:45 am than go to bed to get up at that time. But I’ve realized if I don’t wake up to go to the gym, an entire day can go by without me going.

There’s an ad I once saw that had somebody running and it said something along the lines of, “If you decide not to run today, would it matter that nobody but you noticed?” I guess that ad has always stuck with me. I mean, if I decided not to get up in the morning, would it really matter? I doubt anybody would know. And if they did know, I doubt they would really care.

But the point of the ad is this: If I chose to sleep in instead of going to the gym to train, I’m the one who would feel bad about it. I would notice, and I would care. So I go, and by 8 am, I feel great. I’ve already accomplished a huge amount in my day before most of my friends have even awakened.

In the past I’ve been a huge fan of the, “well my cross-training for skiing is skiing” motto, I’ve also been a big fan of the non-exercise-exercise: you know, skateboarding, wakeboarding, tennis, etc… Not that I feel I didn’t get exercise from these methods, because I know I did. But I know that if I want to progress to the next level of skiing, I need to become stronger physically. So I’ve started sacrificing my late morning sleep for cross- training, and I’d have to say, I believe it’s well worth the sacrifice.

(more…)

Filed under: Exercise, Ski, Training by chantelle
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Are you ready to get fit? Are you looking for the motivation to begin an exercise program? Rise to the challenge by participating in the 2008 National President’s Challenge. What began as a national youth fitness test has grown up. Today, the President’s Challenge takes staying active beyond the school gym, and into everyday life.

What is the National President’s Challenge?
The National President’s Challenge is a physical activity challenge designed to get Americans up and moving. The challenge begins March 20, 2008, and ends May 15, 2008.

All you have to do is be active five days a week for six of the eight weeks between March 20th and May 15th, 2008, and log your activity at the President’s Challenge Web site. Activity goals are based on age.

For kids ages 6 to 17, the activity goal is 60 minutes a day. For adults age 18 and older, 30 minutes a day is all it takes. The activity is up to you. Shooting hoops. Jogging. Karate. Skateboarding. There’s no limit to what you can do. Be a part of the program. Try new things. Make new friends. Plus win awards for doing your favorite activities.

(more…)

Filed under: Exercise, General, News Bytes, Training by admin
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March 10, 2008 - We’ve had camera-focused phones, we’ve had music-focused phones, and now there’s a fitness-focused phone.  Adidas and Samsung have teamed up for a new twist in training — a mobile phone that can coach. MiCoach works with Adidas shoes and apparel to plan, track and motivate users in training.The device directs and motivates users during workouts by combining a mobile phone, heart rate monitor, stride sensor, MP3 player and the voice of an electronic “personal coach.”

MiCoach hits retail stores in Europe this month and will roll out in the United States in 2009. It will cost $300 to $600 in Europe, depending on the service plan users select. North American pricing has not been set. The cool Samsung SGH-F110 miCoach mobile phone is available in seven attractive colors including Dark Gray, Tech Silver, Pink Red, Cool Gray, Sapphire Blue, Misty Blue, and Sweet Pink.

The new Adidas-Samsung collaboration is the latest of several tech-sport partnerships. Most comparable is Nike Inc. and Apple Inc.’s Nike+, a wireless system that allows Nike running shoes embedded with a sensor to communicate with Apple’s iPod Nano. An update last week allows users to plug their iPods into gym equipment and track their training there as well.

You might want to also check out Nokia’s sports tracker software (free), compatible with any Nokia s60 phones which  tracks routes via gps and logs them for future comparison. You can compare performance with others through a facebook plug-in. Obviously this app doesn’t work that well if you exercise on a treadmill.

What’s next? A phone that exercises for you?

Filed under: Exercise, News Bytes, Training by jane
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How can you enjoy all the outstanding aerobic and fat burning benefits of jumping rope, without the rope? With the JumpSnap Ropeless Jump Rope  of course.

Every once in a while we find a gadget we like and this one burns up to 100 calories every five minutes wherever you are, even the smallest apartment or bedroom. JumpSnap enhances workouts with a variety of exercises, creating a program that would be impossible to perform with a real jump rope. An LCD display right in the handle targets and tracks calories burned, jumps, and time.

Particularly great when on the road. Now, what’s your excuse for not exercising?

Filed under: Exercise, General, Training by admin
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Tall oaks from little acorns grow.   -Anonymous

You don’t have to look far to find a tree worth climbing. And tree climbing isn’t just for kids. It’s an adventure, but it’s also a great workout. Climbing exercises the upper torso by using many of the muscle groups not often worked.

Anyone who’s young at heart and ready for the enjoyment trees can provide will find tree climbing fun (as long as you’re not afraid of heights). It is at once a thrilling, enchanting, and calming experience. 

Tree climbers love being aloft and, with advances in technique and equipment, large trees that were once considered too big to climb can now be scaled with ease and safety. Although if you go back and try to climb the bad boy that terrified you when you were six, chances are it might not seem so big anymore.

If you want to really explore tree climbing, or see what’s new since you were a kid (a lot), check out Tree Climbers International, Inc. In addition to promoting tree climbing, they teach the sport of “rope and harness” climbing so that everyone can experience the joy and wonder of seeing the world from the heights of the treetops!

What are you waiting for?

Filed under: Adventure, Exercise, Outdoors by jane
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So you’ve resolved to eat right this year and get regular exercise. Slimming down and getting healthier are common New Year’s resolutions, but following through on the commitment is an uncommon accomplishment.

There are many pieces in the weight management puzzle. Emotions, appetite, will-power, self-image, and confidence all play a part. The road towards healthier eating usually starts with some simple lifestyle changes. Make healthy eating and regular exercise part of your everyday life.

(more…)

Filed under: Exercise, Health, Nutrition by admin
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Studies show that an average 143 lb person skating at 10mps can  burn as much as 600 calories in an hour of roller skating. Most people average in the 6 mph range and will burn an average of 350 calories or greater. With most roller derby leagues, they practice for 2 hours totalling a caloric burn of over 1200 calories in a single practice.

Besides the sport of roller derby providing aerobic activity, it also provides the benfefits of muscle toning, strengthening and not to mention some nice bruises to show off to your friends and family.

Key benefits of roller skating:

• Low-impact exercise for joints
• High caloric burn
• Aerobically as good as jogging or cycling
• Involves all the major muscle groups
• Mentally uplifting

Where and when to roller skate:

• Roller rinks
• Parks and paved exercise pathways
• As a way to regain strength after an injury
• When you find exercise boring
• Winter or any day it’s impossible to exercise outdoors

Filed under: Exercise, Health, Roller Derby, Speed Skating, Sports A-Z by Roller Chick
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