Today goop featured an interview with celeb favorite Tracy Anderson. Anderson provided readers with a great 15 minute workout that we wanted to share.

For the full article on goop, click here.
 
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I am a big football fan, and an even bigger Ravens fan. So while I will be glued to the game this weekend, I understand that there will be a lot of half interested viewers following along. And even if you are a big fan, why not make an exercise game out of these 4 hours? The folks at SparkPeople have come up with a clever exercise game worth sharing. 


Not only will it count as your daily workout, but it will help you lay off the wings and nachos as well!


 
We all feel the impact of working out in different ways, which is why it’s always important to stretch and let your body recover when it needs to. A commonly felt area is the back, which is also one of the hardest areas to lengthen and stretch. That’s why we like Heidi Kristoffer's Cranky Back Flow.
 
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It’s easy to feel trapped in the gym during the winter months. So it’s key to make your cardio workouts more entertaining. 

Start by setting your goal, before hopping on the treadmill, time or distance. Without a goal, it’s too easy to stop when the discomfort and boredom kick in. Instead, make sure you have a goal in mind. But also remember it’s okay to stop before your goal every now and then. Allow yourself a cheat of ending early once a week. Over time, see if you can go weeks without cheats.

With your goal in mind, spend the first mile warming up. I like to go 10% below my base pace for the first quarter mile warm up, then increase it to my base pace for the rest of the first mile. At about a mile, now it’s time to start giving your mind mental tricks. 

-          Increase your pace another 5% for the next quarter mile
-          Bump it up again 5% for a quarter mile
-          Step it up a third time for a quarter mile
-          Allow yourself to recover on the last quarter mile and drop it down to your warm up speed
-          Now repeat!

I like to do this 3 times and then cool down at my base pace before walking the last quarter mile. Breaking the workout up into 2-3 minute chunks makes the 5 miles go by a lot faster. And dropping to the warm up speed in between reps provides nice recovery periods to look forward to. My goal was 5 miles, but set your’s and adjust the repetition as needed. You can do this same workout with time instead of distance, using 2 minute intervals.

So here’s what my workout looks like:

Mile 1
Warm up: 6.4 mph, 0.25 miles
Base pace: 7.0 mph , 0.75 miles

Mile 2
Bump 1: 7.3 mph , 0.25 miles
Bump 2: 7.6 mph , 0.25 miles 
Bump 3: 7.9 mph , 0.25 miles
Recover: 6.4 mph , 0.25 miles

Mile 3
Bump 1: 7.3 mph , 0.25 miles
Bump 2: 7.6 mph , 0.25 miles 
Bump 3: 7.9 mph , 0.25 miles
Recover: 6.4 mph , 0.25 miles

Mile 4
Bump 1: 7.3 mph , 0.25 miles
Bump 2: 7.6 mph , 0.25 miles 
Bump 3: 7.9 mph , 0.25 miles
Recover: 6.4 mph , 0.25 miles

Mile 5
Base pace: 7.0 mph, 0.50 miles
Cool down:  6.4 mph, 0.25 miles 
Walk: 3.6 mph, 0.25 miles


 
We’ve been following along Karena and Katrina’s Tone It Up regime. Their motivating and high energy personalities can help you get the abs you are looking for. Try out their Abs workout this weekend!

 
PicturePhoto: www.bodytransformationlab.com
Yesterday, I was holding a two pound pilates ball and couldn’t believe how big it was, twice the size of my fist. It got me wondering about what a pound of fat really looks like in volume. Here are some scary reminders.

One pound of fat is about the size of a coffee mug. That’s a lot of extra weight to lug around.




PicturePhoto: www.bodytransformationlab.com
And 100 pounds of fat? You could fill a table with it!


To put this in perspective.  If you weigh 180 pounds and have a body fat percentage of 30%, you are carrying around over 50 pounds of fat. That’s half the fat on the table! 


PicturePhoto: www.bamboocorefitness.com


Now if you were to drop your fat percentage to 15%, that’s only 25 pounds of fat. And even if your total weight doesn’t change, you will notice a significant difference on your body. Muscle has a much higher density that fat, so even if your weight stays the same, your waist and other areas will shrink. Take a look at the comparison. 

Now is the time to trade in that fat for muscle!


 
Feeling the onset of a potential cold? Remember to stay healthy and stay active. Instead of fully cutting out your workouts, just ease them up for a few days until you are feeling back. These are a few ways you can lighten your load when you aren’t feeling a hundred percent.

· Cardio: Cut your distance in half, or keep your target distance but slow your pace significantly

· Classes: Use a lighter weight than normal or opt for the easiest option on exercise variations

· Lifting: Drop your weight and your reps down

If these seem like too much, take the time to stretch or do simple yoga.

And don’t forget extra sleep, water and vitamins!

 
The digital health world was full of gadgets this year at the annual CES (Consumer Electronics Show). The model of the moment is clearly to pair an activity tracking device with an online portal. So who stands out in the sea? Well a few managed to catch our attention:

Runtastic
We’ve always been a fan of Runtastic for outdoor running and biking. We were happy to see them at CES and they earn a spot in this list for their continued excellence at providing detailed workout information for our favorite outdoor activities through an easy to use portal. Tracking is done using your own existing GPS devices.  
www.runtastic.com

iHeatlh
iHealth has a great selection of blood pressure gadgets, but we love them for their wireless body analysis scale. They offer a sleek scale that integrates with your wireless devices to track more than just weight.
www.ihealthlabs.com

ibitz
Hard not to love any company tackling childhood obesity. Ibitz does this in a creative way –by tracking your children’s physical activity, and then once they hit their goal, you can let them watch TV or play games. A physical device that syncs with your smart device is available in fun colors, and the app comes in both an engaging children’s version, or an adult version.
ibitz.com

BodyMedia
At first glance we wondered if this is like every other tracking device that seems to be flooding the market, but then we noticed we might be wrong. BodyMedia lays claim to the most accurate activity counter. We are in no position to verify or refute this claim, but it was compelling enough to have them stand out.
www.bodymedia.com

fitbit
This probably isn’t a new name to anyone reading this, and we aren’t sure if fitbit was really the first to market, but it seems so since they appear to dominate the tracker / portal market. And for good reason, it’s simply easy to track your activity, calories and sleep.
www.fitbit.com

 
It's a new year full of fitness resolutions and promises to lose weight after all the holiday cookies. But with summer a long way off, it's hard to find the motivation to keep you going through the winter months. That's why there is nothing better than some good music to keep you motivated working out. Finding beats in the music that match your pace is critical to keep you going.

Our new year's resolution is to help keep you moving. So here are our favorites for high and low heart rate days:

Fast (But Not Too Furious) 
  1. Thrift Shop, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis 
  2. Don't You Worry Child, Swedish House Mafia
  3. Diamonds, Rihanna
  4. Sweet Nothing, Calvin Harris
  5. I Can Only Imagine, David Guetta
  6. Gangman Style, Psy
  7. I Cry, Flo Rida
  8. C'Mon, Kesha
  9. Hall of Fame, The Script
  10. Va Va Voom, Nicki Minaj

Steady Going
  1. It's Time, Imagine Dragons
  2. Ho Hey, The Lumineers
  3. Take a Walk, Passion Pit
  4. The Only Place, Best Coast
  5. Cough Syrup, Young the Giant
  6. I Need A Dollar, Aloe Blacc
  7. Little Talks, Of Monsters and Men
  8. Anything Could Happen, Ellie Goulding
  9. Sail, AWOLNATION
  10. Midnight City, M83