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Sane Fitness Quickstart

FitSugar — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 16:30:00 -0800

In a world of fad diets all we really want out of it all is to be healthy, strong, successful and sane. Right?

The Sane Fitness Quickstart ($24.95) will help you achieve just that by taking the insanity out of working out and helping you create an exercise routine that works with your busy schedule, leaving you feeling, well sane.

The Sane Fitness Quickstart deck contains 6 weeks of full-body workouts in a functional (and pretty cute) package. You can do the workouts at the gym or at home with minimal equipment. It's great for any busy woman who has trouble finding the time to workout. It's also enough to get you started if you've never had a weight-lifting routine or if you're just returning to the gym post holiday break/binge. Buy it on the Sane Fitness website.

Speak Up: What's Your Take on the Reebok EasyTone Ads?

FitSugar — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:00:24 -0800

In a sea of words, a title like "Make Your Boobs Jealous!" really jumps out at you - something I can attest to after coming across these new ads for Reebok EasyTone.

If these shoes do what Reebok claims, the shoes themselves seem pretty neat - balance pods create natural instability in your step, which forces muscles to adapt and encourages toning in the butt, legs, and thighs. So far, so good, but as my buddy Très points out, the ads focus mostly on two talking breasts!

To see these controversial commercials and judge for yourself, read more.

In the commercials, the camera constantly focuses in on the butt of the actresses, and two out of three times you don't even see a face. And in the commercial where a face is shown, the actress playfully teases with the cameraman that he must like what he sees since he's zooming in so much. Some of the tag lines seem questionable too: "88% of men will be speechless, 76% of women jealous, and 0% will know the reason is on your feet." I don't know about you, but my reason for staying fit is not to make the women around me feel inadequate.

I shared the commercials with a friend and she thought I was being a bit too serious. She got a good laugh out of them and thought they were playful and funny. She especially loved the one where a woman's breasts are given life as they complain about not getting any more stares. Why? Because the butt has taken all the attention away, thanks to EasyTone sneakers! Cue tag line: "Make your boobs jealous!"

When I asked why she wasn't the least bit offended, she left me with the reasoning that "sex sells" and "women want to feel beautiful." I'm going to ask myself if I am being way too serious, but in the meantime, I'd like to know what you think of these ads. Check them out below and share your thoughts with me in the comments section.

Fit Tip: Dedicate One Day a Week to an Easy Workout

FitSugar — Mon, 04 May 2009 03:00:00 -0700

Cardio is important for strengthening your heart, lungs, and muscles, but you don't need to go full force every time you work out. Whether you enjoy running, biking, swimming, dancing, or some other type of cardio, dedicate one day a week to an easy day. I don't mean rest completely and do nothing physical, just do a lighter version of your regular cardio workout. Doing only tempo runs or sprint intervals can be really hard on your joints. Slowing down allows your body time to adapt to the demands you place on it with your tougher workouts. I find Mondays a perfect day to put this idea into practice, how about you?

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Fit Tip: Go Easy on Monday

FitSugar — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 07:30:00 -0700

If your weekends do not consist of a normal exercise routine, the gym may seem very daunting on Mondays. For various reasons I failed to exercise last weekend, but I was determined to get back on track on Monday.

The problem was that the idea of spending a full hour at the gym seemed like a horrible idea after taking three days off. So instead of pushing myself to do it, I just had a light cardio day. Nothing crazy, pretty easy, but still got me moving. Come Tuesday, I was back in the swing of things. Had I have pushed myself too hard on Monday then I may not have even made it to the gym on Tuesday and my whole routine would have been screwed up. So if you find that you're not exercising on the weekends and having a hard time getting back into it on Mondays, make yourself do something, just go easy. It will make the transition from the weekend into your full blown workout schedule a lot easier.

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Sugarbabies: For the Love of Broccoli

Lil Community — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:30:17 -0800

This post was submitted by member FitSugar in our Sugarbabies group.

My little one last night asked me to make Brussels sprouts and then proceeded to eat three helpings. This photo is from her early days as a veggie lover. And yes, after the photo was taken we had the "don't take such big bites of your food, you could choke" conversation.

Don't you want to see your wee one on our LilSugar site? Don't wait another minute. Join our Sugarbabies group over in the LilSugar Community and share your priceless pictures. It's easy!

To see how to do it, just read more.

Create a PopSugar Account or login to your account.
Join the Sugarbabies group
Click "New Post" under the Sugarbabies tab at the top of the page.
Give your story a "Title."
Insert a photo of your babe.
Fill in the "Body" if you want to give us a snippet of the shot.
Add keyword(s) in the tag field with relevant tags (for example mine for this story was "Sugarbabies").
Click "Create Post" to submit content.

FitSugar Roundup

FitSugar — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:50:03 -0800

You can go easy on the butter in your mashed potatoes when you use Yukon Gold spuds.
New Moon star Nikki Reed says hiking with her boyfriend is her fitness secret.
How well do you know the calorie counts of Starbucks's holiday drinks?
Worried about falling off the healthy wagon? Here are eight ways to get back on track.
I'm curious to know how many days a week you work out.
Ashlee Simpson-Wentz firmly believes in taco night and baby weights.
If you're starting to strength train, check out this guide to beginning weights for lifting.
Learn just how long you need to exercise in order to burn off a slice of T-day pumpkin pie.
I have some great gift ideas for the healthy cook in your life.
Learn a bit more about the fat-burning zone.

Monitoring Your Easy Runs

FitSugar — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 03:30:00 -0800

One reason I love my heart rate monitor is learning how many calories I burned during a workout session. The number is always so gratifying.

A heart rate monitor is also great fitness tool, especially if you're training for an endurance race. Many training schedules include easy, long runs to build endurance while not pushing the body to move quickly. I find slowing down for my long runs difficult, but my heart rate monitor keeps my effort in check. You should take easy runs at 70 to 75 percent of you maximum heart rate. Many heart rate monitors have a zone setting along with an alarm to let you know when you are out of the designated zone. I like to push myself, but chilling out on the longs has helped me increase my distance. I have also found listening to a podcast rather than a playlist filled with driving beats helps me keep the run nice and easy too.

Not sure of your heart rate zones? Check out my calculator to help you figure out your target heart rate zone.

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Unfriend: The New American Dictionary's Word of the Year

GeekSugar — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:46:25 -0800

The New Oxford American Dictionary just released its annual Word of the Year and it's unsurprisingly tech-related. This year's honor goes to "unfriend," defined as by the dictionary as, "To remove someone as a 'friend' on a social networking site such as Facebook."

The Word of the Year is chosen from newly created words by researchers based on language trends, popularity, and cultural significance. Some popular geeky words that were up for the honor are no stranger to GeekSugar: "sexting" and "netbook" were also considered, along with "hashtag," referencing the popular Twitter "#" character and "intexticated," the state of distraction one experiences while driving and texting.

I think that "unfriend" is a pretty fitting addition to the dictionary. Plus, its inclusion makes it easy to decide between the terms "defriend" and the newly validated "unfriend."

Gear Review: slotRadio by Sansa

FitSugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:20:25 -0800

I love my iPod, but there is a new music player vying for my heart: the slotRadio ($79) by Sansa.

The two-inch-by-two-inch clip-on music player comes with a data card with 1,000 songs from the Billboard music charts, with prearranged playlists by music genre. I tried the additional Health and Fitness mix, which includes the mixes for warmup, cardio, roadwork (cycling), power (lifting), yoga, cooldown, and the even more mellow spa mix.

To see what I thought of this music player, just read more.

I must admit I am a bit technically challenged - ironic since I am a blogger, I know. Even with my latent Luddite ways, I found the slotRadio super easy to use. The instruction manual was simply written with helpful graphics. Open the box, charge the radio, which took about an hour, put in your music card, and go. My inaugural run with the slotRadio was great. It clips onto your clothes and is so small and light you don't even notice it. The volume button is easy to find, as is the skip button. You can easily skip genres, too. I warmed up with Lady Gaga and Nelly and moved onto cardio with a few bands I have never heard of, like VHS or Beta. The slotRadio feels like a pop music education in a good way. This little player is a great way to introduce yourself to new music. However, I had to remove the foam covers from the earbuds to keep them from falling out of my ears.

The video screen features graphics of exercises and lets you know the next song up on the playlist so you can advance easily to find motivational music. The slotRadio is also a real radio. As an NPR junkie, I love that I can switch over to radio and catch up on news or Fresh Air while working out.

I enjoyed the Health and Fitness music card much more than the standard Billboard artist music card. Thankfully, the data cards are easy to change, and there are many options to choose from, including Christmas tunes, '80s and '90s music, Latin, and classical. The extra data cards cost $40. The slotRadio bundle comes with headphones, charger, and Billboard music card. These make a great gift for the musically impaired fitness fanatic in your life.

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You Asked: Energy Bar For a Meal?

FitSugar — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:00:48 -0800

Dear Fit,
I just got off the phone with a friend and I need some advice. She says for breakfast, she eats one Balance Bar. I know some bars are fortified with vitamins, but this doesn't seem like enough to me - calorie- or nutrition-wise. What do you think? Is it OK to eat an energy bar for a meal?
-Concerned Friend

This is an excellent question because I think many people grab a bar for a quick meal because it's quick, easy, and fairly inexpensive. Is it enough, though? To find out what I think read more.

Replacing a meal with an energy bar is not a good idea. For one, most bars contain only about 200 calories. That calorie amount is suitable for a snack, not a meal. Another reason is that those bars were designed to give someone energy before or after a workout, so they tend to be high in carbs and low in fiber. That translates to quick energy at first, but your friend probably feels tired and hungry soon after. The low fiber issue may also affect regularity. The bottom line is that energy bars are not designed to replace a well-balanced meal, since they won't offer the same kind of nutrition. Even the ones that are fortified with vitamins and minerals only offer about 25 percent of your RDI, which isn't very much.

I think it's best to ask your friend why she's only eating an energy bar for breakfast. Is she short on time? Is she trying to lose weight? Does she think it's healthy? Once you find out her reasoning, you can suggest healthy breakfast ideas that suit her needs. There are plenty of tasty options that are high in protein and fiber to offer sustained energy, are easy to make, and won't break the calorie bank.