Tag: fitness

I know, I know – let you eat all those goodies first! But, as you sidle on up to the buffet bar at this season’s holiday parties, just keep this information in the back of your head in case you find yourself in need once the new year rolls around.

Me? Well, I’ve been promising myself a personal trainer as soon as I stopped breastfeeding so I can get back to my pre-pregnant body.

Well, that was a while ago and no trainer yet…maybe that’s why I feel the need to share this with you now. Regardless, it’s good advice on choosing a personal trainer for you.

I remember the first time I hired a personal trainer. He was a Read more…

Are you working out but not seeing the results you want? I, for one, need to pay more attention to getting to the gym in the first place. However, when I read this article on the 4 most common fitness mistakes women make by Self Magazine, I thought, ooohhh, I do ALL of these things. How about you – do you sabotage you efforts, too?

Here’s what you are not supposed to do:

1. Cardio, cardio, all the time. Apparently, the rule of thumb is Read more…

There is nothing sexier than a woman’s legs in stiletto heels. The leg muscles are tight, the butt seems to raise up a bit. However, a woman teetering in stilettos, wobbling like a newborn colt is decidedly UN-sexy, don’t you think?

I mean that takes damsel in distress a little far. Well, have no fear, now you, as a stiletto wearing vixen, can enroll yourself (at the gym or via TV) in the Stiletto workout.

That’s right. Workout in your stilettos.

At first I thought this a bit ridiculous…can you imagine going to the gym in your highest of high heels. And working out?!? But, come to think of it, it’s a brilliant idea. Like the modern day “finishing school.”

Here in Northern California, Crunch is the place to find this workout, but just a quick Google search brought up a few at home options as well.

This “workout” is actually a class about posture and muscle strength. The workout teaches you about posture, something even non-heel wearing ladies could benefit from. And, while prancing around and learning about distributing your weight properly, your leg muscles get the practice they need to handle those stilettos with confidence.

When it comes down to it, nothing is sexier than a woman standing proud and walking with confidence, stilettos or no stilettos!

photo credit: Northampton Museum

If you have been spending hours at the gym trying to slim down, here’s some news you probably will not want to hear. New studies reveal that the weight loss benefits of exercise may have been overstated. Diet, it turns out, is a much bigger factor in weight loss.

A review of recent research by the Mayo Clinic concluded that “most studies have demonstrated no or modest weight loss with exercise alone.” Other studies assigned groups of sedentary women to different amount of exercise for a year, but found that the women lost similar amounts of weight regardless of which group they were in.

Before you give up the gym forever, countless researchers have found that exercise has a myriad of other heath benefits – it reduces depression, heart disease, some cancers, diabetes, and dementia, to name just a few. But when it comes to losing weight, exercise alone just isn’t the best route.

Researchers believe that we overestimate the number of calories we burn while exercising – often doubling the actual calorie count. We then reward ourselves for our hard work by eating food that packs on many more calories than we have burned off. I know I’m certainly guilty of that.

So the lesson here is not to stop exercising if you want to lose weight. Just keep your post-workout reward a little smaller.

photo credit: D Sharon Pruitt