After pulling on your Nikes and adding that new Jason Derulo song to your iPod, you drag yourself to the gym for an hour. It’s hard to get started, you’re just so tired, but twenty minutes later the endorphins are kicking in and you’re feeling great. You finish your workout, do a little stretch, and walk home feeling happy as a clam.

But that happy feeling won’t last if you don’t eat a little something after all that exercise. You need something to replenish your body, girlfriend! You want to get stronger, not burn yourself out. Your friends have suggested everything from protein shakes to lemon juice.What should you really eat after you workout? I’ll give you a hint: it’s not lemon juice.

Let’s start out simple. First, drinking water is essential for replacing what you  lost in that intense cardio sesh! Everyone knows you should drink 8 glasses of water a day, but you should increase that to 10-12 on days you’re working out.

Now for food: when it comes to eating after a workout, the key is getting a snack in within 45 minutes of finishing. But that doesn’t mean chowing down on a piece of cake or snacking on a few celery sticks. Post-workout snacks should have both carbs and protein in them. The carbs help replenish glycogen, and the protein helps rebuild and rehydrate muscle tissue, as well as stimulate your immune system to keep you healthy. Read More »

Last week while I hopped on the treadmill for my afternoon jog, I looked next to me and spotted some guy wearing these. I thought it might be some sort of joke – they did look rather similar to gorilla feet, and that’s sorta funny – until I saw another guy walk in wearing similar shoes. (Or whatever you’d call them….)

I was really confused until the next day when I was catching up on my reading (PopEater, CollegeCandy, actual News, Newsfeed) and came across an article boasting the benefits of running barefoot. Which, I deduced, was what those guys were mimicing, without having to actually touch their bare feet to the nasty gym floor.

Yes, according to researchers at Harvard, the best (most beneficial and safest on your body) way to run is SANS SHOES. Though it doesn’t seem to make sense to most of us, runners who say no to their Nikes hold their feet differently, thereby making themselves less prone to injury. The study went on to find that when running without shoes, runners hit the ground with the balls of their feet first, rather than with their heels. Which is a good thing.

The conductor of the study, Daniel Lieberman, said that runners who run barefoot have an “astonishingly different strike” and that “by landing on the middle or front of the foot, barefoot runners have almost no impact collision, much less than most shoe runners generate when they heel-strike.”

That’s all fine and good but, um, but what about that whole pavement, dirt, sand, BROKEN JAGER BOTTLES, aspect of running barefoot??? Read More »

Hate how all the guys you know only lift weights a few times a week, skip the treadmill, eat twice as much as you, and still manage a 6-pack while you struggle to reveal any pack at all? Maybe it’s time to take a few tips from the boys!

As members of the fairer sex (holla!), we have some major obstacles to staying slim that guys will never have to deal with. The bloating and hormonal changes that come every month obviously suck. And the cravings don’t help us lose those extra pounds, either. While it’s true that both guys and girls get cravings, women are more likely to crave chocolates and sweets, whereas guys are more likely to crave meat (which happens to be filled with protein, makes you feel full longer and is generally better for your body). See the problem here? We should take a hint from the boys and switch to more protein-oriented snacks! Before reaching for the chocolate, go for some string cheese, a turkey and cheese wrap, or cottage cheese with fruit. If you’re still craving sweets after that, try mixing some protein with it – like almonds and chocolate chips. Read More »

I get it. Trust me, I get it. It’s getting nice out and the last thing you want to do is spend an hour or two inside the gym. Who wants to sweat indoors when eating ice-cream by the lake is so much more appealing (and yummy?) But on the flip side, you’ll be donning a bikini before you know it (like, ahem, next week) and you want to look h-o-t.

If only you could snap your fingers Sabrina-the-Teenage-Witch style and have your workout completed and your body looking Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition ready.

Well God is great, but he’s not that nice. Instead, he leaves us messages and makes us feel a little guilty, like the other day when I was waiting for my nails to dry (instead of working out) and I found this pamphlet next to the drying station: “14 Tips and Tricks for Looking Great in Your Swimsuit.” I flipped through the list, somehow managing not to smudge a nail, and now I will share these really great tips with you. (Don’t thank me, thank God. God or the nice Vietnamese people who placed these pamphlets on their drying station).

Brought to you by “Pilatesyourway.com” Read More »

So Spring Break is coming. That means it’s time to strip off all those layers and see what your body’s been up to during this long, brutal winter. Not happy with what you see? Welcome to the club. But what the hell are you supposed to do about the extra flub on your midsection when your flight to Panama City takes off in just 10 days?!

There may be a way….

According to Women’s Health magazine, it’s possible to burn 400 calories in 15 minutes. Now, if you’re a regular gym-attendee like me, and have spent 30 minutes on the treadmill only to burn 300 calories, this may seem simply impossible. According to WH columnist and physiologist Amy Dixon, however, it’s all about a special workout called the superset, in which you complete two fitness moves back to back without resting.

Not only do supersets cause a serious metabolic spike, they’ll cause you to continue burning fat and calories at a higher rate for up to 16 hours after your workout is over, according to researchers at Colorado State University. All you have to do is complete these exercises twice a week using weights that make it almost impossible for you to finish your last rep. Read More »

OK her belly button is scary, but look at those muscles!

My morning ritual consists of a tall cup of coffee, a scroll through the New York Times and turning on the first ten minutes of Live with Regis and Kelly to see what Kelly Ripa is wearing for the day.

Or, more realistically, how hot and toned she looks in whatever she’s wearing for the day.

It was hard not to notice Kelly Ripa whip herself into the best shape of her life almost instantly two years ago. She had always looked good, but suddenly her body looked insane. In a good way. I wanted to know her secrets. I longed for the formula to her suddenly sculpted arms and her six pack abs. Every time I saw her on the cover of a magazine, I scooped it up, hoping to solve the mystery to Kelly’s perfect bod.

And then I discovered it: Physique 57.

Just six months ago, this 57-minute routine could only be found on 57^th street in New York City for nearly $30 a class. This summer, though, the creators of this intense body weight training workout released three DVDs: the classic 57-minute workout, the 30-minute full body express and the abs and arms booster. Obviously, trusting Ripa’s testimonies, I immediately coughed up the cash. Three days later, I was sweating, burning, and working my way to my very own Kelly Ripa body. Read More »

Like many busy college students, I often justify skipping gym sessions by telling myself that I don’t have enough time.

“I have a paper to write, I can’t waste an hour waiting for the only elliptical that works.”
“I need to run on the treadmill for at least 45 minutes, and since I have a paper due tomorrow, that’s out of the question. I probably just shouldn’t go at all.”
“I’m not waking up at 7am to get in an hour workout before class.”

You know the deal.

I know that if I don’t clock in at least thirty minutes of cardio per session, I feel like my gym outing has been a waste and a failure. And I’m always hard on myself if I leave without doing crunches, even if I’ve run a couple of miles. In short — going to the gym has become about the time clock, but according to a study published in the New York Times, I’m going about things all wrong!

A couple of years ago, researchers from the National Institute of Health and Nutrition in Japan observed two groups of rats paddling in a small pool. The first group completed two 3-hour workout sessions, and the other group engaged in interval training, moving for twenty seconds and then resting for ten seconds for a total of 14 reps. The scientists were trying to figure out if prolonged exercise did more for the body’s endurance (ie., your ability to work out for longer, which translates into more calories burned) than the shorter/quicker exercise method. They found that both groups exhibited the same molecular changes that correspond with endurance gain, coming to the conclusion that we might be working out for longer than we really need to. Read More »

As preparations for Super Bowl Sunday commence, you may be wondering how your upcoming football fiestas will contribute to the post-holiday weight loss plan you drew up on January 2nd. You’ve been faithful to your diet since you packed on a few lbs with an abundance of Christmas cookies and egg nog, but now you will be faced with temptation. In the form of dips and the fried things you stick in them.

As someone that has never been able to look the other way when there are snacks on the table (and feel a constant urge to reach out my hand and grab a few them all), I have come up with some healthier options to help you stay slim and satisfied at the same time.

What not to make/eat: Grandma’s Seven Layer Mexican Chip Dip

Weve all sampled this delicious partner to the trusty Tostito. Made with one layer each of refried beans, sour cream, guacamole, cheese, salsa, olives and lettuce, you’re bound to gobble up hundreds of calories. Add tortilla chips or tacos to the mix and you’ll really be in trouble. Plus, it’s so good that you know you won´t stop eating after just a few bites.

What to make/eat instead: If you can´t kick your craving for something creamy, substitute a low-fat dressing (Ken´s brand Light Caesar and Ranch are two of my personal favorites) for the dip and fill a bowl with veggies instead of chips. If you can´t go the vegetable route (because the guys won’t stop making fun of you), buy low-fat Wheat Thins, Triscuits, or pita chips instead of the greasy Tostitos. Read More »

Bad news. Bad, bad news.

There are certain things we just know are bad for us.

Smoking? Check.
Too much Jersey Shore? Check.
Tanning beds? Check.
Drunk texting? Again, check.

But salt? Salty, delicious salt?

Brace yourself, ladies; new research is out and it looks like my favorite condiment (slash de-icer) is a whole lot worse for us than I originally thought.

According to most health experts, we’re only supposed to consume one teaspoon of salt per day. That’s it. In an entire day. Guess how much salt the average American consumes per day? Two to three times that amount! And when you go over, you’re really screwing yourself over.  New York knows it – they are urging “food manufacturers and restaurant chains to reduce salt in their products nationwide by 25 percent over the next five years.” Read More »

Ladies, I’m skeptical. If I hear Glee is a hilarious television show, I will not believe until I’ve seen the football team dancing to Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” on the field. If you tell me Special K bars will make me lose weight, I won’t believe until I read the nutrition facts for myself. So when my co-worker raved about the benefits of fitness boot camps, I obviously did not believe her until I tried it myself.

Working out is hard enough already – do you really need someone yelling in your face the entire time? If I want to work out, I can do it entirely on my own. I’m just fine pounding the treadmill alone. With my iPod. And without any camouflage, baggy pants, and whistles! After 7^th grade, I resigned myself to the fact that I cannot do a pull-up, and I am more than fine with that. Plus, boot camp sounded so manly – I don’t want to look like one of those guidos from Jersey Shore.

But my very persistent co-worker convinced me to try out a mini boot camp. Her friend, a certified instructor, was running it for free, which sealed the deal. And because I never suffer alone, I dragged two of my friends along. Read More »