The overcrowded gyms on campus tell me that just about everybody made a New Year’s resolution to get in better shape. Wouldn’t it be great if you could stand out from the crowd? How about if you had $200 worth of brand new Lululemon gear to show off?

Luckily for you, the folks from the new movie Haywire want to give you just that. Check it out:

Get in kick-ass shape this year,  just like MMA star Gina Carano who plays Mallory Kane in the upcoming film Haywire –  opening in theaters nationwide on January 20th,  2012. We have a $200 gift card to Lululemon to give away for all your athletic clothing needs.

Want to win brand new work-out clothes?

1. To enter, just leave us a comment telling us your best gym style tip. Make sure to use your real email address so we can contact you if you win.

2. Contest ends January 15th at 11:59 PM.

3. Please note this giveaway is only open to US residents. For official rules and more legal mumbo-jumbo, click here.

Holidays, finals, cold weather… hello, stress eating and couch potato days. Right now, we could all probably use a kick in the butt when it comes to fitness. I got mine last week with NYC-based trainer Melissa Paris. The class was a free in-store event at one of the Lululemon stores in NYC, and it was amazing! This week’s workout is inspired by some of Melissa’s moves. And this is just the tip of the iceberg – I highly suggest checking out her website for more great workout ideas.

1. High Knees into Bicycle

Begin with high knees – running in place while lifting your knees as high in the air as you can. Do this for one minute.

Next, drop to the floor for some bicycles. While lying on your back, lift your shoulders off the ground (like in a crunch) and twist your elbow to your opposite knee, switching from side to side. Do this for 30 seconds.

Repeat this full sequence three times.

2. Mountain Climbers into Side Plank

This sequence begins with mountain climbers – starting from a plank position, jump one foot forward toward your hands, and then switch and bring the other foot forward. Try to stay low to the ground and use your legs without jumping too high. Keep going for one minute.

Next, hold in a side plank position on your forearm, trying to keep your body in one straight line. Hold here for 30 seconds, then switch to the other side and hold for 30 seconds.

Repeat this entire sequence three times. It gets tough, but don’t give up!

Garnet is a student at Columbia University in New York City. When she’s not dancing or writing, she can be found exploring the city, and, let’s be honest, spending way too much time on the internet. Follow her @garnethenderson.

Since I basically live in workout clothes, I’ve had to revamp my closet to make room for $100 couture spandex. It gets pretty ridiculous paying so much for fitness clothes, but this is how I see it: when you look good, you feel good and you perform even better! Wearing booty lifting shorts and accentuating tops motivates me to go 110% at the gym.

Jockey Person to Person® has come out with a new line of active-wear for women and to be honest, I’m pretty surprised. They sent me a shirt to review (shown below) and I took it out for a 6-mile run along Venice Beach. What did I think?

Let’s start with the cons. Jockey sizes tend to run bigger than normal and I’ve never been able to figure out why. I normally wear a size Small or 4, which usually fits quite perfectly. Mind you, I like my fitness clothes tight because I hate when there’s extra fabric flapping around as I’m doing squat jumps. I received a size XS and it was a lot looser than I’m used to. The cut of the shirt was very conservative – it covered all of my chest and extended below the hip. Read More »

If you take a stroll around my city, you’ll see girls and guys alike donning short shorts and track jackets, music a-blastin’ from their iPods. They’re only participating in the latest craze we like to call running. If you haven’t joined the club, now is the best time to do so! Why?

1. Nothing feels better than setting a goal of 5K, 10K, half or even a full marathon…and actually finishing it. Talk about extreme motivation.

2. Trying to get that 6-pack to peek through? Running has amazing cardio benefits that’ll shed an extra layer of fat.

3. You don’t need equipment. Just your fave pair of running shoes and you’re good to go.

4. The running community is extremely supportive. There are fun runs almost everywhere! Check out places like Sports Basement, Lululemon Athletica or Nike.

5. Runner’s high! It exists, trust me. Read More »

She works out 6 days a week. She avoids the dessert buffet in the cafeteria. Her favorite hobbies on Facebook include running, yoga and lunges (and do not include brownies, TV marathons or couch time). She has magazine subscriptions to Shape and Self and her bookshelf looks like one you’d see in Jillian Michaels’ home library.

And you have no freaking clue what to get her for the holidays. I mean, carrots are a bad gift idea, right? And you know she needs a new sports bra, but that would be weird…

Worry not, young lass. Here are 9 gifts that are sure to tickle your health freaky friend’s fancy. Read More »

[Everyone’s got a vice, a bad habit, something they know they need to change. Unfortunately, everyone also has a million excuses why they just can’t do it. Not anymore. Every month we will be following a different CollegeCandy writer as she takes on a personal challenge. This month, Melanie is putting her health first and going to the gym....every day....without excuses. We watched her suffer through her first week, and breeze through week 2. This week, though, Melanie faced a whole new sorta challenge.]

So, just wanted to let you guys know that this stupid One Month Challenge is officially cursed. When my sister gave up her penchant for junk food for a month, her and her bf broke up. Fast forward 2 challenges later, I broke up with my boyfriend, who was living with me and my roommate. All drama aside and cutting to the chase: I skipped a day at the gym. Oops. However, I have been getting a significant amount of cardio in from my sporadic post-break up sobbing in public/indiscriminate panic attack dry heaving. I can already feel my abs tightening.

Now, I’ve started to work out even harder at the gym, pushing myself to my full limits. Actually, skipping a day made me work even harder. I think my body needed the rest. Except this week really, really sucks for working out. There’s nothing I want more than to curl up on the couch clutching my bottle of Pinot Grigio, my two new boyfriends Ben and Jerry and weep while watching “It’s Complicated” because I will never find a guy like John Krasinski. But oh no, I have to take my multi-vitamin as per Jillian Michaels, pound out some time at the gym, do crunches, do my sobbing abs exercise and try my damndest not to skip another day. Read More »

[Everyone’s got a vice, a bad habit, something they know they need to change. Unfortunately, everyone also has a million excuses why they just can’t do it. Not anymore. Every month we will be following a different CollegeCandy writer as she takes on a personal challenge. This month, Melanie is putting her health first and going to the gym....every day....without excuses. We watched her suffer through her first week, so how did she handle week 2?]

So I’ve made it through week two, and surprisingly, it’s gotten better every day. I’ve been pushing myself and have discovered the joys of OnDemand exercise videos featuring Jillian Michaels, which I use to warm up before I put in my time at the gym. I asked you all last week for some tips and tricks to get through this and I was overwhelmed with the responses. The encouragement you guys dispensed made me feel great and it made me feel even better when some of you indicated that you’d be joining me for Gymvember!

One piece of advice that I wish I had heeded this week came from a comment warning me, “Obviously if you are not a morning person do not workout in the morning. You are just going to hate it and your performance will reflect your feelings.” (Thanks “A Dude”!) However, I had a lot to do after work one day and knew I wouldn’t have time to go to the gym at night. So, I begrudgingly woke up an extra hour or so earlier and went to the gym. That was awful. I hate mornings and it absolutely did reflect in my workout. I was sluggish, cranky and felt like a zombie afterward. I think I’m going to stick to my evening workouts from now on; the morning does nothing for me, especially before I’ve had my iced coffee (yes, I realize it’s November… I mean, Gymvember). Read More »

[Everyone’s got a vice, a bad habit, something they know they need to change. Unfortunately, everyone also has a million excuses why they just can’t do it. Not anymore. Every month we will be following a different CollegeCandy writer as she takes on a personal challenge. Last month Emmy dabbled in vegetarianism. This month, Melanie is putting her health first and going to the gym....every day....without excuses. How did her first 6 days go?]

How often do I go to the gym lately? I guess I would use the word “sparingly.” Since starting a full-time job, my fitness has taken a backseat to schoolwork, regular work and all the lovely stresses of living in New York City. Never mind the fact that I live in an apartment building with a gym. I’ve tried to justify my lack of rigorous exercise by walking to and from work every day (30 minutes both ways) but in reality, the only reason I do that is because I have a crippling fear of the subway and all public transportation.

Let’s face it, the only marathon I’ve ever participated in only happens when I’m too lazy to turn off E! and I get suckered into 5 hours of the Kardashians. It was time to make a change and get my ass back into shape and take full advantage of the fitness room in my building. So I’ve begun my month challenge, which I’ve endearingly nicknamed “Gymvember.” I’m not skipping a single day of exercise at the gym and have vowed to go for a minimum of 25 minutes a day. This minimum will ideally be exceeded. And no, Bravo marathons and walking around the city don’t count as exercise.

This is going to hurt. Read More »

You’ve got your mattress cover, your mini-fridge, your XL twin sheets, and lots of garbage bags, but there is a whole category of dorm room essentials you are skipping out on.  DORMWEAR.  Because, if you’re like me, no matter how hard you try and fight the stereotypical college student walking round in pajamas and sweats thang, there are times you will break down.

I by no means encourage you to wear your sweats and pajamas out in public EVER, but a dorm is a whole other realm of the world.  Having cozy loungewear comes in handy when you want to fist-pump with the rest of your floor while catching the newest Jersey Shore episode.  It’s also handy when you need to do the L in GTL – because everything else you own is stuffed inside that hamper.

But don’t be fooled. Just because you’re lounging doesn’t mean you need to look like a slob. There are so many cute and cozy items out there for you to lounge around in.

And they’re perfect for sleepy time, too. If you’re sharing a bedroom, the person 10-feet away from you will appreciate you wearing pajamas to bed.  And if you’re a sleep-in-a-shirt and underwear kind of girl, try keeping a few of these pieces near your bed in case someone pulls the fire alarm in the middle of the night.  You’ll thank me for this advice later.  Trust me. Read More »

As summer solstice just passed, there is only one more indication that it’s summer: it’s time to put on a bikini and head to the beach/pool.

There’s usually anxiety surrounding your first time each year in a bikini, meaning it’s time to hit the gym (if you haven’t already started.)  While you may dread going to the gym even more than putting on a swimsuit, there are so many fun ways to get into shape now that it’s warm out.  There’s hooping, tennis (with the best clothes EVER!), soccer, jogging, rollerblading and much, much more.

And what better way to encourage yourself to get active then with a set of new gym clothes!

Workout clothes have gotten a serious face-lift these past few years giving you a million sexy/cute/functional items to choose from. So toss out your uninspiring, oversized sweats and the t-shirt you stole from a one-night stand and pick up some clothes that are both cute and made for exercise. There are different styles for every activity, as well as special styles to soak up your sweat and keep you as comfortable as possible during your ball-busting workout. So choose your activity and dress the part as you prepare to bare your favorite bikini this year. Read More »