It’s getting to that time of the year again. The stress over New Year’s plans, the mad hunt for sparkly dresses and the awkward conversation when you have to ask your aunt for a gift receipt. . In between singing the lyrics to Christmas songs you’ve heard too many times and deciding which sparkly dress is sparklier, it’s quite difficult to squeeze in any workout time. Well, you are just in luck. For the past year and some months, I’ve been bringing you my favorite moves to do in home and on the go.

As you begin to scribble down “go to the gym everyday” on your New Year’s Resolutions list, let me help you with my list of favorite Body Blog workouts of all time – ease into the program and let’s get ready for that summer time bikini body! What? Too early for summer? Okay fine… Read More »

We all deal with it. Waving down a taxi, cheering during a football game or flagging down that cute guy in your chem class. It’s known as under arm flab or simply a trouble spot in the tricep area. It’s frustrating to deal with this, when all you want to do is to wear sleeveless dresses and wave your hands like you just don’t care! No worries, try out these fun moves and you’ll be good in no time. Combine these strength moves with a cardio routine to see quick results. Remember, exercising is only half of the equation. Proper nutrition and post-workout food recovery is also essential.

Stay fabulous and sexy, CC girls!

1. Half cobra push-up

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During the school year, eating well and exercising can feel like a real challenge. Going out with friends or sleeping in late is often so much more appealing than dragging yourself to the gym, and at 2:00 a.m. after hours of reading, that bag of chocolate chip cookies is just…so…tempting!

We’ve all heard that we should try to avoid the dreaded “Freshman Fifteen” (which is actually more like the “Freshman Seven”), but there are other important benefits to maintaining a good nutrition and exercise routine. The better you treat your body, the better you will feel. The better you feel, the more successful you’ll be in school and the more energy you’ll have for the really fun stuff. Read on to learn how you can use the latest discoveries in health and fitness to stay healthy, happy, and motivated this school year.

1.     Cut down on time at the gym with interval workouts.

Intervals have long been an important part of many exercise routines. But a new study has shown that intense interval workouts may be just as effective as time-consuming endurance training. The study divided its subjects, healthy college students, into two groups. One group rode a stationary bike at a sustained pace for 90 to 120 minutes three times per week. The other group pedaled as hard as they could for 20 to 30 seconds, with short breaks in between, for a total of about six minutes of intense riding per day. The result? The students who rode intervals showed just a much of an increase in their endurance as the students who did sustained training, and showed the same molecular indicators of increased fitness in their muscles. Read More »

So you think celebs get out of bed all skinny and perfect and shiny? Well, maybe they do. But because everyone loves to stalk celebs at every single moment in their lives, we also know that they hit up the gym sometimes just to keep up appearances.

For some reason, there seem to be a LOT of pictures of only a few celebs leaving the gym floating around the internet. Where are your super secret workout spots located, everyone else??

Anyway, here are a few of our fav celebs post-workin’ on their fitness.

Whether you want one as big as Kim Kardashian’s or something more subtle like J-Lo’s (ok, it’s not that subtle, but in comparison…) I have the perfect plan for you. While squats and lunges are my quick go-to favorite, they can get a little boring. Here are some easy ways to spice up your workout routine.

1) Fire Hydrant

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Spring Break is, like, tomorrow, ladies, and if you’re anything like me, you have no time for gym in between classes and study groups and rounds of beer pong. But that doesn’t mean you have to stop working out and getting fit. I mean, that late night pizza isn’t going to work itself off. Nor will the nachos or the nacho-topped-pizza. So what’s a busy college girl to do? How about some great exercises from the comfort of your bedroom?!

That’s right! Change into your gym clothes, grab the sweat band, and shut your bedroom door tightly because you’re about to do a gym-style workout from the comforts of your own home.

The World Wide Web has TONS OF GREAT WORKOUTS…which means no more “I have no time/money” excuses. Check ‘em out today and let us know which ones make it hurt to laugh/lift your arms/sit on the toilet are the best.

Every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday I wake up and head to the gym. (OK, so sometimes those Sunday morning workouts don’t happen, but I digress….) Sometimes, I will take a class or meet with a Pilates instructor. Usually, however, I hop onto the elliptical, set my iPOD to F-U-N and set myself up for a 45 minute cardio challenge.

And for the past six months, my workout routine has given me very visible results: smaller thighs, better butt, and all around weight loss.

But recently things seemed to have…well….stopped.

It seems that my body has gotten quite used to the old routine. And while experts call this a “plateau,” I call it just plain crappy. I mean, it’s nearly June, dammit. Time to put on the little tops, short skirts and – gasp – bathing suits. This is not the time for a f**king plateau!

That being said, I did some research on my problem and found that there are some things I can do to get off this fat-teau and get into that itsy bitsy, teeny weeny, black and pink flowered bikini I’ve been having nightmares about for the past 3 weeks. Read More »

It's time to try something new. And that includes wearing an actual shirt to the gym.

If magazines like Women’s Health or Fitness are considered a part of your required monthly reading (or, really, as long as you haven’t been living under a rock), you have probably learned that switching up your workout routine is vital. In addition to being a surefire way to speed up weight  loss by ensuring that you’ll burn more calories, varying the things you do at the gym will ensure that your body is up for any challenge.

Now, if only I had listened…

Last week, I returned home from school for the long-awaited Christmas break and was informed by my mom that I would be accompanying her to her training session. She works out once a week with a nice (and semi-attractive) man who seems to be pretty un-intimidating, and seeing that she is a 52-year-old mom and I’m a 22-year-old rock star in pretty good shape, I figured that it would be a piece of cake. I can run on the treadmill, right? I can do bicep curls with ten pound weights! Bring it on!

Instead, I was forced to endure pull ups (I cannot do these), lunge and squat around the entire room while carrying crazy weighted sticks, lie down on that squeaky medicine ball while doing sit ups, fling around little black weights that looked like cowbells and bruised the inside of my wrists, and lower myself into numerous machines while I pushed and pulled and panted until I could barely breathe. Meanwhile, my mom was just humming to herself and completing her tasks without a word. Read More »

Mmmm holiday cookies.

I could eat my own weight in Grandma’s “Won’t Fail Fudge,” but do I really want to carry around an extra me in 2010? Not exactly. Spring comes quick here in Santa Barbara, so bikinis and spring runs are just around the corner. If you’re located somewhere where you’ll be wearing large sweaters for the next four months – lucky you! (I guess?) But even if you will be bundled up for a few more months, that doesn’t mean you want to have to trade your skinny jeans for your dad’s sweatpants thanks to a few weeks of indulging.

So, here ere are some tips for navigating holiday parties and rounds at the bar so you can enjoy yourself and still look damn good in the new year.

Surviving Those Holiday Gatherings
Food can seem like the main event at holiday parties, but isn’t the point to mingle and mix with one another?

1. Don’t Go Hungry! Pretty self-explanatory, but don’t do it! Eat sensibly throughout the day, and maybe skip a snack if you want to bank a few extra hundred calories for later.

2. Choose foods that are “worth” it to you. Choosing to have a little taste of the things that you’re really craving, say Christmas cookies or some mini-quiches, while holding back on the other hors d’oeuvres at the buffet line can save you hundreds of calories without making you feel deprived. Pick to have a small portion of your favorite one or two dishes, and load the rest of your plate up with veggies and low-fat dips. Some great options are salsa, guacamole, and other vegetable-based dips. Read More »

Every morning I wake up and make a cup of coffee. On my way to work, I drink that cup of coffee while also rocking out to so-bad-it’s-great-80’s-music (whatever it takes to wake up).

Upon arriving at work, I have another cup of coffee. And if I’m feeling down around 2 pm, I will have yet another.

I can’t even get to the gym in the morning without at least one cup of coffee coursing through my veins.

Most people agree that I have a problem. A problem they equate to addictions to crack, the Blackberry or ice cream sandwiches (the ice cream sandwich addiction is really hard to beat – trust me). And I have to agree. Not only is this coffee addiction bad for my wallet, but it stains my teeth, causes bad breath and really can’t be good for my body.

Or can it?

Apparently, drinking coffee before working out causes some sort of reaction that protects the skin against skin cancer! Don’t ask me to explain it because I was an English major in college and know absolutely nothing about the science behind coffee (except that it is totally delicious) or cancer (except that it is totally awful), but someone studied this and found it to be true. Read More »