FitSugar

Fit For November: FitSugar Must Haves

FitSugar — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 04:30:00 PST

For me, November marks the beginning of the holiday season. I love Thanksgiving, but admit I find all the celebrating of the season a little stressful. Even as the month turns darker and cooler, I have it helpful to focus on my health. Check out my must haves to help you stay healthy and happy this month.

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Are Your Birth Control Pills Safe?

Shape — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:06:17 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

Last year during my annual exam, when I complained to my doctor about my terrible PMS, she was quick to pull out her pad and give me a prescription for the birth control pill Yaz. "You're going to love this," she said. "All of my patients that are on it think it's the best. It's even helped some of them lose weight!"

Less PMS and not having to worry about my weight? I was sold, even though I'd only intended to talk to her about lifestyle and/or diet modifications since my birth control needs were already taken care of. Before I stopped into the pharmacy, however, I looked up the pill online (Paging Dr. Google!). The results were anything but the lovefest I'd been promised. In fact, the information I found scared me so badly that I never filled that prescription.

Am I Normal? Your Top Six Sex Questions Answered

It quickly became evident that I wasn't the only woman concerned when Yaz and it's sister pill Yazmin, two of the most popular pills on the market, came up for review by the FDA after reports that the manufacturer may have hid and minimized critical health risks. But is the hysteria warranted?

Find out how safe birth control pills are after the break!

5 Ways to Banish Postholiday Bloating

Self — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:04:38 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Self here on FitSugar!

Feeling sluggish after the busy holiday season? You're not alone. According to a recent study in The New England Journal of Medicine, the average American gains a pound between November and January.

But rather than wallow in the aftermath of too many cocktails and Christmas cookies, we turned to fitness expert Angela Parker, who offered these easy tips to banish postholiday bloating fast:

Sweat your ass off! Give yourself a daily 60-minute sweat session three days in a row. No walking - go running or spinning.
If you want to shrink fast, stick to egg whites, fish, chicken, and veggies.

Read on for more ways to banish postholiday bloating.

Alessandra Ambrosio and Lily Aldridge Rock Bikinis For a New VS Campaign

Allie Merriam — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:30:42 PST

Alessandra Ambrosio and Lily Aldridge are both moms-to-be, but they had no trace of growing baby bumps in these new Victoria's Secret images. The girls, along with fellow Angels Candice Swanepoel, Jasmine Tookes, and Edita Vilkevièiûtë, were photographed for the new swim catalog by Greg Kadel on Bora Bora last year.

Lily and Alessandra are the latest Angels to announce their pregnancies. Last year, Miranda Kerr welcomed her son, Flynn, and the year before, Karolina Kurkova became a mom. This will be newlywed Lily's first child with Kings of Leon rocker husband Caleb Followill, while Alessandra and her fiancé, Jamie Mazur, are already parents to 3-year-old Anja. Both Lily and Alessandra were pregnant while walking in the November VS runway show. Alessandra was afraid people would find out she was expecting, explaining, "When I first found out I was pregnant I thought, 'Oh my gosh I don't think I'm going to be able to walk on the show,' and I didn't tell anybody . . . A week before, I told my booker, 'I don't think I'm going to be able to fit into the clothes because I gained a few pounds already,' but we were just quiet."

Gear Review: Motorola's MotoACTV Fitness Tracker

Leta Shy — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 17:55:36 PST

Is getting fit one of your New Year's resolutions for the coming year? Whether you're just diving into a new regimen or need a better way to track your workouts, you'll love the new MotoACTV fitness tracker from Motorola.

Released in November, the MotoACTV promises to be your constant fitness companion, and with good reason. It can track calories burned, pace, speed, steps taken, and GPS route out of the box, and holds up to 16 GB of music and workout data. All features that will make anyone's workouts better, so I was happy to test out the 8 GB version that Motorola recently sent over ($250; the 16 GB version goes for $300).

The MotoACTV is slightly bigger than the iPod Nano, and like the Apple product, it has a simple interface making it completely intuitive as soon as you power it on. You can use it as a pedometer, and the home screen shows the time, steps taken, and calories burned for the day. By swiping left and right you can navigate to four more screens with different options. Five tactile buttons and one designated back button on the touch screen work all the main functions, which I appreciated since having easy-to-feel buttons made pausing music or finding my way back to my workout screen much faster than if I were fumbling my way through touch screens. And after entering your height and weight stats, the MotoACTV tracks the amount of calories you burn throughout the day, including your basal metabolic rate. When on the workout screen, you can choose between five styles - running, cycling, walking, elliptical, and step machine - and what type of workout you want (like racing against a previous personal best or setting a time and distance goal). During a workout a pleasant voice keeps you updated on certain milestones and how long you have left in your workout.

Keep reading for more on how the MotoACTV performs.

Fit's Hits: Healthy Cooking, Marathon Nutrition, and Gifts For Yogis

Susi May — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 16:45:12 PST

Healthy one-pot meals to excuse-proof your home cooking.
If you're looking to drop pounds, don't ditch these foods.
We found it: the perfect temperature for a refreshing night's sleep.
Marathoner Ryan Hall gives nutrition advice for before, during, and after racing.
Fifteen options to find the perfect gift for the yogi in your life.
Try these everyday habits to prevent workplace weight gain.
Must-try workout: P90X - it's so dang effective!
Get some fitness advice from your fellow FitSugar readers.
Two ways to get rid of the muffin top and whittle your waist.

Experts Say This Is the Most Effective At-Home Workout

Self — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 04:17:01 PST

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Self here on FitSugar!

Between infomercial-style ads for Pajama Pants and Ab Rollers, perhaps you've seen advertisements for P90X DVDs. Or maybe you have a friend who suddenly looked a bit more taut and toned, who casually referenced the muscle confusion-based fitness craze.

The point is P90X is undeniably a major exercise movement. But does it work? A recent study by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) says yes. And here's why.

First, it's obvious why ACE bothered to do this study. The organization loves to investigate the latest greatest fitness trends and, according to them, over three million copies of P90X were sold as of November 2010. And that was a year ago. Who even knows where that number is at now?

Everyone from famously buff Sheryl Crow to Bruce Springsteen has trained with creator Tony Horton, which lends him credibility upfront (especially if you're a Bruce fan from Jersey!). The concept behind this type of "muscle confusion" is that the body burns more fat and builds more muscle if you mix up your exercises so regularly that it never gets comfortable with any single one. For one thing, you're dodging that dreaded plateau.

"The basis of muscle confusion is to keep the body from becoming too efficient at performing individual and sets of exercises," explains Alice Burron, MS (Exercise Physiology), American Council on Exercise National Spokesperson and ACE Personal Trainer. "This type of inefficiency burns more calories because the muscles haven't yet adapted to the new workload. Overall more calories are burned, and as a percentage, then, more calories are burned from fat. That is, if a proper caloric intake is maintained in tandem with the workout."

Find out just why P90X is so effective after the break.

A Water Bottle Makes a Perfect Gift

Jenny Sugar — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 10:32:04 PDT

I can't believe stores are already putting up holiday lights and decorations. It may seem crazy to think about in November, but getting a jump start on gifts for your family, friends, and co-workers is one way to enjoy a stress-free holiday. If you don't know what to get the person who has everything, how about a reusable water bottle? They're good for the planet because they reduce plastic waste, and they also encourage the people you care about to stay hydrated. Buy one of these water bottles and fill it with energy bars, a gift card to their favorite gear store, or a gift certificate for a massage or fitness class.

Bumpers Are Officially Bumped

LilSugar — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 03:15:25 PDT

Bumpers begone! The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated their sleep guidelines, officially advocating against the use of crib bumpers for the first time. According to the new findings, bumper pads unequivocally should not be used in cribs because the pads don't prevent injuries, but can cause suffocation, strangulation, or entrapment. Bumpers have been falling out of favor within the medical community for the last several years, with antibumper sentiment gaining major momentum stemming from an article in the September 2007 issue of The Journal of Pediatrics, Deaths and Injuries Attributed to Infant Crib Bumper Pads, and this new AAP report SIDS and Other Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Expansion of Recommendations For a Safe Infant Sleeping Environment will likely be the final nail in bumpers' coffin.

Keep reading to see what bedding companies are doing in light of the new recommendations.

ShopStyle Cotton Look Book Challenge Official Rules

Sponsor — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 03:00:34 PDT

ShopStyle Cotton Look Book Challenge
Official Rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, RHODE ISLAND, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND ALL OVERSEAS MILITARY INSTALLATIONS. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. A POPSUGAR NETWORK REGISTRATION IF REQUIRED IN ORDER TO ENTER THIS PROMOTION. BECOMING A MEMBER OF THE POPSUGAR NETWORK IS FREE. THIS PROMOTION IS NOT SPONSORED OR ADMINISTERED BY COTTON INCORPORATED.

1. Sponsor and Operator. Sponsor and Operator is Sugar Publishing Inc. (owner and publisher of FabSugar & BellaSugar), 111 Sutter Street, Suite 850, San Francisco, CA 94104.

2. Entry: The ShopStyle Cotton Look Book Challenge promotion (this "Promotion") begins at 12:00 a.m. Pacific Time on October 1, 2011 and ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on October 31, 2011 (the "Promotion Period"). During the Promotion Period, enter by logging into your profile at shopstyle.com or any PopSugar Network site, then browse cotton on ShopStyle and add your favorite cotton piece(s) to your favorites, using the Look Book Application create your look (including at least 2 cotton or cotton blend apparel or accessory items), enter a title for your look, and check the box for the “Cotton Challenge” group, click Save to enter your look. All entries must comply with the Terms of Use on the ShopStyle website. Multiple entrants may not share the same PopSugar profile or account. Any personal information supplied by an entrant to Sponsor will be subject to Sponsor's Privacy Policy available at http://aboutus.shopstyle.com/Privacy-Policy-7889612. By registering and submitting your entry, you agree that your registration and any other information collected in connection with this Promotion may be used by Sponsor in accordance with its Privacy Policy and may be shared with Sponsor’s affiliated business entities, and that you opt-in to receive email, text messages or other communications from Sponsor. You may subsequently opt-out of the receipt of such email or communications by following the opt-out or unsubscribe instructions in any email or communication from Sponsor, or by contacting Sponsor as provided in the Privacy Policy to opt out. No automatic, programmed, robotic or similar means of entry are permitted. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify any entries that Sponsor believes in good faith are generated by an automated program or via scripts. All incomplete or non-conforming entries will be disqualified.

3. Eligibility: This Promotion is only open to legal U.S. residents of the 50 United States and Washington, D.C., excluding Rhode Island, who are 18 years of age or older at the time of entry and who are registered members of the PopSugar Network. If you do not have a PopSugar Network profile, you will need to create one at http:// www.onsugar.com/user/register in order to enter this Promotion. Employees of Sugar Publishing Inc., Cotton Incorporated ("Cotton"), and their respective affiliates, officers, distributors, agencies, and prize suppliers, and their immediate family members and persons residing in the same household of such employees are not eligible to enter or win.

4. Odds/ Drawing / Prize Notification: On or about November 2, 2011, Sponsor will select the winning entry in a random drawing held in San Francisco, California. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning a prize. In the event of a dispute regarding the identity of the person submitting the entry, the entry will be deemed to be submitted by the person in whose name the e-mail account is registered. The decisions of Sponsor are final and binding in all matters relating to this Promotion. The winner will be notified by email and/or by private message through the winner’s onsugar.com account. Sponsor reserves the right to determine the method of notification. By entering, entrants give their express permission to be contacted by Sponsor by phone, mail or e-mail. Winner must claim his or her prize within three (3) business days after the date of notification of such prize. A winner's failure to respond to the prize notification within the specified three (3) business days will be considered such winner's forfeiture of the prize and an alternate winner may be selected from the pool of eligible entries. When applicable, the winner (or, if the winner is a minor, the winner's parent or legal guardian) may be required to execute and return to Sponsor within ten (10) business days an Affidavit of Eligibility and a Liability and Publicity Release to be eligible for the prize or an alternate winner will be selected. Winner may be required to furnish proof of identity, address and birth date in order to receive a prize. If an entrant is found to be ineligible, an alternate winner may also be selected from the pool of eligible entries. All entrants agree to abide by these Official Rules. All entries become the property of the Sponsor, and will not be returned.
5. Prize. Sponsor will award one (1) prize. Prize is one (1) AMEX $2,000 gift card (Approximate Retail Value: $2,000). Terms and conditions applicable to gift card are established by AMEX. See www.americanexpress.com for details. Purchase will not increase your chances of winning. In no event shall Sponsor be obligated to award more prizes than the number of prizes stated in these Official Rules. No substitutions (including for cash) are permitted, except that Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater monetary value for any prize. All prizes won by minors will be awarded to their parents or legal guardians on their behalf. Winners shall be responsible and liable for all federal, state and local taxes on the value of their prize. Prize is non-transferable.
6. General: An entrant or winner may be disqualified from the Promotion if he or she fails to comply with any and all provisions of these Official Rules, as determined in the sole discretion of Sponsor. Participation in the Promotion is at entrant’s own risk. Neither Sponsor nor Cotton shall be liable for 1) failed, returned or misdirected notifications based on inaccurate information provided by the winner on the contest entry form, 2) entries and responses to winner notifications which are lost, late, incomplete, illegible, unintelligible, postage-due, misdirected, damaged or otherwise not received by the intended recipient in whole or in part or for computer or technical error of any kind, 3) any electronic miscommunications or failures, technical hardware or software failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, or failed incomplete, garbled or delayed computer transmissions which may limit an entrant's ability to participate in the Promotion, 4) any technical malfunctions of the telephone network, computer on-line system, computer equipment, software, program malfunctions or other failures, delayed computer transactions or network connections that are human, mechanical or technical in nature, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to entrant's or any other person's computer related to or resulting from downloading any part of this Promotion, or 5) any warranty of fitness or merchantability of any prize or the function or operation thereof, which shall be the sole responsibility of the manufacturer of the prize. Sponsor does not make any, and hereby disclaims any and all, representations or warranties of any kind regarding any prize. Unless prohibited by applicable law, your entry constitutes your permission to use your name, photograph, likeness, voice, address (city and state) and testimonials in all media, in perpetuity, in any manner Sponsor deems appropriate for publicity purposes without any further compensation to you. By entering or accepting a prize in the Promotion, winner agrees to be bound by these Official Rules and to conform to all federal, state and local laws and regulations.

7. Releases. By entering, entrant agrees to release and hold harmless Sponsor, Cotton, and their respective parents, subsidiaries and affiliated entities, directors, officers, employees, attorneys, agents, and representatives from any damage, injury, death, loss, claim, action, demand, or other liability (collectively, “Claims”) that may arise from their acceptance, possession and/or use of any prize or their participation in this promotion, or from any misuse or malfunction of any prize awarded, regardless of whether such Claims, or knowledge of the facts constituting such Claims, exist at the time of entry or arise at any time thereafter. Any person attempting to defraud or in any way tamper with this Contest will be ineligible for prizes and may be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel or suspend this Promotion should viruses, bugs or other causes beyond their control corrupt the administration, security or proper play of the Promotion. In the event of cancellation or suspension, Sponsor shall promptly post a notice on the Promotion entry page to such effect. This Promotion shall be governed by California law. By participating in this Promotion, entrants agree that California courts shall have jurisdiction over any dispute or litigation arising from or relating to this Promotion and that venue shall be only in San Francisco, California.

8. Winners’ List. To receive a list of winners after the winner is identified or a copy of these Official Rules (on or before October 31, 2011), send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Prize Fulfillment, Sugar Inc., 111 Sutter Street, 15th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104. Vermont residents need not supply a stamp in connection with requests for copies of these Official Rules. Specify winner's list or rules on your request.