Healthy happy you.
Fitness
1 Tone Your Love Handles: Exercise Video
Video
2 Exercise Video: The Clam Series
Pilates
3 Back Off! Chest Expansion with a Theraband
abdominals
4 Pilates Video: Saw Off Your Baby Toe
Pilates
5 Pilates Stretch: The Mermaid
fitness video
6 DVD Review: Pilates For Beginners
Pilates
7 Pilates Video: Single Leg Stretch
It's probably pretty obvious by now that I'm quite a fan of Pilates. I've tried to coax many friends (ahem, mom) who want to try it but are intimidated by large classes and don't want to pay for private lessons. Now, there's no excuse. Pilates expert Kristin McGee has a new Acacia DVD with the straightforward title Pilates For Beginners ($14). After a quick 10-minute warm-up, Pilates virgins will Read more
Having a shapely tush is always in fashion and that is why the Clam Series of exercises is a perennial favorite. In this efficient, short series you will be working your upper outer thigh and your low glutes - I call this the panty line muscle group. So lie on your side and get ready for the Clam! Get Flash to see this player. var so = new Read more
The Mermaid is one of my favorite of all Pilates stretching series. It really stretches out the upper body in such an elegant fashion and is really great for opening up the chest. Follow along and mirror the movement (do as I say, not as I do - just like Pilates mat class with the instructor facing the class). Helpful Hints: If the position bothers your hip, ankle or knee you can lengthen Read more
This video is all about toning up your love handles. Yep — just in time for Valentine's Day. While you may not be able to pick and choose the body parts where you lose fat, you can spot tone an area. To lose weight at your waist you need to commit to a cardio workout plan which will help you lose fat all over. Toning up the muscles under those love handles will both strengthen your core and Read more
Looking for a way to work your abs and stretch your back at the same time!!! I love multitasking exercises like this one with one of the best names in the Pilates repertoire Saw off your baby toe. Try it. I think you will like it. Plus, it is a great exercise to do in a series with the Twist. Remember to really pull yourself back to upright with your abdominals. The more you work your Read more
Here is one of my favorite Pilates abdominal exercises. It is called the Single Leg Stretch and it is just lovely. Fit's tip: Keep your deep abdominals engaged throughout the entire exercise by pulling your navel to your spine. This scooping action will help keep your low back from touching the ground and will help keep your pelvis stable. Read more
Here's another Back OFF! video for you to check out and do. This is a classic Pilates exercise done with a theraband so hopefully you or your gym has one for you to use. You can also try it with 2 or 3 pound hand weights. You should do 2 sets of 10 repetitions. Read more
That lean and toned dancer's body is in thanks to Black Swan, Dancing with the Stars, So You Think You Can Dance and the growing popularity of Bar Method, The Dailey Method, and Body Bar. The differences between the systems may seem subtle at first, but each has a unique focus and avid followers. The Dailey Method, which has locations across the US and studios in Canada and France, has released Read more
Mary-Kate Olsen teamed up with actress Catherine Keener last night for a party for Style Wars, a documentary about hip-hop and street art that was released in 1983. It was an evening of fashionable shoulder rubbing for Mary-Kate, who also spent time with New York Rangers player Sean Avery. Ashley Olsen skipped out on the dinner, but she was spotted in the city this morning heading to a meeting. Read more
The first time you walked into a yoga studio you probably saw a wall of blocks like the ones above, and a few of these foam cylindrical tubes lying around too. I'll admit it, at first I didn't quite know what purpose either of these items served. But after taking a few classes that incorporated both blocks and rollers, I was instantly hooked! What's great about both yoga blocks ($15) and foam Read more
