FitSugar

Insanity's Shaun T's Last-Minute Diet and Exercise Tips

Leta Shy — Thu, 24 May 2012 16:34:46 PDT

Shaun T, the personal trainer who's motivated millions with his at-home workouts, knows how to get people in shape in a short amount of time. After all, his Insanity workout program promises incredible results in just 60 days of sweating and jumping in front of your TV.

With Summer a mere few weeks away, we spoke with Shaun about how to get in shape for anything - whether it's a beach holiday, wedding, or event - when you've only got a little time. Find out his recommendations below!

Watch your drink calories: "Don't drink your calories. That's the number one rule of thumb: not to drink your calories. It will eliminate so many calories in your body. Everybody knows that sugar that's not burnt off eventually turns into fat," says Shaun, who's also holding live workouts nationwide to promote his partnership with Powerade Zero. Shaun recommends portion control and cutting the amount of sugars and carbs in your diet in half, but "still ensure you have enough energy during the day," he says.

Kick it up a notch: "If you're a person who works out at the gym, try to take [fewer] breaks," Shaun recommends. "If you're a weight lifter, while you're not doing weights, try to do some different cardio exercise in between to try to ramp up the calorie burn."

Keep reading for more of Shaun T's last-minute diet and exercise advice!

Fit Tip: Keep It Up Long After Summer Ends

Leta Shy — Wed, 23 May 2012 12:59:20 PDT

Last-minute Summer shape-up plans may help you shed pounds and tone fast, but they do involve a lot of hard work and dedication as you race against the warm-weather countdown. So as you ramp up your healthy routine in time to don that bikini, make an even better resolution: stick to your new healthy resolutions, even after the Summer season fades.

Whether you're detoxing with a debloating meal plan or kicking your workouts up a notch, Summer prep can be the best time to jump-start a commitment to a healthier lifestyle, not only because you're making healthy eating and exercise a habit, but also because waiting until the last minute to prep for a beach vacay can be stressful! Insanity's Shaun T says it best: "Make it a lifestyle change so next Spring you're not cramming for the test," he recently told us. (In the meantime, you can read his tips for last-minute Summer prep here).

Does this season's frantic shape-up routine have you vowing to make a healthy diet and exercise routine part of your regular life? Luckily, you don't have to do it alone; follow our tips on how to stick to an exercise routine, and this time next year you can rest easy knowing you don't have to beat the clock!

5 Exercises to Ditch Arm Flab Forever

Shape — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 03:07:15 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar. This week Shape turns to celebrity trainer Jay Cardiello for some help!

Ah, that infamous area along the back of your arms, the nemesis of so many women. How do you tackle the jiggle? First, I want to tell you what not to do, as people are often tempted to take the wrong course of action. And that is the concept of spot reducing, or lowering fat stores in one specific area of the body. It is essentially impossible to accomplish and should not be a part of your fitness regimen. Fighting arm flab requires more than just spot treatment!

In order to tone the backs of your arms, which is where your tricep muscles are, you have to remember this: specific exercises to increase your lean muscle mass will get you results, but you must also decrease your fat intake without risking too much muscle loss. (Sound familiar? Have you managed to lose fat, but still carry some extra bulk around the tricep?) So, to lose the wiggle and jiggle, be sure to eat a healthy balanced diet with proper nutrients; get at least six to eight hours of sleep so that your body can repair, recover, and build muscle; and consistently maintain your exercise program. And be sure to incorporate these five flab-fighting exercises into your workout routine.

The Ultimate Abs and Arms Workout

See Jay's arm workout after the break!

Yoga Secrets From Jennifer Aniston's Guru

FitSugar — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:02:49 PST

Jennifer Aniston may be making her debut as a horrible boss, but she does have one hot body. Her secret? Yoga with Mandy Ingber.

Mandy recently schooled us on how to get legs like Jen and the philosophy behind Yogalosophy - DVDs of the yoga workout are available for $15. Watch this video to learn Jen's fave yoga pose, tips for relaxing with your mat, and poses Mandy's celebs try to avoid. What's your favorite yoga pose?

From the Community: Michelle Obama's Arm Workout

Fit Community — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 01:54:35 PDT

Want to get toned arms like Michelle Obama? FitSugar reader Fashion Cents does, too, so she visited Michelle's trainer Cornell McClellan. Check out this arm and back workout video that she and Cornell filmed together; Fashion Cents shared it in our Get Fit For Summer community group.

When I want to get fit for the Summer, I turn to First Lady Michelle Obama's personal trainer, Cornell McClellan. If he can have her arms the envy of the country, at least he can get me in shape for my local beach. So in this first video of four, Cornell shows me how to tone my arms and back so I will be ready for all of the sleeveless and backless styles this season. The exercises are so easy that you can do them at home with soup cans. So all you really need is motivation.

Thanks, Fashion Cents - we love getting inspiration from our readers! Have your own Summer workout to share? Post it in our FitSugar Community; it might even be featured on the homepage.

Barry's Bootcamp's Joey Gonzalez on Why Your Workout Isn't Working

Shape — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 13:05:07 PDT

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

Barry's Bootcamp (BBC), the high-intensity workout that helps celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Jessica Alba, and Jake Gyllenhaal stay in amazing shape, has opened its first East Coast location in Manhattan! The studio is known for its nightclub-meets-boot-camp-style during hour-long classes that mix strength training with treadmill intervals. The result is a high-intensity workout that burns fat (up to 1,000 calories per class) and tones muscles.

In an exclusive interview with Shape.com, Barry's Bootcamp co-president Joey Gonzalez reveals where he thinks most women's workouts go wrong - and what they can do to fix it.

Common Misconceptions: Where Your Workout Goes Wrong

1. You do one or the other: cardio or body sculpting. "Don’t get me wrong, half of our class is cardiovascular, but the strength training is equally as important, and that's really what helps kick metabolism into high gear," Gonzalez says.

2. You ignore weights. "What you're doing when working out is building muscle, and muscle is an integral part of actually burning calories throughout the day. With weights, your body is burning 'x' amount of calories more an hour than it was before you did it - and that’s not true of cardio. That’s why women who tend to use weights and bring it into their regular exercise program are not only stronger and healthier, but on average have better bodies. If you touch their arms they're strong, they're not soft. Women complain about 'flarm' (laughs), the flabby arm area, and, really, the best way to target that is working your triceps."

See the rest of Joey's tips after the break!

Take a Tour of Gunnar Peterson's Beverly Hills Gym

Susi May — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:36:59 PDT

Walking into celeb trainer Gunnar Peterson's private gym in Beverly Hills, I could tell the man likes his machines. The walls and center aisle of the large room are lined with every piece of cardio and strength training machine imaginable. It's a fitness fanatic's version of heaven. When Gatorade invited me to work out with one of its top trainers who trains pro athletes (like Tom Brady) and the Hollywood elite, I jumped at the chance - luckily the sweat session didn't actually involve jumping or plyometrics.

I may not be J Lo or Sofia Vergara, but Gunnar gave me the celebrity treatment. That's not to say he was easy on me - I was pleasantly sore the day following the session. But he carried a towel around for me and subtly placed it on the equipment before I hopped on.

"Paparazzi can't get in here," he told me, making his gym a safe place for his celeb clients to come sans makeup and curse if they need to. And we all know the f-bomb can easily slip out when faced with a challenging exercise.

Come take a tour of Gunnar's gym and check out five cool pieces of equipment in his fitness arsenal.

Gunnar Peterson: The Trainer Behind All Those Curves

Michele Foley — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 08:15:23 PDT

Trainer Gunnar Peterson's clients (both past and present) are some of the most beautiful women in the business. And I do mean to stress the word women. Gunnar's clients are known as much for their talent and beauty as they are for their curves. Think: Jennifer Lopez, Angelina Jolie, and Sofia Vergara. Keep reading to see who else Gunnar is training and how he keeps them in the best shape of their lives.

A Healthy Bite: Rihanna

FitSugar — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 15:11:34 PDT

". . . I realized that I actually like my body, even if it's not perfect according to the book. I just feel sexy. For the first time, I don't want to get rid of the curves. I just want to tone it up. My body is comfortable, and it's not unhealthy, so I'm going to rock with it."

- Rihanna on body acceptance in the April issue of Vogue. The singer opened up about her upcoming movie Battleship, which she shot last Summer in Hawaii, and the work it took to get in shape for the role. Rihanna worked with longtime trainer Ary Nuñez to get "camera-ready." This included working out on a RealRyder, which is like a spinning bike except that the handlebars move laterally to work your core. Ary's biggest challenge was to keep things fresh for Rihanna, who hates routine: "I hate going to the gym and doing it the old-fashioned way. I hate anything that's too straightforward, too routine, too familiar. I get bored really, really quickly."

Harley Pasternak: The Man Behind Hollywood's Hottest Bods

Michele Foley — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:35:01 PST

If Tracy Anderson has half of Hollywood on her client roster, Harley Pasternak has the rest. What started out as a side job has turned into a full-blown career - three studios and 12 trainers later, it's a rare day if Harley isn't jetting somewhere in the world to train a client. Lady Gaga, Kanye West, Robert Pattinson, Megan Fox, and Katy Perry are just a small dent of the A-list celebs who Harley works with, and for over 10 years, he's been developing his 5 Factor philosophy of diet and exercise: five 25-minute cardio circuits per week coupled with eating five times a day (three meals, two snacks).

Keeping with Harley's 5 Factor ways, let's take a look at five of the hottest female celebs he's currently training.

Source: WireImage