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3 Tips For Germ-Free Travel

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 08 May 2012 04:17:50 PDT

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Whether you're going by boat, plane, train, or automobile, travel bugs are bound to greet you. Here, some cringe-worthy stats on germs and traveling - and tips on how you can take a trip unscathed.

Stay Hydrated

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the air inside planes has anywhere from 10 to 20 percent humidity, which can dry out mucous membranes and make people more susceptible to germs. Staying hydrated throughout the trip can prevent nasal passages from being irritated, so load up on water and skip the carbonated beverages and booze. "Alcoholic and caffeinated drinks should be followed with water or fruit juice to rehydrate because they are diuretics and can cause water loss," advise Ray Fillmore Garman, MD, MPH, and Susan Spengler, MD, both associate professors with the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Kentucky. Sipping on water assists with immune function - and in some cases even helps with jet lag. For longer, international trips pack electrolyte-friendly snacks like GU Energy Chomps, a banana, nuts, or a small bag of fortified cereal to keep drowsiness at bay.

Keep reading for two more healthy travel tips after the break.

ESPN Broadcaster Jenn Brown's Wedding Workout and Dress Fitting Diet Tips

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 01 May 2012 04:22:30 PDT

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As the reporter of ESPN's College GameDay for football and basketball Jenn Brown travels almost 70 percent of the year. That might sound like a dream job, but when your dream wedding is coming up, all those late night drive-thru dinners and wonky work hours can take a toll on your shape! We caught up with Brown just days before her wedding, where she gave us her secrets to how she stayed slim on the road and prepped for her big day.

What have you been doing differently to get ready for your wedding?

I took a different approach to working out than I usually do. I am typically a cardio junkie; I’m always running on the treadmill and follow it with 45 minutes of lifting. For my wedding, I really wanted to focus on looking lean and toned. I had just come off of covering football, where I gained my usual footfall five [pounds] from eating on the road in all these towns with delicious food, so I had three months to get into shape. I started doing Pilates three to four times a week. It was weird to me that you could go and work out for an hour and not be dripping in sweat, but I’ve seen an amazing transformation because of it.

Learn how Jenn stays fit on the road after the break.

Spice Up Your Sex Life With These Simple Foods

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:35:53 PDT

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Feeling a little lackluster in the kitchen lately? How about the bedroom? The two could be related. Food can be a very sensual prop that helps keep things spicy behind closed doors, but which ones should you be welcoming with open arms and which should you close your taste buds to? JJ Virgin, cohost of TLC’s Freaky Eaters, gave us some food for thought on how to kick things up a notch for supersizzling results!

The three main things to look for in an arousing appetite are a rise in blood flow, circulation, and dopamine levels, Virgin explains. Try adding these to your next candlelit dinner for a big bite of romance!

Oysters and avocados both have a big dose of healthy fats, which are full of dopamine, a neurotransmitter triggering the part of our brain that recognizes reward and pleasure.
Walnuts (or any nut except peanuts) have high levels of arginine, a natural amino acid that boosts blood flow.
Fish not only have arginine, but an added bonus of omega-3 fatty acids, which can improve your cardiovascular health and increase dopamine. A triple threat!
Spicy dishes, like this Roast Salmon With Thai Red Curry Sauce, stimulate your tongue and kick-start the nervous system - great for postdinner activities!

And if you don’t want to send your sweetheart flying out the door (OK, maybe that’s a little extreme), keep reading to see which foods to stay away from.

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Easy Ways to Green Your Fitness and Daily Routine

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 04:38:43 PDT

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You carry your own water bottle, use a reusable shopping bag, and sort your recyclables from the trash. Here are more easy ways to green your daily routine without thinking about it.

Choose Wisely

Look for eco-friendly companies when shopping for workout clothes and gear. Gaiam, Patagonia, and GoLite are just a few of the companies that use organic fibers in their clothing and accessories. Green your yoga session by investing in a mat made from sustainable ingredients, like Manduka's eKO Mat.

Reuse Old Fitness Gear

If you've Downward Dogged your yoga mat into tatters or have equipment from your days of being in the neighborhood soccer league, blow off the dust bunnies for a cause. Bring new life to your old gear through these programs.

Recycle Your Mat: Send your old mat (or drop it off at a participating location), and this company will work with other organizations to find creative new uses for it.

Sports Gift: Organize a collection in your neighborhood, school, or office for old gear like soccer balls, tennis rackets, and athletic shoes, and this nonprofit will ship them to underprivileged children worldwide, so they can enjoy sports too.

Reuse-a-Shoe: Donate worn sneakers to Nike's Reuse-a-Shoe program, and they'll turn your pair into material for playgrounds and other Nike products. Find a drop-off location or start your own shoe drive at Nikereuseashoe.com.

Keep reading for more green fitness tips.

The Best and Worst Foods to Eat on Your Wedding Day

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 04:26:28 PDT

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The last thing you probably want to think about on your wedding day is the food you can and cannot eat. But you might be interested to know that what you munch on can make a big difference in how you feel on the big day. Here, the best and worst foods to nosh on before and after saying, "I do."

The Secret Superfood: Asparagus

It might not be the first food that comes to mind when planning your menu, but according to Lauren O'Connor, MS, RD, munching on some stalks throughout the day has some big perks. O'Connor says asparagus has diureticlike properties that can help fight bloating, along with keeping you fuller longer due to the high fiber content. And when you're trying to look good in a custom-fit wedding dress, these two things are kind of a big deal.

For On-the-Go Grazing: Homemade Trail Mix

Your wedding day will be the happiest day of your life and also the longest. It's important to have a stash of snacks on hand to prevent mindless munching until your next meal. Lauren Harris-Pincus, MS, RD, and Kathleen Siegel, RD, CDN, of NutritionBabes.com suggest creating your own trail mix with dried fruit, almonds, walnuts, and seeds to keep your hunger in check no matter how hectic the day gets. No time to DIY? Fresh fruit is another option to fill you up fast.

See which other foods are wedding-day-approved after the break!

How to Stay Forever Young Like Madonna

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 04:16:27 PDT

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When you see Madonna on a talk show this week promoting her new album, MDNA (out now!), or during one of the stops on her world tour, which kicks off on May 29, you’ll be checking out moves choreographed by former Broadway dancer Nicole Winhoffer. She appeared in shows like Wicked and 42^nd Street, among others, before joining the Material Girl for her Sticky and Sweet Tour in 2009. Winhoffer, who is also a personal trainer, now works in the gym with Madonna six days a week to ensure that she’s ready for her grueling performances.

We caught up with Winhoffer to take a peek behind the scenes and to learn more about how everyone can train just like the amazing 53-year-old pop star!

If our readers could steal one trick from your work with Madonna, what would that be?

Body awareness. They must engage their mind while performing their exercises. Time and time again, I see people reading papers or watching TV while they work out. This might bring about injury, and if the mind is not connected to the body, you can't exert the proper amounts of energy needed to gain the desired results.

You were in Indianapolis to help Madonna prepare for the Super Bowl and are now gearing up to go on tour with her. How do you prepare for each performance?

Right before the show, we warm up in her dressing room. We complete active hamstring stretch sequences as well as other stretches, ensure joint mobility by performing jumps on the ground and on trampolines, and do ab work. As a result, her body is connected, warm, and ready for the performance.

People are still buzzing about her amazing halftime show performance. How do you get your body ready for something like that?

We increased our cardio for stamina - her show was the most physical 12 minutes I have ever experienced! Due to her high heels, we made sure her core was strong to support the stress placed on her lower back. We practiced several movements and routines from her performance within the workout so once she was on stage, her muscle memory kicked in.

Read on to get more tips on how Madonna stays in shape.

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The Love-Your-Legs Workout

Your Guide to Spring Clean Your Life

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Run and Train Like a Mother

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 04:46:20 PDT

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Five years ago, Dimity McDowell and Sarah Bowen Shea immersed themselves in running while training for the Nike Women's Marathon together. While they had support from one another, they realized that there weren't many resources to help working moms balance race training with life.

"There is a huge community of women just like us: women who get up before the sun rises, lace up, and head out," McDowell says. "We wanted to write a book that spoke to those women - our tribe - that addressed the various reasons why we run." And that is how Run Like a Mother: How to Get Moving - and Not Lose Your Family, Job, or Sanity was born. The pair's new book, Train Like a Mother, is in stores now and "fills in the gaps." You'll find motivation tips, "motherly advice," funny anecdotes, and nine busy-woman-friendly training plans for races from 5Ks to marathons.

We laughed, nodded in agreement, and dog-eared countless pages while reading Train Like a Mother, but nothing stood out quite like the running bucket list. It's like a fitness game full of fun challenges that you can start today! Here are a few bucket list items from the authors to get you started - check out the book for more or brainstorm your own ideas that will inspire you to "run this mother!"

Read on to get the bucket list!

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Rock Your Run: Eight Beginner Running Tips

The 10-Week Half-Marathon Training Guide

The Top Seven Foods For Runners

When to Replace Your Exercise Essentials

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 04:17:00 PDT

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To get the best results from your workout - and stay safe, too - you can't keep ignoring the necessary upkeep and replacement of your most important items. "It's worth it, especially since most gear is fairly inexpensive and other gear may have useful upgrades," says Corey Twedt, NordicTrack Research and Development Manager. "You should always check your items for tears, cracks, or yellowing, and replace them so you can prevent injuries." Here's how to know when it's time to pony up the dough for a better performance.

Tanks, Pants, and Other Apparel

When to replace them: Varies

Must-know info: The lifespan of your apparel depends on each garment's type of material and the manufacturer's specific instructions (which can be found on the tag, the information/price tag, or inside a pocket). Fabric softener diminishes the breathability, water repellency, and wicking ability of performance fabrics - so those items will lose their power within months if you don't care for them properly. You should line-dry these items as well, when possible.

More details on replacing gear after the break.

Endurance Athlete Brendan Brazier on How to Fuel an Active Lifestyle the Vegan Way

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 04:23:09 PDT

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Ironman triathlete and ultramarathoner Brendan Brazier realized early on in his career that diet would play a big role in his overall performance. "Longer events really level the athletic playing field. It becomes more about training and the speed of recovery than about natural ability," Brazier says. "Nutrition allows you to train harder and recover faster."

The refined white starches he had added to his diet to make up for the carbohydrates he was burning weren't increasing his energy levels as much as he had hoped. After extensive research, Brazier found that about 80 percent of recovery is linked to good nutrition. "Eating more doesn't always mean more energy. You can be overfed while being undernourished," he says.

Brazier eased into a whole food-based, vegan diet heavy on healthy whole grains (amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat), plant proteins (hemp, pea, rice), and dark leafy greens. Besides increasing his rate of recovery, he discovered that this eating plan of frequent, small meals helped him be more productive and sleep better.

"Look at Google. They were trying to decrease the amount of sick days their staff members were taking, so they put in cafés with healthy food. Since everything was free, employees would graze throughout the day. There was no midafternoon crash, and many people were more productive and took fewer sick days," Brazier explains.

Today, Brazier enjoys fitness recreationally and advises professional athletes about nutrition (Montell Owens, a Jacksonville Jaguar Pro Bowler, and Simon Whitfield, an Olympic triathlete, among others). He guest-lectures at Cornell University, has written three books, most recently Thrive Foods, and just launched Thrive Foods Direct meal-delivery service.

We couldn't wait for the meals to hit our doorstep, so we asked Brendan to share one of his favorite recipes. Keep reading to learn how to make his superpowered pizza.

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How to Rewind Your Health History

Go Green! Springy Superfoods to Add to Your Diet

Reboot Your Metabolism

Source: brendanbrazier.com

Battle PMS With These Foods

Fitness Magazine — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 04:06:30 PST

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Are you plagued with period pain, fatigue, or other symptoms that turn you into a zombie for the week? Get relief by upgrading your diet. Here, experts share the foods that can boost energy, beat cramps, banish moodiness, and more.

Iron-Fortified Whole-Grain Cereal

Many women, especially those who consume very little meat or are vegetarians, don't get the iron they need. This saps their energy and makes it difficult for them to concentrate, says Karen Ansel, RD, an American Dietetic Association spokesperson. "For women with heavy periods, iron is even more important because they lose larger amounts with each monthly flow. Iron-fortified whole-grain cereal is an easy way to get your daily dose." Ansel recommends looking for a box that provides at least 25 percent of the daily value for iron, then chase it down with a glass of orange juice - its vitamin C will help you absorb even more iron. At dinnertime, if you're craving iron-rich red meat, go ahead and have some, says Marissa Lippert, RD. Just stick to a lean cut (flank steak or tenderloin) and a 3- to 4-ounce portion.

More foods after the break!