FitSugar

Running Tip: Strengthen Quads With Wall Squats

FitSugar — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 08:00:00 -0700

If you're a runner and you want to increase your speed, build your endurance, and have the ability to tackle hills with a breeze, you need to have strong quads. Strengthening your thighs can also prevent injuries such as runner's knee. This common injury, which often happens to new runners, is tied to a combination of weak quads and tight hamstrings and calves. Wall squats (also called wall sits) are the perfect exercise to strengthen your upper legs.

To find out how to do this essential move for runners, read more.

Stand with your back against a wall, placing your feet about two feet out in front of you. Feet should be hip-distance apart.
Bending your knees, slide your back down the wall until your knees are at 90 degree angles. Your knee joints should be over your ankle joints, so you may need to inch your feet further from the wall to create proper alignment. Your thighs should remain parallel.
Hold for 30 to 60 seconds, and then stand up. Repeat for a total of three reps.
To make this move more challenging, alternate between lifting your left heel for a few seconds and then your right. This helps to target your calves.

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Need For Speed? Relax When You Want to Run

FitSugar — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:30:00 -0700

The more I race, the faster I want to go. My competitive spirit gives me that "need for speed." A recent article in the New York Times detailed one often forgotten element of moving quickly - relaxing. It seems counterintuitive, but tension makes you tight and that tightness interferes with your groove and slows you down. You need to learn how to get in that relaxed state while working hard and find the illusive state of being in the zone. You know, when running hard actually feels good.

According to the article, one way to loosen up while on the move is to relax your face starting with your eyes. Tense wide-opened eyes indicate a tense face and jaw, which translates into a tense upper body. A tense upper body is hard to move and can interfere with finding your rhythm. This reminds me of something that I always tell my Pilates clients: relax your face while you're working out because the tension interferes with correct and efficient muscle patterns. Good to know that this trick can help me run faster, too.

So next time you're out for a run or working out, try running "sleepy eyed" and see if that helps relax the rest of your body enough to help you move a little more quickly.

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Fit Tip: Run With Someone Who's Faster Than You

FitSugar — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 04:30:00 -0700

One of my running goals is to run a little faster and I've found that when I run outside alone, I'm not that motivated to push myself. When I run with someone else, whose pace is slightly faster than mine, it totally encourages me to kick it up a notch and keep up. So if increasing your speed is something you want to do, find a running buddy who'll give you that extra push.

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Fit Tip: Pick Up Your Pace, Just a Little

FitSugar — Tue, 20 May 2008 16:00:00 -0700

I know I may have busted your bubble when I told you that one mile doesn't equal 100 calories. The truth is, the faster you move, the more calories you burn. For a woman, walking a mile in 19 minutes burns 43 calories, and jogging one mile in 9:30 minutes burns 91 calories. So if you're looking to lose weight, increasing your pace - even just a small amount - will help to burn some extra calories.

Whether you enjoy walking, jogging, biking, or using a cardio machine, pick up your speed slightly. That means if you usually walk 3 mph (20-minute miles), increase your speed to 3.5 (17:08 minute-miles). Or if you're jogging at 6 mph (10-minute miles), increase .1 or .2 mph, and you'll have covered more distance and burned more calories by the end of your workout. Making these small increases won't seem like huge difference to your body, but it's a great way to gradually increase your speed and burn more calories per workout.

Fit's Tips: If you're not sure how fast you're moving because you don't use a cardio machine, you can purchase the Nike+ iPod Sports Kit. You wear it while walking or running, and with one touch of a button, it'll tell you how fast you're moving. If you're a biker, they make bike computers that will tell you the same kind of info.

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Increase Your Speed: Walking Lunges

FitSugar — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:30:00 -0800

There is a common misconception among people who run; they often think that their workouts can be limited to running. This is unfortunate since strength training helps to build lean muscle mass, and it can actually help your running. The perfect leg strengthening exercise for running is the walking lunge.

Walking lunges emphasize the propulsion phase of running, aka forward motion. Isn't that what running is all about, moving your body forward through space? Not only that, but aside from strengthening (and toning) your glutes, walking lunges can help increase your stride length, which ultimately will help increase your speed, and who doesn't want to run faster?

If you run, I highly encourage you to add some walking lunges to your fitness routine. I would start with two sets of 10 lunges per leg. You can add hand weights to increase the work. Or to challenge your sense of balance, try holding a physio ball over your head while taking your lunges for a walk.

If you need to review this wonderful exercise, check out Back to Basics: Walking Forward Lunge.

Fit's Tip: Walking lunges are also a great conditioning exercise for downhill skiing, telemarking, and cross country. Yes, I think the everyone in the world could benefit from walking lunges!

Want to Run Faster?

FitSugar — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:30:00 -0700

I know many runners who just won't strength train. I guess they don't know that among other things, like preventing injury, strength training can help you run faster. Runner's World has five moves to help you increase your speed, and here are the highlights.

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Foods to Fuel Runners

FitSugar — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:00:35 -0800

If you're a runner, you need the proper fuel to build muscle, sustain your energy, and increase your endurance. Not all foods are created equal, and according to Fitness magazine, here are seven foods that are musts for runners.

What else should runners eat? To find out, read more.

I eat most of these foods on a regular basis, but must admit I have a hard time getting enough wild salmon into my diet. Any suggestions for recipes would be greatly appreciated.

Increase Your Pace Slightly and Burn More Calories

FitSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:00:02 -0700

If you're trying to lose weight, cardio is your best friend. Workouts that get your heart rate up, such as running, biking, and using a cardio machine, are the best way to burn calories and reduce your percentage of body fat. Another fact to point out is that the faster you move, the more calories you'll burn. I'm not suggesting that you have to sprint through your entire workout - increasing your pace even a small amount will make a difference. Here are two ways to increase your speed when doing cardio.

Add intervals. After warming up, move at your usual pace for one minute, then increase your speed for one minute, then return to your usual pace for a minute. Repeat this sequence for 30 minutes, and then cool down. Need a plan to follow? Here are some interval workouts for all types of cardio. Remember, interval training is proven to reduce belly fat.
Increase your overall pace just sightly. Running at a pace of 5 mph (12-minute miles) burns 263 calories in 30 minutes. If you run a bit faster at 6 mph (10 minutes per mile), you'll burn 292 calories. It may not seem like a big difference, but if you run five times a week, you'll burn an extra 145 calories.

Increasing your speed when doing cardio won't take a lot more energy, but it'll sure make a difference to your body. You'll burn more calories, which translates to a slimmer, more defined frame. It will also help with your endurance, and make you stronger.

DrSugar Answers: Petroleum Products Safe Around the Eyes?

DrSugar — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 04:30:12 -0800

DrSugar is in the house! This week she's answering a question about treating wrinkles.

Dear DrSugar,
I have noticed the fine lines around my eyes becoming not so fine. I know it is just basic aging, but I would like to slow the process down. My sister said to put petroleum jelly (she uses Aquaphor) around my eyes at night. I've never used an eye cream before and am not really a fan of petroleum jelly - it just doesn't seem like a good idea to put a petroleum product on my skin, especially by my eyes. Is it safe? Will my body absorb dangerous chemicals?
- Concerned About Chemicals

I’m going to admit that I had to do some reconnaissance in my local drugstore to research this question. This research involved reading the labels of both regular petroleum jelly and Aquaphor (a Eucerin product). I also did the inevitable Google search for "Aquaphor" and for "fine lines and wrinkles." As a woman in her early 30s, this question interested me a bit personally as, like the reader, I am definitely noticing some little lines and crevices on my face! To learn more about the aging process and if you should be treating it with Vaseline, keep on reading.

Virtual Active Video Treadmill Is Cool!

FitSugar — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 10:00:58 -0800

I have never been one to watch TV while working out. I use exercise to escape my reality, not read the ticker on CNN. When the guys at Virtual Active asked me if I wanted to take a virtual hike through Lake Tahoe on their Matrix treadmill, however, I said yes without hesitation. Lucky for me the fitness video start-up's office is two blocks from Sugar HQ.

Virtual Active makes high definition videos of popular tourist spots in the US, from the canyons of southern Utah to the urban canyons of downtown Chicago. These hyper-real videos of virtual runs and hikes play on the video screens now found on many pieces of high-end cardio equipment. Through some fancy programing, the video speeds up as you increase your running speed, helping to fulfill the illusion that you're actually moving in the great outdoors. Even cooler, when you approach a hill, the incline on the treadmill, whether you're running or walking, automatically changes to match what is on the screen. You can even set the machine up to give you reading points, brief facts and tidbits of history, about your running environs.

To experience these videos and learn what is on the horizon for VA, continue reading.