Foam roller classes are appearing on health club schedules, and personal trainers are toting them to client's homes to use as an integral part of training and stretching. If you've ever rolled an achy back over a tennis ball, you're familiar with the intense feeling, but this exercise tool has a wider, more comfortable surface with give.

"Rolling your legs, back and other large muscle groups before biking or running is a great warm-up prior to cardio because you increase oxygen flow to working muscles," said Hollywood trainer Ashley Borden, who has trained Natasha Bedingfield and Mandy Moore, among other A-listers. Borden recommends all her clients roll out for 15 to 20 minutes three days a week in addition to performing consistent cardio and strength training. Here are three ways that using the foam roller boosts your body:

Anti-Cellulite Fix. The foam roller minimizes the appearance of cellulite because it works like endermologie, a very deep massage that breaks up interwoven fat fibers and rushes oxygenated blood to afflicted areas, said Borden. "Rolling out loosens and opens your muscle fascia and causes more nutrient-rich blood to move through those fibers, which breaks up fatty tissues," Borden said. "As connective tissues are stretched, circulation improves and the body expels toxins and abnormal fluid retention."
What to Roll: Lie sideways to roll inner and outer thighs, hips and buttocks.

The American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association jointly updated physical activity recommendations based on the most relevant science that links exercise to improved health and wellness. Both organizations' suggestions now focus on 30 minutes of moderate-intensity daily physical activity, five days a week. How do you know if you're pushing along at a moderate, versus a slightly, intensity? The easiest way is to monitor your personal Rate of Perceived Exertion, or RPE. Your RPE during any sort of exercise – from walking and biking to skating and even karate class -- can mean the difference between blasting hundreds of calories or cheating yourself out of results.

RPE corresponds directly to your heart rate during exercise, so ask yourself several times per workout which number from 1 to 10 below corresponds with how you're feeling. After you monitor your own RPE for two weeks or so, RPE comes naturally, no matter where or how you're exercising. For example:

RPE Scale: How to Start Tuning In

1. Sit still, quiet reading
2. Light effort, strolling
3. Moderate walking, warm-up and cool-down levels
4. Moderate plus, like walking 4 mph on a flat track or hiking a gentle hill
5. Moderately intense; walking fast enough to almost jog 5 mph
6. Intense, hiking up a steeply vertical hill and feeling breathless
7. More intense, running about 7 mph or taking an indoor cycling class
8. Fast work, like running in deep sand or power jumps over cones, or hurdling at top speeds
9. Nearly too high, definitely uncomfortable and gasping for breath
10. Exertion is way too high, heart is thumping and muscles are on fire; decrease intensity

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Welcome to Twitter Fit Tips. Keep track of the latest diet and fitness Twitter trends and opinions with this weekly post. Each week AOL Health's Twitter alias Healthpop and That's Fit will post fitness-related questions and the best tweet responses will get posted here. Start following Healthpop and That's Fit today.

This past week we asked, "Which do you like better -- exercising in hot, humid weather, or icy, windy?"

Here's what our fellow getting-fit Twitterers had to say:

boschae@HealthPop I have my treadmill on the deck in the shade for summer. Can't stand really hot weather but like the view! lol

LouLou197533@HealthPop Somewhere in between is probably ideal but if I had to pick one it'd be icy cold. Bring on the brr, brr, brr.

RemoveMyFatSuit@HealthPop hot, & humid =D I hate the COLD!!

choose2befit@HealthPop Hmmm...that's a toss up. Hate exercising when cold, but don't care to be TOO hot either. My vote is hot over cold.

That's Fit: Do you think exercising outdoors is more beneficial than working out at the gym?

Vindum: Absolutely! First, it's a blast in every way -- physically, mentally and emotionally. People find that exercising outdoors feels good to them, they get results and it's easy to stay with it. When you do it repetitively, your brain rewires for it -- and you will literally own that feeling and want to exercise.

This type of training [like the workouts found in my book] pulls in more muscle fiber and burns more calories -- up to 12 percent more calories and 32 percent more fat. It also causes your brain to focus more and pair up with your body in a way the gym can't -- so you stay super present, focused, coordinated.

Compared to machines and a flat gym floor, the outdoors challenges your muscles in every way -- climbing up, down, laterally, and diagonally; moving you forward, backward, squatting, lunging, rotating on every imaginable surface -- grass, dirt, sand, gravel, pavement, snow, etc., and working in all planes of motion.

Can you stay fit by eating right, exercising well and eating cookies? Seems to be working for Brody Jenner. Hey, maybe he's buying into this whole Cookie Diet craze. Or maybe the adrenaline of love is keeping him on his famously-fit toes.

Brody is in love with Playboy's 2008 Playmate of the Year Jayde Nicole. And he couldn't be happier to have put his hard-partying days behind him. Inspired by his gal (she's in amazing shape, he says), the 25-year-old is working out every day and eating healthier than ever before. Well, except for the cookies, which seem to have taken the place of the drinking.

"We stay in, maybe bake cookies," says step-brother to the Kardashian hotties. "It sounds kind of lame, I know – sorry, boys! – but we bake some cookies, watch DVDs and have nice quality home time."

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As much as we fitness writers want to make exercise out to be awesome (!) and fun (!) and other exclamation-point inducing adjectives, that's not always the honest truth. For many people, exercise is nothing but a pain in the rear. Even if you know all the benefits of exercise and how necessary it is for good health, there are times that you'd much rather plop on the couch and watch TV.

I'll admit that I used to feel that way. Then, several years ago I started trying to lose weight. I forced myself to exercise every day and, other than the gratifying sense of accomplishment I felt when it was done, I hated every minute of it. A couple of months later, I had a really stressful day at work. When I got home, I wanted to exercise. Somehow, amidst all my "hating" exercise, I had learned to use my workout to relieve stress. Totally weird, because usually I turned to chocolate when I was stressed out. That's when I began loving exercise -- I finally realized that as I was working out, the physical activity was working for me.

If you're exercising while hating it like I was, keep at it and try some positive self talk while waiting for your workout epiphany. Ashley Tisdale admits that she hated going to the gym. Now she says: "Before I work out, I think, 'I love exercise' -- and it works." Take a tip from the High School Musical actress and fake it until you make it. And remember to find activities you can enjoy ... it really makes a difference.

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Baring your butt on stage for all the audience to see is pretty powerful motivation. Michelle Williams, formerly of Destiny's Child, had to reveal her rear during a scene in The Color Purple. She worked with a trainer to get her body in shape so that if anyone was shocked, they were shocked at how great she looked.

Williams kept up the workouts after her run in the play was over. Good thing, too ... I'm sure her fitness level will come in handy while performing songs from her new album, Unexpected. Besides the rigors of her performing schedule, Williams just plain feels proud of her physique. She says "I'll be brushing my teeth, see my arm in the mirror and think ... cool."

Even if your job isn't as revealing as Williams' (and I certainly hope it's not), you can take some tips from her workout. Her strength and toning routine uses resistance bands and dumbbells.

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No, no ... Drew Barrymore isn't chug-a-lugging at the bar every night. She got that out of her system at a very young age, sadly. This is a much healthier activity. Drew is a fan of the Bar Method.

The Bar Method, created by Burr Leonard, is a blend of Pilates, yoga and other exercises. The program is low-impact and helps to reduce body fat while toning muscles. Many of the exercises (here comes the "no duh" moment of the post) focus around bar work.

I think Drew Barrymore looks awesome; she's lean and toned without being skeletal like a few other celebs we know.

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In the wise words of Dolly Parton, "Working nine to five ... it's enough to drive you crazy if you let it." If you want to avoid the driving-you-crazy part and be more productive and less stressed, the answer is simple: Exercise.

University of Bristol researchers found that people who exercised on work days -- either before work or during lunch -- experienced less stress and were better able to handle the challenges of their workdays.

It's not surprising, really. Exercise can do wonders for your mood. And if you have a crabby co-worker, a demanding boss or unreasonable deadlines to deal with, you can certainly use a little boost in the mood department. And physical activity can increase your energy which, in turn, will make you a more productive employee. So get moving! You never know ... maybe your boss will notice your great performance and you'll get that raise you sorely deserve.

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The right playlist can really make a difference in your workout. Music can motivate you and keep you going. My favorite way to exercise is simply to walk around the neighborhood, so I have my iPod loaded with mid-tempo songs that I love. My favorites are:

• Better Together by Jack Johnson
• Dirty Little Secret by The All-American Rejects
• Girlfriend by Avril Lavigne
• Jessica by Maybe August
• Keep Fishin by Weezer
• Cecelia by Simon & Garfunkel
• Makes Me Wonder by Maroon 5
• Paralyzer by Finger Eleven
• Pump It Up by Elvis Costello
• Suedehead by Morrissey

Andrew from Go Healthy Go Fit asked some of the web's top fitness bloggers what songs are on their playlists. Israel Lagares from Fat Man Unleashed favors Eminem and DMX. Rusty Moore from The Fitness Black Book opts for techno and house music. Check out the full article for song picks and playlists from other fitness bloggers.

What workout tunes are loaded on your iPod?

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My mother has gone for a long walk almost every day for the past 23 years (she lost over 50 pounds back in 1985 and has kept it off ever since). She says that she feels cheated and like her day is off-kilter when she doesn't go for her walk. Quite a few Christmases ago, my siblings and I chipped in to buy her a treadmill, thinking she'd be grateful for it on icy, snowy or rainy days. My mom reluctantly uses the treadmill on days of inclement weather, but in all honesty, she detests the thing. She finds it boring.

My guess is a lot of people find treadmills boring. They're one of those machines that have stuck around simply because they get the job done. But your workout shouldn't be boring. While you should certainly escape to the outdoors whenever weather allows, when you're stuck inside you can follow these tips to make your treadmill walk or run more enjoyable:

• Break it up. Plan on working out in segments -- warm up, run and cool down. Viewing your workout in segments of time rather than one, long chunk makes it more bearable.
• Focus on form. Don't slouch or rest on the handlebars. When you know you're getting the most out of your workout, it's more satisfying.
• Try hills and intervals. Change the speed or incline every few minutes to vary the routine.
• Workout with a friend. If you're at the gym, chat with a friend while walking on the treadmills. Remember to be respectful, though -- others at the gym don't want to hear your conversation.
• Listen to tunes. Load up your iPod with great workout tunes.

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Exercise and routine -- those are two words you frequently see paired together. It's a good thing to make a habit of exercise and to schedule time in your day for your workout. But you shouldn't make your routine too, well ... routine.

Think of it like this. If you knew how to play the piano, you might find a particularly challenging piece of music. At first, playing it would be difficult but as you practiced, it would become easier and easier and eventually you'd be able to play it by memory. Your muscles are no different -- a workout that was once very challenging can become easy after time; muscles have a memory of sorts.

But if you vary your routine, you can keep your body guessing and working as hard as you want it to. Divine Caroline has some great suggestions for varying your workout. Variety in your exercise program will prevent your body from hitting a plateau and, as an added bonus, variety also prevents you from getting bored.

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If you went a little wild with the pumpkin pie yesterday, don't worry about it. All of the efforts you've made to eat healthfully and exercise won't be undone with one food-frenzied holiday. Just get right back on the bandwagon and do a little Thanksgiving damage control.

If you're lucky enough to have the day after Thanksgiving off from work, then you have plenty of opportunities for fitness. Some ideas:

• Family time. The holidays are all about family, right? Well, yesterday it might have been more about food, but today you can let it be about active family time. Go for a walk or a bike ride. If it's chilly where you live, visit your community center for a game of basketball or a swim in the pool.
• Go solo. For some people, too much time with their family is just too much. If that sounds like you, then use exercise as a time to escape. Lace up your running shoes, turn on your iPod and hit the pavement. Some time alone with just the sidewalk and your favorite tunes will melt away any holiday stress while burning those Thanksgiving calories.

If you want more fitness ideas, check out AOL Health's Fitness A-Z.

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Kids have many health habits that leave a little to be desired. As health habits spiral downward, childhood obesity and related illnesses are on the rise. It's the role of a parent to help change kids' bad habits and replace them with health-promoting foods and activities.

AOL Health counts down some of the worst health habits that kids have today:

• Eating too much white or refined flour. White flour is void of nutritional value, so while it might make that soft and squishy bread kids love, whole wheat is always a better choice.
• Drinking soda. Not only does soda add ridiculous amounts of unnecessary calories, it's also damaging to dental health. To help break the soda habit, don't keep it in your house. Water meets your child's hydration needs better than anything else. Milk and 100 percent fruit juice are also good choices in moderation.
  
• Not exercising. Kids should be active for at least 60 minutes each day. Many schools are cutting back on physical education and even on recess -- so it's important that parents create time for active play. One of the best ways to be sure your kids are being active is to get out there and play with them.
  

Check out the slideshow on AOL Health for more unhealthy kid habits.

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