I'm writing to you from Jamaica, where I've been enjoying a week at several beautiful Sandals resorts. The sun is bright, the waves are warm, the healthy food is plentiful and the endless amount of free athletic activities mean I'm sure to leave this place at least a pound or more lighter than when I arrived. Am I trying to lose weight? No! Is it likely to happen, though? Probably!

Sandals is a chain of "couples only" resorts located in posh spots around the Caribbean. They're all inclusive too, which basically means you get to eat, drink and play as much as you want without shelling out extra dough. This all-inclusive thing removes lots of vacation-related stress, I assure you.

Most folks believe gaining at least five to 10 pounds per week of vacation is a rule, and my job is to convince you that it's not. Not if you come to a place like Sandals, anyway. As readers of this site, I know you're health conscious and eager to pursue and maintain your fitness levels wherever you go. Sandals allows you to do that.

Source

The beauty of a "before" picture is that it allows you to really appreciate how far you've come. Not there yet? Are you walking around in the body you'll one day refer to as your "before"? Watch this video and get a move on. Life is too short to spend one extra second in your "before" body. Pay close attention, take action and zoom on into your "after" body.

For fabulous cooking tips, creative workouts and more fun quick information from degreed experts in health and fitness, visit SportsHealthExercise.org.

Source

That's Fit Club is our feature devoted to you, the reader! We have all learned so much on our paths to becoming more fit, and now it's time to learn from and inspire each other! That's Fit Club members are constantly working to better themselves. Some are perfect; some are not. But all have health on the mind.

Besides showing you off, we want to reward you for all of your hard work! Everlast and Everlast Woman are giving gorgeous workout T-shirts to each featured member! To join, please send Fitz your answers to these questions with a photo of yourself. Time for you to be the motivator!

Name: Matt Dunn

Age: 31

Occupation: Software Engineer

How often do you exercise? Five times a week.

What type of exercise do you do? Mostly running -- I'm currently training for my first and second marathons this spring.

Source

I'm in love with Lucy. No, I haven't ditched my husband for a chic. Lucy is the maker of the pants I've adopted as my uniform. Do I need a uniform? No! Do I wish I had an excuse to wear Power Pants every day? Heck yeah!

If you're not familiar with Lucy, let me introduce you. Lucy is a fashionable line of women's workout wear that puts equal emphasis on performance, versatility and style. The line offers clothing and accessories designed for running, yoga, gym workouts and training in the great outdoors. I've done all of the above in my latest addiction: the Power Pant.

The Power Pant fits my smallish bum in the most amazing way. It enhances my curves, never shows a panty line and falls beautifully to the floor in the boot cut style. The moisture wick material allows me to run without discomfort, and the cute little zippered pockets hold my mp3 player firmly against my hip. One of my girlfriends has a pair, and they disguise her lumps and bumps. Most other fitness pants just accentuate them.

I'm a big fan of Mexican food, but not a fan of all the fat that usually goes along with it. That doesn't hold me back from enjoying it whenever I want, though. I just order or make each dish in a much smarter and healthier way.

Homemade Tortilla Chips are a staple item and the great news is, they're painfully easy to make. I whip up a batch quickly and serve them with salsa (which is naturally nonfat) or my Fat Free Mexican O-Layered Dip.

Both recipes are available in my online recipe book at Fitzness.com, and I hope you'll give them a try. Other fun toppings to add to your chips are lean grilled meat, veggies, low fat or nonfat cheeses and sour cream.

Just like any other style of cooking, whenever you ditch the oil, butter and fatty sauces ... you'll end up with a much healthier meal. Ole!

Source

Country singer Monty Lane Allen has accomplished many things. He's recorded albums and has performed with Country greats like Alan Jackson and Brad Paisley, while on stages in front of big wigs like .... the President of the United States. But beyond his beautiful voice and great talent on the guitar, this country star is an amazing athlete!

Monty Lane Allen is half performer and half jock. Not to say that Country folks can't be athletic, because of course they can be and are. But this guy is serious. He runs marathons on a regular basis and doesn't even feel satisfied with that. He's branching out in to triathlons too.

Source

There are many ways to train each muscle. I'm a girl who likes challenging and efficient exercises. This three-part routine, shown here and featuring me and Anthony Field of The Wiggles, not only made my arms shake ... it exhausted my chest and abs and left me breathless in a very short period of time. Looking for something new, challenging and fun? This is your answer.

If you're interested in getting the rings like the one's shown here in this video, visit RingTraining.com and look for Elite Rings. And for more star-studded training videos, fitness tips and recipes, visit Fitzness.com.

Source

Duran Duran ruled the 80's. In fact, they still kind of rule. Selling out arenas around the world isn't too shabby in anyone's book.

Even though he's still performing with his legendary band, John Taylor has reformed from his very typical rock star ways of the past, and is now a genuine fitness fiend. We spoke today, and I was delighted to hear about his new lifestyle. John told me that he gave up drinking and drugs years ago and pays a lot of attention to his health. He actually said he considers himself a runner! So cute, he called himself the "slackest runner in the world" but knows he needs that outlet because of the mental relief it provides. To quote John, he says it "suits my psychology."

When we see rock stars living the party life, it's easy to wonder what effects it will have on their futures. Some simply don't survive the lifestyle. But John did, and it's wonderful to see the man so many people adore as he lives a truly healthy life. He does struggle a bit with something, though.

Source

If you're a fan of Batman, or simply would like to have the same rippling abdominals the Batsuit provides ... check out this video and then try it at home.

For more innovative training videos, studded with stars ...

Source

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.

Source

Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy.

Kellie Pickler has gone through a wicked physical transition of the past few years. When she auditioned to appear on American Idol, at five feet tall, she weighed in as a featherweight 100 pounds. But by the time the competition and Idol tour was over, she had packed on 28 pounds in less than a year. That's a lot of weight on a very little person. The weight gain made Kellie feel bad, but one fellow celebrity (whom most people love and adore) helped her see the light and lose the weight. Read on to hear her story.

Fitz: Your body has changed a ton since you landed in the spotlight. Tell me about that.

Kellie: Oh my goodness! My body has made a big transformation. When I auditioned for Idol I was only 100 pounds and kind of riding on "the young card." Although I exercised a ton, I think I stayed thin because I was ... young! But my eating habits on Idol and the during the tour became terrible. We were always eating fast food on the road and having late night munchies. I gained 28 pounds in less than a year!

Fitz: How'd you take it off?

Source

As your fancy online fitness trainer, the ability to teach through video is an invaluable tool. The written word is wonderful for so many things but actually showing you and communicating eye-to-eye via the amazing graces of THE PODCAST has allowed me to truly show you how and why you should try some of my favorite training techniques. Let's take a look back at a reminder of all the cool ways you can take your fitness training to a higher level.

#1 Innovative Push-ups with Emphasis on Your Abs

Source

That's Fit Club is our feature devoted to you, the reader! We have all learned so much on our paths to becoming more fit, and now it's time to learn from and inspire each other! That's Fit Club members are constantly working to better themselves. Some are perfect; some are not. But all have health on the mind.

Besides showing you off, we want to reward you for all of your hard work! Everlast and Everlast Woman are giving gorgeous workout T-shirts to each featured member! To join, please send Fitz your answers to these questions with a photo of yourself. Time for you to be the motivator!

Name: Kate Gamber

Age: 19

Occupation: College Student

How often do you exercise? Five to six days a week.

What type of exercise do you do? Long distance running, lifting, cardio, LAX.

What gets you to work out, even when you're feeling lazy? I know that I'll thank myself later!

Source

No ... I'm not asking if you're painfully bright, wealthy and generous. I'm referring to the Oprah Syndrome as: Having lost and regained enormous amounts of weight more times than you can count. If you've lost a bunch of weight through dieting or just plain old great fitness habits, yet at some point just broke down and regained it all back, you're suffering from Oprah Syndrome.

I've been teaching fitness for 20 years now, and I've dealt with many people suffering the same condition. It's extremely painful to watch, and it's really frustrating for both those going through it and those who love them. I call it Oprah Syndrome because Oprah has made this agonizing situation famous. She has all the means, tools and professionals around to help keep her on track but at some point, she mentally just can't take it.

Gaining five pounds back can be accidental. Gaining 60 to 80+ pounds back is oddly deliberate. She could have hit the breaks when she gained 10, 20 or 30, but she didn't. I believe her issue is emotional, and she simply won't allow herself the life and/or perks that go along with being fit and trim. I'm no psychiatrist, but after doing this about a bazillion times, it's hard not to know the trends.

Source

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's ... a celebrity flying through the air! Check out this video to see who Fitz is training with and take your training to new heights.

To find out more about this celeb, read on!

Source