gymnastics-related stories
AntiGravity Yoga - The Best Workout a Hammock Will Ever Give You
AntiGravity Yoga isn't your traditional yoga workout. It involves a hammock, which made me really excited, but no snoozing is allowed. Boo. Still, it sounds like an amazing way to practice yoga in a totally new way.
So, you're asking, what exactly is AntiGravity Yoga? Does it involve levitating? (At least, that's what I wondered.) No, there's no actual levitating, but you are held off the ground in an AntiGravity hammock, which, according to the website, allows you to:
- Decompress tight joints, relieving pressure while aligning the vertebrae of the spine without strain,
- Perform advanced yoga inversions without neck or back compression,
- Hold challenging yoga postures longer and in correct alignment,
- Stretch further with less strain,
- Add an entirely new dimension to your practice,
- Create better body awareness while increasing overall agility.
Amy Winehouse - Headed for a Fitter 2009?
Everyone's favorite train wreck celebrity Amy Winehouse seemed to be getting it all together. A short while ago, she jetted off to the Caribbean for some much-needed R and R and soon after touching down admitted that she was off drugs and loving life. Then, in one of the most shocking celebrity new stories this year, photos were snapped of her doing something fitness-y when she participated in a grueling gymnastics session. Could this be the beginning of a newer, fitter, healthier Winehouse?Not so fast -- first, her boyfriend went back home to England, then -- not surprisingly -- her husband filed for divorce and next thing we knew, she was snapped crawling on the ground begging people to give her cocktails after getting cut off at the bar. Now, if that's not class with a capital 'C', I don't know what is.
Is there any hope for Amy? I don't know about you, but I certainly have my doubts.
See Which Celebrity Literally FLIPS for Fitness (VIDEO)
Fit Kicks Videos, Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment
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!
Is Suri Cruise getting her own gym?
Fitness, Nutrition & Supplements
Tumbling classes are popular among the toddler set. Not only do kids get to So it's no surprise that little Suri Cruise loves to tumble. But according to Star magazine (which means take this story with a grain of salt), taking Suri to tumbling classes near their East Village apartment was getting to be far too big of a production, what with the paparazzi and privacy issues and all.
So instead, mom and dad are reportedly building the little girl a gymnastics room right inside their apartment, including $7,000 worth of equipment. She'll also have her own personal gymnastics teacher who visits once a week. Can you imagine having all that equipment at your disposal every day? It's like a little kid's dream come true!
Celebrity Fitzness Report: Olympic Champion Nastia Liukin
Womens Health, Celebrity Fitzness Report, Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment, Nutrition & Supplements
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.
Nastia Liukin was the darling of the U.S. gymnastics team this year as she conquered Olympic Gold in the All Around competition and proudly added to her collection four more medals. That would be three silver and one bronze; I personally would kill to have just one in any color. She's Russian born, American bred and now working with the Secret Sport Challenge to help make other athletic dreams come true. I scored this interview this week while she was promoting the Challenge and bringing attention to the twenty $5,000 scholarships being given away to help others achieve their sporty goals. Nastia is ridiculously fit and has some great advice to help you look better, feel stronger and live longer.
Fitz: How many hours a week do you train before a competition?
Nastia: Before the Olympics I trained for about seven hours a day. It included about two hours of warming up and conditioning, and the rest of the time was spent practicing routines and skills on the events.
Fitz: If you weren't a professional athlete/gymnast how do you think you'd pursue fitness?
Acupuncture for athletes
I was watching the Olympics the other day and saw a piece where a reporter went and received acupuncture treatments. It was interesting to hear about this particular practitioner who was influential in acupuncture's acceptance into Western culture. After the piece, the reporter mentioned that Nastia Liukin, gold medalist in the women's all-around gymnastics competition, has weekly acupuncture treatments. She's not alone. Acupuncture is widely used as a method to aid and speed healing from sports-related injuries. Though the thought of multiple metal needles being inserted into your body is daunting, to say the least, proponents of the traditional form of medicine sing its praises. In addition to aiding in healing, acupuncture is said to help athletes by boosting energy, improving circulation, and ensuring the body gets the most out of nutrients. In addition, acupuncture is said to help improve the quality of sleep and boost immunity.
A sweet way to treat burns
Womens Health, Healthy Recipes, Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements, Men's Health
There was a great deal of chatter on the internet last week about Olympic gymnasts' use of honey during competition. With a bottle of the sticky stuff next to the chalk basin, everyone wondered what purpose it served. Many speculated that it was used for a quick shot of energy, but this turned out to not be the case. The honey, it was later revealed on numerous websites, was used to help gymnasts maintain a better grip on the bar during certain events. This actually isn't very surprising, since honey has many uses for helping the skin. Most recently, in fact, researchers from New Zealand found that burned skin covered with antibiotic ointment healed much more slowly than burned skin coated with honey. Honey not only soothes the pain of burned skin, but it also reduces inflammation and prevents further infection.
Being that the burned skin covered with honey healed about four days faster than burned skin covered in antibiotic creams, bringing a small jar with you on that sunny vacation your planning may not be a bad idea. And, as evidenced by how well the gymnasts performed at this year's Olympics, bringing it to your kid's next gymnastics meet wouldn't hurt, either.
Riskiest sports for kids
Fitness, Nutrition & Supplements
Any idea what sport is riskiest for girls? Gymnastics it is -- it has the highest injury rate of all girls' sports, says the Center for Injury Research and Policy (CIRP). For both boys and girls, injuries come most often from stick sports, like field hockey and lacrosse.Don't pull your kids from these sports or refrain from signing them up in light of this news. Just follow these safety tips shared by Dawn Comstock, professor at the CIRP and Ohio State University, for Woman's Day magazine (September 1, 2008).
- Ask how many years the coaches have been working with the sport, if they're certified, and if they have first aid training.
- Ask coaches if they teach fundamentals before letting kids compete.
- If you child is small, consider enrolling in a size-based league.
- Don't let your child practice sports like gymnastics at home, where conditions may be unsafe.
Shawn Johnson flips for nutrition
Fitness, Nutrition & Supplements
It was a one-two win for American gymnasts last night at the women's all around. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to watch these powerhouse athletes perform. Graceful and athletic Nastia Liukin took home a well-deserved gold. But I have to admit that my personal favorite was young Shawn Johnson. She's so powerful and seems to pack every move with just a little bit of attitude. It's no wonder the silver medalist has a lot of power behind her moves; she trains 4 hours each weekday and 5-6 hours on Saturdays. Unlike Michael Phelps' astounding calorie intake, Shawn Johnson strives for a bit more balance in her meals. She doesn't follow any specific diet, but just aims for good nutrition and a healthy balance. She also tries to stay away from sweets. Johnson says, "A normal breakfast for me is yogurt and scrambled eggs, lunch might be a wrap or salad with some fruit, and for dinner I eat a lot of fish or chicken and fresh vegetables."
Olympic athletes share their workouts and more
Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment
Whether you have (or have had) dreams of participating in the Olympics or are simply interested in mixing up your fitness regime, it's fascinating to hear about the workouts Olympic athletes go through. For me, it not only helps me appreciate the effort it took for them to achieve that level of greatness, but it also inspires me to push harder in my workouts -- I might not be able to keep up with them, but I can try!Lots of athletes have taken the opportunity to speak about their fitness routines, eating habits, and more. We've pulled a bunch of their information together, so to see what your favorite Olympian does to stay in shape, keep clicking the "Next" button!
Train like an Olympian: Alicia Sacramone, gymnastics
Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment

Her workout consists of hanging leg lifts, lunge walks holding a bar, pikes on an exercise ball, and standing side jumps onto a box or step. These moves help her gain the power to do the amazing flips and jumps required for her sport, but will help the rest of us to sculpt fabulous butt and thigh muscles and work our abs. Most of Alicia's cardio comes from her gymnastics work, but she spends about three hours a week focusing on cardio.
As far as diet goes, Alicia is careful to eat healthfully, but doesn't follow any strict diet and doesn't leave out any food groups. To relax, she relies on her iPod (she says it's her best friend), which is filled with R&B, hip hop, and energetic dance music.
Fitzness Fiend: Jodi Bennett
Healthy Aging, Healthy Habits, Womens Health, Cellulite, Healthy Events, Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment, Motivation, Nutrition & Supplements, Men's Health
Fitzness Fiends is a section devoted to you, the reader! We all have learned so much on our path to becoming more fit, and now it's time to learn from and inspire each other! Fitzness Fiends are constantly working to better themselves. Some are perfect, some are not. All have health on the mind. Please send Fitz your answers to these questions with a photo of yourself. Time for you to be the motivator!
Name: Jodi Bennett
Age: 30
Occupation: Gymnastics school owner
How often do you exercise? Five - Six days a week.
What type of exercise do you do? I run, kickbox and lift weights.
Gymnastics helps kids build strong bones
If you want your kids to have stronger bones and avoid osteoporosis later in life, encouraging gymnastics and other high-impact sports activities before they hit puberty could really help. Research shows that girls who participate in gymnastics, particularly artistic gymnastics, have much greater bone density than girls who are active in other less strenuous activities. The keys are jumping, sprinting, and rapid direction changes, which all put stress on the bones and encourage them to grow stronger. So some sports besides gymnastics can also be good for bone development such as basketball, soccer, and lacrosse to name a few.
Mary Lou Retton's sporting a new hip
Womens Health, Celebrities and Entertainment, Diet & Weight Loss, Celebs & Entertainment
True to form, she's not letting it slow her down. Retton reports that, post-surgery, her pain was immediately gone. She recently took part in an arthritis walk to draw attention to arthritis and related conditions and to help raise funds.


























