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Beyonce's Workout

Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment

Bootylicious pop star Beyonce Knowles has one of the most coveted bodies in Hollywood, so just how does she do it? Beyonce, 28, dances her butt off -- literally. When she's not performing her high-intensity shows, Beyonce is rehearsing for hours at a time. In fact, prior to touring, rehearsals will regularly last for 12-hours, and she spends the entire time dancing in high heels to prepare for the concerts. But that's not all -- Beyonce also admits to doing "regular" workout things like running on the treadmill and doing squats. She reportedly keeps her abs in shape with numerous crunches, bicycle crunches and planks.

But perhaps Beyonce's best workout secret is that she fits exercise into whatever she does. She admits that she tones her butt and glutes by taking the stairs whenever she can, and she spent a recent vacation with her husband Jay-Z jumping on trampolines and jet-skiing in the tropics. But she's not afraid to take some downtime when necessary too. "Either I'm doing absolutely nothing and relaxing -- reading a book, sitting by the ocean and not answering any questions -- or else I'm hands-on and giving 100 percent, working really hard," she says.

And, of course, Beyonce watches what she eats, even trying controversial juice fasts (for which she apologized later) when she needs to slim down in a hurry.

High Heel Workout

Fitness

woman in heelsLet's face it. There's nothing sexier on a woman than a great pair of heels. They make your calves look amazing, and (assuming you don't wobble and shake) walking in heels makes you look confident and sexy. I can imagine wearing heels when out with the girls, at work (though I work from home and have the luxury of working in bare feet) or while out on a date ... but wearing heels at the gym? Really?

Rosalind Neilen, a Florida-based trainer, has come up with the High Heel Workout. It's not just a workout designed to help you look great in heels ... you actually pull out your Jimmy Choos for part of the class.

"I live in Florida and October (when she first introduced the workout) is our month for getting out of flip flops and looking like a person for a change," Neilen says. The six-week High Heel Workout (two 30-minute sessions each week) will get you walking like a diva in no time. Neilen says the results you'll see won't just apply to showing off at the beach. "You want to walk over to your man without spilling that martini."

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Victoria Beckham - She Wears a Tracksuit, Claims to Run Four Miles a Day

Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment


When I hear the name Victoria Beckham, I think skinny body, flashy fashion and hellish heels -- I know, she claims her shoes are comfortable (yeah, right). What I don't envision when I think of this Spice Girl: Tracksuits.

Seems Victoria is all about the tracksuit, though. "I run around the house in a tracksuit sometimes," says the 34-year-old wife of soccer great David Beckham and mom of three little boys. Apparently, the tracksuit is as much for function as fashion -- Victoria reportedly runs four miles a day. While I have a hard time imagining Posh swapping the spiky stilettos for the New Balance, I suppose this snazzy gal is on the right track. Perhaps she is so thin and trim because of her fierce workout pursuits.

What do you think? Is this Beckham sweating in her tracksuit or not?

Victoria Beckham(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Victoria BeckhamVictoria BeckhamVictoria BeckhamVictoria BeckhamVictoria & David Beckham

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Beyonce or Justin Timberlake - Who Has Better Legs?

We Love To Gawk At Fit Celebs, Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment


When you put two super sexy stars on stage together in heels and leotards, people are inevitably going to compare them. That didn't stop Justin Timberlake from suiting up in a black leotard, tights, and heels, and playing Beyonce's backup dancer on last weekend's Saturday Night Live.

Justin Timberlake and BeyonceDid you miss it? You can check out a picture of JT with Beyonce here, and compare his looks to the backup dancer in the actual video for Beyonce's Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It). I've got to say, he definitely has some lovely legs, and he certainly had the moves, but I'm not sure they can beat out Beyonce's stems.

Speaking of the moves, it's no wonder Beyonce's legs look so sleek and strong. I dare you, just try doing some of those moves, shaking your hips while slowly lowering yourself to the ground and back up. When is this girl going to come out with a workout video?

Other Celebs Who've Skipped the Pants(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Katy PerryPoshBai LingBeyonceParis Hilton

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Walk a mile in her shoes

Healthy Events, Fitness

There are any number of different walks for a cause. You can join walks to support conditions and issues from diabetes to breast cancer to asthma to world hunger to almost anything else you can think of. Walks for a cause are a total win-win situation. You benefit your health with the activity while you're helping a good cause. But the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes cause ... well, it's unique.

The walk has a definite sense of humor. Men are asked to literally walk a mile in her shoes ... her high heels to be exact. But underneath the sense of humor is a serious issue. The walks are designed to draw attention to rape, assault, and other forms of sexualized violence against women.

This month, there are walks scheduled in Indiana, Kentucky, South Dakota, Ontario, Minnesota, Vermont, Iowa, Idaho, Michigan, and Georgia. If there isn't a walk scheduled near you, you can register to organize a walk.

Walk a Mile in Her Shoes(click thumbnails to view gallery)

In her shoesLittle girlMen don't march aloneCouples show their supportSome go all out

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When heels are harmful to your health

Womens Health, Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products, Motivation

Few things can make you feel sexier than donning a fabulous pair of heels. But if you practically live in stilettos, here's a good reason to take a break from all that height: Heels can cause major problems in your feet, legs and back. In fact, you could end up like the British Apprentice contestant Claire Young, who says that heels ruined her spine and left in with pain so severe that she missed the final of the show.

It started as a nagging pain that she ignored, but the TV reality star eventually did so much damage to her spine that she couldn't get out of bed for weeks. In her own words: 'I've suffered too much to go back to my high heels again - I wear them only on special occasions. I had always joked that my shoes had killer heels, but believe me, I've learned to my cost the real meaning of the term.'

My advice? Stick to flats, and save the heels for rare dressy occasions. And when you do wear heels, wear them well.

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Pump up your sex life with a pair of heels

Healthy Habits, Diet & Weight Loss



Break out those high heels. A recent study from the University of Verona in Italy reports that women whose feet are elevated at a 15-degree angle (that's about a three-inch heel) have more relaxed pelvic muscles than women who wear flats. The more relaxed these pelvic muscle are, the more they can contract and heighten your sexual experience.

Heels may not be your best bet for healthy feet -- but for a healthy sex life, they may be just the ticket. For 20 great tips for wearing and walking in high heel shoes, take a peek at this site. Per reader suggestion, here are some tips for avoiding the pain high heels can cause. And by all means, don't risk life and limb just to sport a pair of pumps in the name of good sex.

Thanks,
Family Circle, for the sexy tip.

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The ugly side of high heels

Diet & Weight Loss, Reviews & Products

They look good, there's no doubt about that. A nice pair of high heels completes an outfit and they make your calves look awesome. But, besides leaving you a bit shaky on your feet, wearing heels frequently can lead to some not-so-sexy issues:

  • Wearing heels forces your knee, hips, and spine into an unnatural position and take them out of alignment.
  • Calf muscles may shorten and tighten.
  • The narrow toe-box and unbalanced pressure on toes can lead to Morton's neuroma, a nerve disorder that can cause pain and/or numbness.
  • The Achilles tendon can tighten.
  • Tight-fitting shoes can cause bunions.
  • Narrow toe-boxes can result in hammertoes.
  • Prolonged use of high heels can result in pain on the ball of your foot (metatarsalgia).
  • Improper balance puts you at risk of ankle injuries.
  • Rigid straps/backs can cause a bumpy protrusion on the heel called Haglund's deformity.
If you wear high heels a lot, you may want to consider giving your feet a break from time to time. You may feel hot in your heels, but nobody thinks hammertoes are sexy.

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Work your calves with these $3600 shoes

Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment

If you have a great sense of balance, a heightened sense of style, a lot of extra cash, and want to build up your calves, these shoes might be for you. Oh, and when I say heightened sense of style, I mean that your taste runs toward the Posh Spice end of the spectrum, not so much toward Sporty, because Victoria Beckham owns a pair of these $3600 Antonio Berardi shoes.

So, what are the pros of these shoes? Well, you would certainly work your calves, and maybe Posh would want to be your friend.

Cons? You'll probably fall over, your regular friends will make fun of you, and maybe Posh would want to be your friend.

For $3600, I think you can find better ways to build calf muscles, don't you?

Other shoes that'll work your calves(click thumbnails to view gallery)

Who needs a heel?Like a mullet--Business in the front, party in the backHeel-less high heels?Seriously spaceageEven Manolo Blahnik is in on this

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High heels mean better sex

Womens Health, Diet & Weight Loss

Italian researchers have concluded that wearing high heels makes for a better sex life, but not for the reasons you're probably thinking. Although high heels are undoubtedly considered sexy, according to the research the sexual benefit doesn't come from attracting more men but instead from developing the right muscles. Wearing high heels tones leg and strengthens pelvic muscles, or in their words "directly works the pleasure muscles linked to orgasm."

Hmm, I'm generally more of a sneakers and flip-flops kinda girl and I have to wonder -- is the benefit a big enough deal to outweigh the negative of sore aching feet?


Via Shiny Shiny

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Pain in the heel

Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness

I'm self-employed now and work from home, but when I worked at an office, I used to spend a hour ever day walking home from work. I loved walking -- it was a way to clear my head and take in the scenery of the city, all while doing something good for my body at the same time. I still exercise quite a bit, but now I'm not walking as much or as far every day. Here's something I've noticed since I've curbed my walking -- while I used to wake up every morning barely able to move because of pain in my heel (it would subside a half hour after waking), now I am pain-free. Of course, I guess it didn't help that I often wore flip flops when walking.

If you have pain in your heels, you should check out this article. It has a lot of great information on what might be causing the pain and whether it's serious enough. Of course, this is just a guide -- there's no substitute for your doctor's opinion.

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Running barefoot

Fitness

Though I spent many a day of my youth without proper shoes, these days, the only time I go barefoot outside of the house is when I'm recklessly dancing at a wedding. I once went on a 3-day jungle trek through Northern Thailand with a guide who didn't wear shoes the whole time, through swamps and over logs, across branches and bushes and rice patty fields. I looked on with some sort of odd bohemian envy that he could live with little more than god gave him and I needed my expensive sneakers, which still gave me blisters. We were born without shoes, so why do we need them now? Because we've become weak, that's why.

There's a movement out there that I read about on Mark's Daily Apple called the Primal Health philosophy.They believe that the closer we are to nature, the better. Which mean -- you guessed it -- the less we rely on shoes, the better, even when running. There are lots of reasons behind the idea of running shoeless, including this one:When we run in shoes, our heels are the first parts of our body to hit the ground. But if we were to run shoeless, we wouldn't do this. Running with our heels first adds unnecessary impact to the joints in our leg. Interesting. If you want to read more, check out the original post.

Still, before we had shoes, we also didn't have pavement and unforgiving urban landscapes. So I'm sticking to my running shoes for now at least. What about you?

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Get the "Dancing with the Stars" look

Healthy Places, Womens Health, Celebrities and Entertainment, Diet & Weight Loss, Fitness, Celebs & Entertainment, Reviews & Products, Men's Health

I'm watching Dancing with the Stars right now, and for the most part almost all of the contestants have one thing in common. Hot bodies! Now, I'm not usually one to shout 'hot body', but these people look outstanding. Good for them. As an athlete, I watch and think about the days I use to have hours to do nothing but train all day. I loved being so incredibly lean in athletic. Wouldn't it be nice if we were all paid to dance all day? Or swim, kickbox, run all day. Whatever. We'd all have HOT BODIES too!

Well reality doesn't usually allow us 8 hour training days, but we can still get that sexy look without our own show. Attaining a lean muscular physique requires, weight loss and strength training. Got it. We talk about that all the time. Now I'm going to address the other little 'bonus' things they do to look so great for the show.

  • Self tanner. Go spray tan somewhere or do it at home. Tanning lotions are safe and give a nice brown color that will enhance the definition of the muscles you already have. *Tanning in the sun or tanning bed is dangerous, and will destroy your skin. Avoid that OK?
  • Show off your assets! If you love your arms, go sleeveless. Got great legs? Show em off. These dancers cover and show their favorite parts strategically. You should do the same.
  • Wear high heels. They do make your legs look longer, and force your calves into a constant flexed position. Very sexy looking!
  • Actually do your hair and makeup. They don't doof around on this one. If you're a girl...go all out girlie! Guys..try gel.
  • Fitted shirts and boot cut pants on the men. YUMMY!

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Workplace Fitness: The power of shoes

Diet & Weight Loss

There are all kinds of jobs in the world, and all kinds of work attire and dress codes. If you're into health and fitness then you've probably been trying to make some adjustments at work, like eating healthier lunches or managing a workout routine around your hectic job responsibilities. But something you may not have thought about is the effect your shoes can have on your health, maybe in more ways than you realized. Estimates are as high as $2 million each year for surgery related to footwear, and the majority of that figure is for women.

Although any shoe that doesn't fit correctly can wreak havoc on your joints, posture, and muscles, high heels are the biggest culprit. In today's world high heels are almost a requirement in some jobs, and although I think they're horribly uncomfortable I admit I do have several pairs in my closet because they just look so darn good. But fashion comes with a price in the form of foot pain, foot deformities, knee pain and arthritis, changes in back posture, and impaired balance.

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