That's Fit

As fabulous as we at That's Fit think this blog is, the truth is there are hundreds of wonderful blogs on healthy living to be seen all over the blogosphere. So in this feature, Fit Links, we'll introduce you to some that have caught our eye.

I'm always looking for ways to make life run a little more smoothly, and fitness is no exception. Whether it's a way to make fitness faster, more efficient, or just more fun...I'm game! If you're looking for some fitness hacks to improve your diet, weight loss, or fitness routine, look no further than this week's Fit Links.

Starling Fitness teaches us how to make our own Weight Watcher's points bracelet -- stylish and functional. Straight to the Bar highlights participants in a recent DIY fitness gear challenge. Real Women's Fitness has 26 gym hacks you probably don't use, and for a little humor, here are Cranky Fitness's 10 ways to get out of bed a little earlier.

By now, we should all be aware of the importance of breathing. After all, it's what keeps us alive, right? So why is it that when we work out our hardest, we sometimes forget to breathe? That's when our bodies need it the most--when we're pushing our limits and challenging ourselves to the max.

So how's your breathing during your workout? For me, it's the weights that make me forget my breath. I take a weight-lifting class a few times a week and funny though it sounds, I usually need to be reminded by the instructor to breathe--otherwise I'll hold my breath until I get a short break. No wonder I get dizzy sometimes!

There have been a lot of fitness trends that have come and gone since the 80s, but at least one has managed to stay popular throughout the decades -- Jazzercise. The word alone brings to mind images of leg warmers and tights, but Jazzercise has managed to stay flexible over the years, which is probably why it's still around.

Today, Jazzercise still uses many of the same classic movements, but it also incorporates more "modern" workouts such as Pilates and kickboxing. The result is a workout that resonates with people, and the company recently enjoyed the best year of their nearly four decade long history.

Maintaining a regular exercise routine means finding a workout that you love, so if dancing to pop hits sounds like your idea of a good time, Jazzercise may just be for you. (Leg warmers not required...)

Now here's a way to walk, and it comes straight from Mark Fenton, author of The Complete Guide for Walking for Health, Weight Loss, and Fitness. It's a simple six-day schedule -- you get the seventh day off -- and it's intended to boost the intensity of walking workouts for a greater benefit in less time. Check it out, try it, and tell us what you think.

Three days of the week: Engage in 30-60 minutes of purposeful walking. Walk the kids to school, walk to the store for milk, or walk with a colleague at work -- call it a meeting and you'll kill two birds with one stone. Break up your walking if you wish -- 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there -- but walk with a mission. Walk as if you're not late but have no time to spare.

Two days of the week: Get moving for 25-45 minutes of high intensity walking. Walk very quickly and tackle some hills while you're at it. Do this walk all at once and not in mini-chunks of time, and be aware of your breathing. Make sure you aren't gasping for air.

One day per week: Take a 90-minute walk. It can be a hike or even a family excursion in a park. Speed isn't important for this one. Just go long.

If you're having trouble staying on track with your workout it might have something to do with your stress level. It's hard to make time for working out if you're already feeling rushed with a mile-long 'to do" list, but if you can just get yourself started exercise can be a great outlet and a wonderful way to relax. But not all forms of exercise are created equal in this department -- some are much more relaxing than others.

The best workouts for relieving stress:

• Yoga and Pilates. The stretching and controlled breathing help to relax you and to relieve anxiety. It's important to make sure you're doing the moves correctly though, so if you're a beginner it would probably be a good idea to enroll in a class.
  
• The Batting Cage. This one sounds like FUN. Improve coordination and release stress by smacking some balls with everything you've got. It's surprisingly inexpensive and they can be found in most areas if you know where to look (usually private gyms or family-oriented amusement parks).

Martha told us just recently in her post Stay-slim secrets of Catherine Zeta-Jones that the beautifully slender actress is no friend of the diet craze and keeps her figure in tip-top shape with a healthy lifestyle that includes gym workouts, dancing, aerobics -- and sometimes even a little pasta.

Fast forward one week, and Zeta-Jones is now responding to questions about a recent weight loss that some say is linked to an eating disorder.

Do I look anorexic?" Zeta-Jones told PEOPLE on Saturday at the Savannah Film Festival. "How could I ever, ever be anorexic?"

The 'baby boomer' population may be getting older but they certainly aren't letting it slow them down. In fact, statistics show that boomers are more active than other age groups, joining the gym in record numbers and being assertive with trying new forms of fitness like yoga and boxing. The YMCA has really been catering to the 78 million member boomer crowd too, creating programs and classes that focus less on muscles and physical appearance and more on health and quality of life (something we should all do!).

But as motivated and ambitious as the boomers are, they do have their own set of unique needs and wants. Safety is the biggest issue, as injuries can not only sideline current health efforts but can put a serious kink in the plan for months or even years into the future. Here are some good things tailored just for the boomers out there:

I accepted a challenge the other day and climbed hundreds of steps in the University of Florida football stadium. The challenge centered around testing my cardiovascular strength. "Try it and see how hard it makes you breath," my sister said. So I tried. And my breathing became labored. I even had to slow down a few times to catch my breath. But I made it up all those stairs, and all the way back down too. And today, a few days after my feat, I realize the challenge wasn't all about breathing. It was also about my legs, my calves to be exact.

Right now, I can barely walk. Well, I can walk -- I just look like a waddling duck as I put one foot in front of the other. And as I contemplate my compromised state, I wonder just how some people do it -- how they conquer "stadiums" as they run and walk up and down, day after day. I guess it's just like any physical activity -- start slow and in time, the body becomes stronger. I did it with running. Once unable to run around the block, I can now log up to four miles at a time. It's called progress. Plain and simple. If I chose to continue stadium workouts, I'd no doubt become proficient at it. My knees may suffer over time, but my calf muscles would surely adjust.

I don't think stadium stepping is in my future. But if I ever take on the challenge again, I'll take it slow and steady. You should too -- if walking is something you really value.

For more on stadium cross training, click here.

Next time you get the chance to jet to the ocean, think of it as an opportunity for stepping up your workouts.

For a 150-pound woman, Health Magazine experts report that two to three times more energy is required to walk on the beach than on a hard surface. Women, you'll burn 82 more calories per hour by hoofing it on the sand compared to pounding the pavement. And if you're like me, you'll cover more ground at the beach as you ambitiously trek in one direction, only to realize the return trip is just as long.

Oh, and that frozen daiquiri you dream of sipping when your sandy excursion is complete: 112 calories.

For more walking tips and techniques, compliments of the folks at Health, click here.

If you're at all involved in the health and fitness world and follow the news then you're probably confused on an almost daily basis -- I know I am! It seems like everything contradicts everything else, and when it comes to figuring out how much exercise is enough exercise (or how much is too much, for that matter) it's nearly impossible. Check five different sources and you'll get five different answers.

Sadly there is no flat black and white answer that will be best for everybody because we're all so different. What you need to do is ask yourself two things: how much can I exercise every week while keeping consistent? And how much exercise makes you feel the best and gets you the results you want? Seek out help and advice, but ultimately you're the only one who can really determine the perfect amount of exercise for you.

When I'm filled with anxiety, panic, or worry, exercise usually helps. It allows me to clear my head, focus inward, and collect a fresh perspective. There's nothing groundbreaking about my strategy. It helps loads of people who find themselves in all sorts of stressful scenarios.

Health experts have long recommended 30 minutes of moderate daily exercise to relieve stress. Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia agree. But they've got an even better recommendation. They say studies show high-intensity workouts pack a much bigger punch against stress than any other form of exercise. Why? There are several theories. We know intense aerobic exercise strengthens the heart and lungs, and these two vital organs bear the brunt of the body's stress response. So the more we exercise, the better these organs respond to negative emotion. Another possibility: Vigorous workouts require major concentration and limit the ability to obsess about weighty matters. It could also be that this type of exercise increases the release of endorphins, our feel-good hormones. The harder we work, the better we feel.

I guess it doesn't really matter why strenuous activity does the trick. It just does. And that's reason enough for me to keep at it.

Although summertime is friendlier for outdoor sports and physical activity for many people than winter is, it's also full of hot lazy days, fattening BBQ meals, and vacations. All too often people start off in the spring with big plans to lose weight and get in shape, only to let themselves get derailed by mid-summer holiday plans. The great thing about summer holidays, though, is that they lend themselves fairly easily to fitness if you're willing to make the effort. The "trailer trash workout" (named by the trainer who created it) was designed to be easy, quick, and nearly equipment-free -- all great qualities in a summer travel exercise routine.

Hate to exercise? It happens to the best of us! Just because it's something everybody should be doing doesn't mean it's something everybody likes doing. But hating exercise makes it pretty tough to live a healthy lifestyle, so if you or someone you know is struggling with this issue try these 5 tips for exercise haters:

• Use technology to get yourself motivated. Either put on music that you love to get you in the mood, or try an audio training program -- they're available now for everything from cardio and calisthenics to pilates and yoga.
• Try bellydancing! Or any other interesting "outside of the box" class you may find that sparks your interest.
  
• Instead of trying to walk or jog for 30 minutes at once try doing 15 before work and the other 15 at lunch or right after work. The smaller timeframe may make it seem like less of a chore.
• Try Leslie Sanson's Walk Away the Pounds video program -- it's converted many an exercise hater.
• Find a fitness class that has a mind/body fitness approach. There are traditional options like yoga, Pilates, and Tai Chi, plus more modern ideas like yoga/Pilates combination classes.

These ideas from eDiets sound pretty good, but it seems finding a way around "hating to exercise" is more complicated than any 5 tips can solve. What do you do to make exercising fun, interesting, or at least tolerable?

You might be going to the gym on a regular basis, but if you haven't taken advice from a fitness professional, you might not be doing yourself any good, because you're performing exercises that are ineffective. A fitness expert at Glee Magazine has weighed in on what he thinks are the most useless exercises at the gym.

The first two are the Abductor and Adductor machines -- those embarrassing ones where you add weight to either the inside or outside of your thighs and pen and close your legs. When I first started going to the gym, I was guilty of using these all the time, thinking they could get rid of the cellulite on my thighs. Another useless exercise is the lat pull-downs. Guilty again.

To see the rest of the list, check out the article.