Long before humans interacted with the numinous through intermediaries and holy books, we experienced it in other ways. All night drumming and dancing sessions, extended fasts, exposure to extreme temperatures, steam lodges, and week-long wilderness forays, and other rituals have all been used to produce visions and transcend normal waking consciousness. There’s even a theory that […]
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Thursday, December 17, 2015
Awkward holiday Moments http://ift.tt/eA8V8J
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Twitter through their partnership with POPSUGAR. While I was compensated by POPSUGAR to write a post about Twitter, all opinions are my own. I love any opportunity to be surrounded with friends and family, which is one of the many reasons why the holiday season is so special. We […]
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from The Fitnessista http://ift.tt/1maboIM
Why I Broke Up With Running and Am Better For It http://ift.tt/1T3xAiq
When I set my eyes on participating in my first triathlon seven years ago, I hadn't run just to run since 8th grade track when I ran the merciless 400 meters - one loop around the track at a painful semisprint speed. Biking and swimming were already some of my favorite pastimes, making a triathlon the perfect fitness goal for me. I just needed to start running. And I was inspired! I had read countless and varied tales on the positive power of running and its life-changing qualities. I was confident I could learn to love running by following in the footsteps of my new personal heroes who had dropped hundreds of pounds, beat depression, and tamed addictions all by lacing up their sneakers and hitting the road. Easy peasy. We were all born to run, right? I began my relationship with running using the Couch to 5K program. I can tell you that although the affair was very sweaty, the love connection was tenuous at best.
A good majority of runners will admit to having a love-hate relationship with the activity. They will confess it's not easy. They will tell you pain is temporary, but the high afterward is marvelous. I never got high and I never found the love. My relationship never evolved beyond the spectrum of moderate tolerance to hate. And I gave running a solid chance to win my heart while it was making it stronger. I have done a handful of tris, run 5Ks for charity and for PRs (personal records), participated in the San Francisco Nike Women's Half-Marathon. I was the slowest member on the kick-ass relay team in the 198-mile Hood to Coast stage race in Oregon - cruising through downtown Portland at midnight was a highlight of my running career. I thought love would come with repetition, but mostly it created a sense of dread.
This Summer, running and I hit an all-time low. It started out innocently enough with my decision to run another half-marathon. After all, I had routes for all those long runs mapped out and a training plan I liked - it seemed a shame to let all that knowledge go to waste. With the almost daily intention of running a simple three-miler, I would set my alarm to start my day with a run. And every morning, when the alarm buzzed, I easily convinced myself to stay in bed with the intention of running later in the day. But I didn't run later in the day. And I didn't run the next day either. I also didn't do anything else - I was mentally saving myself for that dreaded short three-mile run.
During this phase of avoidance, my body began to ache. My joints and muscled missed moving. And although I wasn't waking up early to run, I was lethargic. So I did what seemed unthinkable, I told running we needed a break. I got back to the strength-training, biking-, hiking-, dance-aerobics regimen I actually enjoyed. After a couple of weeks of rocking my sweat sessions, I realized it was time and that I would not be seduced by the benefits of running again - you can't reap the benefits if you don't put in the miles. So I officially broke up with running. I went public about it and probably talked to too many disinterested people about how I left this unsatisfying relationship.
It's been good: running hasn't missed me and I haven't missed running. Sure I do some running-inspired moves like high knees and butt kickers as part of my cardio warmup, but it feels like a clean breakup. Everyone in moving on, and most importantly I am moving!
Working out is hard, and clearly finding something you love to do is key - mere toleration doesn't work. There are so many ways to get strong, break a sweat, and burn calories. The benefits of regular exercise are proven, so don't trap yourself in a bad relationship. Put yourself out there. Try new things. You can and will find something you love.
from POPSUGAR Fitness http://ift.tt/1QwqKAF
Why I Broke Up With Running and Am Better For It http://ift.tt/1T3xAiq
When I set my eyes on participating in my first triathlon seven years ago, I hadn't run just to run since 8th grade track when I ran the merciless 400 meters - one loop around the track at a painful semisprint speed. Biking and swimming were already some of my favorite pastimes, making a triathlon the perfect fitness goal for me. I just needed to start running. And I was inspired! I had read countless and varied tales on the positive power of running and its life-changing qualities. I was confident I could learn to love running by following in the footsteps of my new personal heroes who had dropped hundreds of pounds, beat depression, and tamed addictions all by lacing up their sneakers and hitting the road. Easy peasy. We were all born to run, right? I began my relationship with running using the Couch to 5K program. I can tell you that although the affair was very sweaty, the love connection was tenuous at best.
A good majority of runners will admit to having a love-hate relationship with the activity. They will confess it's not easy. They will tell you pain is temporary, but the high afterward is marvelous. I never got high and I never found the love. My relationship never evolved beyond the spectrum of moderate tolerance to hate. And I gave running a solid chance to win my heart while it was making it stronger. I have done a handful of tris, run 5Ks for charity and for PRs (personal records), participated in the San Francisco Nike Women's Half-Marathon. I was the slowest member on the kick-ass relay team in the 198-mile Hood to Coast stage race in Oregon - cruising through downtown Portland at midnight was a highlight of my running career. I thought love would come with repetition, but mostly it created a sense of dread.
This Summer, running and I hit an all-time low. It started out innocently enough with my decision to run another half-marathon. After all, I had routes for all those long runs mapped out and a training plan I liked - it seemed a shame to let all that knowledge go to waste. With the almost daily intention of running a simple three-miler, I would set my alarm to start my day with a run. And every morning, when the alarm buzzed, I easily convinced myself to stay in bed with the intention of running later in the day. But I didn't run later in the day. And I didn't run the next day either. I also didn't do anything else - I was mentally saving myself for that dreaded short three-mile run.
During this phase of avoidance, my body began to ache. My joints and muscled missed moving. And although I wasn't waking up early to run, I was lethargic. So I did what seemed unthinkable, I told running we needed a break. I got back to the strength-training, biking-, hiking-, dance-aerobics regimen I actually enjoyed. After a couple of weeks of rocking my sweat sessions, I realized it was time and that I would not be seduced by the benefits of running again - you can't reap the benefits if you don't put in the miles. So I officially broke up with running. I went public about it and probably talked to too many disinterested people about how I left this unsatisfying relationship.
It's been good: running hasn't missed me and I haven't missed running. Sure I do some running-inspired moves like high knees and butt kickers as part of my cardio warmup, but it feels like a clean breakup. Everyone in moving on, and most importantly I am moving!
Working out is hard, and clearly finding something you love to do is key - mere toleration doesn't work. There are so many ways to get strong, break a sweat, and burn calories. The benefits of regular exercise are proven, so don't trap yourself in a bad relationship. Put yourself out there. Try new things. You can and will find something you love.
from POPSUGAR Fitness http://ift.tt/1QwqKAF
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Why 2015 Marked the Slow Death of the Gym http://ift.tt/1UBMbD3
Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Benjamin Stone
Working out used to be so straightforward: find a gym that's close to you, get in, get out, and get on with your day. Not so much anymore. This year saw an explosive rise in both boutique fitness and class-booking services such as ClassPass and FitReserve - a rise that many speculate is eating away at the bottom line of traditional big-box gyms.
I, myself, am a gym dissenter - a fact that many of my friends find odd since I make a living as a fitness editor, and even outside of my job, I love to work out. Still, I haven't set foot in a traditional gym since 2014. Endless rows of top-of-the-line treadmills and fancy eucalyptus towel service still can't beat the feeling I get from working out at smaller studios. Amongst my friends, I am not alone - more and more of them are leaving their health clubs in favor of small studio memberships or opting for pay-as-you-go classes at well-known boutique studios. Could 2015 be the year that we all say good-bye to the gym for good?
By the Numbers
The International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), the trade association of the fitness industry, reports that of the 54.1 million people that had a membership to a health or fitness club in 2014, 42 percent were members of a studio. While some of these individuals held multiple memberships (most often a traditional gym coupled with a studio), the number of studios opened in 2014 showed a 200-percent increase from the previous year, suggesting that the industry is shifting away from opening traditional big gyms. In short: studio business is booming.
From 2012 to 2015, the number of SoulCycle studios grew by 500 percent. Image Source: SoulCycle
Take SoulCycle, the most popular - and biggest - indoor cycling chain in the country. In the last three years, it has grown from 12 studios in two states to close to 60 studios in eight states. And how's this for a staggering statistic: in its recent IPO, the company reported it averages about 72,000 rides per week, with 30 percent of those classes being booked within 15 minutes of reservations becoming available. Though one of the bigger success stories, SoulCycle is not an isolated phenomenon. National studio chains like Barry's Bootcamp, YogaWorks, and Flywheel continue to expand, while just about everywhere in the country is seeing an increase in local fitness boutiques specializing in yoga, Zumba, and CrossFit.
Meredith Poppler, Vice President of Media and Communications at IHRSA, cites the dramatic growth of studios as two-fold: the cost of running a small studio is less expensive when compared to the overhead of maintaining a full-service gym, and consumers are looking for more than what big-box gyms can offer - specifically, a more tailored fitness experience. "These studios are centered on a particular community of people with similar passions [Pilates, Zumba, boxing], and provide a high-touch, personalized environment."
It's Personal
The need for personalization is exactly what Payal Kadakia was banking on when she founded ClassPass in 2013. (Note: I am a longtime member of ClassPass, and love my membership.) The business model of ClassPlass is brilliant in its simplicity: members pay a monthly fee, which allows them to book classes through the ClassPass app or website at hundreds of studios and gyms in their area. Its growth has been nothing short of explosive. In 2014, ClassPass was in two cities and had 200 studio partners; today it is in 36 cities with more than 7,000 studios participating. Kadakia attributes the success of ClassPass to filling a void that was missing in traditional gyms - choice and flexibility. "Our platform makes fitting fitness into your schedule really easy as opposed to making a big commitment with little variety," she says. "It's also really motivating! So many of our members express that they're perspective has changed - that they look forward to getting up and going to class as opposed to dreading to have to fit in a workout."
The ClassPass mission? Let users "enjoy diverse and exciting ways to work out." Image Source: ClassPass
Kadakia is clearly in touch with her membership base. When explaining why she loves ClassPass, Lyndsay Roush, an active member since 2014, is exactly the type of person Kadakia speaks of. When Roush belonged to a gym, she was lucky to make a few workouts a month; since being on ClassPass, she's working out 3-5 times a week. "I love ClassPass because of the variety - I never get in a rut and I am taking classes I could never take at the gym," says Roush. "Reserving the class in advance helps keep me accountable and I love seeing my friends at my favorite workouts."
What's Ahead
Is Roush an example of a larger shift in the fitness world, or are new business models simply attracting an untapped - and hungry - crowd? Until the numbers roll in from 2015, it's hard to know for certain. Equinox, Planet Fitness, and 24-Hour Fitness all closed 2014 with earnings that exceeded the previous year, and more people signed up for new gym memberships in January of 2015 than ever before. Big-box gyms remained successful by adapting to consumer needs by expanding studio space to allow for more specialized fitness classes. They also expanded on what it means to be a gym. When Club Industry, a trade magazine aimed at fitness business professionals, released its yearly report of top-earning gyms, there was a distinct pattern in the top 10. Though thought of as traditional gyms, almost all of the clubs on the list were much more than a collection of treadmills. Given that they all offer enticing extras like on-site healthy restaurants, juice bars, nutritionists, spas, and/or childcare, it might be more apt to call them wellness centers.
With numbers in the green, don't count the gym out just yet. Image Source: Shopstyle Photography
Perhaps what is most telling about the future of the fitness industry is that gyms are working alongside services like ClassPass to coexist. In San Francisco, for instance, ClassPass users can book gym time at Crunch, 24-Hour, and other local gyms. "Some gym operators absolutely love ClassPass since it brings exposure to their facilities and programs and fills classes that might otherwise not be full," says Poppler. And let's not forget the traditionals - many people prefer the convenience of a one-stop fitness shop and appreciate the amenities found at gyms like showers, towel service, and lockers, which are often missing from smaller studios. Yet these same folks are still willing to drop $20 at a yoga studio while keeping their gym memberships intact. What is crystal clear is that fitness is a thriving multibillion-dollar industry that shows no sign of slowing down, and if all the players continue to adapt with consumer needs, it seems there may be enough to go around for all. As Kadakia said, what people most want are choices - be that the gym, SoulCycle, or a running loop in their local park.
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1 Move to Completely Reshape Your Butt http://ift.tt/1UB7Riq
To reshape your backside, you need to work your butt from multiple angles to tone all your glute muscles. This combination move, mixing two basic lunges, does just that. And, best of all, it requires no equipment so you can do at home.
Side Lunge to Curtsy Lunge Combo
- Step your right leg wide to the left, coming into a lateral lunge, bending your right knee. Keep your chest lifted and your weight in your right heel.
- Push off with your right foot and cross the right leg behind your left, coming into a curtsy squat, bending both knees. This completes one rep.
- Step out to the right, returning to your side lunge; continue alternating between these two moves for a total of 12 reps. Then repeat on the other side.
- Aim to do two to three sets of 12 reps on each side. Follow up with a quick glute stretch to keep your hips flexible and strong.
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20 Stylish Water Bottles That Make a Chic (and Necessary!) Gift http://ift.tt/1IVa6vN
Hydration is extremely necessary to any athlete or fitness fanatic. If you know someone who's constantly using plastic water bottles, give them a chic upgrade with any of these 20 water bottles. Not only are they more environmentally friendly, but they're cute, too!
from POPSUGAR Fitness http://ift.tt/1MhCm6l
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