On May 9th, thousands of women across the country will embark on an eight-week physical activity challenge for better health. They will be part of the Woman Challenge, a special feature of the year-long Woman Activity Tracker program that encourages women to get at least 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic [...]]]>

On May 9th, thousands of women across the country will embark on an eight-week physical activity challenge for better health. They will be part of the Woman Challenge, a special feature of the year-long Woman Activity Tracker program that encourages women to get at least 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity each week. Join now and get motivated with women just like you!

You read that right. Jane Fonda, at age 72, is set to release a new celebrity fitness DVD. For those in a younger age demographic, you may not know that Jane Fonda basically started the home workout craze with her 1982 video release, “Jane Fonda’s [...]]]>

This is tooooo! funny!!!

by chris on February 4, 2010

You read that right. Jane Fonda, at age 72, is set to release a new celebrity fitness DVD. For those in a younger age demographic, you may not know that Jane Fonda basically started the home workout craze with her 1982 video release, “Jane Fonda’s Workout,” which sold 17 million copies. Now she is set to help millions of older people workout. She said on her website:

[My new DVD] will target an audience that has been left out: My age group and the boomers,” Fonda reportedly said in her blog post. “I want to get to people who have stopped working out, or never did. I can’t wait.

Asked how she is able to keep herself looking so vibrant and healthy she responded:

I owe 30 percent to genes, 30 percent to good sex, 30 percent because of sports and healthy lifestyle and for the remaining 10 percent, I have to thank my plastic surgeon. I’m happier, the sex is better and I understand life better. I don’t want to be young again.

The video will be filmed in March 2010 and released in early 2011.

Whether you enjoy watching The Biggest Loser or you find it offensive, you have to admit that this primetime TV program has been effective in showcasing health and fitness to millions of people around the [...]]]> This email landed in my inbox today, and I thought I would share it.  Pretty interesting perspective from the fitness perspective.

Whether you enjoy watching The Biggest Loser or you find it offensive, you have to admit that this primetime TV program has been effective in showcasing health and fitness to millions of people around the world. Last month, IDEA published “Weighing in on The Biggest Loser,” an in-depth feature story on the topic. The article brings into extreme focus the passionate—and widely divergent—viewpoints of the show’s producers, its contestants and one of its personal trainers (Bob Harper), as well as those of fitness professionals looking in from the outside.

Here are some of the topics covered in the feature story:

• The Progression of Workout Scenes as Shown on the Show. Are the basic principles of exercise progression and weight loss missing, or is the seeming lack of progression and program design due to postproduction editing?
• The Safety of the Exercises. Contestants are overweight and sedentary when they begin training. Are they enduring too much work too soon? Is it really advisable for them to do plyometric jumps or piggyback a trainer as they hustle across the room? Would “everyday” trainers ever ask their clients to do such things?
• The Safety and Sustainability of Contestants’ Dramatic and Rapid Weight Loss. Is this a dangerous, unrealistic message to give to the viewing public?
• The Training Certifications of the Show’s Celebrity Trainers, Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels. Are these trainers currently certified? By whom? How much continuing education have they pursued?
• All the Yelling the Trainers Do. Is this really necessary, or is all this drama just for ratings? How does this behavior compare with what occurs in a standard training session?
• The Fitness Industry’s Responsibility. Where does this lie? Whether or not fitness industry professionals agree with the approach of The Biggest Loser, how can they use positive momentum from it as an opportunity to reach out to prospects and clients who need sound fitness/weight loss advice and guidance?

“We are extremely proud of this article and of the work that author Amanda Vogel, MA, did to create a fair, balanced view between what the The Biggest Loser representatives feel makes good television and what everyday personal trainers feel is realistic for their own clients,” said Kathie Davis, IDEA executive director. “We hope this piece helps educate fitness professionals—but especially the consumer public—about the ‘reality’ of reality television.”

To read the entire article, please see “Weighing in on The Biggest Loser” in September 2009 IDEA Fitness Journal or read the article online in the IDEA Library.

I get up at 5am every morning, have coffee, drink a smoothie, and then lead [...]]]> I know this post is going to seem a bit unrelated to fitness, but wait, there is a segway…..my hair is always moving from one workout to another, and until this hair cut usually looks like crap – all the time!

I get up at 5am every morning, have coffee, drink a smoothie, and then lead a 6am workout.  There is NO WAY I am going to take a shower and/or do my hair at that hour of the morning, especially before a workout.

Now, here is the amazing part of this story – my last haircut seriously looks good ALL THE TIME!  I just looked in the mirror and sure enough, the hair looks great.  This is after a night’s sleep, a hat, and a workout!

It’s not just about the hair cut, (although that is a huge part of it), it’s about the haircutter.  Rachel. She rocks.

Last time I went to see her, it was two days before my 30th high school reunion.  I gave her a huge challenge.  She needed to take my totally screwed up head of hair (that I had cut repeatedly myself) and turn it into something I could wear to my HS reunion party without feeling like a dork!  I told her she could go shorter and she said she “had no choice”.  That was the end of our conversation about my hair or her plan for it.

The hair cut went on and at one point (feeling very nervous) I asked her if she “had a plan”.  She said “no, christi, I have no plan”.  I was not sure if she was serious.  Rachel is hilarious.  She is super, super cute and very, very sassy.  I met her via an email she sent me.  She found The Healthy Bride on Darnell Sue’s Girl Power Hour website.  She sent me some free hair cuts to pass out to my classes.  SO NICE!

I went to see her and loved her immediately.  She does swear a lot (which I respect in women) and tells fun stories.  She moved to Seattle to be near her grandmother who teaches at Western WA University and is a true Bellingham hippie. LOVE HER!

Ok, so as the haircut continued I was starting to feel nervous (not my usual self) as things were getting shorter and shorter…..Scott is going to HATE this one, and in fact, to this day, he has not even acknowledged that I had a hair cut.  What is up with men and long hair…..

Anyway, here we are one month later and I LOVE this haircut.  Rachel is a genious.  She is creative, fun, and sassy.  Her haircuts are the same…even for someone going to their 30th HS reunion (can you say almost 50?!).  I love Rachel!

She works at 7 salon downtown Seattle.  Her phone number there is 206-903-1777.  Go see her if you are looking for a new look.  She will come up with one for you.

We [...]]]> The Healthy Goddess hosted a goal setting workshop for the Greenlake Mom’s group on September 12, 2009 at Lululemon.  We started by setting a BHAG (Big Harry Audacious Goal) to be accomplised by October 24, 2009 or in 6 weeks.  Each Greenlake Mom was to select a buddy and together the team will compete together.

We listed and shared goals, then shared what roadblocks would keep the competitors from reaching their goals.  We then asked the group if they could help.  There are several ways to “win” this competition but the bottom line is to earn points.  Participants can earn points by:

Taking a lululemon class, walking around greenlake with another GLM, attending a Healthy Goddess class, having a coffee/tea date with a GLM, having a play date with a GLM and children, having a “girls night out”.  The big points come from achieving the original BHAG.  The winning team gets an outfit from Lululemon!

We all re-group on October 24 to see how the mom’s have done on their goals.  I can’t wait to learn what success the moms have found and how they have connected.

We feel that lifestyle fitness is the amount of fitness (greater than zero) [...]]]> The Healthy Goddess is now starting a new blog. It is about time the Goddesses have their own page separate from The Healthy Bride. The idea is to provide information that will assist Goddesses in their quest for lifestyle fitness.

We feel that lifestyle fitness is the amount of fitness (greater than zero) that truly fits into your busy, hectic schedule. That might sound corny, but in my opinion, the secret to being fit boils down to no more than being consistent with exercise. I realize that requires finding a level of exercise that truly does fit into your life and your schedule regardless of what else is going on in your world.

This might sound harsh, but the truth is that committing a few hours per week to exercise will help you sleep sounder, help you eat healthier, help you think more clearly, and be a better woman, mother, girlfriend or wife. It’s really not an option.

Where to begin? Start slow. Just add in 10 or 20 minutes of exercise (if you are starting at zero) per week to get things kick-started. Take a brisk walk around the block, or walk with your kids to the park, to school, or even the grocery store instead of driving. Don’t make it too hard or too complicated. Do this for two weeks, then add another 20 minute bout of exercise. It will be easy to go from one day to two, once you have been successful for a couple of weeks.

Come back often to see what new exercises, advice, workouts and nutrition information we have here for you.