This is the time of year when we head back to the gym with resolutions still freshly in mind.  More often than not, the first thing we do when we get there is sign up for a fitness class.  While this is a great idea for a number of reasons, you are still faced with the decision of which class is the best for you.  Here are three quick tips for narrowing down your choices.

1. Mix it up: Look for classes that focus on interval training and that incorporate both cardio and resistance training. Don’t just burn energy (calories). Make sure you’re producing something with that energy.
2. Ask questions: Ask your instructor to tell you exactly how his or her workouts will build aerobic conditioning, endurance and strength. Ask how often you should take the class and when you should expect to start seeing results. Make sure the answers are in line with your fitness goals.
3. Look for the results: When you are in a good class, you gain real fitness that translates into real health benefits more directly than simply losing weight and body fat. If you’re not getting the results you want, look for a new class.

Follow these pointers and you’ll save yourself a lot of time and effort experimenting with fitness classes that don’t help you achieve your fitness goals.

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We’re often told by nutrition professionals about the importance of eating breakfast every day. Yet, despite this advice, breakfast is still the least commonly eaten meal of the day, which many of us try to justify by saying we either don’t feel hungry first thing in the morning or simply don’t have enough time to eat it. Whatever our excuse, if you desire to be healthy, you can’t ignore this advice any longer. Here is one reason why:

In many ways, modern living goes against our natural biorhythms. Our bodies were designed to wake up at sunrise and to go to bed at sunset. Unfortunately, this is not the lifestyle most of us lead. We tend to burn the midnight oil on a daily basis, necessitating that we set an alarm clock to wake us up, regardless of whether we were able to sleep well or enough the night before. Without sufficient rest, many of us depend on caffeine to jolt us awake.  While this liquid stimulation may provide us with a quick dose of adrenaline, it also uses up our reserves of blood sugar that we need for energy. As a result of this, within an hour, we are craving sugary foods to keep us alert. This vicious cycle may continue for the rest of the day as we crave more stimulants and sugar to keep us going. Eating a healthy, well-balanced breakfast takes us out of this cycle. Your energy will be more stable throughout the day and your cravings will be minimal.

Stay tuned for more breakfast tips including…

- How to feel like eating in the morning
- Tips on eating a good breakfast
- Quick & easy breakfast options

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Low back pain is very common among adults. Commonly caused by overuse or muscle strain, low back pain is the most recurrent cause of job-related disability. While you may think treating this condition would require rest, relaxation and the occasional heating pad, you’d be surprised to learn that the most effective way to speed recovery from low back pain may be exercise.

Gentle strengthening exercises for your stomach, back, and legs may help you reduce pain, speed recovery, prevent re-injury and lessen the risk of disability. Activities such as stretching, swimming, walking, and even yoga are all great ways to start chipping away at your lower back pain. The key, however, is that you don’t let the fear of being in pain scare you away from starting these exercises. You should try to be active as soon as you can after noticing the pain, and should gradually increase your activity level in the following days. Being sedentary when you get low back pain can lead to loss of flexibility, strength and endurance; ultimately, leading to more pain. So the next time your back starts acting up, remember to hit the pool, the yoga mat or the treadmill and start exercising the pain away.

- Natasha Kufa

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Most of our days are guided by appointments and strict deadlines.  We schedule our hair appointments, doctor visits,  even our workout sessions, but what about our food schedule?  More often than not we find ourselves too busy to even think about what we are going to eat, which usually leaves us either reaching for something convenient and unhealthy or just not eating at all (leading to binges later in the day).  To avoid these unhealthy circumstances, we recommend eating your meals on a strict schedule.

One easy way to do this is to use a scheduler or phone reminders to tip you off when its time to eat one your daily recommended three meals and two snacks.  This way you will remember every meal and schedule it with the same priority of a hair appointment or a doctor visit.  Keeping this schedule will help you feel more energized and make you less likely to munch on foods that might not be the healthiest choice out of convenience and speed.  It’s also wise to keep easy staple foods like almonds, apples or even 100-calorie snack packs in your car or purse to help you stay on your eating schedule no matter where you are.

Remember the best way to be productive and successful in your physical and mental well being is to eat well and right on schedule.

- Christina Malizia

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When it comes to healthy living, people are quite simply confused.  This doesn’t surprise me considering all the “advice,” welcomed or not, we are exposed to on a daily basis.

“Eat more protein. You can eat carbs only in the morning. Don’t eat after 6pm. You should spin, it burns a ton of calories. You shouldn’t spin, it make your lower body bulky. Run. Don’t run. Exfoliate, but not too much. Use a serum on your face. Don’t use a serum.  You really just need Vitamin C… ”

All this advice could make even a sane person’s head spin. So, I’m here to set the record straight with a dose of non-head spinning advice:

• Eat Appropriately– When you are hungry and what you feel like eating. If it’s a tuna sandwich at 7am – then go for it. Of course, not a tuna sandwich the size of your head.
• Do Enjoyable and Effective Exercises – Do a workout you enjoy and that works for your body, which means you see results and you feel good doing it.
• Use Minimal Products – Use as few products as possible and only the ones that actually produce results for you. If it’s a $100 cream- Great. If it’s a $20 cream – Lucky you.
• Make Good Friends – Be friends with people you find yourself smiling around and thinking about when they are not around.
• Be Happy -  Pinpoint exactly what it is that makes you happy and do that as much as possible.  It’s as easy as that.

- Carrie Rezabek

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