I bet every woman out there would love to tone their legs and butt with one easy step. Just change your sneakers! Is it really possible? Reebok’s new EasyTone Sneakers claim to do just that. Apparently this new and innovative fitness gear for your feet will tone your hamstrings up to 11% harder and tone your butt 28% more just by walking in them.

Check it out

Ok, so do they really work? And how?

The Reebok EasyTone sneakers simulates the act of walking in your bare feet. When you walk barefooted you step into your stride with more of a flexed knee and push off with a straight leg. This motion activates your muscles in your hamstrings and butt. Thus, toning your legs and butt as you walk. Of course nothing is perfect, there may be some side effect to using this new fitness gear.

According to Ethan J. Ciment, a surgical podiatrist, people who wear these sneakers may unknowingly adapt the way they normally walk. Making it painful and uncomfortable to wear normal shoes. He recommends consulting with a podiatrist before trying the Reebok EasyTone sneaker. (Original Source: That’s Fit, Ronnie Koenig)

If you are a little uneasy about trying this new fitness gear, try something more traditional, like a  10 minute workout with Tony Horton. It only takes 10 minutes a day and it will to work your hamstrings and butt, with out the risk!

For more information on this workout check out this article: 10 Minute Trainer

People with rock hard midsections and six packs will be quick to tell you what they think are the best ab exercises. And you know what? Their opinions will vary. Like with any other fitness move or muscle group, what works for one person, may not be the best option for the next guy. The best ab exercises are those that are the most effective for you. However, having said that, there are certain ab workouts that when paired with a good diet and overall fitness program can produce maximum results.

When we are younger we are content to just do a simple, low maintenance ab workout. I know I am not the only one who recalls making efforts to do 50 or 100 crunches a day. I’m not saying crunches aren’t effective, they are. However, I am saying that as we age our bodies change and while 50 crunches may have been adequate at age 18, the best ab exercises for adults are those that combine all abdominal muscles.

In addition to working the upper abs, middle abs, lower abs, and obliques, the best workouts for your midsection will include some general core work. Your core consists of all the muscles within the trunk of your body. This includes your back too. By working your core, you are balancing the muscles of your abs with the complimentary muscles, increasing overall strength and posture and even encouraging faster results in your abs.

When looking out for the best ab exercises, consider high quality home fitness routines that utilize ab workouts within each of their longer pieces. An ab workout won’t deliver much in the way of results if you are otherwise unfit or not performing at your best.

Ab exercises are only as effective as the rest of your fitness program.

Consider P90X as a great way to develop your abs. It includes ab work in many of the individual DVDs and also features Ab Ripper X. Take a look at Hip Hop Abs if you enjoy dance and high energy music . The anti-crunch, Hip Hop Abs provides a great total body workout and ab fitness without requiring you to get on the floor.

There are numerous reasons to lose weight but here’s one you might not have heard before, it can cause cancer. That’s right, the American Institute for Cancer Research said so this month. 6% of all the U.S. cancer cases are being attributed to obesity, that’s 100,000 people every year. Have you been thinking about working out or going on a diet? Maybe this news will prod you to do so.

You don’t need to join a gym to get into shape and you don’t need to completely change your lifestyle. You can start simple and begin by cutting out bad foods like soda, candy, potato chips and unhealthy snacks between meals. Substitute these foods with water, fruits and vegetables. With the 10 Minute Trainer you can start working out in your home for as little as 10 minutes a day. Included with the 10 Minute Trainer is a guide for making quick and healthy meals.

So get off the fence about getting into shape and start today, it could save your life!

Ever since you were very little you were always taught to clean your plate, not to be wasteful. Your parents would pile on the food and you were forced to sit at the table until somehow you managed to shove everything down, saving your least favorite for last. Of course your parents had good intentions in mind, wanting you to grow big and strong. But were they really just teaching you bad eating habits? As an adult you have always felt guilty about leaving anything left on your plate. So you willingly scarf every last bit down, knowing that you have had enough and are about to burst, you wouldn’t want to be wasteful!

Stop the cycle of guilt and over eating. Change the way you look at your plate. Think about how much you realistically should eat before you pile it on, not how much you want to eat.

Here are a few easy Healthy Eating Tips that just make sense:

1. You don’t have to clean your plate, eat half and take the rest to go!

Especially when dining out. Restaurants almost always serve huge portions of food, more than anyone needs to eat at one time. Take half of it home, not only will you save your stomach you’ll also save some time and money the next day at lunch.

2. Focus on just eating 1 food on your plate at a time.

Research has shown that if you eat one thing at a time on your plate before moving on to the next food you will eat less. Your taste buds tend to get tired of a single flavor pretty quickly and you’ll be more likely to think you’ve had enough. In a study in the journal Appetite, the researches found that the subjects ate 18% more fries and 16% more brownies when they switched between foods instead of eating just one food at a time.

3. Eat your vegetable first!

It may seem silly but eat the healthiest thing on your plate first. Fill up on sweet potatoes and green beans not your fried chicken.

Check out this article for some great sweet potato healthy recipes.

Man boobs or “moobs” as some like  to call them are usually associated with those guys who are either overweight or deconditioned according to Jay Dawes, education director at the National Strength and Conditioning Association. As some might think, the best way to combat man boobs is to work out the chest.

However, while this will strengthen and build the pectoral muscles it is not going to be the end all solution. If there is a lot of fat covering these muscles all the bench-presses and push-ups in the world won’t get rid of those man boobs.

Home workouts like P90X have a strong focus on working out the pecs. One of the primary routines is “Chest & Back” but the important element to keep in mind is that your workout routine needs to incorporate cardio, and P90X does this flawlessly. While strength training is important, if you want to rid yourself of the dreaded man boob phenomenon you have to burn off the fat covering up that well defined chest. P90X integrates ”Plyometrics”, into the mix a fast paced, sports cardio training routine as well as “Cardio X” and “Core synergistics” to get the heart pumping and the body sweating so you burn calories and fat.

Most men care about how they look man boobs don’t have to be part of your physique just make sure your daily exercise routine includes both strength training and cardio similar to the P90X workout system. Once you have your workout regimen in check and your diet in check you’ll be able to say good bye to those “moobs” for good.

In this busy world we live in we sometimes skip breakfast. Maybe we are running late this morning or didn’t have anything to make. I often make omelets in the morning but at least once a week I run out of eggs or feel lazy and don’t want to put in the effort. I think back to when I was a kid and what I ate then. I ate cereal almost every day and not the sugary crap that most kids eat today. Cereal is a great thing to have in the pantry. It lasts for ever (so you can stockpile) and it’s a quick and nutritious meal as long as you use skim milk and buy one which follows the below requirements. (based on 1/2 cup)

• Whole grain, in fact it should be the first ingredient
• No trans fat or partially hydrogenated oils
• 5 g of sugar max
• 250 mg of sodium max
• 3 g of fiber
• 100 calories or less

If you follow these recommendations you’ll be giving yourself a powerful start to your day. Do you workout in the morning before eating breakfast? The University of Texas did a study which showed whole grain cereal and milk to be useful in activating proteins in the body after working out compared to people who drank sport drinks. This means you’re getting a complete breakfast and toning up. Let’s not forgot that the fiber in the cereal will make you feel full so you won’t crave as much food before your next meal.

Ok, so you’ve heard about P90X, and you’ve heard about the hardcore Plyometrics routine. But what’s all the fuss about? P90X Plyometrics is an incredible workout routine that’s approximately 50 minutes long that borrows heavily from sports conditioning exercises. If you’ve ever played basketball or football and remember those wicked practices you’ll find quite a few of these moves very familiar. 

P90X Plyometrics is a cardio centric workout. It aims to get you moving and keep you moving. The main goals of Plyometrics  is to improve agility, increase stamina, and burn a boat load of calories! Like all P90X workouts you can expect to burn at least 600 calories from Plyo. The fact is P90X Plyometrics is considered the “mother” of all P90X workouts for a reason. Chances are you’re probably going to burn closer to 800 calories because the workout is down right intense! 

You’ll find yourself in the air most of the 50 minutes as it will have you jumping a lot and often. From Airborne Heisman’s, to Jump Squats, to Monster Truck Tires it gets crazy! I remember the first day I did Plyometrics. I couldn’t get through the last 20 minutes of the workout I was whipped big time. But as Tony Horton says “Do your best and forget the rest”. Little by little you increase your performance and if you’re just starting out beware P90X Plyometrics will kick your butt. Just stick with it you won’t regret it!

Keeping your skin fresh and young looking starts with what you eat. A great, tasty vegetable that can help you with that is the sweet potato. They are jammed packed with beta-carotene which is what gives it it’s great color. Beta-carotene, which is also found in carrots, is an antioxidant that converts vitamin A in your body and switches on the DNA that produces new skin cells in your body. When you shed your old skin, you’re left with a younger, fresher, sexy looking face.

Check out these delicious & healthy recipes:

Cheesy Sweet Potato Crisps

Serves 8

• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled
• 2 1/2 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 1 cup)
• 2 egg whites
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 3/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• Parchment paper

Heat oven to 425˚. Finely grate sweet potatoes into a bowl. Squeeze grated sweet potatoes in batches to release as much moisture as possible and place in another bowl; fluff with a fork. Stir in cheese, egg whites, rosemary and pepper. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. Spoon 1 rounded tbsp batter onto cookie sheet and flatten into a thin, 2- to 2 1/2-inch round. Repeat with remaining batter, leaving 1 inch between rounds. Bake until edges and underside are crisp and browned, 13 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool slightly and remove from parchment. Serve warm with Rosemary-Balsamic Cream.

144 calories per 3 crisps with cream, 5.2 g fat (3.2 g saturated), 17 g carbs, 1.8 g fiber, 6 g protein

1. Sweet Potato and Avocado Sandwich w/Poppy Seed Spread

Serves 2

1. 1 small sweet potato (about 7 ounces), peeled and cut into three 2-inch-thick slices

Cook sweet potato slices in boiling salted water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water, then drain again. Let cool for 5 minutes, then cut each slice into two thinner slices. Whisk together honey mustard, mayonnaise, and poppy seeds in a small bowl. To construct the sandwiches, first spread half the poppy seed mixture on 2 of the bread slices, then place half of the onion, avocado, and tomato slices on top of each slice; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Add a layer of sweet potato slices, cheese and lettuce. Top with remaining bread. Slice each sandwich in half, securing each half with a toothpick. Serve with sliced dill pickles and a handful of baked chips.

There is no question that the pull up is an excellent fitness move. Like pushups, chin ups are a timeless exercise that should forever have a place in your workouts. The vast majority of us, however, don’t have room for a standard chin up bar in our homes. For this reason, you may be interested in learning about possible chin up bar alternatives.

Finding a chin up bar alternative that provides you with the ability to get chin up results in the comfort of your own home is a reasonable request. The most obvious choice, then, would be to find a chin up bar alternative that allows for easy placement within a limited amount of space.

The P90X chin up bar provides a great alternative to the bulky in home towers sold by other companies. This door attachment pull up bar allows for easy mounting and simple removal when the bar is not in use. It provides all of the benefits of a full size chin up bar with less space and much easier portability and concealment.

Chin up bar alternatives simply have to deliver the same results as a pull up bar at the gym. Because pull ups work your chest, back, and arms, you want to ensure your chin up bar alternative is giving you those same benefits.

If you determine a door mounted chin up bar isn’t for you, consider a set of resistance bands. When combined with the door attachment like the one in our complete set of resistance bands or the upgrade kit, you can get similar results without lifting your entire body weight.

Think that’s the easy way out? Think again. A resistance bands pull up workout is a serious workout and will deliver great results. Those of you that have done some of the resistance bands workouts in P90X know exactly what I mean. When paired with a door attachment, those unassuming bands are real fitness tools.

I read an article the other day that discussed ways of exercising smarter while in the gym. In the article they mentioned a few things that don’t apply to working out at home, such as what to do when exercise equipment is in use but overall they had some good tips I’d like to share with you. These tips are great for (and utilized) in the P90X system.

1) Target multiple muscle groups for maximum results. Push-ups work the chest, triceps, abs and buttocks while pull ups work the back, shoulders and biceps.

2) Low reps for strength building. High reps for larger toned muscles. No more than 6 reps if you are looking to strengthen your muscles. 8 – 12 reps if you are looking to tone and bulk up your muscles.

3) Variation. Don’t do the same workout every day. By changing the exercises daily your body won’t have the chance to plateau. P90X calls this muscle confusion.

Following these 3 tips will definitely help your workouts. Give them a try and tell me what you think or if you have any others let me know.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could get a complete and invigorating workout with out taking so much time out of your day? Many of us don’t have time to work out for 30 minutes or more a day between work and family. Even if we do have some time to spare most of us would rather do something a little more enjoyable than running or lifting some weights. The 10 Minute Trainer program is a great solution to this constant battle between time and exercise. It allows you to get an intense workout in a shorter period of time.

Recent research done by Martin Gibala, chair of the department of kinesiology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, who studies short-burst training, has shown that a good workout is possible with shorter exercising routines. After a six week study it was found that people who work out for shorter intervals at a higher intensity  levels produced the same results as people who work out for longer periods of time at a steady lower pace.

But be aware that this type of exercising may not be for everyone. If you are extremely out of shape or over weight you may not want to jump right in to this intense method. It may sound easy because it is for a shorter interval of time, but remember, for it to work it needs to be done at a much higher level of intensity. You may want to consult your doctor to find out if this type of exercise program, like the 10 Minute Trainer , will be good for you.

Can at home workouts for women actually help prevent breast cancer? According to a recent study by the World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research it can! The studies found that regular exercise, eating healthier and maintaining a healthy weight could prevent as many as 38 percent of breast cancer cases in the U.S.

So. how much exercise do women need to decrease their chances of breast cancer? A recent study from Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise studied cardiovascular fitness in more than 14,000 women with no history of breast cancer. They found that women who did moderate exercise like a brisk walk 150 min a week or even a light jog 75 min a week have 1/3 lower risk of developing breast cancer. Those women where fitness played a bigger role in their lives who exercised regularly doing about twice the amount of exercise as stated above experienced a 55% reduction of risk of breast cancer. 

Getting good exercise is not only good for your heart and mind, it seems it can also help prevent the risk of breast cancer. While finding the time to get into shape can be hard why not make it easier and try an at home workout? It makes it a whole lot less painful than going to the gym, AND it will save you the monthly membership fees. Here are a few great at home workouts for women that you should check out today. We all want to look great and if you haven’t heard of the numerous other reasons why exercise is good for us perhaps that fact that it can help prevent breast cancer is reason enough to get going today!

Popular At Home Workouts for Women:

Slim in 6

10 Minute Trainer

Turbo Jam

So I just read this interesting article from webmd about people’s appearance and their personality. The University of Texas did a study with over a 100 students where some were the judges and others the photographed. The photographed individual (as well as people close to them) filled out surveys about their personalities. Pictures were taken of the students in two poses. The first was in a natural or spontaneous manner, the other was a non-emotional manner (blank stare, arms down by the side, etc.). The judges then evaluated the pictures and were asked to write down what they thought the personality traits were of the individual in the picture. Surprisingly the judges nailed it on the head. In shots where an extroverted person was in a blank stare the judge identified them as being outgoing while timid individuals in a candid shot were identified as being shy.

I thought this was interesting because on the days that I do P90X (or workout in general) I have more energy, feel better about myself, roll my shoulders back and hold my head higher. My confidence levels are much higher on these days. People have commented about my attitude and appearance on the days that I’ve worked out more then the days I have not, even if on those days where I did work out I haven’t showered or I’m still in yesterdays clothes. Is it possible that working out is changing my personality for the day and thus shining through my normal appearance? Are you somebody who works out on a daily basis and believes your personality is a result of doing so? Let me know what you think.

If you’re looking for a natural way to lose weight, you’ll probably be interested in a recent study by The British Journal of nutrition. The study found that those who had the highest levels of Omega 3 fatty acids were thinner, had slimmer waist lines, and weighed less than their low Omega 3 counterparts.

While there are a few theories as to why this occurs one major reason may be attributed to the fact Omega 3 fatty acids stimulate the hormone that makes you feel “full” called leptin. Either way it’s great news for those of us looking to shed excess weight! So how do you get Omega 3 fatty acids in the first place? Here is a small yet helpful list of good sources:

1.) Salmon

2.) Walnuts

3.) Soy Beans

Above and beyond, salmon is THE best source for Omega 3 fatty acids without a doubt. However it’s often difficult to eat enough fish to get you where you need to be. Not to mention some people are not into fish. If you’re looking to get Omega 3 into your system without the hassle you should really check out some fish oil supplements. Core Omega 3 is an outstanding choice. The supplement sources fish from the atlantic ocean and is guaranteed to be free of PCBs and heavy metal contaminants. Definitely worth a look for all of us dieters out there!

Some women feel absolutely beautiful when they are pregnant. Others feel like they have grown to ten times their normal size and can’t wait to get back into their pre-pregnancy clothing. Once you have had the baby it is completely normal to be looking for solutions to eliminate the added fat. When figuring out how to lose baby fat fast, it’s crucial that you consider both diet and an premium workout program.

The answer to “how to lose baby fat fast” involves a workout system that combines cardio with the right amount of strength training. One without the other simply isn’t as effective and while you may drop the weight, your results won’t be as great as if you combine both approaches.

Turbo Jam is a great example of an excellent program for helping you learn how to lose baby fat fast. This is a high energy workout system that combines dance, kickboxing, and weight training with super high energy fun. A test group reportedly burned up to 1,000 calories with a one hour Turbo Jam workout. These workouts, with trainer Chalene Johnson, are an excellent way to torch the baby fat while having fun.

Another good choice for losing the pregnancy weight is the Slim in 6 program. Debbie Siebers leads this program that has the potential to deliver a transformed body in six weeks! When paired with a good diet, the Slim In Six program is a surefire way to get your sleek, sexy physique back on track.

Lastly, if you like dance and are struggling with how to lose baby fat fast, consider Hip Hop Abs. This program will allow you to use some modern dance moves and music to sculpt a lean body. It pays special attention to the abs and after carrying a baby, your belly could probably use the extra attention.

Losing the baby fat requires dedication to a high quality fitness program and a carefully watched diet. Being a mom doesn’t mean you can’t have a killer bod. Check out all of our workout programs for help with eliminating that pregnancy weight once and for all.