This past month, my husband and I totally rearranged our house. We sectioned off our large dining room to create an eating area and a TV nook, and converted our little-used den into a home gym for me, which means my treadmill no longer lives in the garage. This has turned out to be a great arrangement, and all of our rooms are getting a lot more use than before.
In addition to the treadmill, my gym has a TV/DVD player for workout videos, a yoga mat, a stability ball, free weights, a balance board, resistance bands, and more. All of these are pretty standard issue, and I’d like to inject a little variety and fun into my workouts, via two new tools. 
The first is a hula hoop. Hooping is really blowing up; there are DVDs, classes at gyms, and more. Hooping is something I enjoyed as a kid, and I think it’s a fun way to work your core. Interested? Here are some resources:
Hoopnotica workout DVD
The Hoop Dance workout DVD
Hooping classes in Atlanta
Interview with a Hoop Dance Teacher
The internet hooping scene
Another fun piece of equipment is a rebounder, which is essentially a mini-trampoline. I have to be careful in my house because of low ceilings, but I would love to have a rebounder. It’s fun, it gets your heart rate up, and it’s healthy on a cellular level. Sporting goods stores sell mini-trampolines for about $40, which is handy if you just want to give it a shot. However, if you take rebounding seriously and want your equipment to last, I would suggest investing a couple of hundred bucks into a rebounder from Raw Reform or One Lucky Duck. Here is the description from One Lucky Duck about the health benefits of rebounding:
What is the weakest force in the universe and has the most profound effect on the human body? Gravity. To compensate for this “G-force” we must continually work against it through body movement. Regular exercise is essential to maintain optimal health. Gravitational force is key to understanding resistive rebounding’s health benefits. By combining the forces of acceleration and deceleration, body cells are tricked into believing they are being subjected to increased gravity, which challenges your body’s cells to strengthen.
There is a lot written about these body bouncers, but here’s a few highlights:
-promotes detoxification via the lungs, skin, and lymph
-improves balance, strengthens and tones all your core muscles
-improves digestion, relieves constipation, increase metabolism
-stabilizes the nervous system thereby reducing stress
-boosts endorphins and helps you relax
-ideal for warming up for other sports
-safe for kids, pregnant women, elderly and those with compromised immune systems
Right now I can’t afford a good rebounder, but I’m planning to invest in one once I start working again. In the meantime, I can certainly afford a hula hoop and get shaking!
As you know, I’ve long been a proponent of Sigg’s non-leaching, reuseable water bottles, and I’ve been carrying my cute purple one around so long it’s all banged up and well-loved. Apparently Jessica Alba has jumped on the Sigg bandwagon, and is carrying around my exact same water bottle. It’s a good thing I have two! (I also have a giant blue one.)
So, the folks at Peta supposedly created this ad for the Superbowl, which NBC rejected on these grounds. But since Peta is known for its attention-getting antics, I have to wonder if they made it too racy intentionally, just to cause a stir about it getting banned and getting more people to visit their site. I’m happy either way. Anything that gets the message out about vegetarianism is good, and using sex to sell a concept is a proven method. So what do you think? Is this too racy for TV, or are the NBC censors being silly? I find it kind of ironic that a commercial about women loving vegetables has been deemed inappropriate to air during an event that features grown men playing an extremely violent sport. Ah, violence before sex. It’s the American way.
I’ve never been to New York City, but I keep saying that when I go, the one thing I’m for sure going to do is eat at Pure Food and Wine (or at least get a take-away snack at the juice bar). I’ve mentioned before that PF&W owner Sarma Melngailis is one of my raw food inspirations, and I definitely want to check out her restaurant. I also occasionally peruse her inventory at One Lucky Duck, which is an online resource for raw foodists. One item I keep revisiting is the Eat Raw Live Long shirt. I love the bright colors, 3/4 sleeves, and the retro vibe. If anybody wants to splurge and buy me a $25.00 shirt, that would be totally cool.
“My body is my temple. My body isn’t a discount body. Just because something is cheap or free doesn’t mean I need to eat it, especially if I know it’ll do me more harm than good.”
-Ani Phyo