Tag Archives: new york

Burn 900 Calories in POUND’s Euphoric New Drumstick Workout

pound-fitness

By Nellie Acevedo for DietsInReview.com

Have you ever gotten bored with doing the same workout, week after week, month after month? *raises hand* I know I have. The repetitive nature of going for a run or to spin class can drive you crazy, and once in a while you want to try something different, something that awakens new muscles while keeping you mentally engaged. That workout is POUND Fitness.

pound-drumsticks

When I walked into the class held at the Carlton in Midtown NYC, I was introduced to the founders of Pound Fitness — Kirsten Potenza and Christina Peerenboom. I was handed two Ripstix™ (light weighted drumsticks) to “rock out while I workout.”

The founders graciously took the time to get to know us and share background on how POUND Fitness started. Kirsten and Christina were both tired of the group fitness scene, often feeling like it was competitive and stiff. As drummers they realized that several muscle groups — including the core — are activated when there is the motion of beating the drums on a drum set.

In their own words: “POUND is a full-body workout that combines cardio, conditioning, and core work with the excitement and euphoria of drumming.” (more…)

Work it Off: 3 Fitness Feats that Zap a 450-Calorie Bagel with Cream Cheese

There are a lot of things I don’t miss about New York City: The crowds, the noise, the smells, the expense. But there are a few things I do miss after living there for 10 years. While my friends rank high on that list, so do bagels.

bagels

In the morning, few things beat a boiled-to-perfection bagel. Glossy on the outside and chewy on the inside, these carb-tastic treats were a mainstay of my life in the city. When I went back for a visit this past week, my former local bagel shop was one of my first stops. I got a whole wheat bagel heaping with strawberry cream cheese. (In New York a “schmear” is more of a gob than a dab.) It was, not surprisingly, delicious.

It was also a total gut bomb. Full of sugars and carbs the breakfast didn’t feel light in my stomach and pretty much zapped my energy for the next hour or so. (Hello food coma!) This tastes-so-good, feels-so-bad treat also came at a high caloric cost. 450 calories, to be exact.

So how could I burn off the 450 calories in this bagel with cream cheese?

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PSPfit Boot Camp Cycle 2 Partners with Lane Bryant in Time for Holiday Fitness Season

CeCe Olisa is at it again. The “Plus Size Princess” from TheBigGirlBlog.com is launching the second round of the popular #PSPfit fitness and nutrition boot camp.

PSPfit cheerleaders

This time it will take place during the 30 days leading up to Thanksgiving, from October 26 to November 27. “The holidays can be brutal! It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of shopping and parties and before you know it you’re not taking care of yourself the way you usually do,” CeCe shared. “This pre-Thanksgiving boot camp will bring us through the holidays more mindful of what we eat and how much activity we get.”

Partnering again with nutritionist Abra Pappa, CeCe is setting out once again to bring #PSPfit to any woman in the world. The boot camp utilizes social media to bring nutrition and fitness coaching to its participants. Women of all sizes are encouraged to take part in the 30-Day Pre-Thanksgiving boot camp. (more…)

Let’s Run Down to the Bar – Urban Running Crews Gain in Popularity

Some runners roll out of bed at sunrise and take off down a well-worn path before returning home to drink a power smoothie and then start their day. Others run through questionable neighborhoods at night and then stop at a bar for margaritas afterward. The latter describes an emerging urban running trend, but don’t you dare call them a club, they’re a crew.

While running clubs have been around for years and have chapters in every major US city, running crews are starting to gain in popularity. Larger groups including the New York-based NYC Bridge Runners, Orchard Street Runners and Isla de Corredores, offer people the chance to break away from the norm. The major difference between a running club and a crew has more to do with attitude than time of day. Urban crews tend to be off the beaten path, literally. They race across bridges and cover terrain not typically traveled by the casual runner before winding down at a club or burger dive.

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“I’m Beautiful The Way I Am” – New NYC Campaign Targets Girls and Body Image

Mayor and proud papa of New York, Micheal Bloomberg, is on another mission to make his beloved city a better place. This time, he’s tackling the tough subject of self-esteem and body image issues, particularly with young girls ages 7-12. NYC may be one of the fashion capitals of the world, but Bloomberg, along with other members of the New York City Girl’s Project, want to spread the message, “I’m Beautiful The Way I Am.”

I'm a Girl

The campaign, conceived in the mayor’s office by deputy press secretary, Samantha Levine, chose to target the 7-12 age bracket citing statistics from several studies on eating disorders. They concluded negative body image was a concern for girls at a very young age. The NYC Girls’ Project website reports “Over 80 percent of 10-year-old girls are afraid of being fat,” and ” by middle school, 40-70 percent of girls are dissatisfied with two or more parts of their body.”

Campaign directors are creating buzz for the movement by using bus and subway ads. Thankfully, the strategy is much different than the hard-edged, in-your-face posters  used to push the oversized soda ban a few years ago. Instead of placards declaring,  Are You Pouring On The Pounds – Don’t Drink Yourself Fat, ads for the NYC Girls’ Project show pictures of smiling happy girls of all races and sizes declaring, ” I’m a girl. I’m funny, playful, daring, strong, curious, smart, brave, healthy, friendly and caring.”

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Conservatives Found Another Thing to Hate – Bike Shares

New York has everything, right? That’s pretty much true, including progressive thinkers who want to see a healthier population and a cleaner planet. One of the many ways New Yorkers are trying to accomplish these goals is through bike sharing, specifically through a company called Citi Bikes. The business is simple and really a no-brainer in a busy city that requires commuting. A new report suggests that conservatives are making it really tough to do the healthy thing in NYC, though.

cycling benefits

 Citi Bikes is super simple, with a minimal three step process:

1. Unlock a bike from any station by paying for the rental.

2. Ride the bike wherever you want.

3. Return the bike to any station when you’re done.

Riders don’t have to invest in a bike, they don’t have to search for a place to lock up a bike, and they don’t have to store a bike in a notoriously small New York apartment. They also get exercise and do not leave a carbon footprint behind. When I see these units set up in other cities, my first response is, “wish we had these.”

While this simple plan could literally reverse so many of our country’s health problems, some groups have found a way to deter such a great program. Mayor Bloomberg has already caught flak for trying to reduce soda sizes in his city, and apparently the complaints don’t stop when Americans feel they might be pressured into riding a bike instead of sitting in an expensive, fume-emitting cab. (more…)

Teacher Chris Gomez Cut the Fat and Lost 140 Pounds

This summer, Chris Gomez is taking his students to Six Flags and the first thing he’s going to do is ride a roller coaster. In fact, the kids may have a hard time getting him to do anything else. For Chris, a special education teacher from New York, being able to fit in to a coaster car again means another triumph on his weight loss journey.

c gomez collage resize

At age 34, Chris admits to being slightly overweight most of his life with a few periods of weight loss in between, but due to emotional eating, late-night snacking and lack of portion control (eating multiple desserts), he could never keep the extra pounds off for very long. As a die-hard Mets fan and sports enthusiast, Chris knew as his weight continued to climb, his energy plummeted and his ability to participate in the activities he once enjoyed like softball, were beginning to decline.

Chris describes his a-ha weight loss moment, saying, “I was sitting at a friends’ house and ordered 20 chicken wings for lunch and half way through I realized that I couldn’t continue to do this to myself. One day a doctor would tell me that I was running myself into the ground and I would have nothing to do about it. So I decided enough was enough.”

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Win a Biggest Loser Resort Trip and Meet Hannah Curlee and Colleen Ketchum at the Women’s Health Expo

Join us Saturday, May 4 at the Women’s Health Expo in Lake Katrina, New York! This thirteenth annual event brings together the Upstate New York community to promote health, wellness, and fitness in a fun environment. The theme this year is managing stress for a better life. With that more in control everything else naturally seems to fall in to place.

hannah and colleen

This will be DietsInReview.com’s second appearance at the Women’s Health Expo, and our booth is a can’t-miss part of the event! Stop by to:

  • Meet Colleen Ketchum, creator of BeyondBarre.com, a cardio-ballet-barre workout that will sculpt, burn fat, and increase endurance. Join her demo in the fitness workshops, too.
  • Register to win a one-week stay at your choice of Biggest Loser Resorts*! With locations in Chicago, Niagra, Malibu, and Ivins, Utah you’ll find a resort close to you to help jumpstart your fitness goals. (more…)

Biggest Loser Does Broadway with Gilbert Gotfried’s The Diet Show

By Margo Donohue of Brooklyn Fit Chick.

If you’ve ever wanted to see past Biggest Loser favorites like Bill Germanakos, Eric Chopin, Alfredo “Frado” Dinten, Mark Pinhasovich and Tara Costa then you are in luck. New York’s Stage 72 theater has just launched Saturday performances of “Gilbert Gotfried Presents: The Diet Show” and it features several past members of the hit weight loss show on stage giving very funny (and often times moving) monologues about weight, fitness, diets, family pressure and more. The dates for now are every other Saturday (the next show is January 19th) at 7 pm at the theater location at 158 West 72nd Street.

“The Diet Show” was created after producers contacted Mark Pinhasovich to see if he could recruit a few of his fellow Bigger Loser alumni to put on a showcase that would be part raucous comedy and part confessional theater for an audience looking for inspiration on their health and fitness goals. “I love the fact that I can make people laugh (laughter is the best medicine) and then verbally connect the emotional part of my journey while helping inspire others,” says Pinhasovich. (more…)

Energy Drinks Under Investigation by New York State Attorney General: Is it Worth the Fight?

By Rachel Berman, RD Director of Nutrition at CalorieCount.com

Just as the new school year is getting underway and students everywhere are looking for a pick-me-up to stay focused in class, the NY State Attorney General announced his investigation of energy drinks and the safety of their caffeine levels. You might remember a couple of years ago when the USDA forced removal of products from the marketplace, such as Four Loko, which added caffeine to alcohol. They deemed it unsafe since caffeine masks the depressant qualities of alcohol and people who mix the two are more likely to binge drink, according to studies.

However, it seems like there’s a new product appearing every week touting its ability to keep you awake and energized. Energy drinks are a billion-dollar industry, the fastest growing segment of the beverage market, and they generally contain caffeine, other plant based supplements, simple sugars and additives to achieve their goal. According to the CDC, about one-third of teenage Americans consume energy drinks. But the problem is that the drinks are considered dietary supplements and therefore aren’t tightly regulated by the FDA like other foods and beverages. So can energy drinks be bad for your health?

Cap the caffeine

The caffeine content listed on energy drinks doesn’t usually exceed the recommended 400 mg per day for adult. However, if you’re downing more than one or mixing with coffee, soda, and other caffeinated beverages, you might be getting more than you need. The FDA recognizes caffeine as a drug and regulates the amount found in carbonated soft drinks, but not in energy drinks. Too much caffeine can cause increased heart beat, interrupted sleep, irritability, and nervousness. In addition, some studies have found that high caffeine content in energy drinks results in irregular heart beat and increased blood pressure. (more…)

Yogurt Summit Primes New York to Become The Yogurt State

If you’re a dairy farmer or yogurt manufacturer, then consider being in Albany, New York on August 15 for what is likely the state’s (or any for that matter) first yogurt summit. The state’s governor, Andrew Cuomo, recognizes the booming business that could potentially grow New York’s economy more than it already has.

“The state will look at regulations and laws that could get in the way of farmers providing more milk and manufacturers making yogurt,” explained an AP News release.

“Chobani strongly supports Governor Cuomo in his charge to continue to grow the New York State economy and help industries who are making a difference in doing so like Greek yogurt,” Chobani, leading Greek yogurt brand in the country, told us in an email.

The brand plans to be in attendance at the summit later this month, and says “We’re proud to be a part of the Greek yogurt boom in New York State and are committed to building the industry by supporting our farmers and local community and continually investing in our Chenango County production plant.” (more…)