Welcome to the World of peerFitting

After chatting with some of you group fitness lovin’ ladies this week I learned three things:

1. As females, shopping is the only thing we love more than a hard workout

2. Buying new workout clothes gives us extra motivation to go to the gym

3. Purchasing good quality workout wear on a budget is difficult

We can all throw on that old t-shirt we’ve had for years when we decide to go to the gym. But sometimes that’s boring, unflattering and doesn’t inspire us to get off the couch. Of course working out isn’t about how you look… but it is about how you feel. So why not feel cute and comfortable while doing it?

An added bonus is knowing that you got that cute sports bra or good-quality tights for cheap. I went on the hunt this week to out-of-the-box places to see what I could find. I was stoked when I discovered that Forever 21 has a sport line. We all know they make good-quality, in-style clothing and I wouldn’t expect anything less for their workout gear. Better yet, everything is under $30! From yoga mats to duffle bags, they make more than just clothing to meet your needs.

Of course I couldn’t resist grabbing a couple things while I was there, I purchased these athletic capris and coral racerback tank… 

Forever’s activewear is well lined and breathable. I love my purchases and will definitely be going back to grab one of their athletic jackets or hoodies as we head into fall weather.

Get motivated ladies! Happy peerFitting!

 -B

Woody Allen said it best: “80 percent of success is showing up.”  The more group fitness classes I attend, the more I’ve come to realize how hard it is to muster up the energy to go to class.  Motivation is the key to starting anything you need to accomplish; yet it is one of the hardest things to get past.

So how do you get motivated to go to group fitness classes when you don’t even feel like getting off the couch? One way that always works for me is finding inspiration. You can read fitness magazines or research success stories about ordinary people who have accomplished the same things you hope to.

Very rarely do you find someone who truly enjoys undertaking something alone. Another way to get motivated is to gather support. Finding a healthy support system, either physically or virtually, can help you find and keep the motivation you need to reach those fitness goals.

Reward yourself for tiny successes, like going to one group fitness class! This will build some motivation for you towards the beginning of your group fitness journey. Work hard, then relax and reap the benefits of your personal reward.

Muster up the motivation using these three easy techniques and the rest will effortlessly follow. Good luck, peerFitters!

Check back next Monday for Nicole’s weekly post!

They say wine gets better with age…and so do cyclists?! Who knew!

Recently, I have been experiencing what I call a cycle obsession, fixation or maybe even an addiction. In doing some cycle research, I stumbled upon an article that explains how cyclists do in fact get better with age. According to the ESPN article,

cycling is an endurance sport that not only requires the muscle strength, but also the psychological skills to endure through a long, tough ride.

Now, this is my effort to rally the troops to cycle! Whether you have or have not tried it, give it another whirl. Cycling could be just what you need at this stage in your life.

I challenge you all to take a cycle class in your area this next week! Respond to this post and tell me what you thought of it. Don’t forget to review it on peerFit!

Stay fit and be well!

Check back next Friday for another post by Kari!

During my classes this week, I decided to chat a little bit with the girls around me about different aspects of group fitness. We talked about everything from instructors to the intensity of the class and energy of the room. But a common topic that came up was shoes.

Why shoes you may ask? Mainly because females have an obsession with any and every form of footwear. The girls loved chatting about what shoes to wear while working out; which shoes were the most comfortable and which brands had the cutest stuff.

One issue that was brought to light was the problem of wearing tennis shoes in classes like Zumba. With all of the movements and pivots, regular sneakers tend to stick to the floor. This can cause the chance of injury to your knees since there are a lot of side to side movements. So for those “dancy” cardio classes, try to wear a pair of supportive fitness shoes that allow you to pivot your feet easily.

Since I myself have a bit of a shoe obsession, I looked into dance shoes and found that there are actual Zumba shoes that you can buy. If you are a regular in these classes, check ‘em out and maybe they will enhance your workout!

Check out this site, http://www.zumba.com/en-US/shop/.  They have cute shoes and lots of other fun and funky workout wear like these:

Z-KICKZ II

Z-KICKZ Original

Keep those feet moving! Happy peerFitting!

-B

No, I wasn’t with Zach Morris and the rest of the Saved by the Bell crew; I went to Tampa Bay to experience group fitness near the water.  LA Fitness has recently acquired Lifestyle Family Fitness, so I tried out one of their signature locations: the Hyde Park district.

Today was the first day of the new class calendar, which means all the regulars were in for a completely new experience just like me (haha victory!). This class, Total Body, turned out to be very tough. The instructor warned us it was like the old class, but with less rest….yikes.

Every few minutes we switched from burnout on legs, to burnout on arms, back to legs, until we finally got to do some core work on ground. Oh wait, our instructor had the same plan in store for us there, burnouts! All in all, we probably did over 100 curls, squats, lunges and overhead presses multiple times.

After hearing all the talk before class…:
“Oh, a new class, I don’t know about this.”
“New instructor? I might not stay.”

Compared to the talk after….:
“Oh, I like this class better than the old one.”

…reminded me that you must keep an open mind when trying a new class. The familiar is comfortable, but that doesn’t mean it’s the best. Keep it up peerFitters, and send us YOUR stories of the first time you tried a new class.

Ed’s review is based on the 8:30 a.m. - 9 a.m. Total Body Conditioning class at LA Fitness - Hyde Park.

For Michael Liuzzo, a fifty-two-year-old chiropractor, walking into a hot yoga studio means much more than simply exercise and calories. To him, hot yoga is his lifesaver.

At age 43, Michael endured a horrible skiing accident that left him with a reconstructed knee and the inability to do any physical activity without immediate pain. His doctors warned him that with this type of disability, his only option was to wait until age 60 to conduct knee replacement surgery.

In 2000, Michael was introduced to Big Ron’s Hot Yoga Studio and began practicing every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 9 a.m. After only 6 months of this routine, Michael’s knee was restored back to 98% of his pre-injury status. By 2002, he became a licensed yoga instructor and has been teaching at Big Ron’s every Tuesday and Thursday morning since then.

On Thursday morning, I walked into Big Ron’s and expected my usual two things: to gain 90 minutes of refreshing exercise that will leave you extremely drenched in sweat and to burn a ton of calories. Instead, I met Michael and was given the opportunity to be instructed by him for my 90-minute practice.

His story and his view on yoga changed my impression of the practice of yoga as a whole. Yoga is more than mysticism and western practices. It’s restorative and has the ability to be the most effective form of rehabilitation if you allow it to. Michael did, and today he can do physical activities he never thought he would ever be able to do again in his lifetime.

Hot yoga may not be my lifesaver…yet, but you never know what lessons you might learn when you’re walking into a place expecting so little. 

Liuzzo performing the Natarajasana pose.

Check back next week for Nicole’s weekly post!

This past week didn’t go as planned for me; I had all kinds of fun group fitness classes on my calendar, but couldn’t attend any of them thanks to pneumonia. On the bright side, this enabled me to take a step back and check out what’s trending in the world of fashion and fitness.

With the recent Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, everyone is all hyped up on the latest trends for Spring 2013. Athletic wear obviously isn’t as prominent on the runway, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take some of the hot trends into the gym.

For starters, bright hues popped up everywhere. Don’t be afraid to rock neons to your Zumba or hip-hop class. I know everyone loves the “matchy-matchy” workout outfits, but don’t shy away from mixing it up. Colorblocking is in, so don’t hesitate to wear different hues all at once, as well as different brands. We saw a lot of dresses over pants this year. For those kick-butt classes that we all love, why not wear your cute shorts over your tights or bright spandex shorts? That way when you are doing hard-core abs on the floor and your shorts ride up, you’ll be super stylish underneath.

Keep up the hard work boys and girls. Happy peerFitting!

-B

Keep an eye out next week for more fitness fashion advice from Brittney!

This past week Matt and I traveled to Pittsburgh for my birthday to watch our friends play for the Steelers. Sounds like an awesome time, right? It was except for one key factor… I’ve become totally dependent on peerFit when I want to find fitness classes. Sadly, Pittsburgh isn’t one of our current cities.

Each morning, I woke up wanting to find a place to workout and start my day off after being out the night before. My attempt to use Google, which barely shows me locations, let alone which classes are good, proved futile.

Imagine trying to get the latest media updates without Twitter? How ever could you friend-stalk without Facebook?! This is the feeling of helplessness I felt because I am used to having peerFit to find the latest and most popular classes.

I am back in Gainesville and now I can get back to finding the toughest workouts. Be ready for next week’s post.

Ed and Matt showing off their peerFitted guns in Pittsburgh!