Workout Nutrition [Infographic]

We’ve got the ultimate guide to workout nutrition!

Don’t undermine your efforts to get in shap with poor eating habits!

We’ve found an excellent infographic to share. So often I hear people say, “I’m exercising regularly but I can’t see anything changing!” Well, I’m sure on the inside, plenty of good things are happening, but if you can’t seem to lose the weight, then it could be your nutrition. Check out this infographic and get the skinny on workout nutrition!

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DIY Fitness Fashion Tee

DIY fashion for our dollar-savvy fans!

Don’t let your exercise outfits break the bank when you can create your own fabulous tee’s!

Do whatever it takes to motivate you to workout. I find cute exercise clothes are a huge help, but these cute clothes can be so expensive! On top of that expense, my closet is usually bursting with clothes that haven’t seen the light of day in a long while. Those clothes deserve to be given a second chance, some new life, don’t you think?

So here’s a fabulous little tutorial on how to breathe (or cut) new life into old t-shirts. You’ll be able to save money and the time you wold spend taking out those old clothes and finding them a new home!

Catherine of Rabbit Food for My Bunny Teeth shared her simple and fun project: DIY Workout Shirt.

Enjoy!

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400 Calories in the Stomach

Make smart choices at meal times. Fill up on the good stuff!

How much space does 400 calories occupy in the stomach?

I truly dislike the thought of dieting. But with a looming deadline to fit into a costume that doesn’t quite zip up all the way for a performance, I really have no choice but to make a conscious effort to change my eating habits.

What is it about diets that have people dreading them? Hunger? Cravings? Guess what?! You don’t need to feel hungry when you are making the change for a healthier lifestyle. And if you aren’t feeling hungry, you will most likely have fewer cravings as well! There is no need to fear healthy eating! All we need to do is learn how to make smart choices. If we look for low calorie but dense foods full of nutrients and fibre (think low-GI foods), we’ll definitely be better off! Take a look at what 400 calories of various foods look like in the stomach!

Add PGX to your food and the fibre will help you feel full and you won’t feel the “diet hunger and cravings.” Right now you you can get a free BONUS pack of PGX Singles with purchase of PGX Daily in Canadian stores! Stay healthy everyone; make smart food choices and be sure to get your daily dose of fibre!

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Friday Fitness Trend: Bikram Yoga

Thinking about yoga? Let’s think about Bikram Yoga!

If you love the heat, this might just be the yoga for you…

Ahh yoga! I’m sure you’re familiar with all the possible benefits of practising it regularly: stretching and muscle toning, weight loss and increased stamina, mental clarity, inner peace…general overall health and well being. All of these thoughts went through my head when I decided to try hot yoga, specifically, Bikram yoga.

Founded by Bikram Choudhury, Bikram yoga consists of a sequence of 26 poses, or asanas, practised in a room heated to 105 Fahrenheit and 25% humidity for a 90-minute session.

I’m no yoga expert. In fact, I am absolutely a beginner, and I jumped right into a heated room for Bikram yoga! It was a hot and stuffy experience. It did feel good afterward but I don’t know if that was from the yoga itself or the fabulous rush of cold air when I left the room!

My conclusion: Bikram yoga will not be for everyone. Although I didn’t come out of that first class a big fan, there are many who love and swear by it. Bikram Choudhury himself was able to overcome the setbacks of a serious knee injury through his hot yoga method.

If you are thinking of trying a class, make sure to read the details first and drink plenty of water! Learn more about Bikram yoga and the benefits of heat.

 

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PGX’s Thursday Obsession: Biking

We’re getting inspired by Olympic cycling!

Read on to discover 7 reasons why you should start biking!

It’s Thursday and I have a Thursday obsession to share with you: biking. Now, I don’t actually bike myself (yet), so what could I possibly talk to you about biking you wonder?

With the Olympic competition heating up, I’m starting to feel more inspired to ‘up’ my sporting activities. The cycling events are popular with my family (we have cyclists among us) and that got the “time-to-get-inspired-to-exercise-and-maybe-try-biking” wheels in motion. I’ve gone biking before but never with physical fitness as the end goal. As a kid, it was a fun thing to do with my neighbourhood friends. Then biking became a once in a while trip to the dike by the Fraser River, or one of my out of shape attempts to keep up with my friend as we cycled up and down the hills of the city!

Yes, clearly biking has been low on my radar of fitness regimes for quite some time. But just as I started to watch the Olympics and contemplate the idea of biking for exercise, an article from Women’s Health appeared on my internet browser: 7 Reasons to Start Bike Riding.

If you’re like me and need extra motivation to start biking (or a sign from universe that you should give it a go), read these seven reasons and you’ll soon find yourself pumping air into the tires and peddling around in an eco-friendly, healthy way: on your bicycle!

 

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Friday Fitness Trend: Ugi Fit

Today’s PGX Friday Fitness Trend is: Ugi Fitness!

Need to workout but don’t have time? This is the fitness trend for you…

Pronounced “you-gee,” Vancouver-based trainer, Sara Shears developed a workout formula that combines strength, cardio and core training into a sequence of 30 exercises. It’s a short, rigourous workout of different exercises performed in one minute intervals that, combined with balanced eating and your daily fiber, can produce amazing results.

A 30 minute workout with only one piece of equipment? Sign me up!

And that’s what Ugi Fit is: a 30 minute workout with only one piece of equipment and it’s making waves in the fitness communities.

So what is this essential piece of equipment? The Ugi ball. Sara Shears and her design partner, Melanie Finkelman, designed this squishy non-intimidating ball that you can stand on, kneel on, sit on, plank on, toss to a friend, or even use as a weight. It’s got the squish of a beanbag and the resistance and bounce-back of a stress ball all in one simple design.

One of the positive features of this fitness trend is that you aren’t limited to working out in a gym or in your living room. Only 15 inches in diameter, the Ugi ball is easy to store or to bring to an outdoor workout at the beach! Not only is the location of this workout flexible, the length and frequency is just as easy to adjust to your busy schedule. Got only 15 minutes? Cut down the intervals to 30 seconds each. Maybe you prefer a longer workout only hree times a week. You can turn your Ugi Fit workout into an hour by repeating your sequence of exercises.

Why Ugi? Because it’s time to be you. “Ugi. U got it. Show it off.” Visit the Ugi Fit website to learn more.

Remember everyone: eat healthy, get your fiber, stay fit and do it all for you.

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Friday Fitness Trend: the Tracy Anderson Method

Looking for new fitness ideas? PGX is too!

Today we’re checking out the celebrity favourite, the Tracy Anderson Method…

What do Gwyneth Paltrow, Kristin Davis, and Courtney Cox have in common (aside from acting)? Their fitness routine and today’s Friday Fitness Trend, the Tracy Anderson Method. In her GOOP newsletter, Gwyneth Paltrow is all praises for this method, attributing her Iron Man figure to Tracy’s videos. Tracy Anderson is a highly sought after trainer based in Los Angeles who has come up with a fun way to target muscles and tone without the bulk, incorporating aerobics, strength training and dance.

After some investgation into Tracy’s latest regime, Metamorphosis, I have to say, I’m not a fan of the restrictive and extremely low calorie meal plan and don’t recommend any form of crash dieting (I can’t stress that enough). However, meal plan aside, I see how her exercises can be effective. Tracy Anderson claims that she can help you avoid bulking up by regularly changing your exercise routine. Whether this is how you avoid bulk or not, mixing up your fitness routine and keeping it fresh is definitely one of the best ways to keep your metabolism up and avoid those pesky plateaus!

So if you are looking for some new moves to mix up your routine workout, check out this video of Tracy’s arm workout or this video of lower body exercises. Add some variety to your workout and you will definitely be taking another step closer to your goals. Keep on moving everyone!

 

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Stress and Your Weight

PGX wants you to relieve your stress!

Your health, weight and stress: a bad combination.

Have you reached a plateau in your weight loss efforts? You may be surprised just how much stress has to do with that! Stress. Even the word sounds scary.

Stress causes our body to secrete cortisol which in turn, prompts our body to release stored glucose, increasing our blood sugar. Unfortunately for our waists, all the excess sugar that we don’t use gets stored as fat! Essentially, having too much stress in your life is like eating too much dessert, not too mention the sugar rush usually leads to food cravings. It seems a cruel and revealing trick of the English language that stressed spelled backwards is desserts!

Real Simple has three quick ways that you can relieve stress and, consequently, help you stay trim.

Work, school, family obligations, meetings and appointments, housework, projects… Life can get busy and overwhelming. So, my two main tips for this sunny Monday? Don’t stress the little things and get your daily fiber!

 

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PGX and Green Tea!

There are more ways than one to enjoy green tea!

PGX checks out new ways to enjoy green tea…

I’m sure by now you’ve heard about the health benefits of green tea: antioxidant power, cancer cell inhibitor, headache aid, weight loss benefits, harmful bacteria-killing properties… To sum it all up, green tea is good for you. But what if you don’t like the flavour? What if you aren’t really a tea drinker?

Here is a useful slideshow for those of us who aren’t fans of steeping leaves in our water. Shape Magazine shares 20 New Ways to Enjoy Green Tea.

Reap the benefits of green tea and cook with this super antioxidant power! And don’t forget to get your daily fiber!

 

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Hula Hooping Your Way to Health

Remember those young hula hooping days? PGX says get your hula hoop on today!

Exercise doesn’t have to be boring. Just grab a hula hoop (or two or three or even four) and start moving!

Not only does it make a great workout, playing with hula hoops can be a lot of fun! No wonder kids are in such great shape. It’s not just all that energy they seem to be bursting with, it’s their choice of activity. The hula hoop is a great way to get your body moving.

What does this kind of activity do for you? With just one hula hoop, you can have a low-impact, calorie-burning workout that doesn’t require a gym membership. The movement that keeps the hoop spinning around your waist is excellent for toning your core, strengthening your back, and improving your balance and flexibility. Plus it’s way more fun than running on a treadmill, watching a TV station that the person next to you picked.

If one hula hoop can do all that for you, imagine what two or three or four can do! Want to know how many calories you can burn with a hula hoop?

The Chicago Tribune’s Joan Cary has got the numbers and a little bit of hula hooping history for you.

Happy Hula Hooping!

 

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