Jenn's Losing It

If only you could work off the calories from that froyo you had earlier while passed out on the couch. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, it may not be that far off:  Turning down the thermostat while you sleep could help rev up your metabolism , according to a new study conducted by the National Institute of Health Clinical Center. For the study, 31 healthy people slept in either a 75-degree room or a 66-degree room. Researchers found that the colder sleepers burned more than 7 percent more calories than the warm sleepers—likely because their bodies were working to raise their core body temperature to a stable 98.6 degrees, says study author Francesco Saverio Celi, MD, MHSc, of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease. If you lowered the thermostat to 66 degrees at bedtime, you could burn an extra 100 calories over the course of 24 sleeping hours, according to study results. That might not sound like much, but it adds up—in theory at least. See, re...

Yoga is kind of like sex. (And not just because of the interesting positions.) For a practice rooted in simplicity, it has become a tad bit complicated...and intimidating. There are a jillion types of yoga, ranging from specific (like Bikram and Jivamukti) to general (like flow and restorative). "With the increasing number of choices in the yoga world, new students could definitely be overwhelmed," admits Desiree Rumbaugh, a yoga instructor in California. But also like sex, the endless options mean you never have to settle for a lackluster session or the same variety every week. After all, sometimes you want it fast, other times slow, sometimes you want a lot of talking, sometimes you want silence. Here, we help you find the right practice for your mood so you walk away satisfied. Fast Flows In the yoga world, classes abound for women (and men) looking to move quickly, slim down, and maybe fast-forward through most of the chants and meditations. Classes in this group—w...

Chew on this: People are more likely to think a food item is healthier if it has a green calorie label, according to a new study out of Cornell University. The study, published in the journal Health Communication, took place in two parts. First, 93 undergrad participants looked at a picture of one of two candy bars. The candy bars each had the same number of calories listed: 260. In fact, they were nearly identical—the only difference between them was that one had a green calorie label, and the other had a red calorie label. Yet the participants who looked at the photo of the green-labeled candy bar judged it to be significantly healthier and to have fewer calories than other candy bars. “Green means go and has generally positive associations, so we might see that as a green light to indulge,” says Jonathon Schuldt, PhD, the lead study author, assistant professor of communication, and director of Cornell’s Social Cognition and Communication Lab. Since red can of course carry its ow...

Now that I’ve got your attention….here’s how to slim down your favorite drinks with these four simple tips.  Cheers! MASTER MARGARITAS, fill your glass with Jose Cuervo Authentic Light Margarita.  Eight ounces has just 181 calories, half the amount in most margaritas. MAKE DIY DAIQUIRIS, blend rum with fresh or frozen unsweetened strawberries, lime juice, stevia and shaved ice rather than a premade sugar packed mixer, you’ll save about 150 calories a half cup, says Alyse Levine, R.D., nutrition advisor for Livestrong.com. TAKE OUT THE TONIC, “Mix your drink with seltzer or soda water instead and you can slash 80 calories”, says Dawn Jackson Blatner R.D., a FITNESS advisory board member and author of The Flexitarian Diet. ROCK ON, enjoy flavored vodka on the rocks instead of fruity mixed drinks.  Try Voli light vodkas, one and half ounces of which have about 80 calories. -Jenna Bergen Fitness Magazine September 2011

Try these out and in case you couldn’t guess after reading….number 6 is my FAVORITE!! 1.        Get into the swing of things .   Take your stress out at the driving range.   Just 62 minutes at the driving range burns those calories away.   Ready to take on 9 or 18 holes…skip the cart and walk.   You’ll burn 50% more calories per minute. 2.        Meet in a dark alley.   Bowling Alley that is.   In 90 minutes of fun with your friends you’ll roll off 200 calories, skip your light beer-you can do it in an hour! 3.        Go Green.   Ride your bike to run your errands.   In just 23 minutes of peddling or 4.6 miles you burn off those 200 calories! 4.        Strike a pose.   Try Vinyasa yoga.   This type of yoga moves you fluidly from pose to pose, burning more than 7 calories per minute.   29 minutes….200 calories GONE!...