Fat American Kids: Lose The Bedroom TVs

Eating habits, physical activity, access to parks, ethnicity, poverty, and TV watching all play a role in our national epidemic. The percentage of American children who are overweight or obese has been growing for decades, and now our kids--nearly one in three has a body mass index that's greater than normal. And the problem continues to grow, according to a study published Tuesday, March 8, 2010 in The Journal of Health Affairs.

Using data from the 2007 National Survey of Children's Health, the study showed marked regional differences. The five states with the highest rates of overweight and obese kids are all in the Southeast — top-ranked Mississippi (44.4%), Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Minnesota and Utah were tied with the lowest rates (23.1%).

But when researchers further divvied up state-level numbers by race and socioeconomic status as well as things such as TV-watching behavior and access to parks, they found even greater disparities.

The likelihood of being overweight or obese was greater if a child has a TV in his bedroom or watches more than two hours a day (41% greater odds) or if he lives in a neighborhood without a park or recreation center (21% greater odds).

Define & Focus Your Intentions with a Vision Board: It REALLY Works!

Recently, I had dinner with one of my sista's Stacy Small. We were both yapping about the recession, how it’s been affecting our businesses, and what we’ve been doing to market ourselves. Stacy mentioned that every December for the past few years, she’s been making a Vision Board. She said her Vision Board really helped her define, focus, and successfully achieve her goals. (I do something similar each December, as I pick 3-4 business goals I want to achieve for the coming year. I write them down along with bullet deal points. AND, did you know even Oprah makes a Vision Board?)

I like the Vision Board concept, because you have words and pictures, thereby creating more sensory stimulation and focused visualization. Below is a simple definition of a Vision Board, and how to make a vision board.

A vision board is a collage of images, pictures, and written affirmations of the intentions and desires you wish to achieve. It helps your focus through visualization, thus, activating the Universal Law of Attraction, or “likes attract likes”. This means the more you focus and think about something, the more likely it is to materialize and happen in your life. Vision Boards are also called Dream Boards, Treasure Maps, or Vision Maps. I think a Vision Board is a healthy self-care tool.

How to Make Your Vision Board
1. Take a couple days to percolate and meditate in a quiet place about what personal and professional goals you’d like to manifest and successfully achieve in 2009. I usually choose no more than 3-4 as this keeps me focused and not overwhelmed. Before I go to bed at night, I also ask myself what are my goals?

2. After you are clear about your 3-4 goals, you’ll need a few things including a poster board, a glue stick (sticks are best as you to easily move or remove picture), pictures from old magazines (use your old ones, get them from friends, hair salons, doctor’s offices, and the library), photographs, and/or printed from the internet.

3. Go through the images and begin to cut out photos, words, and phrases that intuitively resonate with your new goals. Then, lay them out on the board—but do not glue them yet. Leave a space in the middle to place a favorite photo of yourself. (If you have gained weight, and one of your goals is weight loss, post a photo of yourself when you were at your ideal, comfortable weight.)

4. Try to be specific about the photos and words. For example: if you want to make more money in your job use green dollar signs around your job picture. If you want a new car then, place a photo of the car with color you want too.

5. When you feel comfortable with the photos and words, glue them to your board.

6. Hang your new Vision Board in a place where you can see it often.

I hope you have fun while getting clear about your intentions and goals this year—especially losing weight and getting fit. I have my written goals next to my desk, sitting in the hands of my Buddha statue. I intend to place my poster board above and to the side of the Buddha. In this challenging economy we can all use a little extra help and support. Namaste to my sista’ Stacy for sharing her good karma marketing biz with me…and now you. Let me know your results by emailing me at info@LindaLaRue.com;)!

SHAPE Magazine March Issue: Get Sexy Shoulders

SHAPE magazine March issue: Get Sexy Shoulders using my total body CORE TRANSFORMER that AOL ranked as one of the five hardest total body ab classes in America. Available for purchase @http://www.LindaLaRue.com/store.

"The Linda LaRue Project" Photos of Top Fitness Trainers Linda LaRue, Patrick Goudeau, Stephanie Vitroino & Paul Katami Fitness

Here's a sneak peek at the upcoming Linda LaRue Fitness Project with Top Fitness Trainers Patrick Goudeau, Stephanie, Vitorino & Paul Katami Fitness.

35 Calorie Chocolate Chip Meringue Crips

Try these yummy little bundle of love treats are ONLY 35 Calories each! How amazing is that? I recommend you buy a good quality semi-sweet morsel that has at least 60% cocoa content. I love popping a couple of meringue crisps if I am experiencing a sugar craving. Try adding a couple drops of red food coloring to make them pink for Valentine’s Day.

Ingredients:
½ cup walnuts, chopped
2 egg whites
½ tsp real vanilla extract
½ cup Splenda® (or sucralose) sugar blend
½ cup good quality semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Bake walnuts in a shallow baking sheet, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until toasted. Set aside.
3. Beat egg whites and vanilla at high speed with an electric mixer until eggs form a still peak.
4. Add Spenda® (sucralose) sugar blend, 1 T at a time, beating until stiff peaks form; stir in walnuts and chocolate chips.
5. Spoon rounded teaspoons of mixture on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
6. Bake 15 minutes. Drop oven temperature on 200 degrees F. Bake for one hour and 45 minutes. Cool slightly on cookie sheet. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight tin.
Yields: 36. Serving size: 1 cookie. Nutritional content: 35 Calories, 1g fat, 1g saturated fat, 1g protein, 4g carbohydrates, 0mg sodium.
*Note: You can easily make these diabetic cookies by deleting the chocolate morsels. For more great tasting, low Calorie Desserts, buy Linda’s SOUPer Slim Diet ebook @www.LindaLaRue.com/store.

February Make Healthy A Lifestyle 2010 Issue: How to Beat the February Blues & Belly Bulge

My Linda LaRue's health, fitness, and diet February Make Healthy A Lifestyle Issue: "How to Beat the February Blues & Belly Bulge is here. Check it out @www.lindalarue.com/members.

Seemingly unending long, cold, dark nights and short, dreary days void of summer sunshine cause many folks including me to suffer from depression and lethargy. This oftentimes leads to winter weight gain, which generally causes further depression. The medical term for our condition is called Seasonal Affective Disorder or S.A.D. For most of us who suffer from SAD, February is the worst month regarding our symptoms. Experts say it’s due to post-Christmas/New Year letdown, and an accumulation of the all-consuming winter darkness. That’s why this edition of Make Healthy A Lifestyle is about what SAD is, and how to cope with this disorder—along with “how to” combat the side effects, such as winter weight gain.

One of the best mood elevators is cardiovascular exercise. That’s why I’ve asked my friend top trainer Christopher Ross Lane who is Valerie Bertinelli’s trainer, to teach us how to begin a running routine. Christopher recently got Val to begin a running routine. In fact she’s running her first marathon (the Boston) this spring at the age of 50. How super awesome is that!?!

If it’s cold outside and you’d rather workout inside, then my #1 recommendation is to buy my total body cardio CORE TRANSFORMER exercise tube. It’s the perfect, happy endorphin, mood boosting living room workout that will also rev up your metabolism to melt off your depressing winter weight. Bottom line: Feeling fit feels good.

So get up, get moving, and start feeling happier:)!

Linda

Get Flat Abs Fast: Core Sculpting CORE TRANSFORMER Resistance Workout from Fitness Magazine February 2010

Here's a great article from Fitness Magazine February 2010 featuring my total body CORE TRANSFORMER written by my friend, Nicole Dorsey Straff; Workout created by Linda LaRue, creator of the CORE TRANSFORMER class at Equinox Fitness Clubs.

Dump the crunches! These 8 belly-flattening ab exercises will take you from squishy to sexy in just 14 days.

How It Works

If you envy A-list abs like Kate Beckinsale's, we've got one word for you: rubber. "Using a resistance tube boosts the firming power of any ab move," says instructor Linda LaRue, who created the CORE TRANSFORMER class at Equinox Fitness Clubs in Los Angeles and has a list of devoted Hollywood fans including Beckinsale. LaRue put together her best new belly flatteners using this secret-weapon shaper exclusively for FITNESS Magazine. Do two sets of each move, working your way up to three sets, on three nonconsecutive days a week. Mix the order every time to really whittle your middle.

What You'll Need: A CORE TRANSFORMER exercise tube and a sturdy chair.

Do the Twist! When crossing the CORE TRANSFORMER into an X shape for each move, twist it around twice before grasping the handles, so the point of intersection is solid. "Twisting the tube increases the pull and resistance on your core," LaRue says, giving your abs maximum toning from every angle. You can aim to start with the X at belly-button level, but "it doesn't matter if the intersection moves around a bit," she adds.

Rowboat
Targets: Back, triceps, biceps, and abs
-- Sit on floor with knees slightly bent, feet hip-width apart, and heels planted.
-- Loop center of tube around arches of feet, cross it once or twice in front of you, then grasp a handle in each hand, elbows bent 90 degrees and tucked by sides, palms facing up.
-- Keeping abs tight throughout, lean torso back about 45 degrees and slowly curl handles to shoulders. Make it harder: Hold for 3 seconds.
-- Hinge forward at hips slightly as you extend both arms behind you, keeping elbows close to body, to complete one rep. (Exercise pros can hold here for another 3 seconds.)
-- Do 16 reps.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Crouching Tiger
Targets: Back, arms, abs, and quads
-- Stand with feet hip-width apart on center of tube, cross it once or twice in front of you, then grasp a handle in each hand, arms by sides.
-- Crouch down and walk hands forward until you are in full push-up position, arms extended with palms directly under shoulders, legs directly behind you so that you form a straight line from head to heels. (Hold handles lightly by thumbs so that palms can lie flat on floor.)
-- Keeping palms planted and abs tight throughout, press hips back toward heels, bending knees so that they hover just above floor.
-- Straighten legs to return to full push-up position and complete rep.
-- Do 16 reps.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Baseball Swing
Targets: Shoulders, back, arms, abs, and obliques
-- Stand with feet hip-width apart on center of tube, cross it once or twice in front of you, then grasp a handle in each hand, arms by sides.
-- Bend knees slightly in a half squat and bring both handles together in front of you, elbows slightly bent, palms nearly touching. Make it easier: Cup both hands around both handles as if they were fused together.
-- Keeping elbows bent, bring both hands together over right shoulder as you rotate torso to right, pivoting on left toes and straightening both legs.
-- Slowly return to half-squat position.
-- Do 8 reps. Switch sides; repeat.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Hooray Squat
Targets: Chest, arms, abs, butt, and quads
-- Stand with feet hip-width apart and your back to a sturdy chair; place feet through tube handles (like stirrups) so that soles press handles to floor.
-- Cross tube once or twice in front of you, then hold center of tube with both hands in front of chest, elbows bent by sides, palms facing forward. (Either grasp tube or notch it between thumb and forefinger and keep hands open, as shown.)
-- Squat to sit in chair, then immediately stand up, pressing arms directly overhead to stretch tube.
-- Return to seated squat, lowering hands to chest level again, and repeat.
-- Do 16 reps.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Upstream Swim
Targets: Shoulders, back, arms, and abs
-- Stand with feet close together on center of tube, cross it once or twice in front of you, then grasp a handle in each hand, arms by sides.
-- Squat, hinging forward at hips so that back is nearly parallel to floor with arms extended down.
-- Simultaneously lift left arm in front of you and right arm behind you until both are parallel to floor, palms facing down.
-- Hold for 1 to 3 counts, then lower.
-- Do 16 reps, alternating sides.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Tubing Half-Teaser
Target: Abs
-- Lie faceup on floor with right knee bent, foot flat, and left leg extended toward ceiling. Fold tube in half, then loop it around left arch and grasp ends together with both hands.
-- Roll torso off floor slowly to sit up; try to use abs, rather than pulling with arms, by drawing navel into spine.
-- Hold for 1 to 3 counts, then engage abs to roll slowly back down to start.
-- Do 8 reps. Switch legs; repeat.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Cat's Cradle
Targets: Abs and obliques
-- Stand with feet hip-width apart and your back to a chair; put feet through tube handles.
-- Cross tube once or twice in front of you, then hold its center with both hands in front of chest, elbows bent by sides, palms facing forward. (Grasp tube or notch it as shown.)
-- Sit near edge of seat and lean torso back 45 degrees as you lift legs off floor, knees bent 90 degrees, until feet are at seat level.
-- Extend right leg forward as you rotate torso left to bring right elbow toward left knee.
-- Switch sides, bringing left elbow to right knee to complete 1 rep. Do 8 reps.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Resistance Side Plank
Targets: Shoulders, chest, back, abs, and obliques
-- Stand with feet hip-width apart on center of tube, cross it once or twice in front of you, then grasp a handle in each hand, arms by sides.
-- Crouch down and walk hands forward to get in full push-up position.
-- Shift body weight into left hand and rotate extended right arm to reach for ceiling while keeping shoulders down.
-- Hold for 1 to 3 counts, then return to full push-up.
-- Do 16 reps, alternating arms.
Watch a video demonstration of this move!

Originally published in FITNESS Magazine, February 2010.