Sounds on Thursday

This Thursday we're going back a bit, the sound is Kashmir by Led Zeppelin. This 8 minute song will keep you pumping at a steady pace so its good for high resistance work such as a standing or seated climb on a stationary or spin bike, high resistance on the elliptical, or a large incline on the treadmill. Alternatively, it offers a good pace for weight lifting.

As always, available at iTunes for $1.29.

Wednesday's Workout

Last Wednesday's Workout focused on staying fit while at work. One of FitBritt’s suggestion was to ride a bike to work and/or talk to your employer about incorporating healthy activities for the office. Well, following up on last Wednesday’s report is some exciting information to incentivize both a bike commute and employer assistance. We have all heard of the Emergency Stabilization Act as basically being the bailout for American financial institutions. However, buried in this large piece of legislation is a gem to fitness fanatics, the Bicycle Commuter Act., which has been enacted in the US Tax Code. The Act allows an employer to reimburse an employee as part of a transportation fringe benefit, up to $20 a month for costs relating to commuting by bicycle. Qualified costs include purchasing a bike, bike improvements, repair and storage. The employee must qualify as a commuter by bike meaning that he or she regularly uses the bicycle for a substantial portion of travel been his or her residence and place of employment. Additionally, the employee cannot receive any other type of transportation benefit, so this cannot be combined with other forms of transportation benefits such as public transit or parking subsidies.

If you are interested in becoming a bike commuter or you already are one, you should talk to your employer about utilizing this benefit. To find copies of the laws, click on the above links. For further information, check out the League of American Bicyclist's website or check your local congress representative's website to see if they provide any details.

Tuesday's Trim Down

This Tuesday’s Trim Down is a very inexpensive way to stay fit throughout the year and its so simple it comes straight to your mailbox (snail mail that is). Besides subscribing to a fitness blog (ahem), subscribing to fitness magazines is a great way to get new ideas for keeping fit. Most magazine subscriptions are around $14, which means you are spending about $1.16 per month on pages and pages of fitness tips and ideas. That’s much cheaper than a pricey gym membership. Plus, a subscription saves you an incredible amount of money over the newsstand price, which is usually around $4 per issue or $48 a year. Most fitness magazines feature an article each month on strength training or cardiovascular activities such as walking, biking, etc. The benefit to these articles is that they have pictures and commentary to explain how to do the moves, which can be helpful if you are new to exercise and need a little guidance on how to perform common exercise moves. Additionally, the magazines also offer tips on gear or equipment that you may find useful. A few good examples of fitness magazines for women are Shape, Self, and Fitness. For men, try Men’s Health or Men’s Fitness Magazine. If you have a specific area of interest such as running, yoga or pilates, try looking for a specific magazine such as Runner’s World, Yoga Journal or Pilates Style Magazine.

Fit Tip: If you are not interested in the content of the magazines but don’t want to commit to a subscription, check out the magazines websites. A lot of information that is contained in the print issue is available online, including some features not available in print like videos of exercise moves.

Monday's Retail Madness

Nothing is better for sore, tight, overworked muscles than a great massage. However, this fit frugalista cannot justify spending $100+ on a massage every time a muscle aches. Enter the frugal fitness solution: a foam roller. This device is a great tool for stretching out and massaging tired and sore muscles. The roller creates the same movement as the techniques used by massage therapists in giving a sports massage, which helps release muscles that have become tight or sore due to overuse, injury or lack of stretching.

Gaiam offers both half and full rollers on its website with prices ranging from $9.99-$29.99.

Here are a few exercises for stretching and massaging your muscles:

1.) Back-Lie down on the roller lengthwise so you head, kneck, shoulders and back are on the roller. Keep knees bent with feet flat on the floor. Gently rock yourself from side to side allowing the roller to massage your back.

2.) Upper Back- Lie cross wise on the foam roller so only your shoulders and upper back are on the roller. Hands behind the ears, as if you were doing situps on a stability ball. Feet are on the ground with knees bent. Slowly roll back and forward targeting the roller on the upper back.

3.) Glutes- Sit on the roller with hands on the ground behind you and feet on the floor in front of you. Begin rolling slowly forward and backwards to release glute muscles.

4.) Hamstrings- In the same position as above, move the foam roller down so it sits on the back of the legs now. Roll the roller up and down the hamstrings slowly.

5.) Calves- Continue with the same exercise as above but move the roller down to target the calves. Keep the buttocks off the floor to place a little bit more pressure on the muscles resulting in a deeper massage.

6.) IT Band- This is a really great massage/stretching technique for walkers and runners who will naturally have tighter IT bands. Lie on your side with the foam roller under your hip and legs stacked. One hand should be on the floor. Take the top leg and place your foot in front of the other leg that is still on the floor and straight.(as if you were doing inner thigh leg lifts). Slowly roll the foam roller from your hip down towards your knee.

Fit Tip: Gently roll the foam roller over areas of your muscles that feel tight and stop on an area where you feel a lot of tightness. Hold until the muscle relaxes and continue to roll. Make sure you use the roller on the muscles and not on your bones or joints.

If you want more ideas for massage and stretching with the foam roller, check out the book, Foam Roller Techniques for Massage, Stretches and Improved Flexibility by Michael Fredericson, available at Amazon or the DVD The Foam Roller Workout & Massage with Michaela Sirbu also available at Amazon.

Weekend Activity

This weekend to get active try rockclimbing. Rockclimbing is a great activity that can be done indoors or outdoors and has appeal to people of all fitness levels and ages. It has fantastic benefits for strength, especially in the core, and flexibility. It is also a great tool to overcome a fear of heights and to introduce some excitement into your life!

A great way to learn to rockclimb is to enroll in a course, which will provide all of the equipment as well as instruction. Visit indoorclimbing.com to find a local gym near you and find out about their beginner's classes. If you would like to learn outdoors, many organizations offer either day or weekend courses to teach you to climb outside. REI's Outdoor School , Eastern Mountain Sports , and Outward Bound all offer climbing courses for a reasonable price.

Friday's Food

A great way to get healthy food is to visit a local farmer's market. Farmer's markets offer tons of fresh produce that have sometimes been harvested within the last 24 hours. They also offer other products like dairy, meats and seafoods. Shopping at a farmer's market supports the local community and it can be enjoyable to shop outside. Check your local newspaper or city's website to see if you can find a listing for farmer's markets in your area.

Another good option is to join a CSA, which is a subscription with a local farm to receive a box of fruits and vegetables available from the farm. This is a great way to boost your fruit and vegetable intake. Visit localharvest.org to find out if there is a program in your area.

Sounds on Thursday

Today's tune is another remix (which we are a big fan of at Frugal Fitness), Seal's Waiting for You remix is a great pump up tune that can be used for pretty much any form of cardio. Also check his other remixes at iTunes.