Sometimes college students have trouble keeping themselves healthy. The “freshman fifteen” is just one of the many health problems that can become prevalent in college students. Many other less obvious problems can become trouble in the future, but there are ways to keep yourself healthy throughout your college experience.

Eating: The first and most obvious step is to avoid junk food. “But pizza is quick and cheap!” Sure, but so are a lot of other things that are a lot healthier for you. Check the grocery store for frozen meals. Some of these meals can cost you only $2.00, but they are much healthier than the pizza you may be tempted to eat. Lean Cuisine even offers a line of individual pizzas that are filling, flavorful, and cheap. Trying alternative foods like this can help you to avoid the freshman 15, and maybe even help you to lose a little extra weight and feel more energy.

Partying: The occasional party is fine, but sometimes the constant partying may be tempting. Choose to go to a party once a month, and do not drink yourself into a stupor. For one thing, alcohol is high in calories and will pack the weight on you extremely fast. Plus, partying all the time will zap your energy and possibly lower your grades. If you treat yourself every once in a while, instead of constantly, you’ll have more fun.

Exercise: It may seem hard to exercise in your small door room, but a few moves are easy to accomplish and can keep you toned in little time. Try hooking your feet under a shelf or your bed and do sit-ups. Also, lay on your side and do leg lifts. If you walk around your campus on top of this, you can feel very healthy and look healthy too.

Sleeping: Don’t stay up late every night, especially during the semester. If you make sure to get rest, you’ll have more energy to do the things that you need to do. You’ll also have the energy to do the things you WANT to do. Without that rest, you’ll slowly deteriorate and lose the energy that you need to survive college.

All in all, a few simple changes can keep you healthy and make your college experience much more enjoyable. Don’t take yourself for granted, and make sure to take your studies seriously too. Your brain is just another part of your health, so your shouldn’t take it for granted either.

© 2009, FIT FOR EVER. All rights reserved.

Cereal has been a beloved food for many generations by kids and adults alike. Most kids go for the sweeter, more colorful, more fun free prize kinds of cereals. So do many adults. It can be a hard item to resist at the grocery store. The marketing tactics are big business for the cereal industry. However, when choosing a good and healthy cereal for your breakfast, you have to start looking beyond the box and the gimmicks and head straight for the nutritional label. It can seem a bit of an annoyance to have to review all the choices we have these days plus add the labels to the mix but once you start doing it, you will find it makes it easier to make healthier choices.

Cereal is often eaten as breakfast or as a snack so choosing a healthy kind will ensure you are eating well all day long. On the contrary, if you are choosing not-so-healthy cereals to eat, you are filling your body up with empty calories, a load of sugar, and not much nutritional value in your diet.

When choosing a cereal, you need to look for various factors to make sure that one cereal covers a lot of bases. One of the factors at the forefront of cereal is to find one that is made with whole grains. Eating whole grains can improve your health and has been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease. You should have at least one serving of whole grains per day but more is better. Cereals made with refined grains haven’t been shown to have any health benefits at all. Whole grains have also been shown to help with weight reduction.

You also want to find cereals that is low in sugar. To do so, look at the ingredients list on the nutritional guide. If sugar is listed in the top few ingredients, the cereal likely has a lot of sugar. The farther down on the list of ingredients, the lower the amount of sugar. You also want to read the label to look for cereals with no saturated fat or trans fats.

Many people feel that when you take all those things away, you will only find a cardboard-tasting cereal that you will not want to eat. However, there are many tasty cereals that are nutritious and the varieties keep expanding. Getting creative, you can add taste and extra nutrition by incorporating fresh fruit into your meal. You can also add nuts or dried fruits.

Eating a fulfilling and nutritional breakfast is a great start to any day. Eating the right kind of breakfast will help you maintain energy and avoid the mid-morning sugar slump. Even kids can learn to enjoy healthier cereals instead of getting addicted to sugary from a young age. They just need the encouragement and the good example set by their parents and will likely follow their lead.

© 2009, FIT FOR EVER. All rights reserved.

Typically seen on late night infomercials, the Ab Rocker is supposed to take inches off your waistline through just 5 minutes a day.  While abdominal workouts are good for toning a small group of muscles, it is really only effective as part of an overall, more comprehensive fitness plan for the rest of your body.

The Product
The Ab Rocker is about two feet wide and five inches tall when folded up for storage.  It’s similar to a seat, and has handles that you use to rock your way up into a crunch position.  The equipment doesn’t come with diet information or recommendations for supplements or any other health information.

As people become more health conscious, we’re all aware that belly fat is dangerous.  While the Ab Rocker will take someone without a lot of belly fat and help them tone and sculp their middles – someone with a lot of excess weight around their belly is not going to have the same result.  Individuals with excess belly fat will need to lose weight first, before toning the muscles for the lean and sculpted look the Ab Rocker promises.  Definition of muscle can only show up when there is no fat covering it, and as most people know, fat is burned through total body workouts and healthy diets.  The Ab Rocker can give your abdominals a good workout, but it’s not enough to burn excess belly fat.

Most people who purchase or consider buying the Ab Rocker would do so because they are overweight and are looking to get into shape.  Unfortunately, the Ab Rocker does not do anything to help someone lose any significant weight, or to learn about healthier eating habits and overall body fitness levels.  Everyone would love to have a flat stomach, but if you’re using the Ab Rocker and starting out with a spare tire around your middle, you shouldn’t expect this product to help you lose the excess weight.  You will need to do additional exercise and healthy eating to lose the weight before you can see the definition the Ab Rocker will help add to your abdominal muscles.

Consumer Reviews

There are consumer reviews for the Ab Rocker all over the internet.  It seems the majority of people who have tried it have not been overly impressed.  Some people complain of the product hurting their back while others claim it was ineffective when used the recommended five minutes per day.

© 2009, FIT FOR EVER. All rights reserved.

Here is some background information on Bally’s Total Fitness:

Bally’s Total Fitness has been operating health clubs since the mid-1960′s and is one of the most popular fitness chains in the America. To date, there are over 4 million active members in the world with over three hundred locations in the country and eighty-plus in other areas of the world. Bally’s has been know for the variety of services they offer to their members, some of which is supplementary to its membership, including personalized training, nutritionists, physical rehabilitation, and even organized fitness classes, such as yoga and dance.

Some Negative Press
Over the years, Bally Total Fitness has been the subject of negative criticism concerning its membership options, accounting procedures, and has even experienced issues with bankruptcy. Many members contested the way the membership was set up and their overall level of satisfaction. Essentially, members can opt to join a club on a singular basis or purchases a membership that admits them worldwide to any Bally’s club.

Not All Are Alike
Since Bally’s has so many clubs in operation, not all will rate the same as the others. Individual locations may offer and provide services that vary in quality. One of the popular negative concerns about the club is that due to its popularity, the workout areas are often crowded, making it hard to access equipment and space at times. There is also the aspect of the highly commercialized environment in which the club sells products and additional services relevant to fitness that can be quie pricey.

While membership does afford you the most up-to-date exercise equipment technologies, unless you are avid and active member of the club, the high price of membership might be unnecessary for you. There has also been concern with the contractual obligations for membership, in that you must keep paying even if you quit going. If you do go regularly, you will benefit for th some clubs additional amendments such as the swimming pools, tennis courts, and even running tracks that are at certain locations.

If you are interested in becoming a member of your local Bally Total Fitness club, be sure you first go and take a tour of the facility. You want to know what options you will have before signing up. Be sure to discuss the membership plans and sign up only for the one you can afford. Do not let a inspired salesperson talk you into services you don’t necessarily want or need. You also may want to consider joining with a friend to stay motivated about your exercise routine. Special membership offers may be available if you bring a friend. If you have any questions or concerns, ask a representative before signing up for a paid membership.

(Author’s Aside: Several years ago, I joined a Bally Total Fitness in Philadelphia, PA. My intention was to use the exercise equipment but my main objective was to have access to the swimming pool year-round. Within a month or two of my membership commitment, the gym moved to a different location. That location happened to be a historic landmark that would not allow a swimming pool to be constructed at the new location. I fought to get out of the contract and initially lost, even though per the terms of there contract, they did not provide exact facilities after the move. Eventually, I was able to get out of my contract because I moved to a location that did not have a Bally’s within 50 miles of my new home.)

© 2009, FIT FOR EVER. All rights reserved.

•    Healthy Habits Don’t Take Vacation-  There are some people who anticipate problems with their diet or exercise while on vacation.  Others know that if you truly have adopted a healthy lifestyle, vacations won’t change the way you eat or exercise.  After all, vacations are meant to give you a chance to relax, refresh and re-energize, not to totally give up the healthy habits you have adopted over time.  Understanding this will make having a healthy vacation less like a punishment and more like an extension of regular daily activities.
•    Plan Ahead To Fit In Fitness-  Inquire about fitness accommodations when booking your hotel or vacation rental.  Perhaps you don’t want to work out at the gym while you are away. Consider other activities that you can engage in while on vacation that will give you a break from your normal “routine” while satisfying your need to exercise.
•    Dining Out Blunders- Whether you are planning a road trip, flying away to an exotic locale or going to the beach for the weekend, dining out while on vacation can throw any diet for a loop.  Of course dining out is often considered one of the perks of going on vacation as well.  You can still enjoy dining out without guilt by practicing moderation.  There is no reason you can’t try that exotic dish, as long as you don’t overdue it three or more times a day.  If you have a particularly rich meal at one sitting, balance it out with a healthier version the next time around. Remember portion control is often key to maintaining a healthy weight.  So go ahead and indulge in that fabulous desert, just share it with a friend or box half of it up for later.  Keep in mind that many menus provide a “lighter” fare or you can always ask to have something prepared special-most restaurants will try to accommodated your request.
•    Keep Things In Perspective-  You are on vacation and the point is to have fun and unwind.  If you miss a day of exercise or imbibe a bit more than you would have liked; don’t let it ruin your day.  If you have otherwise planned your vacation well you will likely find out that it is possible to not only have a great time but also at least maintain your weight.  After all, you want to bring home great memories, not extra pounds.

© 2009, FIT FOR EVER. All rights reserved.