Patagonia, Loulu

Looking for an extremely comfortable shoe.  Look no further than the Patagonia Loulu.  The shoe comes with a wide toe box and fits like an old worn in shoe that you always loved.  The Loulu is a minimalist shoe, which  is super light and comfortable out of the box.  The shoe is relaxed and stylish and can be worn in a business casual environment.

The retail price is $130.00.  For those who are barefoot runners, they may really like the look and the feel of these shoes.  They are definitely worth a look. 

Free Running, 3Run

Here is a very cool video on Free Running. Free Running basically uses the environment to perform all sorts of acrobatic moves while running. Check out all sorts of cool Free Running stuff at http://www.3run.co.uk/

3RUN Showreel from 3run on Vimeo.

Gecko Yoga Mat, David Swenson

Looking for an amazing yoga mat, well my personal favorite right now is the Gecko Yoga Mat by David Swenson.  I recently discovered the Gecko while trying out a yoga class at Castle Hill Fitness n Austin, Texas.  IMO the Gecko is by far the best mat on the market right now.

David Swenson is one of the world’s foremost instructors of Ashtanga Yoga Practice.  David designed the Gecko Mat for the ultimate comfort, durability and support for Yoga.  The mat is a balance between the durable mats that provide good support but are too heavy to carry and lighter-weight mats that may not provide enough support and don’t last.

The Gecko mat measures 74” long x 26” wide x 5MM thick – so it is slightly longer, wider and thicker for added comfort - but weighs only 5 lbs (30% lighter than comparable mats).   The mat is engineered and made in Germany from the strongest, most durable latex-free materials available.   You'll love the density and surface of this mat.  The mat is latex free and comes in various colors including (Olive, Indigo Purple, Black and Ebony).  The retail price is $75, but may be found cheaper at various Yoga studios and online.

What I have found really appealing about the mat other than its intended design, is the fact that it is probably the best mat out there for doing P90X workouts.  The mat has a non-slip surface and doesn't seem to move when doing high impacted movements such as plyometrics and Kenpo X.

Bowflex SelectTech 552 Dumbbells

If you want to get a good strength workout at home, but don't have much space, the Bowflex 552 SelectTech Dumbbells are an ideal solution. Newly designed, the innovative pair of 552 SelectTech Dumbbells combines 15 sets of weights into one using a unique dial system. It's one of the most space-efficient and flexible strength-training options available with its unique and effective design. With just the turn of a dial, you can automatically change your resistance on each dumbbell from 5 pounds all the way up to 52.5 pounds of weight. It adjusts in 2.5-pound increments (up to 25 pounds), enabling you to gradually increase your strength without bulking up.

Weight Range: 5 to 52.5 lbs (2.27 to 23.8 kg) for each dumbbell 

• Each dumbbell adjusts from 5 to 52.5 pounds; adjusts in 2.5-pound increments up to the first 25 pounds
• Lets you rapidly switch from one exercise to the next
• Combines 15 sets of weights into one, using a unique dial system
• Eliminates the need for multiple dumbbells cluttering your workout space
• Five-year warranty on weight plates, two-year warranty on parts
•  Weight Settings in pounds: 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15, 17.5, 20, 22.5, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, and 52.5 pounds 
• Dumbbell Dimensions (Each): 15.75 inches long by 8 inches wide by 9 inches tall 
• Weight (Each): 52.5 pounds / 23.8 kg 

7 Key Foods to Help You Get the Most Out of Your Workout

By Karen Tonnis
At some point in your hooked-in, hard-core Beachbody^® experience, or even if you're just getting started, this thought may cross your mind: Wish I could get results even faster.

Well, now you can. Here's a list of dynamic foods that bring a lot to the table. Not only do they fit within a healthy nutrition plan, they're capable of sending your lazy taste buds a nice wake-up call.

Fish - A powerhouse of lean protein, fish lets you load up without blowing your calorie budget. The very leanest choices include white-fleshed fish like flounder or tilapia, as well as most shellfish, including lobster. Even dark-fleshed fish like tuna and salmon are considered lean, and the fat they provide (in the form of fish oil) can help regulate hormones and metabolism and reduce inflammation.Of course, all this muscle-building power won't show up as a six-pack if you're not careful about how the fish is prepared. Watch out for calorie bombs like deli tuna salad and deep-fried fish or calamari.

Tomatoes - Make the lowly tomato your best friend and you could potentially up your chances of staying healthy and recovering faster. They're loaded with vitamins, minerals, fiber, and phytonutrients. And because they're particularly rich in vitamin C and carotenoids, they may boost heart health, fight oxidative stress, protect against a variety of cancers, and combat inflammation. Tomatoes also contain potassium, an electrolyte that helps maintain fluid balance.

Açai berry - What look like ordinary small, purple berries are actually one of the best superfoods in the world. Açai berries contain one of the highest concentration of antioxidants of any known food, along with fiber, iron, amino acids, and healthy omega fatty acids. Add them to your diet in the form of juice or pulp and you can expect a load of benefits, including increased energy, faster recovery rate, boosted immune system, stabilized blood sugar levels, and more.

Dark green leafy vegetables - Breaking news: Popeye was right about eating spinach. Especially if you want to build muscle FAST. The antioxidants found in dark green vegetables help counteract the oxidative muscle damage that comes with heavy training or exercise. So vegetables like broccoli, collard greens, lettuce, kale, and our hero spinach should be high on your list.

Blueberries - Mom could've said, "Eat your blueberries and you'll grow up strong." This miniature superfruit is chock-full of nutrients and antioxidants. So if you're involved in strenuous activity, a daily cup or two of blueberries can help reduce cell damage. They also promote healthy blood pressure and contain complex carbs and fiber to help sustain energy and keep you in the game.

Eggs - When you're trying to add muscle, protein is as important as any dumbbell or training buddy. Most important, you want increased "clean calories" from whole, natural, unprocessed foods—like eggs. Eggs are one of the most perfect proteins for growing lean muscle. By incorporating egg whites into your diet (with a small amount of egg yolk), you can get a high amount of protein for a relatively low number of calories. Six egg whites will give you 99 calories and 21 grams of protein. Now that's a deal.

Green tea - If you're working out regularly, giving your body a constant supply of antioxidants can promote quicker recovery on a cellular level. And drinking green tea is a good way to vary your antioxidant intake. On top of its antioxidant properties, green tea can help protect the cardiovascular system and increase metabolic rate (which supports weight control), and may provide some anticancer and blood pressure–reducing benefits.

Add these 7 foods to your oxidant-fighting arsenal.
Go ahead and rev up your engine with these heavy hitters for quicker results. But don't neglect your regular exercise program and healthy eating plan. Those are the real key. Start with a sound regimen, then add these seven for extra kick.

Shakeology, From The Fields

Here is a pretty cool video that shows you some of the fantastic ingredients in Shakeology. Follow the ingredients hunter has he takes you from the highest cliffs and densest jungles of Peru.

Ask The Experts: Can P90X Work For Runners?

Updated: Oct 26th 2010 9:27 AM EDT by Matt Fitzgerald

Q.

Matt,

You recently mentioned that strength training and focusing on plyometrics, stretching, and mobility work are important as you age. Curious as to your opinion of P90X if implemented into a running program?

Tim S.

A.

Tim,

An interesting and timely question. Who is the cover boy of the forthcoming November issue of Competitor? Tony Horton!

Apparently you’re not the only runner who is curious about Horton’s workout craze. In the cover story written by Jeff Banowetz, Horton says, “I can’t tell you how many marathoners I know who stopped their training—and started using us.” The article also includes the story of a once-overweight triathlete who gave P90X a try and set a PR in his next 5K. If you snoop around on internet running forums you’ll find lots of sunny testimonials from runners who have benefited from P90X.

The reasons it’s helpful to runners are pretty clear. First of all, the program is high-volume—you’re working out an hour a day, on average. Second, most of the workouts are high heart-rate. Even the strength workouts are uptempo and allow little rest, so you’re getting a good cardiovascular boost even as you gain strength. And third, P90X addresses some key weaknesses that many runners have: namely, strength, flexibility, mobility, power, and anaerobic endurance. So even though the typical runner who tries P90X runs less for 90 days, he gains more than he loses.

There’s obviously more than one way a runner can incorporate P90X into his training, and the best way depends on individual considerations. One good way to use it is as an off-season cross-training program. Stop or curtail your running and switch your focus to P90X over the winter, then ramp up your running in the spring and retain two or three mini P90X-style workouts in your weekly regimen to maintain the well-rounded fitness you’ve earned.

Completing the full P90X program as designed is not the most efficient way to improve your running through cross-training. The program was not specifically designed for runners, after all. You’ll probably get the greatest possible boost in your running performance if you maintain a fairly high running volume and cherry pick parts of the P90X program to add to your routine. Research shows that a modest amount of strength and power training gives runners as much performance benefit as they can possibly get from these types of training (provided they also run a lot). Any additional time spent in the gym would be better spent running. P90X definitely prescribes more strength, power, and flexibility and mobility training, too, for that matter, than any runner needs.

Put another way, suppose you cloned yourself twice. One you continued running and avoiding cross-training. Another you quit running and switched to P90X. A third you cut back modestly on his running and made up the difference with an equal volume of strength, power, flexibility and mobility training pulled out of P90X. After 90 days, this third you would show the biggest improvement in a running performance test.

The thing I like most about P90X is that it makes people work really hard, and the marketing is very up-front about that. Most runners really don’t work very hard. They are willing to spend a lot of time training, but they resist the pain of high intensities. That’s too bad, because high-intensity exercise has magical effects on fitness that no amount of moderate-intensity running can replicate. I believe that the high-intensity element of P90X is probably the primary factor behind the performance benefits that many runners seem to get from it—an even more important factor than strength and power improvements. You don’t need to do P90X to get the benefits of high-intensity training, and every runner—whether he uses P90X in whole, in part, or not at all—should do some high-intensity running, but for those runners who are not on intimate terms with the scorched-esophagus feeling that comes at the end of a set of hard intervals on the track, P90X represents a good way to learn to love—or at least tolerate—that sort of training.

Matt