 Illustration by Justin Renninger The temps go up, and so does the crime. It happens nearly every year in every city across the country, and, unfortunately, we all know Philly isn’t a city full of saints. In the last month, I’ve followed the Sabina Rose story in horror, and we here at Philly Mag have dealt with our own set of scares. One of our co-workers was mugged right near Rittenhouse a few weeks ago—thankfully she’s okay!—and two weeks ago I came home from a weekend-long camping trip only to find my car had been stolen from a spot in No. Libs that I had thought was totally safe and fine. It was found a few days later in Camden, completely gutted and stripped. So to do our part in keeping everyone safe this summer, we rounded up a list of area self-defense classes. Sign up, stay aware, and take a few minutes to purchase a key chain Mace Pepper Spray like the one I tote around (yes, it’s hot pink, and no, I don’t care)—and learn how to use it. — Class descriptions and research by Jillian Skrocki READ MORE
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Doing the same routine over and over? Can't stand the thought of yet another run? Lauren Boggi shares how to slim down while shaking things up
 Lauren Boggi Mix it up: If you’re like most people, you like routines (manicures on Mondays, shopping on Sundays). Unfortunately, strict routines shouldn’t apply to fitness. Doing the same exercises day in and day out can bore both your muscles and your mind. In my experience, when many people get bored with workouts, they stop. Try varying your exercise routine on a regular basis. Aim for a combo of cardio exercises, strength training, and classes to stay interested.
Have fun: No matter how many strategies you use, it’ll be super-hard to stick with a program and become fit and healthy if you aren’t having any fun doing it. If you don’t enjoy “working out,” playing sports is a great way to bring back the good ‘ole days of gym class and practice. Besides, combining sports and socializing is fun! Try your skills at hip-hop dancing, Flamenco, kickboxing, and self-defense. READ MORE
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The tasty local veggie to eat now (With 26 calories per cup, this is one sweet snack)
 It’s early summer and that means beans. One of my favorites is the crisp, sweet and satisfying sugar snap pea.
Easily confused with a flat-surfaced snow pea, snap peas have a more rounded shape and are a member of the pod fruit family and are oh-so-good for you. One cup of snap peas has a mere 26 calories and no fat. They are a great source of dietary fiber and loaded with nutrients like Vitamins C, A, and K, as well as thiamin, folate, iron, and potassium. READ MORE
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The director of Jefferson-Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University and Hospital and the author of "The Great Life Makeover" will be blogging for Be Well bi-weekly
 Daniel A. Monti, MD Dr. Monti is the Executive and Medical Director of the Jefferson-Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University and Hospital. He is Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University.
Dr. Monti is an internationally recognized expert in integrative medicine, including nutrition, lifestyle therapies, alternative cancer treatments, natural hormone therapies, and mind-body medicine. He has dozens of scholarly publications and presentations in these areas and he has served as a peer reviewer for numerous medical journals and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Monti is the recipient of several federal research grants from the NIH and the Department of Health and Human Services. READ MORE
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 Photography by Shea Roggio TRX is the new way to get fit in Philly. Check out our writeup, “Training With a Twist,” about the TRX trend from Philly Mag’s July Wellness page, and try it out at one of the gyms below. What do you think about TRX? Love it, hate it? Is it here to stay or is it just another fitness fad?
PHILLY
The Sporting Club at the Bellevue
224 South Broad Street, 215-985-9193
If you needed another reason to join the Sporting Club, these so-hard-you’ll-hurt-the-next-day TRX classes are it. Group classes are capped at eight people, and you’ll work every muscle group, including the upper body, the core, and the lower body. Classes are offered three days a week, and are only available to members. For a little one-one-one training, opt for a 60-minute or half-hour personalized TRX training session. Membership $100 per month; 60-minute individual session/$67; 45-minute session/$44. READ MORE
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Don't let all of that yummy Philly produce go to waste. Here's how to enjoy it all year long
 Maura's CSA share Every Monday I pick up my CSA (community supported agriculture) food share from Pennypack Farm (685 Mann Road, Horsham). I have a regular share size that I split with my sister. It’s sustainably grown, organic produce that usually lasts me all week.
When I went to pick up my share this week, my sister told me I could keep all of the produce since she was scheduled to deliver her baby the next day and knew she wouldn’t be home to prepare it. It was all mine! But what was I going to do with all of it? Many of us are faced with this dilemma week after week as we watch our good-intention purchase of fresh produce rot away in the bottom of our refrigerator. Well, there is a pretty simple solution: Freeze it! READ MORE
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Should you do it or ditch it? We try out area classes so you don't have to waste time or money on workouts that don't make the grade
 What I wanted: A new way to work my abs and trim my arms.
What I tried: The 6 p.m. TRX & Abs class at the Sporting Club at the Bellevue
Who was teaching: Caitlin
Student/teacher ratio when I dropped by: 8:1 (8 is the max number of students allowed per class, because that’s how many TRX straps they have available, like the ones shown here).
Lockers/Showers: Um, like, the best ever. If you haven’t seen the women’s locker rooms/showers—sorry, men, haven’t been there, but I’ve heard they’re just as fabulous— you’re missing out. There’s tons of space, numerous mirrors with hair dryers and curling irons, shower caps and razors, and lots of fluffy white towels. If you forget a lock, see the super-sweet lady at the spa; she’ll let you borrow one in exchange for your ID.
What I loved: That within a matter of minutes I was already breaking a sweat and could feel my heart thumping, and 30 minutes into it a side glance to my arms right before I started another set of TRX pushups found they were visibly trembling. The class moved quickly and hit every major muscle group from all angles—oh, my poor biceps!—and the TRX moves felt new and challenging. The abs exercises allowed my arms and back to recover (slightly) in between TRX sets. READ MORE
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 Philadelphia magazine & UnitedHealthcare are in search of the area’s most–competitive office employees who could benefit from a healthier lifestyle. Four lucky offices (10 employees from each office) will face off to drop the most pounds and improve their overall wellness throughout the 8–week challenge, and will receive a free, 8–week gym membership and score tons of nutrition and healthy lifestyle tips from some of Philly’s top health and fitness experts as they compete for the title of Philly’s Fittest Office. Better eating habits, stronger fitness behaviors, and overall wellness can be achieved if you get in the game! If your office is in desperate need of a total health makeover, tell us! Find out how to enter here. READ MORE
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See which one of our new Be Well community members just walked away with $100 to REI
 Congrats to Gina Kessler of Philadelphia, our winner of the $100 REI gift card! And many thanks to the rest of you for following us on Twitter and joining the Be Well community on Facebook. We’re so glad to have you and really hope that you start to think of the Be Well site as your community: a place to share and receive Philly-centric health and fitness tips, thoughts, and triumphs. So talk to us! Comment on posts, articles, and feel free to email me with ideas, tips and questions!
And stay tuned because we have lots and lots of great Be Well giveaways planed in the coming months, so keep reading our blog and newsletter because you’ll have another chance to win soon!
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Eat! Drink! Be merry! (And still fit — comfortably! — into that bathing suit)
 The Fourth of July is one of the greatest ways to celebrate summer and America – we head to the beach, go swimming, and get together for a good old fashioned cookout. Cheeseburgers, potato salads, hot dogs, beer …. It’s no wonder people can easily consume more than 1,600 calories—nearly a day’s worth of calories—at a single BBQ. But keeping your waistline trim doesn’t mean you have to disappoint your taste buds — simple tweaks to some of your favorite summer foods is all it takes to cut mega-calories. Here are my tips—along with some amazing, better-for-you BBQ recipes—that’ll help you celebrate the 4th smartly.
It’s not a BBQ without a few dips, and this White Bean and Kalamata Olive Dip (recipe below) is sure to wow your crowd without packing on the calories. It’s simple to throw together, packed with flavor and nutrition, and pairs perfectly with whole grain pita, crackers, crusty bread, or veggies. READ MORE
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