Author Archive

« Older Entries

KALE, SHMALE: 10 NEW THINGS TO ADD TO YOUR MORNING SMOOTHIE

Yup, I said it: Kale smoothies are old news, people. Here are 10 new things to toss into your smoothie for an extra health boost.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/17/2013 at 3:00PM | No Comments


1. Aloe

True story: I was at lunch a few weeks back with Dave Magrogan, the owner of Harvest Seasonal Grill in Glen Mills and University City, and he mentioned that his favorite thing to add to smoothies is aloe. My mind? One-hundred percent blown. I’d never heard of this! Turns out, adding a bit of aloe juice is a good call after all, since it seems to aid digestion and immune function. I’ll drink to that.

Recipe to try: Orange Aloe Creamsicle Smoothie [via Young and Raw]

READ MORE

  • Share/Bookmark

‘FATKINIS’: FAB NEW BIKINI LINE FOR PLUS-SIZE WOMEN

A blogger on a mission created a swimsuit line to make attractive bikinis for curvy women.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/17/2013 at 1:30PM | 1 Comment

Thanks to The Gloss for the heads up about a fab blogger named Gabi Gregg (a.k.a. GabiFresh), whose mission to help plus-size women embrace their curves turned into an awesome new collabo between Gabi and online swimsuit retailer Swimsuits for All.

Gabi’s been throwing around the term “fatkini” for a few years now, as part of her crusade to encourage body diversity in swimwear. Last summer, her effort culminated in a “fatkini” photo gallery, showing “31 hot sexy fat girls in skimpy swimwear.” The post landed her on the TODAY show, and got her all kinds of exposure on sites like the Huffington Post, latimes.com and more.

This year, Gabi’s back on the fatkini kick with a new bathing suit line inspired by her mission. The collaboration with swimsuitsforall.com features suits in sizes 8 to 34, and—get this—they’re actually good looking, too. In fact, that suits have been so popular that in the three days since their debut, most of the styles and sizes have already sold out. Awesome, right?

Check out this slideshow over at Teen Vogue to see a lookbook of all the styles.

  • Share/Bookmark

HAPPY BIKE TO WORK DAY!: HERE’S YOUR ULTIMATE PHILLY BIKING GUIDE

If all the two-wheelers around town today are giving you the biking bug, here are great resources to get you started.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/17/2013 at 11:47AM | No Comments

Yes, yes, we heart bikes here at Be Well Philly. Not only are they a great way to get in a work out, they’re also super convenient when it comes to city living. If you’re itching to give cycling a try, here are a handful of resources—from maps to upcoming events to hairdos that can stand up to bike helmets (really!)—to get you spinning.

READ MORE

  • Share/Bookmark

MANAYUNK TO HOST FIRST EVER ‘FIT FEST’ AND FITNESS WEEK

Get entry to a dozen local fitness studios for one flat rate.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/17/2013 at 10:46AM | No Comments

The fit biz is certainly booming in Manayunk: at last count, there were 18 (!!) fitness-related businesses in the ‘hood, from personal trainers to yoga studios to indoor cycling and rowing outfits and more. So, the powers-that-be decided to round them all up for an awesome, massive Fit Fest on June 1st, kicking off a brand-new festival called Fitness Week. Which, you know, is right up our alley here at Be Well.

Fit Fest will include free outdoor fitness classes with instructors from area studios—The Wall Cycling Studio, Merge Dance Studio, Bikram Yoga Manayunk and more—as well as vendor booths, free health consultations and the “Walk the Wall” fundraiser. During Fitness Week, you can buy a $25 punch card valid for a free class at 12 local fitness studio. The idea is to give you the opportunity to try out lots of different classes for one flat rate. (And by the way, ladies, you can think of it as a warmup for Be Well Boot Camp on June 8th, okay?)

Fit Fest will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 1st. Manayunk Fitness Week runs from June 2nd through 7th. More info, including a link to purchase the punch card, is here.

  • Share/Bookmark

THE CHECKUP: ARE THESE 10 EXERCISE MACHINES A TOTAL WASTE OF TIME?

You might want to skip the adductor machine after reading this.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/17/2013 at 7:30AM | 1 Comment

• Go ahead and scratch the following machines off your gym-rotation list: leg-curl, overhead shoulder press, ab crunch. A conditioning expert says they’re among 10 machines at the gym that are pretty much useless. [Yahoo! Shine]

• Ah, so this explains the whole Governator thing: Strong men—like, dudes who are actually physically strong—tend to have right-wing political views, according to a new study. [Daily Mail]

• Okay, so while physically revolting to me (I’ve never been a Doritos gal), Taco Bell’s Doritos Locos Tacos at least made some culinary sense. But the Bell’s newest creation, a waffle taco? That just seems like an utter misfire (not to mention, calorie bomb). [TIME]

• In case you’ve ever wondered, here are the crazy (read: scary) diets models put their bodies through for their jobs. [Huff Post Women]

• Useful! The 22 best cookbooks of 2013 (so far, I presume). [Greatist]

Photo: Shutterstock

  • Share/Bookmark

THIS YEAR, YOU CAN DO LAPS ON PHILLY’S PRO-CYCLING RACE COURSE

The Parx Casino Philly Cycling Classic is opening its course up to amateurs.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/16/2013 at 2:45PM | No Comments

If you ever watched the (now canned) Philadelphia International Cycling Championship and wished you could take a spin on the course, you’re in luck: the Parx Casino Philly Cycling Classic—the new race that replaced the Cycling Championship this year—is partnering up with Bicycling magazine to open its course early for amateur cyclists.

The so-named Bicycling Open, which will take place on June 2nd before the pro race, will allow recreational cyclists to complete as many laps as possible between 7:15 and 8:30 a.m. on the new 12-mile Parx Cycling Classic course. And get this: They’re even doing chip timing so you’ll have something to brag about afterwards.

The course is mainly concentrated in Fairmount, East Falls and Manayunk, and, of course, includes a climb up the infamous Manayunk Wall. Participants will get a swag bag, post-ride breakfast and meet-and-greet opportunity with athletes from the Cadence Cycling Foundation. Basic entry is $25, but $80 gets you a commemorative jersey, and $100 gets you entry to the CCFan Zone, located at the finish line of the pro race. Register here.

  • Share/Bookmark

SPORTING CLUB AT THE BELLEVUE ADDS AN AIRBRUSH TANNING STUDIO

Rittenhouse Square's Skin Palette is moving into the Bellevue.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/16/2013 at 1:30PM | No Comments

At the end of this month, Skin Palette airbrush tanning studio at 19th and Sansom will move five blocks east to the Sporting Club at the Bellevue. The tanning studio is the latest local business to join the Bellevue’s on-site network; the gym also houses Centerpoint Pilates, Paganos Market and Bar, NovaCare, Petrelli Chiropractic and the Athletic Spa, all of which are open to the public.

Skin Palette customers will be able to use the Sporting Club’s facilities free of charge during their visit. (We highly recommend checking out the über-luxe locker rooms, even if you don’t stay for a workout.) They can also get discounted parking in the Bellevue’s parking garage.

The studio will officially  leave its 19th street location on May 29th. Its first day of business in the Bellevue will be May 30th.

 

  • Share/Bookmark

FREE POLICE-LED 10-MILE BIKE RIDE IN CENTER CITY THIS WEEKEND

The Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia is organizing a "Safety Ride" in Center City.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/16/2013 at 10:55AM | No Comments

Here’s a pretty good way to round out Bike to Work Week. This Saturday, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and Center City District are organizing a free “Safety First” bike ride through Center City. The ride is advertised for cyclists of all levels (including families), but is really meant for newbies who aren’t yet confident about riding bikes in the city. The group will be led by a police escort as well as reps from Center City District and BCGP. All traffic laws will be obeyed and enforced throughout the ride.

The ride itself is free, of course, but organizers are encouraging cyclists to register ahead of time here. There will be raffle drawings before and after, giveaways and more.

Cyclists will gather at 9 a.m. at Washington Square Park at 6th and Walnut. The route is an almost-five-mile loop that’ll be completed twice. See the map below.

READ MORE

  • Share/Bookmark

THE CHECKUP: BIKRAM YOGA FOUNDER ACCUSED OF RAPE, HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Plus: why sodium guidelines are whack, a new way to lower your diabetes risk (hint: think stoners), and how to hydrate for better running performance.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/16/2013 at 7:30AM | No Comments

• Well, this isn’t good. Bikram Choudhury, founder of the patented 26-pose hot-yoga regimen, is headed to court after former students filed two lawsuits alleging rape, sexual assault and human trafficking. Yikes. Listen to this: “During weeks of gruelling training Choudhury singled out Jane Doe 2 [one of the women who filed the lawsuit] claiming she was ‘a piece of gold in a roomful of brass.’ His approaches became more sexual and were rebuffed. The suit alleges the exhausted student was raped when she was ‘too weak and overwrought to fight him off.’” [The Guardian]

• Cool new gadget alert: Someone invented a heart monitor that’s thinner than a dollar bill and the size of a postage stamp. [Futurity.org]

• Drink more water, people! A new study shows how rehydrating today (or not) can impact fitness performance tomorrow—in very real, very precise measurements. [Runner's World]

• It might be time to rethink everything you think you know about salt and blood pressure. New recommendations from a group of experts say that maintaining the super-low, government-recommended daily-sodium-intake levels—1,500 milligrams of salt per day if you’re at risk for cardiac problems and 2,300 milligrams for everyone else—isn’t really doing anybody any good. To wit: “Evidence is too weak to determine whether limiting sodium intake to under 2,300 per day increases or decreases the risk of heart disease or stroke. …Similarly, the report suggests that, as of now, there isn’t enough evidence supporting the 1,500 milligram recommendation for at-risk people. [U.S. News and World Report]

• Go ahead and light up a joint—a little pot may just lower your diabetes risk, according to a new study. [Blisstree]

Photo: Shutterstock

  • Share/Bookmark

HOTEL MONACO NOW OFFERING LITHE METHOD CLASSES

I tried it out this morning!

Posted by Emily Leaman on 5/15/2013 at 3:54PM | No Comments

This morning I got up at the ungodly hour of 5:30 a.m. As I’ve said on this blog before, I am not a morning-workout person. I’ve tried. I’ve failed. End of story.

But this morning I beat all odds and actually got myself out bed at said ungodly hour (go me!) to get my very tired self over to the Hotel Monaco for a 6:30 a.m. Lithe Method class. That’s right, folks—Lithe Method is officially at the Monaco, offering classes every Wednesday morning. They’re calling it “Lithe on Location” because, as Lithe purists (*ahem Carrie Denny and Christy Speer Lejeune ahem*) can see in the photo above, the set up doesn’t exaaaactly resemble a true-blue Lithe Method class. For one thing, there are no bands hanging from the ceiling. And for another, no one’s wearing trash-bag diapers. But no matter—instructor Tiffany Nork assured me that the adapted version of the studio’s Stems class would still kick my butt in the way only a Lithe class could. And so, it did.

READ MORE

  • Share/Bookmark
« Older Entries