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National Stroke Awareness Month

Posted: 05/08/2012

National Stroke Awareness Month: Be Healthy, Be Aware, Save a Life

As we prepare for summertime activities, we typically are focused on achieving a strong, fit and healthy body. In honor of National Stroke Awareness Month this month, elevate your body’s fitness to new levels by focusing on the importance of maintaining a brain healthy lifestyle, while understanding the risk levels and signs of a stroke.

 

Kick Start Your Summer Body by Focusing on a Healthy, Fit Lifestyle

Posted: 04/17/2012

With the countdown to summer in full swing, it’s time to start focusing on a total body health and fitness routine. Whether struggling to shed the last few winter pounds, maintaining weekend warrior fitness levels or competing as an endurance athlete, everyone can benefit from a fit, healthy lifestyle built around brain wellness, body fitness and belly health.

 

This month is the perfect time to start putting in the work to achieving overall health and fitness with National Public Health Week (April 2-8) and World Health Day (April 7) leading the way to a healthier society. As the theme for National Health Week states, “A Healthier America Begins Today: Join the Movement!”1 It is time to put all excuses and distractions behind you, as today is the day to start moving toward a healthy lifestyle that will lead to positive mental, physical and overall well-being results. Let’s get started!

 

Brain Wellness

A healthy brain and a healthy body work hand-in-hand to achieve overall fitness and well-being. A happy mind and happy body are derived from a healthy fitness routine that is focused on keeping you motivated, pushing you to do better and helping you reach goals you never thought were possible. Consistent fitness routines, especially in a small group setting, not only help release feel good endorphins in your body that support a healthy lifestyle, but working out with friends/peers also can serve as a mind and body therapy session for sweating out negative attitudes, while building total body endurance and strength. A study in the Journal of Sports Sciences even found that focusing on a team or group’s strengths instead of your own can improve your body’s performance levels because working out in a group may ease your brain’s performance anxiety so you can relax, focus and reach your health and fitness goals.

 

Body Fitness

April is the perfect time to get your fit on by switching up your routine and combining a mix of cardiovascular and strength training exercises. If you have spent the winter months stuck within the walls of a gym, it can be good for your body and mind to take your workouts outside as the weather gets warmer and the sun shines longer. Instead of logging endless miles on the treadmill, hop on a neighborhood track for a quick interval sprint workout or dust off your bike for some strenuous cycling workouts. 

 

It also is important to not get stuck in a time rut by making sure that your fitness routine is burning calories and boosting your metabolism without draining the clock. A fast-paced, interval workout that incorporates short bursts of explosive cardio and strength exercises will not only cut your workout time in half, but it can be more effective for feeling your best, looking your best and performing better than you ever thought possible.

 

Belly Health

Americans’ mid-sections are not getting smaller, on the average, and the size of your belly can be a good indication of the state of your body’s health and wellness. To achieve a healthy lifestyle, it is important to focus on your body’s core, as a healthy core can lead to healthy cardiovascular systems, digestive functions and strong muscular structures. Busting out hundreds of sit ups, though, may not be the best approach to achieving a healthy middle section. Shedding an extra layer of belly bulge takes a two-prong approach of exercise and nutrition. 

While sit ups can be a part of your core workout, it is important to focus on toning all of your abdominal muscles for the best results. Effective total body exercises that work the core can include planks (elbow, hand, side), knee/leg lifting exercises and standing on a balance ball when doing your regular strength training exercises. On the food front, a healthy eating routine should include cooking more meals at home, focusing on whole, nutrient-dense foods without extra additives/preservatives/chemicals, watching portion control and drinking adequate amounts of water. A healthy belly not only leads to a reduced risk of disease, but it also supports a more confident, energetic lifestyle.

 

Ready to Kick Start a Healthy Summer Body? 

 

With only 12 weeks left until summer, it is time to get your body and mind in shape for optimal summertime fun and activities in the sun. By focusing on brain wellness, body fitness and belly health, you will have your body summer-ready in no time!

 

The experts at Fitness Together can work with you in one-on-one personal training or small group PACK training sessions to help you establish a healthy lifestyle that prepares you to look better, feel better and perform better this summer. Give our studio a call today to kick start your healthy, fit lifestyle! 

Experience Healthy Tax Relief by Deducting Your Personal Training Expenses this Tax Season

Posted: 04/03/2012

As the April 17 tax deadline nears, do you find yourself looking under couch cushions, going through office files and combing through bank statements in hopes of finding any last minute receipts or tax deductions that you may have overlooked? Well, you may not need to look any further, as good tax news may be found around the corner at your local personal training studio.

 

Does finding tax relief while working out sound too good to be true?  Surprisingly, you may be able to financially benefit from your personal training by deducting the session costs on your tax returns this year. According to the Internal Revenue Service, there are certain medical expenses that can be deducted on your tax returns, which may include personal training, in some instances.

 

Personal Training Tax Basics 101

 

While it is always recommended to consult your trusted financial advisor to confirm any tax deductions, it is important to take note that it may be possible for you to deduct part of the costs of your personal training as a qualified medical expense under the IRS tax code.

 

Interested in Receiving More Detailed Information?

 

If you think you may be eligible to start deducting your personal training sessions on your tax returns this year, contact your local Fitness Together studio today to learn more. Fitness Together is here to help support your efforts to qualify for this deduction and to help you reap the benefits of a healthy lifestyle and tax relief this season. 

Is Personal Training Tax Deductible?

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Try China's National Fruit- Kiwi

Posted: 05/21/2012

Don’t be deceived by the size of this exotic egg-shaped furry fruit. Kiwis (also known as Chinese gooseberry) are nutrition giants.

Eat Greens!

Posted: 05/14/2012

Glorious spring greens (usually a combination of mizuna, tatsoi, red oakleaf, sorrel, arugula and frisee) are simply packed with nutrition.

You Bite It, You Write it!

Posted: 05/07/2012

Write down what you eat

New Year’s Resolutions are a distant memory so now is the time to refocus and get back on track for bathing suit season!

Take Your Sweet Time...

Posted: 04/30/2012

Take time to eat your meals

The healthiest way to eat food is to eat it slowly, enjoying each bite. This simple concept may be foreign to many of us, as fast food is the American way.

Pineapple- Nature's Candy

Posted: 04/23/2012

Don’t be afraid of the natural sugar content of this sweet as candy fruit. Pineapple is a highly nutritious, low-calorie, source of vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Join FT Newburyport at the Home, Garden & Business Expo April 21st

Posted: 04/19/2012

FT Newburyport will be exhibiting at the Home, Garden & Business Expo this coming Saturday April 21, 2012 from 9-4. Join us and other local businesses at the Tannery Market Place on Water Street in Newburyport. Bring your friends and family too-we hope you'll stop by!!!

Try Rhubarb!

Posted: 04/16/2012

Do You Know About Rhubarb?

You may have heard about rhubarb pie but do you really know what this is? Often thought of as a fruit, rhubarb is actually a vegetable—a cousin of celery!