sambazon smoothies are yummy

 If you have yet to try acai (ah-sigh-ee) you are missing out. It's a yummy fruit from Brazil that has a berry/cocoa flavor and is super loaded with healthy Omega fats, protein, and fiber. When I buy them pre-made I like the Sambazon Supergreens Revolution. They're anywhere from $2.50-$3.50 depending on what store you buy them from. However my favorite thing to do is blend my own smoothie. I use the Sambazon Pure Acai Smoothie Packs. They come in 4-packs that are about $5. It's more affordable this way, plus I figure it's better for the environment not to be purchasing individual bottles. And I like that I can control the sweetness by using stevia. 

My recipe:

-1 pack of Sambazon pure acai pulp

-1/2 cup of frozen berries (mix of raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries)

-A splash of water (to thin it out)

-Sweeten with stevia powder (or honey) to desired sweetness

You can also add any combination of fruits. My suggestions: mango, pineapple, banana, strawberries, and peaches.

This makes such a lovely & tasty smoothie. Give it a try! :-)

dumbbells in streaming colors

Empower 32 lb. dumbbell set $60I like these because the colors match our Streaming Colors Fitness Journal. But I'm still searching for cool 10lb. dumbbells. It seems as if they stop making "designer" (or, as I'm finding out "designed for women") weight sets after 8lbs. Do women not lift 10lb. weights? If you have any cool options please post them in the comments. Would love to find something soon!

beautiful dumbbells

Henriette Melchiorsen magnetic dumbbells 2.2lbs/each $200 -whoaThe time has come to step it up a notch. To increase my arm weights from 8lbs. to 10lbs. That's right, I'm going for the gold. Only I just can't bring myself to do it. Why?...after a lot of thought I came up with two possible explanations. A) I am lazy. and/or B) my 10lb. weights are ugly. Obviously it's B. At least that's what I'm telling myself. But honestly, my 10lb. weights are really ugly. They were inherited from a former boyfriend (too light for him!) and they are big, bulky, dark grey weights. Cold as steel. Nowhere near as fun as my purple neoprene 8lb. weights or my turquoise 5lb-ers. So in my quest for gold it turns out I am going to have to replace my old 10lb weights with something new and flashy... something I really really want to lift, repeatedly. How's that for motivation?!?!?! Call me crazy, but I don't think you should have to sacrifice good design for functionality. Ever. 

lululemon makes great jackets

Can't wait to see this one in the store! Though I think they missed out on a naming opportunity when they called it "Fitness Jacket." Not so creative. I think it looks sort of tough and modern/military in a japanese-y way. Samurai Jacket? I'm so sure there's a better name for it... ideas please.

swerve studio makes the A-List

Gillian Marloth & Teigh McDonough - the heart & soul of Swerve Studio, Los Angeles, CA

If you live in LA and haven't tried Yoga Booty Ballet at Swerve Studio yet you MUST GO NOW. Seriously, this place is great! It has the best energy of any fitness studio I have tried. The instructors are tons of fun! All of them. Honestly, I have never taken an unchallenging class at this studio. Ever. Also the people who take classes here are super friendly too. If you can't make it to their studio you're not totally out of luck... they also have a YBB video series. 

These ladies belong at the top of the A-List that's for sure!

want toned arms?

Try out these 7 moves from fitnessmagazine.com to tone up your arms. My fave is #7 - The Aerobox. I've seen major results from doing this a few times a week. Also, another one that seems easy but I think really shapes up arms is #3 - Wrist Rotation. My pilates instructor at Swerve Studio taught me this one years ago and it works!

this danskin top rocks!

This Danskin top is so cute! Apparently you can get a deal on it at Sport Chalet. Their website lists it at $39.99 w/free shipping available until Sept. 30th, 2008.

re-think what you drink

 I'm not a big fan of soda. No coffee either. I do drink quite a bit of tea... my fave is Jasmine Green Tea. But lately I've been trying out the GT Kombucha teas. They're made by fermenting black tea with yeast and bacteria cultures, which makes them slightly carbonated. Sounds wrong, I know. But they're actually pretty good. I like the Citrus flavor the best, and the Synergy Mango ranks second. Not sure if they really are as healthful as they claim to be, but if you're up for trying something new then find out where to buy them. 

jump rope shopping bags are fun

These shopping bags are so cool! I found them on Mika's blog. I adore his music and often listen to him when I'm working out. His sound is super energizing! My favorite song right now is Love Today. Though it'll change as time goes on, I mean, you can only listen to a song like 6,000 times before you're sick of it, right?!?! Anyway, if you haven't heard of him it's time to check him out... you're welcome.

Does anyone know what YKM is? I'm dying to know what's in those bags...

love your legs!

"the funky ballerina"Even though I grew up taking dance lessons I've never really had those amazingly toned and shapely dancer legs. In fact, I'm pretty sure I inherited my dad's hockey legs. Thanks dad. So, when I found this article on msn "love your legs!" I had to try out their "5 easy dance inspired moves" for myself. I gotta say, my fave is "the funky ballerina."

I know it doesn't look funky at all, but trust me, it feels funky when you're doing it. Anyway I had to keep referring to my laptop for the last few days while I was trying to add these 5 moves into my routine. And what I'm wondering is what other people do when they're adding new moves to their routine? How do you remember them? How do you learn fitness? And how do you make your new moves a habit? Because I'm pretty sure I would forget all 5 of these if I didn't do them consistently for awhile.