Raved about by celebrities and endorsed by sport stars across the globe, Pilates has become a staple workout for many due to its wide-ranging benefits. Maria Tracey rolls out her mat and hops onto the reformer to discover the perks. 

Are you a Pilates virgin? If so then you might associate it with impossible poses and smug celebrities. However, if you thought their toned tums and pert posteriors were entirely down to Photoshop then you'd be entirely wrong: Pilates is popular among the body beautiful for a reason: it works. 

In fact, once embraced, Pilates can make a significant difference to a person's health without taking a toll on their body as it involves conscious breathing, and proper alignment. Created by German-born Joseph Pilates in the early 1900s, Pilates helps develop a strong core, lengthens and stretches all the major muscle groups in the body in a balanced fashion, improves sports performance and prevents injuries.  Read more

This week I tried something new. I went to a Pilates class.

It’s not that I dislike yoga or Pilates, I just don’t feel the benefits as much as I do with a high-impact class. I love the feeling of my heart pounding inside my chest and fatigued muscles as I leave a studio on wobbly legs drenched in sweat.

But I also know Pilates is great for your core muscles. And as my personal trainer at Equinox James Mearns keeps reminding me: ‘In all forms of running, whether it be short, mid or long distance, the core muscles are constantly being engaged.’

Not only that but Pilates teaches breath control and activates the muscles used for respiration. Perfect for any of the Race for Life events. Pilates also helps to improve overall flexibility, strength and balance, promotes good posture, and helps correct body alignments in the hips, knee, ankle and foot.  Read more

Kate Hudson is fitter than ever at 35, thanks to Pilates workouts and a portion-controlled, low-carb, high-protein diet. Kate has been doing Pilates since age 19, and credits it for her 70-pound post-baby weight loss and lean physique.

"I like Pilates because it kind of strengthens from the inside out," Hudson told E! "It's very specific and I feel the strongest when I'm doing it because it really centers on your core."

Hudson also does yoga, runs and jumps rope. Hudson, who tipped the scales at 184 pounds while pregnant, said she has always loved working out and being sporty, saying she doesn't feel good when she's inactive.

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Strength training, traditionally favored by body builders seeking to bulk up, has become the go-to regimen for athletes, weekend warriors and exercise enthusiasts determined to slim down.

Fitness experts say metabolic strength training, a high-intensity, full-body interval workout, can add definition to the shape of runners, cyclists and other cardio devotees willing to put some muscle into it.

Florida-based trainer Nick Tumminello believes strength training should be the primary form of exercise for everyone except beginners.

"If you're looking to lose fat, go with strength training," said Tumminello, author of "Strength Training for Fat Loss." "Watch your diet to reveal your shape, and strength train to improve that shape."

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Diet and exercise are the yin and yang of a healthy lifestyle. Finding out
how to balance the two can be a delicate undertaking.

Springtime finds many Mississippians breaking out of their hibernation and
hitting the gym and pavement to get ready for the poolside days of summer.

While exercise is undoubtedly the more taxing part of the get-healthy
equation, if you aren't fueling your body properly, your hard-earned sweat could
be for naught. Go! spoke with two experts on what to eat before and after your
workouts: Dr. Ben Carr, assistant professor of sports medicine at Belhaven
University, and Paul Lacoste, local fitness guru.

Carr and Lacoste have helped Go! put together a list of foods to eat pre- and
post-workout. Of course, you should always consult a physician if you are
considering any major dietary or exercise changes.

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As a sports nutritionist, I'm always on the lookout for research about how various foods can enhance athletic performance, speed recovery, and build muscle mass. When I pass this info on to my clients, they often feel the effects quickly, and I relish remarks they share like, "Wow, what a difference!" or "I feel 10 years younger." Here are 11 foods currently on my "eats for athletes" list, the research behind why they deserve a place on your training table, and simple, healthy ways to take advantage of their benefits.

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No doubt many of us are shooing off the last remnants of winter and rejoicing that (according to the calendar, at least) it’s finally spring. Good riddance, bulky coats and stuffy gyms. Welcome, T-shirts and jogs outside, where it’s lukewarm, flowery and full of people who are equally jazzed to be walking without shivering. Hallelujah.

But then – behold, a familiar enemy.

“Now the sun is higher in the sky, you’re craving exercise, and all of a sudden, your spring allergies hit,” says Lisa Lynn, a New York-based fitness trainer. “And it’s gigantic. Now you have a new reason not to exercise, because the allergies make you feel exhausted, and some of the symptoms, like stuffy nose and irritated eyes, can be debilitating enough to make you not want to move.” 

Lynn, who specializes in performance nutrition and is perhaps best known for being Martha Stewart’s personal trainer for 13 years, is no stranger to intrusive seasonal allergies. She won’t accept sniffing and sneezing as excuses to miss out on outdoor exercise – not after you've been cooped up in a gym (or in front of Netflix) for the last few months. Below, Lynn shares advice for reaping the benefits of exercise and fresh air while avoiding the worst of spring allergies.

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Working out during pregnancy is not only beneficial for you (and baby!) now, the benefits pay off after you give birth, too.  While The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends 30 minutes of exercise on most or all days of the week, that may not be the best for you. Your body is changing constantly, which means you have to reevaluate what’s safe and your effort level as your baby grows.

Here, find out the answers to your fitness questions so you stay safe as you work out.

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No matter how technologically efficient you become, if you aren’t sleeping or eating well, and you have too much stress, there is a limit to how effective you can be.

That’s why wellness is the cornerstone of my productivity system, Less Doing. I see optimal health as a triangle with sleep, nutrition, and fitness at the points and supplements in the middle. You need all of these elements and in you have to apply limited resources to the entire triangle.

For example, if you get a bad night of sleep for one reason or another, you have to make the conscious decision to avoid working out the next day because you’ll only be doing harm to your body. By that same token if you are eating lots of wild caught fish and getting adequate sunlight, you make be able to skip out on a fish oil and vitamin D supplement.

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The formula doctors use to evaluate treadmill stress tests, and thereby assess heart health, doesn't account for important differences between men and women, a new study contends.

A revised formula would better determine peak exercise rate, or the maximum number of heart beats per minute, for each sex, the researchers said.

"Exercise physiology has been known to differ for men and women of different ages," said Dr. Gregg Fonarow, associate chief of cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles, and spokesman for the American Heart Association.

The proposal for a sex-specific maximal heart rate warrants further research, he said. "This may represent a valuable improvement for guiding exercise stress testing," added Fonarow, who was not involved in the study.

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