Just a piece of foam?

I have to share one of the best fitness tools I've come across recently - a foam roller. If I have a muscle ache (or a few!) I just grab my roller and ease muscle soreness in just a few minutes. That's what happened this weekend after a long run and weights session - I spent some time stretching and using the roller and it made an enormous difference!

Question: What works for you?

California bound!

Heading to sunny (hopefully!) California this week and can't wait! Am frantically trying to get things in order before I leave but wanted to drop in and say hello to all. I've been trying to crank up the miles on the weekends - with the half marathon looming in less than a month, it's about time! But I also wanted to hit my upper body in the gym and that's what I did on Sunday....paying the price today!

Question: When you work out for longer than an hour, how do you refuel? Sports drink, protein shake, goo????? Or do you stick to water until you get a chance to grab a carbs/protein snack?

Let me know! I want to try it out wayyyyy before the race!

New Oxygen book!

Here it is, on sale this week! I'm so excited about it - let me know what you think!!!!!

btw, you can buy it online too: just go to oxygenmag.com/books - it's $9.99 US.

(hope you like it!)

Question: What are your eating challenges today?

Check out your cover!

One of the best times at the Arnold this year was having you and other Oxygen readers up on stage in front of our "mock" covers - all of you looked terrific! Have a look on Facebook....

What's your opinion?

I did a boot camp recently (thanks to pro triathlete Heather Gollnick at Sandpiper Bay, Florida!) and what a blast! A minute never seemed so long and then onto the next challenge - burpies to V-sits to Bosu balancing to running around pylons....a 45 minute calorie sizzler. (Although I did many push-ups, I wanted to spend more time in the gym doing weights....on vacation, I actually like testing out all the facilities!)

Question: When you go on vacation, what do you look for in a hotel?  

So many stories....

I absolutely love to hear about people's transformation stories - be it physical or psychological, it doesn't matter: I just have to hear it. The indomitable willpower of some people - from young ones to old - constantly impresses me. In our next special, for instance, we're highlighting an amazing woman who overcame incredible odds to do her own thing....

Question: Do you know somebody who has transformed themselves?

Does coffee perk you up?????

So I'm reading today in a newsletter from the folks at Tufts University that women who drink coffee are actually less prone to strokes - if you drink at least one cup of coffee, researchers in Sweden say, you're 24% less likely to suffer a stroke. Apparently it's the polyphenols in coffee that actually are credited for this, which makes me a happy camper! (I tend to like to get most of my days started with a nice big cup (or cups) of java!).

Question: How do you start your day?