Blog Posts by FITNESS Magazine

Fitness MagazineBy Marisa Cohen

The two figures standing in front of me one recent winter morning could not look more different. On the right is Carrie McCulloch, MD, a musculoskeletal anatomy expert and the medical director for Kinected Pilates studio in New York City, who is sizing up the shape of my waistline. Dr. McCulloch's own midsection happens to be perfectly rounded because she is only weeks away from giving birth to her first child. On the left is her assistant, Mr. Bones, one of those hanging skeletons that teach medical students how the thigh bone's connected to the hip bone. Mr. Bones doesn't actually have a waist, just a hollow space between his ribs and pelvis.

Dr. McCulloch is demonstrating how this inner bony foundation can set the stage for your torso's outer appearance, tapping the stacked bones that make up her assistant's spine.

I ask Dr. McCulloch how I ended up with a relatively slim 26-1/2-inch waist that has forced me to belt every pair of pants I've ever bought in order to

Photo courtesy of Las Ventanas al ParaisoBy Colleen Moody

If the idea of lounging poolside with endless margaritas makes you yawn, try booking your honeymoon at one of these fit resorts. You know what they say -- the couple that sweats together stays together!

Related: The Best and Worst Foods to Eat on Your Wedding Day

Las Ventanas al Paraíso, Mexico
Tennis! Horses! Tequila lessons! This Los Cabos resort has a little bit of everything. Spend your days yachting, surfing, or on a desert excursion...and your nights wining, dining, and dancing. Newlyweds can also enjoy romantic perks like an aphrodisiac dinner menu, salsa lessons, or an ATV ride through the Baja desert. Visit rosewoodhotels.com/lasventanas for more information.

Green Island Resort, Australia
This destination gives you the chance to actually live on one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, as it's located on the Great Barrier Reef in Tropical North Queensland. Extremely eco-sensitive to guests and the surrounding areas, diving, snorkeling, and

Mary Lynn Blabutta/Fitness MagazineBy Sara Droman

The clock strikes five, but you're not even close to being done with your day. Meanwhile, Ms. Perfect in the next cube is scooping up her purse and bidding all a cheerful goodbye. Want to know her secrets to getting more work done in less time? Our experts can help.

Related: Grab and Go: The Best Breakfast Bars for Busy Mornings

1. Feeling Good? Get to Work!
Laura Stack, author of Leave the Office Earlier, says that one of the biggest ways that people waste time not is by not matching their tasks to their energy level. "During peak energy periods, you should be working on complex tasks, like writing proposals or number crunching." Save the filing and answering e-mails for low-energy times. Unfortunately, Stack says that when office workers are in a good mood they tend to socialize. "That's when they want to do the fun stuff. Then they feel energy lag and say, 'I guess I should get to work.' So something that would have taken 30 minutes in a peak zone could take 90

Andrew Southam/Fitness MagazineThe Biggest Loser's Alison Sweeney may spend more time on TV than she does in front of it, but the multitasking mom has mastered the art of finding exercise options in her living room or hotel room. "When it comes to working out, I don't just let it happen; I make it happen. I think about it a day in advance," says Sweeney, who walks the talk on these pages. Got 24 minutes during your fave sitcom? Then sculpt sexy muscles at home. "Anyone can do it," says Sweeney's trainer, Stevie Sant'Angelo, who designed this fast allover firm-up exclusively for FITNESS using just a couch and a single resistance band. "You'll get your sweat on and tone all the top trouble zones on your own schedule." Do 15 reps of each move then repeat the circuit twice. Stash the band between your sofa cushions so it's always on hand to keep your body supersleek.

Row Boat
Targets: Back, shoulders, and biceps

• Loop center of band around couch leg and sit on floor facing couch, holding ends of band in each hand,

Jonathan Kantor/Fitness MagazineBy Melissa Daly

Quit playing hunger games. The new rules of dieting will surprise you -- and keep you slim and satisfied.

1. Find your balance.
Calories in, calories out. We've been told that dropping pounds or maintaining our weight rests solely on this simple equation. Wrong! "In reality, not all calories are created equal," says dietitian Ashley Koff, RD, a coauthor of Mom Energy and a FITNESS advisory board member. "Quality is just as important as quantity." Here's why: Munching two 100-calorie packs of cookies for your midmorning snack gives you a total of two to three servings, or about 36 grams of carbs, and very little protein. Your body uses just 15 to 20 of those grams of carbs for energy, and unless you're highly active, it will probably store the rest, Koff explains. As a result, you end up gaining weight rather than losing it.

Stop the calorie obsession and focus more on balancing your nutrients. "Every time you eat, aim for ­unlimited amounts of nonstarchy vegetables

Headstand PoseBy Hagar Scher

For centuries, yoga gurus have said this ancient mind-body practice can do more than just keep you fit and flexible. In fact, they believe that regularly twisting your body like a pretzel on a sticky mat will yield incredible health benefits -- staving off insomnia, extra pounds, even heart disease. Skeptical? We were too, at first, so we did some digging to see if we could track down legitimate research to back up these bold claims. Here's what we found:

Lower-Back Pain
Yoga increases the range of motion in your hips, which can reduce lower-back pain, says Loren M. Fishman, MD, coauthor of Relief is in the Stretch: End Low Back Pain Through Yoga (W.W. Norton & Company, 2005). In fact, a small study of older women (ages 44 to 62), presented at the American College of Sports Medicine's annual meeting last year, suggests that yoga increases lower-back flexibility and diminishes pain. A word of caution: People suffering from persistent lower-back pain need a professional

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.comBy Kati Mora, MS, RD

The last thing you probably want to think about on your wedding day is the food you can and cannot eat. But you might be interested in knowing that what you munch on can make a big difference in how you feel on the big day. Here, the best and worst foods to nosh on before and after saying "I do."

Related: 10 Sanity Savers to Be a Better Bridesmaid

The Secret Superfood: Asparagus
It might not be the first food that comes to mind when planning your menu, but according to Lauren O'Connor, MS, RD, munching on some stalks throughout the day has some big perks. O'Connor says asparagus has diuretic-like properties that can help fight bloating, along with keeping you fuller longer due to the high fiber content. And when you're trying to look good in a custom-fit wedding dress, these two things are kind of a big deal.

For On-the-Go Grazing: Homemade Trail Mix
Your wedding day will be the happiest day of your life and also the longest. It's important to have a stash of

Peter Ardito/Fitness MagazineShould you take Vitamin E? What's the best source of Vitamin C? What are flavonoids anyway? We've got the answers.

Related: The Top 10 Antioxidant-Packed Foods

Vitamin C
Research showing that vitamin C can damage cells' DNA has received a lot of attention, but these studies were done in test tubes, not people. Most experts say vitamin C is safe in moderate doses. And many people appear to be skimping on C. Experts say 20 to 30 percent of Americans may have low levels in their blood and up to 16 percent may be deficient. In a British study done last year, men and women with high blood levels of C had about half the risk of dying from heart disease, cancer and other ailments than those with low levels. In addition, C protects against cataracts. In a 14-year study of 478 women, Tufts University researchers found that those who took vitamin C supplements reduced their risk of developing cataracts by a third.

Vitamin E
Whether vitamin E can prevent heart disease is still an open