Blog Posts by SHAPE magazine

Barefoot running: yay or nay?By Charlotte Andersen

The first time I tried barefoot running I did everything wrong. Having missed my ride and only a 3-mile jog away from home, I figured it would be the perfect opportunity to try out this new barefoot trend I'd been hearing so much about. I slipped off my heels and took off homeward. It only took a few blocks to realize that the pavement was chewing up the bottoms of my feet. I tried running on the grass instead but it was too hard to see rocks and sticks, plus it quickly became clear that there's not a lot of grass in my neighborhood. Two miles in I was leaving a trail of blood and tears. Admitting defeat, I called my husband to come and get me and spent the next week nursing my feet back to walking condition.

Lesson learned: there's a lot more to barefoot running than just running in bare feet.

RELATED: 8 Ways to Stay Warm on Winter Runs

More recently, I've tried barefoot running the way the experts advise: start out slow, build your foot strength, run indoors

Too much fruit can sabotage your weight-loss effortsLots of foods and ingredients have been at the center of controversy, but fruit? It turns out, even good old-fashioned fruit isn't immune. Our Diet Doctor, Mike Roussell, PhD, weighs in on how too much fruit could be sabotaging your weight-loss efforts. Here's what he had to say:
Fresh fruit is a healthy choice and loaded with vitamins and antioxidants; however fruit still contains calories and carbohydrates. These are two things that can stop your weight-loss progress in its tracks if left unchecked.



Whether or not you should eat fruit while dieting has always been a controversial topic. The Internet is cluttered with articles claiming that eating fruit will make you fat, while more recently Weight Watchers has deemed fruit a 'zero points food' as part of the Points Plus system, allowing dieters to eat all the fruit they want without it impacting their daily points total.



RELATED: The Top 50 Winter Foods for Weight Loss

Which is correct? Is your daily cup of blueberries to

You don't need us to remind you that eating a healthy breakfast is a good idea. But since the same bowl of oatmeal every day can get boring, you might need a few new ideas for what to eat in the morning.

"Whether you are headed to the gym or on your way out the door to work, make sure your breakfast is going to keep you going for the next few hours," says Ed Olko, personal trainer at Equinox in Palos Verdes, CA. "Your breakfast is the beginning of your day, so make it count."

Olko's top picks: A fruit smoothie and a Bagel Thin with a light smear of peanut butter; an English muffin with egg white, a slice of turkey bacon, and half a piece of cheese; an egg white omelet with mushrooms, spinach, and cheese on a bagel; or plain Greek yogurt with whole grain cereal and/or fresh fruit mixed in.

Read on for more great breakfast ideas from health and fitness fanatics.

Farm fresh eggs and veggies1. Jennifer Purdie, 34, Ironman athlete and marathon runner: My favorite thing to eat for breakfast is an egg white

Is a preference for fat in your genes?Rather than a sweet or salt tooth were you born with a 'fat tooth'? In a new study published in the journal Obesity researchers examined the link between genetics and fat preference. Over 300 male and female subjects were asked to rate their perceptions of salad dressings prepared with varying amounts of oil. They assessed the dressings' creaminess, how much they enjoyed them, and provided information about their fondness for other fatty foods, like half-and-half, bacon, hot dogs, French fries, cheese , chips, and doughnuts. The scientists also collected saliva samples to test the subjects' DNA.

RELATED: Ask the Diet Doctor: Are You Eating Too Many Healthy Fats?

They found that those who had certain forms of a particular gene, roughly 20 percent of the population, rated the salad dressings as creamier, regardless of how much fat they contained. They also favored fatty foods more than people who have other forms of this gene. In short, the study concludes that indeed some people may

Why you don't need dancing skills to love zumbaBy Charlotte Andersen

Zumba, one of the hottest group fitness classes of2012, uses Latin dance moves to burn off the calories as you burn up the floor. But if it's so fun and such a great workout, why don't more people try it? "I can't dance!" is the most common barrier to class entry. Nobody wants to be the only "flail-er" in the room. But you don't have to be a dance pro-or even to have danced before at all-to enjoy this fun class.

Here, two readers share how they found their "Latin hips" and got a great sweat, proving that you don't have to be a dancer to fall in love with Zumba.


"I've always loved dancing but I'm horrible at it!" says Cassie Simonton, a mom of three. "I thought Zumba classes might help me because I would have someone teaching me how to dance and yet everyone would be concentrating on the teacher and be too busy to notice me and my awkwardness!"

She adds, "I was excited to try it out but wouldn't dare go by myself! I had to have a friend to laugh with me."

The creator of By Adena Andrews

If you have any type of web-enabled device, you've probably seen the new meme "Sh*t ______ Say." The trend of hilarious videos took the Internet by storm and kept us laughing in our desk chairs. BJ Gaddour, fitness boot camp and metabolic training expert, decided to hit the gym and make his own video, "Sh*t Women Say To Personal Trainers." The result? More than 700,000 YouTube hits!

While the video had us practically crying from laughter, it also made us cringe when we saw some of the things we'd been guilty of saying to our trainers at least once. That made us wonder--how should you behave with your personal trainer? How can you ensure you get the most out of it? So we went straight to the source and got Gaddour's take on what NOT to say to your personal trainer.

After two years of working as a personal trainer one-on-one with all kinds of clients, Gaddour had tons of material to work with. While his video does garner lots of laughs, it can also be a tale of how to

Would you try edible cosmetics?Beauty lotions and potions are so 2011. The newest way to make your skin glow, clear up acne, and brighten your eyes isn't with a little bottle of face cream but rather chocolate creme-as in the case of Borba's slimming chews and Frutel's new acne fighter both made out of, yes, chocolate. Apparently eating it doesn't make you break out or gain weight! That is, if you buy into it.

While women have long ingested pills and vitamins in order to grow healthier hair, stronger nails, and glowing skin, this next generation of edible cosmetics sees your puny Flinstone vitamin and raises you with a range of delicious products that include vitamins, herbs, fruit extracts, and a host of other good-for-you compounds. But why should we eat our makeup when we could get the same vitamins in their natural form by eating whole, healthy foods?

RELATED: The Top Beauty Secrets from the Best in the Business

Tanya Zuckerbrot, the official dietitian of the Miss America pageant and co-creator of the edible

These delicious snacks are proof that a gluten-free lifestyle doesn't have to be inconvenient. New to the gluten-free lifestyle? No problem! Even those who've never been gluten-free before will love these easy and tasty snacks!

Greek yogurt parfait1. Greek yogurt parfait: Skip the drive thru and make your own gluten-free yogurt parfait at home! Start with a 6-ounce container of Greek yogurt (We love Chobani black cherry for this healthy snack) and top it with 1/2 cup Gluten-Free Cinnamon Chex cereal and four raw almonds. The result is a creamy, fruity, and crunchy concoction with just 208 calories, 3 grams of fat (mostly healthy fat from the almonds), and 15 grams of protein-it's a perfectly satisfying gluten-free breakfast or dessert!






RELATED: 10 Mouthwatering Low-Calorie Desserts


Curried butternut squash soup2. Curried butternut squash soup: It can be tough to find a soup that doesn't have the "g" word in it. So instead of scouring the store shelves, make your own gluten-free soup at home! This curried butternut squash soup recipe