We LOVE Anita Predictions- a Facebook application that tells your daily prediction and horoscope.  Skeptical? Of course you are, but Anita has shocked many (including us) with her spot on predictions.  You can choose to post them on your wall for friends to read and comment, or keep it to yourself.  Accurate or not, Anita is always positive and in some small way motivates or inspires us everyday.  And if nothing else, it's just plain fun!

As if we needed another reason to love Tracy Anderson!  This was an email that we recieved yesterday from Tracy and wanted to share with the rest of you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

~Amanda and Deborah

Of all of the holidays throughout a given year, the one that seems to give people the most anxiety about missing their workout (and packing on pounds) is always Thanksgiving.  I am here to tell you to not worry, to enjoy yourselves tomorrow, and to eat all the stuffing and pumpkin pie that you need.  It's only 1 meal out of the year, and as I mentioned in my previous post, our social and emotional connection to food is so strong and it is important to not deprive yourself of the family table.  Don't make 100 calorie stuffing, reduced fat gravy, or gluten free pie (trust me, you will go to bed wishing you had had the real stuff).  Enjoy yourself, and on Friday, after you are ready for a little break, put on your workout clothes, and follow along to this little video that I have created specifically for a post-Thanksgiving workout.

It's alright to let yourself go as long as you can get yourself back!  That's what my superstar trainers and I are here for.

Love,
Tracy

Reviewed by Ashley VonHatten- Book Worm

If ever you needed the motivation to work out then this is your book--proving that exercise not only makes you feel good, but may actually make you smarter!  While I'm not usually one to read non-fiction, this book is an entertaining look into exercise and the transformative effects on the brain--detailing amazing case studies (such as the revolutionary fitness program in Naperville, Illinois, which has put this school district of 19,000 kids first in the world of science test scores).  Since finishing this book last week, I have been clocking daily thirty minute cardio sessions and even invested in a heart rate monitor (as the author recommends) to make sure that I am working out to my greatest capacity, and thus receiving all the wonderful benefits.

Now all I need is the Tracy Anderson Mat DVD and you will be able to bounce quarters off my behind!

I know we've gushed about Tracy Anderson before but seriously...SHE IS AMAZING!!  I recently (about a month ago) bought her mat workout DVD and it is the best thirty dollars I have EVER spent.  My youngest of 3 children is now 8 months old and I just couldn't shed those lingering pounds.  It was starting to drive me crazy that I still wasn't back in my favorite jeans (Hudson skinnies).  I've been doing the mat workout 5-6 days a week for last 4 weeks and I'm now smaller than my prepregnancy size.  I love the Dance Cardio too, but unless you are a trained dancer, I recommend the "beginner" video to start.  Mine is on order!

October gets me pumped for Halloween and all things spooky and scary.  Not stupid Wes Craven, Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake scary.   I like thoughtful, conversation provoking, well acted and intense scary.  I have no problem with blood and gore, but it's got to be tempered, serve a higher purpose and accompany a great script.  And this brings me to Let Me In, the fantastic remake of the Swedish film, Let The Right One In.  The story revolves around a lonely 12 year old boy who befriends his new next door neighbor, a little girl that also happens to be a tormented vampire.  Much more along the lines of Interview With a Vampire (fantastic) than Dracula 2000 (ridiculously stupid) Let Me In is directed by Matt Reaves, the director of Cloverfield and brings out wonderful acting from its two child stars Chloe  Moretz and Kodi Smit-McPhee.   Moretz, with her expressive eyes, curled lips and great lines like "I'm not a little girl.  I''m nothing."  is especially mesmerizing.  Good vampire movies are fun.  Good, realistic vampire movies are even better and that's what I kept thinking as I watched this movie:  if there really was a 12 year old vampire girl, part beautiful innocence and part violent beast, her existence would probably be a lot like it is in this movie.  If you want a great spooky Halloween scare, see Let Me In.

Wear it like Beckam!  Whether these new balance bands really work or not they are for sure the new fashion craze.  Professional athletes, celebrities and of course, people like us are adding the Power Balance ($30) bracelet to this year's list of accessories.  Said to harmonize your body's inner strength to restore natural, equal balance.  I must say, if it is possible for me to accomplish a set of reverse lunges without looking like I had a bottle of vodka before class I just might give the Power Balance a try (in my favorite color no doubt).  

It's the perfect time of year to escape the gym and get some fresh air.  Inspired by Athleta's "chi-mail" featuring former Alpine skier and competitive mountain biker, Tina Vindum who talks about Environmental Integration and Sensory Awareness and how to incorporate 10 Base Moves into your outdoor fitness routine.  If you're not "in" to being at one with nature, at least check out the Base Moves, it's a nice refresher course on form and basic exercises you can do anywhere. 

Here's a brief explanation of Environmental Integration and Sensory Awareness: The Core of Your Core by Tina Vindum:

The practice of sensory awareness takes us to a place deep within ourselves. As you connect to everything that you see, hear, touch, smell, feel—even taste—you’ll go deeper and deeper into what I call the “core of your core.” You are so integrated with the environment that you become part of it, and it becomes part of you. It’s a place where your senses become so heightened that it feels almost surreal. It’s a mental and emotional high. It’s a place of hyper-consciousness. It’s very primal. And it’s very wonderful. When you get to the core of your core, you discover it’s a place where you feel deeply alive, deeply grateful and deeply connected to the world around you, and to your inner self.  For the rest of the article....