spring

Music Monday: Spring Into Action

March 18, 2013 at 12:30 pm
By FITNESS Intern

Written by Carrie Stevens, editorial intern

Even though Mother Nature doesn’t seem to know which season she wants to stick to (and we don’t really believe Punxsutawney Phil anymore), spring is on the way—in fact, the first official day is this Wednesday! A new season means fresh jams, so rev up your reps with iTunes’ top 10 tunes of the week.

Now you tell us: What new songs are you loving this season?

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Spring Break-Inspired Cocktails from a Fit-Focused Bartender!

March 23, 2012 at 1:47 pm
By Christie Griffin

Between the warm(er than usual) weather and March Madness, we’re feeling a little nostalgic for Spring Break in college! So we scored a couple cocktail recipes from Bryan Dayton, the owner and Beverage Director at OAK at Fourteenth in Boulder, Colorado…including a non-alcoholic one, for those of you who gave up booze for Lent/New Year’s/Who Knows Why.

Before we hand over the happy hour inspiration, you should know whom it’s coming from. Bryan hasn’t just been a mixologist for 15 years—he’s also a trail runner (the higher the altitude, the better) with an incredible race resume. Nice!

My Little Honey

• 1.5 oz gin
• .5 oz honey syrup (1:1 honey to hot water)
• .5 oz fresh lemon juice
• Soda water

To make: Pour all ingredients over crushed ice, give a quick stir and garnish with a lemon.

Cucumber Smash

• 2 slices of cucumber
• 2 quarter wedges of lime
• 1.5 oz gin or vodka
• .25 oz honey syrup

To make: Muddle all of the above together in a mixing tin and then add ice. Shake. Fine-strain over crushed ice and then garnish with a slice of cucumber. Idea: Substitute berries for the cucumber, if you want something fruity!

The Summer Smash (Non Alcoholic)

• 2 slices of cucumber
• 6 mint leaves
• 1 mint sprig
• .5 oz lime
• .25 oz honey syrup
• 3 oz soda water

To make: Muddle mint and cucumber in a mixing tin. Add all the ingredients, except for the soda water. Add ice, shake and strain into a highball glass with ice. Finally, pour in soda water and give it a quick stir. Garnish with mint sprig.

Traditional Margarita on the Rocks

• 1.5 oz Reposado tequila
• .75 oz orange liqueur
• .75 oz fresh lime juice

To make: Put all ingredients into a shaker, add ice and shake. Pour over fresh ice in a short tumbler and garnish with lime. Salt is optional.

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Music Monday: Bring On Spring

March 5, 2012 at 1:31 pm
By Karla Walsh

True, this winter has been surprisingly mild for most of America. Yet we’re still excited to spring forward this Sunday and score some more afternoon sunshine for post-work workouts! To celebrate, we’re downloading this warm weather-inspired playlist which will act as a soundtrack for our outdoor fitness activities this season:

• “Soak Up the Sun,” Sheryl Crow
• “Paradise,” Coldplay
• “Here Comes the Sun,” The Beatles
• “Beautiful Day,” U2
• “Walkin’ On the Sun,” Smash Mouth
• “California Gurls,” Katy Perry, featuring Snoop Dogg
• “Halo/Walking on Sunshine,” Glee Cast
• “Summer Love,” Justin Timberlake
• “Escapade,” Janet Jackson
• “The Sun Will Rise,” Kelly Clarkson

Now tell us: What songs automatically put you in a sunny mood?

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Fashion Diaries: Tribal Tales

January 20, 2012 at 9:44 am
By Marla Horenbein

Earlier this week the fashion and beauty departments teamed up to shoot one of our April beauty features (get ready for some amazing spring makeup!) and we put a cool tribal spin on it to showcase one of our favorite spring fashion trends. We all had such a blast at the photo shoot, playing around with fun prints, bright colors and tons of sky-high, stacked heels. You’ll have to wait until our April issue hits newsstands in mid-March to see the final outcome, but until then, here is a little sneak peek of our day, with some behind the scenes footage!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here to see how to trick out your own wardrobe in tribal prints!

Read more

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April Showers: Waterproof Jackets + Wellies!

April 15, 2011 at 3:38 pm
By Melissa Freeswick

This month, every refreshingly warm, sunny day has been followed up with at least two days of rain, clouds and cold. So as much as we’d like to, we can’t pack away our wellies and waterproof jackets just yet!

Take a peek at our favorite waterproof spring pieces that keep us smilin’ even when the sun isn’t shining.

1. Totes Bubble Umbrella, $22

2. Superdry Stormtracker Jacket, $95

3. Hunter Watling Lace Up Full Knee Boot, $175

4. Columbia Sportswear Trail Trip Rain Jacket, $95

5. Sperry Topsider Pelican Wedge Sadie Boot, $80

6. The North Face Venture Jacket, $99

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Springtime in the Kitchen

March 21, 2011 at 3:45 pm
By Karla Walsh

What foods signal spring for you?

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Don’t Forget to Spring Forward!

March 11, 2011 at 6:00 pm
By Karla Walsh

The not-so-welcome news for some of us: Clocks “spring forward” this Sunday—meaning that we lose an hour of our already limited sleep. But we at FITNESS consider this well worth it, since what we lose in sleep we gain in extra post-workday sun time. That means more opportunities for outdoor evening exercise!

Here are a few fun sleep-related tools that may not help you snooze more, but do guarantee to make the switch a bit more bearable or fun:

For soothing…The White Noise app will play your favorite soothing sounds (wind, showers, ocean) as well as some options that strike us as not-so-calming (vacuum, violent noise or train). And it will play for as long as you like, because, appropriately, there are multiple sleep timers.  ($1.99, iTunes Store)

For laughs…The mattress company Sealy recently released a new app that harkens back to the popular junior high fortune cookie joke. Simply snap a photo you’re your smart phone or iPod touch and place a “in bed” caption after whatever you like. (Free, iTunes store)

When all else fails…Perhaps you could find someone who actually sells the Sleep Safe Tape, so that when you do finally nod off, others will think you’re as alert as ever. (Of course, we don’t really endorse this kind of trickery, but it sure is a creative idea!)

Do you look forward to setting your clocks ahead or struggle with the switch?

More from FITNESS: 5 Steps to a Good Night’s Sleep

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