It’s hard to feel much exercise motivation when you’re dead tired. You probably assumed that exercise is good for sleep, but the 2013 National Sleep Foundation Poll shows just how closely the two are connected.

People who exercised were much more likely to say they got a good night’s sleep almost every night even though everyone averaged about the same 7 hours a night on weeknights. Among those who exercised, 67 percent were satisfied with their slumber versus 39 percent of the non-exercisers. While vigorous exercise produced the best results of all, even a 10 minute daily walk helped. If you sit at a desk all day, you’ll also be happy to know that just taking a break and moving around will improve your sleep. Sitting for less than 8 hours a day produced about a 10 percent increase in “very good” sleep quality. Overall, 24 percent of non-exercisers complained about sleepiness compared to 12 to 15 percent of the active folks.

As the researchers point out, there’s a vicious circle at work here because it’s hard to get moving when you’re so tired you want to stay in bed. They suggest starting out gradually with low intensity routines and working your way up. You may also want to try all the usual home remedies for insomnia and talk with your doctor, who may refer you to a sleep specialist if you need more help. Meanwhile, some simple solutions that work for most people include going to bed and rising at the same time even on weekends, and keeping your bedroom quiet and dark.

Our Nexercise fitness and weight loss app makes fitness fun by letting you play games with your friends while you become more active. As a bonus, you may wind up sleeping better and enjoying all your daily activities more.

The post Improved Sleep May Provide Exercise Motivation According to National Sleep Foundation Poll appeared first on Nexercise.

The pop up trend that swept through high fashion and contemporary art has now reached health and fitness. More and more people are flocking to temporary destinations rather than limiting themselves to traditional gyms and exercise studios.

The options have been spreading over the past few years. Muscle Milk launched temporary gyms in Los Angeles and Miami in 2011. KiwiSweat, one of the best known names in the business, has held indoor cycling classes at the Museum of Modern Art and hosts regular Sweat Duels around New York City where battling instructors face off. Most recently, 305 Fitness got profiled in TIME magazine for their pop up workout parties now offered in New York and Rhode Island and scheduled to soon expand to Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Boston. What many of these ventures have in common is popular instructors with a devoted following, DJs or other musical entertainment, unusual venues, and extraordinary experiences.

You can find pop up classes in many major cities now. If they haven’t reached your town yet, try organizing your own event or introduce this same sense of novelty and variety into your personal workouts. For a change of place, take your yoga mat to the beach. Host a salsa party at your home and contact a local dance studio to get recommendations for someone to teach the steps to you and your friends. Instead of inviting a new co-worker out to lunch, ask them if they’d like to go cycling next Saturday morning. Even buying a new piece of gear can refresh your routine. Treat yourself to a set of kettlebells or just a new headband.

Wherever you work out, you can take Nexercise along with you and count on it to make exercise more fun. Our fitness & weight loss app is free and lets you play with your friends and track your progress.

The post Health and Fitness Go All Pop Up appeared first on Nexercise.

From Guest Blogger Sergio from Fat Loss HQ

If we were living in a world where everyone was extremely healthy then you would find that all of us would be down at our local farmers markets doing our weekly shopping for fresh produce, eating eggs that were just laid by our very own organic chickens, working with our closest friends and family to get whole entire organic cows, inviting the local farmers over for dinner every single week, and running about like crazy people in the local forests and woodlands to find fresh organic mushrooms. I’m sure you can appreciate that in this world we would all be active and healthy.

But however great this picture I’ve presented to you sounds, it just isn’t a realistic way for most people to live… and honestly I doubt that in this day and age that many people would want to live this way.

These days practically everyone can just get down to the local grocery store and pick up anything they want with a moments notice. This sort of convenience is something that few if any one of us would give up no matter how healthy the alternative way of life may be.

But that doesn’t at all mean that we don’t want to be out there making the best possible choices when it comes to the food that we eat. Of course we all want to get organic foods but at the same time we want to make sure that we are getting the best value for the money. The great thing about the list that I’ve put together is that you can literally find all of these foods down at your local grocery store. So trust me, you won’t be running around trying to find these foods.

So now let’s get right into it. From all the foods out there I’d recommend that you go organic firstly on the following…

1. Full-Fat Dairy

Dairy is one of those things that many people all over the world are intolerant to, however there are an even larger number of people across the world that consume some form of dairy on a daily basis.

If you are one of those people that does consume dairy on a regular basis then the best option would be to get it from a cow that has been 100% grass fed. But the reality is that this sort of dairy is hard to come by on the mass market so for the most part you are going to have to settle for organic at the very least.

The most important regulation out there states that cows that produce organic dairy must be getting at least 30% of their overall calories by grazing on fresh grass. So ultimately when you spend your money on organic dairy you can be sure that you are getting something that comes from a cow that had a decent amount of fresh grass!

You should also appreciate that ordinary cows are given food that is completely covered with pesticides and unfortunately all of these then gets passed onto the dairy that these cows produce.

2. Beef

The standards and regulations that I just referred to above with regards to organic milk, also applies to the cows that give organic beef. This means you can be sure that when you buy organic beef you are getting beef from a cow that consumed at least 30% of its total daily calorie amount from fresh grass. So at the end of the day you will be getting beef that not only contains far more nutrients but surprisingly tastes far better too.

Of course organic is only second to 100% grass fed but it is more common so most people are going to have to settle for it. Both of these are far superior to the conventional forms of beef that most people are used to eating.

Yes, the organic beef cows will have been raised up mainly on a diet of soy and corn but you can be sure that none of their feed will have been genetically modified or have a lot of pesticides in it! On top of that, government legislation also states that no organic cow can ever be given any sort of antibiotics or hormones!

3. Eggs

Next time you are in the store you should look around for eggs that have been produced by pastured chickens… these are the absolute best you can get and it doesn’t matter if they are organic or not. If however you can’t find them then your second choice should be to get organic eggs.

But no matter what happens you must make sure to avoid the ordinary eggs out there because the chickens that lay them are mostly on a diet of grains that are covered with pesticides!

Of course, the best option is pastured eggs because the chickens that lay them pretty much get 90+ percent of their diet from nature. So they are eating things like grasses and worms all day long… this is why it doesn’t matter if they are organic or not because most of their diet will be natural anyway.

4. Leafy Greens

The thing to note about leafy green vegetables is that they all have extremely large surface areas. Just take a look at all the most common ones in your stores, such as spinach and kale… both of them have large surface areas.

This means that when the farmer sprays pesticides all over them, the whole vegetable will pretty much get covered with it and trust me this is practically impossible to get rid of!

Of course when it comes to vegetables such as the carrot or potato, you can literally scrub those hard vegetables until you get rid of every last bit of pesticide… but unfortunately if you were to apply the same sort of force to leafy vegetables then you would end up with a bowl of soup!

As you are going to be consuming a lot more vegetables from now on, would you really want to be consuming pesticide covered ones… just imagine the harm that you will be doing to your body over the long term.

Let me just say right now that this isn’t a complete list of foods that you must eat organically from now. As with anything in life you should always be looking to improve, step by step… because that is the only way you are going to be able to see sustainable results over the long term. Just keep trying to add more and more organic foods to the list as time goes by and believe me your health will only improve over the long term.

AUTHOR BIO:

Sergio loves to help people around the world get into the best health of their lives, so if you’re are interested in other health topics such as the fat loss factor and how to lose belly fat then I’d encourage you to head over to his blog neuroice.org where he goes into depth about various different health related issues!

The post The Most Important Foods You All Must Buy Organic Today appeared first on Nexercise.

The pop up trend that swept through high fashion and contemporary art has now reached health and fitness. More and more people are flocking to temporary destinations rather than limiting themselves to traditional gyms and exercise studios.

The options have been spreading over the past few years. Muscle Milk launched temporary gyms in Los Angeles and Miami in 2011. KiwiSweat, one of the best known names in the business, has held indoor cycling classes at the Museum of Modern Art and hosts regular Sweat Duels around New York City where battling instructors face off. Most recently, 305 Fitness got profiled in TIME magazine for their pop up workout parties now offered in New York and Rhode Island and scheduled to soon expand to Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Boston. What many of these ventures have in common is popular instructors with a devoted following, DJs or other musical entertainment, unusual venues, and extraordinary experiences.

You can find pop up classes in many major cities now. If they haven’t reached your town yet, try organizing your own event or introduce this same sense of novelty and variety into your personal workouts. For a change of place, take your yoga mat to the beach. Host a salsa party at your home and contact a local dance studio to get recommendations for someone to teach the steps to you and your friends. Instead of inviting a new co-worker out to lunch, ask them if they’d like to go cycling next Saturday morning. Even buying a new piece of gear can refresh your routine. Treat yourself to a set of kettlebells or just a new headband.

Wherever you work out, you can take Nexercise along with you and count on it to make exercise more fun. Our fitness app is free and lets you play with your friends and track your progress.

The post Health and Fitness Go All Pop Up appeared first on Nexercise.

If you want to increase your exercise motivation, try surrounding yourself with the color green. A recent study suggests that it will lift your spirits and leave you feeling less fatigued.

Researchers at the University of Essex studied a small group of college-age men to see how watching the same video in different colors would affect their experience of riding an indoor stationary bicycle for five minutes. The video depicting scenes of cycling outdoors was shown to them in three installments through a green, gray or red filter. Participants said the green version enhanced their motivation and enjoyment the most. They felt like they were exerting themselves less even though they were cycling at the same moderate intensity pace throughout the exercise.

Finding the motivation to exercise can be a struggle for many people so it’s nice to know that just a change of color can help. There are lots of simple ways to make your workouts more green:

Buy green exercise gear. Get a green water bottle and yoga mat. Choose green the next time you buy a bike.

Wear green. Put on a green t-shirt, sweatpants or sneakers. Olive looks sophisticated if you don’t like neon greens.

Re-do your home gym. Repaint the walls in green. Whatever space you work out in, you may be able to put more green leafy plants around you.

Exercise outdoors. Whether these effects are due to the color green or to natural settings, you can’t go wrong heading out to your backyard to play. If you don’t have a backyard, try the fitness circuit or track at your local park.

Here at Nexercise, we’ve always believed in making fitness more fun and less stressful so feel free to get yourself a green phone case to go with our fitness app. Contact us to learn more about the largest fitness mobile interactive game of its kind.

The post Study Finds The Color Green Boosts Exercise Motivation appeared first on Nexercise.

Do you take part in fitness tracking for yourself or someone close to you? A study released in January by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project found that 69% of adults track their own health and fitness, or they utilize a tracking method for a loved one.

Among the many benefits of tracking your health and fitness:

1. It helps keep you motivated when you get bored with exercise. You have information documented that can help you chart your progress.

2. It can offer straightforward health data/feedback. For instance, many apps allow you to monitor your blood pressure, heart rate, etc., for indicators of an emergency or at least a recommended visit to the doctor for further examination.

However, the study found that, while people are tracking their health conditions, they are not necessarily using digital devices or mobile apps to do so. Many people still use the old-fashioned method of a pen and paper to record changes in their health or fitness.

Currently, there are more than 100,000 fitness apps available for Apple, Android, and Microsoft operating systems. There are plenty from which to choose and customize, and the number grows each day.

According to a study by Northwestern University published in December 2012 by the Archives of Internal Medicine, after following 70 people with an average age of 58, those who used apps lost up to 15 pounds more than those who kept a log by hand.

Are you wondering how to make fitness tracking fun?

Make it a game, and choose a program that offers you rewards for playing, like Nexercise! Then, make it social. Become part of a fitness community, seeking out a support system or at the very least a workout buddy. You’ll find Nexercise to be not only fun but also supportive and encouraging. Try it today!

The post The Key to Successful Fitness Tracking? Make it Fun! appeared first on Nexercise.

I thought I would take some time to think about the things that inspire me. When it comes to having Interstitial Cystitis, or any health problem for that matter, it’s very easy to throw up your hands and give up.  Understandable, but that won’t help us stay healthy or feel good about ourselves. So I took a little time after writing the title of this post and actually thought about “What is it that inspires me to keep going”.

First, the biggest thing that inspires me is seeing/hearing of others with “limitations” not letting them take over their lives. It gives me a different outlook. Gets me out of a “pity party” right away. When I hear of someone with IC (the abbreviation we use for Interstitial Cystitis), having pain but still taking a 15 minute slow walk, or finding something they can do or a healthy recipe they can eat that doesn’t aggravate their bladder and the complete joy they have because of that, it gives me that little something to get up and get going.

My family. Wow, they go through a lot with me with IC. Sometimes, I don’t know who has it worse, my family that deals with me having IC, or myself having it. But no matter what, they give me positive words and when I’m having really bad days, will always give me the love and support I need. And when I do something to workout on my bad days, they’re the first to smile and tell me “good job”.

Some friends of mine and I post in a group we put together every time we work out, go out and eat healthy instead of giving in, recipes, goals and accomplishments. We give each other a lot of encouragement. Whether we do good or have a momentary lapse, we’re there for each other, supporting and helping each other.

Not in vain, but sometimes I kinda inspire myself Obviously, there’s many days I lay there in pain and think, “I don’t feel good, I’ll just lay here all day”, but something tells me to get up and try to at least lift some light weights for my arms, or use my resistance bands for my legs or even just stroll up and down my street a few times (with IC, there’s days you need to stay near home. It affects the bladder so if you’re too far from home, well, you get the idea ). When I’ve finished, it gives me a feeling of accomplishment.

There’s times I look at people that can run and jog, and although I wish I could do that (I used to until IC), I don’t just throw in the towel. I look at them and think “I do miss that, but look what I can do. I’m lucky I can use the treadmill (or walk or lift light weights, etc.)” It’s a matter of looking at things in a different way sometimes. It’s not looking at what you can’t do, but looking at what you can.

Some may find it silly, but the tv show Biggest Loser inspires me. Its more the dedication the contestants have to themselves. At one time, many of them felt they couldn’t do anything when it comes to being healthy, and sooner or later, they realize YES THEY CAN!

The Nexercise app! I love that thing!!! The features such as badges are motivating. I like having that little extra “atta girl” added into my day.

So those of you dealing with health issues, tell me, what inspires you?

The post What inspires me (A Nexerciser’s Story) appeared first on Nexercise.

I share my story, NOT becuase I want people to feel sorry for me. I share it, because I want people to know that no matter what age, no matter how much you watch your diet, no matter how active you are; your heart, cholesterol and smoking do NOT care! You’re NEVER too young to have a heart attack!

At the age of 17, I was told by my family doctor that I would have a massive heart attack by the time I was 24, because of my hereditary high cholesterol level. Because they were just coming out with Statins for 70+ year olds, he wouldn’t put me on them, because he didn’t know the long term effect.

24 came and went, NO heart attack, I laughed it off and thought the doctor was out of his mind.

At the age of 35, BOOM, out of nowhere, I had a massive heart attack! NO warning sign, NOTHING! I know I died that day, I begged GOD not to take me, I still had many years ahead of me and my family to take care of. My local hospital airlifted me to a hospital in another state, where they put a balloon pump in my heart to keep me going for the next 2 days, when they would give me a scheduled bypass surgery.

The next night, I had another heart attack, so they rushed me into emergency surgery, where I died on the operating table and had to be brought back to life. That night, I received a Quadruple ByPass, because my arteries were so blocked.

Three months later, I had to have an Internal Defibrillator/Pacemaker, because the damage to my heart was so severe…the bottom portion of my Left Ventricle is dead.

A year and a half later, I found out I would eventually go into Heart Failure and need a Heart Transplant.

I was NEVER overweight and was ALWAYS active, I ALWAYS watched what I ate, I had just inherited bad genes and I SMOKED…which I will NEVER (and I can say NEVER) do again.

Dealing with all of the pressure of what happened to me, I went in a downward spiral and ate myself into happiness. I gained 40 lbs and have tried here and there, this and that, to help me get rid of the person I knew I was NOT! I needed SUPPORT, and INCENTIVE to keep me going and to lose the weight.

Even though looking in the mirror made me want to lose the weight, I needed more – I would search for apps that claim to help you lose weight, I’d use them for a few days, become bored with them and quit.

Nexercise is something that has made me want to check in and feel proud of exercising. I also use the (My Plate) Livestrong App, which has done a great deal for me (the Livestrong app works along with Nexercise).

I am now 42 years old and continue my battle with Heart Disease and weight loss. I also use the 10 Minute Trainer videos, which are awesome, among other workouts. There are some days that I find it very hard to exercise because of fatigue or because the workout just seems too hard. But I push through and I try to get in at least 20-30 minutes every day.

I also like the fact that you can donate your mPoints to The Wounded Warriors Project and hope to be able to donate my mPoints to The American Heart Association in the future

Thank you to Nexercise for giving me the incentive to get off my butt!

P.S. I would love to have partners on here who will encourage me, and me them. I would also love to find people who have heart issues, like me, who have lost the weight and what their “tricks” were.

The post You’re Never Too Young To Have a Heart Attack (A Nexerciser’s Story) appeared first on Nexercise.

A recent study blames Facebook for causing certain users to overeat. If you think you fit that description, a weight loss app is one way to stay connected with friends without endangering your waist line.

For some people, interacting with close friends on social media raises their self-esteem and lowers their self-control. When they’re done browsing, they tend to choose unhealthy snacks. They’re also likely to spend too much. According to researchers from Columbia University and the University of Pittsburgh, greater Facebook use and having many close Facebook friends was associated with a higher body-mass index and more binge eating, as well as increased credit card debt and lower credit scores.

Adolescents and young adults were thought to be especially vulnerable to these effects. The authors also expressed general concern about increases in the amount of time people of all ages spend on social media and the constant access enabled by smartphones and other devices.

Even if you have been following up your Facebook sessions with a powdered donut, you don’t have to give up your friends or your phone. Apps for weight loss and fitness like Nexercise let you stay on your mobile devices while you work out.

In fact, these study findings may have more to do with the universal problems of emotional eating and social eating rather than anything specific to social media. Try becoming more aware of your emotional triggers for eating. Reach for satisfying rewards that won’t strain your diet or your bank account. Take a long walk in the park or settle down with a good book in a warm bath. Engage in physical activities while you hang out with your friends.

Nexercise makes fitness fun. Play with friends and track your progress so you can all stay close online and improve your health at the same time.

The post Reduce Facebook-Induced Overeating With A Weight Loss App appeared first on Nexercise.

Would you use a baseball bat to play tennis? No, of course you wouldn’t. It wouldn’t make for a very good tennis match since you’d probably miss the ball or hit the ball too hard and spend more time chasing after it than actually playing tennis. When I started running, I realized I had been using the wrong tools (not that there are that many “running tools”): The wrong sneakers, the wrong clothing and the wrong app for getting started, and that by doing so, I was setting myself up for failure. I never realized how important these three components were until I found my perfect fit for all of them.

First, I used to just put on whatever pair of sneakers I had in the closet—which had been purchased at a discount store sometime over the last 10 years, and which were not suited to the task they were being used for. I mean, yes, they were brand name shoes. Yes, they were “running” shoes. Yes, they stayed on my feet and fit. And yes, they worked fine in boot camp class, but, no, they didn’t make me a runner after taking a 20 year break.

What DID make me a runner was going to my local athletic shoe store and asking for a recommendation, pointing out a few key pieces of information: I am a big girl, which means my shoes have to work harder and will wear out faster (every 3-6 months); I haven’t run in 20 years; I had weak ankles when I ran track in high school; and, I wanted the best running shoe which addressed all these issues. For once, I didn’t worry about price.

The Sales Associate gave me three recommendations, all of which I tried on. I chose the first pair and ended up buying a second pair of the same shoe and will soon be buying a third pair of them—the fact that they are hot pink doesn’t hurt either since it’s one of my favorite colors! Why reinvent the wheel? Buy two pairs when you find the right pair, so you have a back up when your current pair wears out.

If you’re in the shape I was in when I started, the right pair of shoes makes a HUGE difference. Where I once felt uncomfortable, unstable, achy, had pain, etc. I now feel strong, confident and ready to hit the trail. I no longer get shin splints. My feet don’t get hot or hurt so bad I have to stop.

But, be prepared to spend $120 just for the shoe. It’s a lot of money if you’re on a budget, but it’s absolutely worth the money. The $35 shoes in my closet are still in my closet, unused after the first attempt at running because frankly, they darn near killed me. The $120 shoes were worn so much I had to get a new pair. The difference between the two is like the difference between a Pinto and a Lamborghini. For the thrifty people, they will not look worn out, but you’ll feel them when they are worn out—use them for a fashion statement and not a workout. Trust me, as good as they make you feel, you’ll want to keep that feeling going and it’s worth shelling out the extra money for a new pair.

The Sales Associate also recommended the addition of an after-market, sports shoe insole. WOW! An already perfect shoe became even more perfect. For $25, it makes running do-able! Finally, he recommended cushioned socks. I bought two different brands, both of which rubbed blisters on my feet. I have realized that the cheap cushioned socks I bought at Wal-Mart ended up being the best for my feet. There are all kinds of socks specific to the sport you’re into, and if one doesn’t work, I suggest you keep trying until you find the right one. The combo of the right shoe, the right insole and the right sock hits a sweet spot and keeps you moving forward!

Second, I used to exercise in pull on cotton shorts and a tank top or a t-shirt. Sounds fairly standard, right? When I started running again in 2012, it was during the last week of June, on the East Coast. Probably not the best time to run, given the high heat and humidity. My first day out, I was ready to quit. My shorts were riding up and sticking to me at the same time. My shirt was heavy and made the sweat and heat unbearable and after only 20 minutes, I felt ready to pass out.

Then I found moisture wicking clothing and I am forever changed! I mentioned before that I’m a big girl, so finding decent clothing for any purpose can sometimes be a challenge, much less trying to find cute, stylish, sport appropriate workout gear. I’ve found that JC Penney, Old Navy, Target and Kmart all have affordable lines of exercise wear, most of which is moisture wicking and all but Target carry plus sizes in their exercise gear. Target carries up to a XXL. Nike and Reebok also make plus size lines, which are sold at various retailers, including JC Penney and Lane Bryant. They have great design, do their job and let me focus on running and not on how my clothes fit.

What does moisture wicking clothing do? It moves (wicks) the sweat from the inside (against your skin) to the outside of the garment, where it evaporates. It not only keeps you cooler, but it keeps you comfortable—it also makes you stink like crazy, but to me, stink equals ”I worked hard” so I wear it proudly.

Most of the items I have purchased are also lightweight, which makes them that much more comfortable, even in 105 degree temps with 60% humidity. JC Penney’s Xersion line is my go-to fitness wear because of their great sales, current colors and cut and fit.

Finally, I tried several apps and podcasts using the couch to 5K premise of starting slow and working up to running a 5k. None of them stuck. I stumbled upon the one that finally worked for me by reading Fitness magazine. I figured it was worth a try and it was! Coincidentally, I also found my food diary app and the Nexercise app in other issues of the same magazine. My point being that if you want to build up your stamina by running or you want to learn yoga or you want to learn tennis, rugby or some other activity, keep trying different options until you find one that you like, that keeps you motivated. The persistence will pay off when you find that combo of tools meant for you.

The post Choose the Right Tools for Success (A Nexercise User Story) appeared first on Nexercise.