Eurekster Swicki

I personally love yoga. It's gentle, yet strengthening for the body and restorative to the soul. You can get a pretty good workout while doing it even though it may appear to be a lot of slow breathing. If you don't believe me, just try holding that warrior II pose for a few minutes. How those leg muscles feeling? Arms look like they're sagging a bit. You still breathing?

Anyway, here are some crazy yoga poses that I won't be doing any time soon, but they show just how amazingly flexible the human body can be. Click on this link to our Yoga swicki to vote on your favorites.

Yoganidra 2. Just lie down on your back and wrap your feet around your head. Now, you get an amazing view of your dernier.

Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya I. It's like doing a push up, except your feet are off the ground. And your hips are rotated so that you can cross one leg over the opposing arm.

King Pigeon Pose (Kapotasana). I call this the turn-yourself-into-a-human-donut pose. Sitting on your knees, you bend all the way backwards until your forearms are on the floor, and your head is between your feet.

Firefly Pose (Tittibhasana). This one probably looks easy enough. So maybe it's not the most unbelievable, but I want to see you do it. Seriously. Do it, tape it, and put it on YouTube. I'd vote for that on digg or mixx.

Scorpion Pose (Vrischika-asana). Put your forearms on the floor and flip your legs backward over your head. Let them dangle freely in the air. It gets even better if you can lower your feet and rest them on your head while doing it. Oh yeah. Good times.

Thanks go to Yoga Journal, Forrest Yoga, and Santosha for having great descriptions and pictures of these poses. For more general info and easy-to-do yoga poses, check out the Find Your Yoga Style swicki.

Posted by James Tolles at 9:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Maybe you've already heard of swickis before, or maybe you're thinking, "God, another new Internet term? When will it stop?" Well, it'll probably never stop. The Internet seems to have a knack for creating new things that need new names. However, a swicki actually isn't a new term. It's been around for a couple of years--about as long as Eurekster (that's us). A swicki is a custom search engine that allows communities to influence results. The idea is kinda like Digg, Mixx, and many others; that idea being that a group of people passionate about a topic will bring the good stuff to the top.

I'm sure plenty of you have had experiences with search where you didn't find what you wanted. With a swicki, you can vote down the results that you don't like or that are irrelevant. Conversely, if you find a hidden gem lurking at the bottom of the page, you can vote that up. If you find a really cool Web page elsewhere that's not in the results, you can add it to the swicki. A swicki merges the power of technology with the discerning power of people.

And I'm not saying that it's going to replace Google or any of that jazz.

Continue reading "What Is a Swicki?" »

Posted by James Tolles at 8:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

There sure are a lot of diets out there, and it seems like people keep coming up with more and more weird weight loss programs. Sheesh. Just eat in moderation for goodness sakes. Anyway, here are some of the wackier ones that I've read about lately.

5. Grapefruit Diet. Eating half a grapefruit before every meal probably wouldn't be too bad. You certainly would stay on top of your vitamin C needs. No scurvy for you!

4. Cabbage Soup Diet. This is a 1 week on and 2 weeks off diet. Personally, I don't think I'd make it through a week of cabbage soup. I mean eating cabbage for just one meal sounds like enough torture to give up chocolate. Sure there are some other veggies mixed in here, but yuck.

3. Fat Flush Diet. This is all about flaxseed oil, cranberry juice, and supplements. Forget about caffeine and alcohol. And ladies, apparently, you have to forgo birth control pills. Talk about a double whammy on this one.

Continue reading "5 Crazy Diets" »

Posted by James Tolles at 9:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I think Arnold Schwarzenegger really popularized the idea of men having big muscles. It's sent tons of guys running to gyms to do squats, bench press, dumbbells, and all kinds of slightly masochistic exercises. For those of you who already work out regularly, you know it's a lot of sweat equity and resistance training, and results don't come fast. But for those of you who aren't about to quit pumping iron (and I'm one of them), here are a few tips to help you break plateaus and get ripped.

6. Heavy Lifting. Most of you probably know that lower numbers of repetitions coupled with higher amounts of weight can lead to gaining muscle mass. This is a pretty basic idea, but for those of you doing 10 or 12 reps within a set and who are wondering why you're staying lean, now you know.

5. Post Exhaustion Training. Men's Fitness suggests doing a compound movement (working out several muscle groups) followed by an isolation exercise (focusing on one muscle group). So, you can do a close grip bench press, and then follow that up with triceps extensions. Over time, that will help you to bulk up.

Continue reading "6 Ideas to Get Big Muscles" »

Posted by James Tolles at 8:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Congratulations! You've just had a baby, and you can't wait to lose the extra weight you've gained. Here are a few tips to make sure you trim down in a healthy way.

6. A Little R&R. If you've just had a baby, you're going to need some recoup time--about six weeks according to most sources. I know you really want to get back to looking like your old self, but first things first, let your body normalize before demanding it to change again.

5. Breastfeed. You're going to love this one. According to the Surgeon General, breastfeeding burns 600-800 calories. That's right. You can just sit and be with your little one, and you're already moving on your way to a slimmer, trimmer you. Some women attest to returning to their former shape just by doing this.

4. Sleep It Off. You're thinking these tips are too good to be true, but yes, sleep is a key component to normalizing the body and regulating metabolism. A Harvard Medical School study found that getting at least 7 hours of sleep helped postpartum women lose more weight than women who slept less. I can hear the snorts of contempt out there. Yes, the baby's 3am feeding time can get in the way of that goal, but now you have an extra reason to coerce your significant other into helping out with those late night feedings. Napping when the baby naps can be helpful too.

Continue reading "6 Tips to Lose the Baby Weight" »

Posted by James Tolles at 7:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

MedlinePlus recommends at least 30 minutes of physical exercise 5 days a week, but the National Center for Health Statistics says that 39% of people spend no leisure time in physical activity. Okay, so what's holding you back? I'm sure you've got your excuses, so let's take on those lame reasons.

10. I Don't Have Anything to Wear. Working out is not about being the Paris Hilton or Matthew McConaughey of the gym. Some people may have color-coordinated clothing right down to their MP3 case, but you're here for your health, not to walk the runway. Pull out the old shorts and the fading T-shirt with the holes in the armpits and get to work.

9. The Gym Is Too Far Away. Why did you pick a gym nine miles away? Find a closer one or find a way to carpool there. Also, there are any number of easy exercises that you can do in your home (yoga) or around it (jogging).

8. I'll Miss My Favorite Show. Oh come on. Isn't that what TiVo is for? Plus, you can't have a favorite show on every night of the week.

Continue reading "10 Lame Excuses to Not Work Out" »

Posted by James Tolles at 9:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)