Life Time Fitness Falling Apart and I Think They Deserve It

Friday morning (10/19/09) Lifetime Fitness Inc’s shares dropped $1.88 by the close of Friday’s trading day. That’s a 6.9% drop from the opening amount of $25.40.

Oppenheimer analyst Brian Nagel says, “Lifetime might have a hard time acquiring new members. Moderating new member sign-ups together with waning expense control opportunities are likely to weigh on the ability of Life Time Fitness to deliver meaningful earnings per share upside in coming quarters.”

I find this analysis very interesting. I’m not a stock trader, however I do understand stock trading. I know that may sound stupid but just roll with it. Lifetime Fitness has always seemed to me like a shadow of old gyms of the past who tried to be a one-size fits all but horribly crashed in their attempt. When you go into Lifetime Fitness, you immediately feel like you’re a member of an elite group of society. It’s like going to a resort everyday.

As beautiful as Lifetime Fitness is, here’s my problem… Every major chain gym has tried concept gyms similar to Lifetime Fitness in the past, such as 24 Hour Fitness who used to have Super Sport Clubs. They were clubs with massage therapists, nutritionists, dietitians, esthetician, full-service juice bars, lounges, and a bunch of other unnecessary garbage.

I’m quite sick of the “frou frou” injection that fitness clubs are putting into their gyms. On the subject of the word “gym” you don’t get that feeling when you go to Lifetime Fitness, you feel like you’re in a “club” with an uppity, asshole membership-base who think they rule the world because they drive a 5-year old used Porshe Boxster. It’s annoying and pitiful.

What happened to “gyms” being “gyms?” Now all of a sudden they’re “fitness clubs.” It’s not shocking that this over indulgence in fitness club b.s. is becoming a contributing factor in the down fall of Lifetime Fitness. I went into a Lifetime Fitness to preview their club several years ago and after getting a guest pass, I left after 10 minutes. As I went in the “fitness club,” I noticed 18-year old girls who were virtually half-naked and only their to meet a “hot guy.” I saw these girls doing bicep curls with 2 lb. weights. I think a fetus could lift more than that. But of course I quickly realized they weren’t there to really workout. They were there to hope they got hit on by one of the pompous jack-ass personal trainers.

After being annoyed by the gym sluts, I went over to the cardio machines and found a bunch of desperate housewives who were competing for the attention of the 20-something personal trainer that the 18-year-old gym sluts were competing for at the weight stations. Then as I was leaving, I was bombarded and nearly knocked over by a bunch of screaming 7-year olds who were charging through the front door to go to the water park. After that experience, I hit the door running and have hated Life Time Fitness every since.

All in all, this is the kind of B.S. that happens at Life Time Fitness.

To their credit, I will say they do have an excellent facility, it’s just unfortunate that their membership base consists of a bunch of annoying losers, and you can tell this is done on purpose because of their outrageous membership fees.

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Kim Kardashian Fitness DVD | WTF?

Celebs will do anything to make a quick buck nowadays. Kim Kardashian is one of those people who you just wonder why her 15 minutes of fame hasn’t been up yet.

She got famous because she was friends with Paris Hilton. I still can’t figure out why Paris Hilton is famous. Can you please tell me???

Anyways, she’s taken advantage of the hype about her “ass-ets” and has released a DVD series called: Fit In Your Jeans By Friday.

From what I know, Kim has never had any background or interest in fitness, prior to doing this dvd series, which really bothers me because her DVD is an obvious and blantant exploitation of her worthless career.

I don’t think she has any place in the fitness industry and would appreciate it if she did something else.

However, I am a guy so I’m not really hooked by the desire to have an ass like Kim Kardashian so here DVD doesn’t appeal to me, although I’m sure there’s women out there who would like to have an ass that “looks like a garbage bag filled with cottage cheese.” – Paris Hilton.

Check out the video below from Celeb TV:

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When Should You Exercise?

If you’re exercising regularly congratulations because you are a rare commodity in the world. The question is… When do you exercise?

Most people who exercise in the morning do so 30-60 minutes after breakfast. This is absolutely backwards. If you want to get the most out of your exercise routine, you need to exercise before you eat.

Exercising before you eat is the most efficient time to do cardio because it doesn’t impact digestion and therefore allows your body to burn more fat.

Most people would think it would be difficult not to eat before working out, but what works best for me is working out right after I wake up. This way my body doesn’t have time to get hungry which is what happens after about 2 hours of being awake.

If your schedule doesn’t permit you to workout right after you wake up or you simply don’t want to, then you should just make sure to do cardio 2-3 hours after you’ve eaten. This way your body has been given plenty of time to digest your food, and can then focus more on fat burning when your cardio session begins.

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Jack Lalanne | Tribute to the Godfather of Fitness

Before there was Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jay Cutler, or Ronnie Coleman, there was Jack Lalanne. Jack Lalanne just turn 95 last Saturday and I think it’s important to recognize his achievements in the world of bodybuilding, health, and fitness.

Jack Lalanne was the first man to convince athletes of the importance of lifting weights. He also got early housewives to get out of the house and into the gym. Jack also had the longest running fitness show, which stayed on air for 34 years.

Jack Lalanne also seemed to have this strange gift of eternal youth. At 70 years old, he launched a stunt in which he towed 70 boats with 70 people for a mile and a half. But that’s not the craziest part… He did it will being handcuffed and shackled.

One of the things I think is most incredible about Jack, is his connection with people. I’ve seen so many old shows of Jack on ESPN Classic, and Jack had this charismatic way of looking into the camera and connecting with an audience that I have never seen from anyone else before til this day. Jack was the original motivator and motivational speaker in my opinion.

I’ve posted a video below of one of his old shows. Check it out:

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Poll: What Part of Your Body do You Dislike the Most?

Everybody struggles with body image issues. What’s yours?

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Harvard Doctor Prescribes Frisbee for Weight Loss

Harvard Doctor and genetics researcher Maria Mancini is a member of the fast growing population of alterna-exercisers. These trendy and urban members of society prefer cooler and more hip forms of aerobic activity as opposed to the conventional jogging and fitness club routines.

Dr. Mancini gets her cardio workout by playing Ultimate Frisbee. “Frisbee is a way to trick yourself into getting a lot of exercise without focusing on the fact that I’m exercising,” Dr. Mancini says.

This is very interested and compelling to me. I live in Austin, TX and we’re one off the most active cities in the nation. Upon moving here, I noticed there wasn’t very many fitness clubs. In fact, there’s not a fitness club within 20 miles of my house. After living here for 2 weeks, I realized very quickly why fitness clubs don’t make it in this town. It’s because of the growing population of alterna-exercisers. In Austin, we have one of the biggest outdoor sports and recreation fields in the country. It’s called Zilker Park and every day of the week, you will catch a good game of Ultimate Frisbee, Disc Golf, Lacrosse, or some other form of unconventional fitness.

This is really cool to me and with the emergence of many urban communities spreading closer towards the suburbs with new trendy “uptown” themed communities popping up all over the place, this lifestyle will soon grow an even bigger following.

Here’s a clip of Ultimate Frisbee live in action:

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Helix Exercise Equipment: Say Goodbye to Your Thighs

There’s a new cardio machine that’s slowly making its way to fitness clubs across America. It’s called the Helix, and it’s very different. Instead of the traditional front to back motion that cardio machines like bicycles, elliptical trainers, and treadmills have, the Helix exercise equipment has a sideways lateral motion making it the first cardio equipment to specifically target the inner and outter thighs.

I think women across the world are going to love this! It wouldn’t hurt men to use it either. It works just fine for them as well.

I’ve posted a video from Helix below so you can see this thing in action:

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The Benefits of Green Veggies

Green veggies are my personal enemy. I can’t stand them. In fact, I really don’t like vegetables at all, however I wouldn’t be doing my duty if my distaste for them allowed me to abandon their incredible benefits and mention in this incredible blog.

Green vegetables like fruits and all other vegetables are low in fat. Green veggies in particular are high in potassium, vitamin C, and vitamin A. In fact, green veggies have more vitamins and potassium than fruit and they’re lower in sugar, calories, and fat.

Just remember though… Don’t ruin it by piling on a bunch of salad dressing. In fact, try changing things up a bit and eating steamed vegetables instead of opting for the salad-dressing-filled salad.

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The Benefits of Bananas

Bananas are one of my favorite fruits and they have so many incredible health benefits. Bananas are low in fat, high in fiber, and they’re loaded with potassium.

Potassium helps replenish your body from the sweat it lost during a workout session, and it also gives you a boost of mental clarity.

Bananas are nature’s way of giving us a food item for a natural energy boost.

I personally eat a banana after every workout and I feel great afterwards. Bananas are also great because they’re easy to incorporate into your diet. Bananas are especially delicious with bran-based cereals such as Raisin Bran.

Oh yum! I think I’m going to go get me a bowl right now!

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The Benefits of Citrus Fruits

Citrus fruits have the most abundant source of Vitamin C in comparison to all other fruit types. Citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, and tangerines also come in juice form (obviously) and it’s just as good and nutritious for you.

Just be careful to steer clear of the “fruit juice hybrids” though. They are loaded with sugar. Many people often wonder the benefits vs. disadvantages of hybrid drinks like Sunny Delight. I’m still not sure. Sunny Delight tastes way too good to be pure and healthy. LOL!

If you’re trying to get your daily dose of Vitamin C out the way, then drink 6 ounces of orange juice and you’ll be all set. The other great benefit of orange juice in particular is that it has less sugar and calories when compared to other fruit juices like apple juice or cranberry juice. The reason for this is the natural sweetness oranges and other citrus fruits have as opposed to apples and cranberries, therefore there’s less refining and processing that takes place.

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