By Diana Bocco

According to a recent poll, 88 percent of Americans make health or weight-loss resolutions once summer gets near. According to that same poll, more than 60 percent of those resolutions are already out the window by October 1. Why? Because most of them are plain unreasonable.

Is there anything sensible you can do to make yourself healthier, thinner, and stronger year-round? “Forget about fad diets and strict fitness regimens, which do not take into account your own unique metabolism, preferences and overall goals,” says weight-loss authority Dorie McCubbrey, MSEd., PhD. Instead, “focus on developing a routine of self-care that takes you to your goals and feels so good that you’ll maintain it—and your weight success—for life.” Here are ten great examples:

CUT 100 CALORIES FROM YOUR DIET. While this may not sound like much, an extra 100 calories a day adds up to 10 pounds a year! Switch from regular to light mayo (and save 100 calories per tablespoon), steam your food or use nonstick cooking spray (instead of oil or butter), eat cornflakes instead of granola, or take the croutons out of your salad.

ADD ONE NEW VEGETABLE TO YOUR DIET EVERY WEEK. If you always eat the same vegetables week after week, you can try switching to different ones in your salads, your sauces or your scrambled egg mix. If you’re already eating your veggies, simply try to add an extra serving or an additional vegetable to your diet every seven days.

DUMP ALL-LIQUID CALORIES. One of the best things you can do for your health (and your waistline) is to give up sodas, artificially sweetened juices, and sport beverages. These liquid sugars cost money, offer zero nutritional value, and are very fattening. “High-calorie beverages don’t contribute to satiety, so if you drink them routinely, you are likely to overconsume calories leading to weight gain,” says Catherine Christie, PhD, RD, director of nutrition programs at the University of North Florida. If water and unsweetened tea won’t do it for you, look for light or diet options.

TAKE A MULTIVITAMIN. You’ve heard this one before. Now, actually do it.

GIVE UP ONE CARB A DAY. Rather than switching to a low-carb diet (which often works but leaves you weak, tired, and with bad breath), find the worst carb you consume during the day and give it up. Is it the doughnut you eat every morning? Switch to a mini-bagel, preferably whole wheat. Better yet, have scrambled eggs and a piece of fruit. Keep the baked potato at lunch, but give it up if you’re eating it only at night.

MAKE RED MEAT A RARITY. Saturated fat can lead to heart disease and increase your chances for cancer, high cholesterol, and gout. Red meat is also high in fat and has no major nutritional value except for its iron content, which you can get anyway from other proteins and dark green vegetables. Instead of beef, choose skinless chicken, turkey, or fish.

SWITCH to the “better” version of your favorite “bad” foods. Love dessert? Switch from ice cream to yogurt. You’ll save about 150 calories and gain a ton of calcium and beneficial enzymes. Or, choose an omelet over fried eggs and you’ll avoid artery-clogging fat and actually have a chance to add veggies and mushrooms to the mix.

In the end, it doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing thing. Even little changes can make a world of difference.

By Alfonso Gonzales

As the weather in the Valley starts to cool and the holidays approach, the change in temperature signals a change in fashion and style. A quick and easy way to change with the season and stay fresh and current is to transform your hair.

With the holidays just weeks away, you’ll want to sport the latest looks at the office party and nights on the town. Follow the Hollywood socialites and A-list celebrities this season and you’re likely to see some common hair trends that you can adapt to fit your style.

This season’s bob is hot, and you can see it worn on several celebrities. It is clean, yet versatile. The long bob, blunt bob, textured bob, and bob with a fringe are popular ways to modernize a classic style. Long bobs fall past the shoulders in length. To update this look, your stylist can add layers or even texturize the ends to add movement to the hair. Layers and texture will transform the look from a static, crisp style to a softer, more feminine feel once weight from the hair is removed. To capture an even edgier look, adding multiple uneven layers or “shredding” the hair will create a contemporary style sure to attract attention.

This season, several bobs include fringe, formally knows as bangs. Turn the pages of celebrity gossip magazines and you’ll see stars sporting their new bobs with various lengths of fringe. The Kate Moss fringe, for example, is nothing more than a long textured bang, so long that some pieces cover the eye. Moss’s bob has varied lengths that create movement and volume. Short and long pieces within the cut create movement and allow versatility in how you style your hair. You can have the look, too, so be brave—try it and embrace your wild side.

For those of you not ready to give up your longer hair for a bob, there are plenty of upstyles or updos for your holiday gathering. This season, you’ll see a combination of styles worn up and down. If you’re looking to style your hair into an updo, try a soft look that’s loosely pinned. Hair that flows with voluminous curls creates an elegant style that is always clean and classic.

The Hollywood glamour of the 1930s and 1940s are foundation for this season’s styles for hair left down. These styles have been updated with natural curls that are fanned away from the face, either with a middle or side part. Although reminiscent of a classic period, these styles can be modernized with texture and styling.

Whatever your plans are for this holiday season, consider a new look for your hair. Even a subtle change can bring fun and excitement to your holidays.

By Diana Bocco

Direct from the original Crazy Horse in Paris, La Femme is a breathtaking mix of choreography, light displays, and stunning women completely in the nude. Established in 1951, the show has evolved into a French cultural phenomenon famous for its productions that celebrate beautiful women and the art of the nude. To many professional dancers around the world, a chance to perform in this show would be a dream come true.

One of the things that make the show so different is that the women of La Femme have embraced their curves. No skinny dancers here. “La Femme has always billed itself as the art of the female form,” says Marianne Veritas, the dance captain and show coordinator. “While society does seem obsessed with the extremes of XXL silicone implants or gaunt thinness, these can look like caricatures on stage. You need a perfect balance of slimness and curves to work at La Femme, a look much harder to achieve but ultimately more desirable.”

Veritas believes that anybody can benefit from following the La Femme Workout. What makes the workout so effective is knowing your goal. Each dancer at La Femme has her own weight limits, based on what she weighs and what her body type is. “Never compare your weight with the girl sitting next to you, but look at how the weight sits on your own body,” Veritas says. “Show off the good bits and work out the bad.”

A seasoned dancer herself, Veritas emphasizes the importance of doing “a little and often” rather than going crazy in the gym one week and give up the next. “Start slowly, build up your workout, and make it a habit of everyday life,” she advises.

The La Femme Workout
Tips for transforming your body from a world-renowned female revue

A slim waist: With the body very straight and with the legs spread apart the width of the shoulders, elbows folded and arms crossed at the chest, turn the body above the waist to the right and left. Keep the buttocks tightly squeezed together and the legs stretched out so that the bottom half of the body stays immobile.

A round derriere: Stand with the body angled slightly forward with the arms crossed in front, or press one hand against the wall. Flexing one foot, raise that leg up and back as high as you can eight times, then change legs. The body weight rests on the leg on the ground, and the quadriceps resist and harden.

Long and tapered thighs: It’s important that these two exercises be done one after the other.
To taper: First, stand with the arms held straight out to maintain balance, legs spread apart in a ballet plié position, with the feet pointed outward. Keeping the knees bent, lift feet off the ground while flexing the buttocks and back muscles in order to keep the body upright. This exercise works the quadriceps. Twenty to fifty repetitions.
To lengthen: First, bend one leg and grab that foot in your hand. Press the foot against the buttocks and pull the leg backward.

By Donna Parr

Ah, luxury! How we define it has changed a lot in recent years. Many things that were once considered luxuries have become available to a considerable number of people and are considered by some to be almost or completely necessary: a large home in an upscale neighborhood, the best schools for the kids, impressive cars with all the bells and whistles.

As for personal care, those of us who live in the Valley are fortunate to have the best of everything at our fingertips, from high-end salons to day spas and resort spas that seat us in the lap of luxury. Whether you consider them extravagances or necessities, there is a host of services here in the Valley that will indulge and pamper you to a wet-noodle state, unable—or unwilling—to break out of your newly acquired bliss. Even better, you’ll be a Valleyite with better skin, hair, and nails than you ever dreamed you could have.

Let’s start at the top, with your hair. It’s not difficult to get a good haircut at any of the fine Valley salons, but if you’d like just a bit more, many places offer treatments that go beyond the basics. Scalp massages are relaxing and beneficial treatments that rejuvenate the scalp. Conditioners can add body and a healthy shine to complement that top-of-the-line haircut. One new treatment is a coco de crème masque that uses essence of coconut to give the hair a sumptuously silken feel.

There are manicures and pedicures, and then there are Manicures and Pedicures. Pedicures particularly come in new pampering versions, including the golden pedicure, billed as the most delightfully decadent of them all. Your feet are scrubbed, bathed, and wrapped with a combination of pure gold and the moon goddess flower Artemisia, and then finished with a golden body polish and topped off with a gold dusting for shimmer.

Spa treatments run an amazing gamut of pampering, incorporating everything from real gold to chocolate, wine, and flowers. Most are combined with aromas designed to relax, de-stress, and generally transport you from the daily domain into another world. The gold facial begins with applying a 24-karat gold-leaf mask to the face, and some spas use gold in a body treatment that’s an extension of the golden pedicure. Beyond the effects of mere indulgence, the end result is smoother age-defying skin.

Are Valley body treatments luxuries, necessities, or something in between? In today’s complicated world, if your stress factor hits twelve on a scale of one to ten, maybe a little luxury now and then is one of the better investments you can make for your well-being.

How Women Are Roughing It Just for Fun

By Diana Bocco

By day, she might be a pharmacist, public accountant, journalist, or stay-at-home mom. But on weekends, she suits up with a harness, crash helmet, and kneepads and becomes the daring woman who enjoys climbing trees, speeding down a mountain, or tumbling around on a track. What drives these otherwise everyday women to take up extreme sports like solo rock climbing, roller derby, or competitive tree climbing?

Some women have felt “the call” since childhood. That was the case of Rhonda Wood. Growing up, she regularly climbed trees with the neighborhood boys. That led to a career in botany and a job as an arborist manager at the Disneyland Resort, where she climbed trees in order to shape them as Disney characters. When she crossed paths with the organizer of the Western Chapter Tree Climbing Championship, it was a match made in heaven.

“Before I knew it, I was in Arizona, climbing with all these great guys that were so supportive,” Wood says. “It was such an exhilarating thrill to be climbing in these trees on pure adrenaline, scampering through the branches like a squirrel.”

Meghan Goldmann, an art curator who belongs to the New York City’s Gotham City Roller Derby League, is motivated by the pure love of the sport. She said it was love at first sight after seeing a championship game in 2005. “Roller Derby is a relentlessly hard game to play, but it’s also fantastic to play since it’s so energetic and lively,” Goldmann says.

Aside from the intense physicality of the sport, many women are also attracted to extreme sports because of the camaraderie. Holly Harmon, an account manager with a Phoenix-based PR firm, said that she doesn’t play team sports because she doesn’t have a competitive nature. But extreme sports keep your workout going, and also helps build and extend friendships.

“In extreme sports, you can be competitive (with yourself) and still enjoy the company of friends that are working toward the same goal,” Harmon says “You can support, encourage, and learn from each other without having an agenda.”

Chris Ashford of Optical Edge, Inc., a company that specializes in pocketsize adventure trips, says there has been an increase in women earning salaries in the last ten to fifteen years, and that has led to them wanting to make their own decisions about how to spend the money. “They often want to try something new and exciting,” Ashford says.

For Harmon, there’s no question that she’s made up her own mind about her choice of leisure time—if it can be called that. Despite the potential hazards, expense, and considerable amounts of time that snowboarding and rock-climbing take, she is delighted at the chance to be outdoors to clear her head and decompress. The need to pay attention at all times to her surroundings and her body also gives her the chance to appreciate them. And, of course, there’s the joy of pushing her body’s limits

“The feeling afterwards of making it to the bottom of a hard ski run without stopping or ascending a 150-foot rock face is unexplainable,” Harmon says. “It helps me to realize how much I am truly capable of and helps to put other areas of my life into perspective, both the physical and nonphysical.”

By Alfonso Gonzales, Master Stylist

Hot temperatures are right around the corner. Whether you’re out on the playing field or in the gym, the summer is going to require you to have simple on-the-go haircut that can be easily styled to accompany your active summer lifestyle. Three hot hairstyles will surely keep you stylish with little effort.

Soft, natural-looking hair has always been a “current” style. This is true in your haircut and color. Really, less is more, even if it’s just adding a hint of color or a trim to enhance your current style. Recent fashion trends have reintroduced the classic bob with a twist: you will find a lot of disconnection happening in the hair. This means each hair section may not match completely. This may sound strange, but when done correctly, your hair will look soft and sexy. Another form of disconnection may be in the bangs. Bangs could be cut so they can wear as a full seductive bang or a playful side sweep. In fact, bangs are hot and are for most of you. See how bangs accent a classic shattered bob with Katie Holmes, and notice how Heidi Klum is sporting a full strong bang.

Another hot look is the medium-length textured haircut. Layers have been texturized, giving the hair uneven lengths for more movement and versatility. This is a great look for all types of hair, including straight and curly. Textured layers add movement as well as volume to the hair. Whether styled with a flatiron or blown dry with a round brush, the look is modern. The best tool a stylist can use to get this result is a razor. The hair is cut at different lengths to give a softer look. Some stylists may refer to this technique as removing weight in the hair. Any length or texture of hair can benefit from adding some form of texturizing to the hair.

Finally, the short, croppy haircut is made for summer. Short and sassy is the best description for this style, and the best face shape for it is oval. Having the hair cut above and around the ears and leaving the front bang wispy makes it hot and modern. Styling is easy, and the look is versatile. Using light pomades or hairspray, you can make the style look neater and sleeker. Using heavier waxes will give you a wild and sexy look.

Whatever your plans are for the summer, you’re sure to have a current stylish look that will be easy to style and take you to the next level of sassiness. Have fun!

By Diana Bocco

If the idea of spending your spring evenings pedaling a Lifecycle exercise bike is less than appealing, take heart.

“There is really no good reason to go to a gym to work out on a beautiful day,” says nationally certified personal fitness trainer Annette Hudson. “In fact, if you usually work out inside, an outside workout can be just the variety that your muscles crave. When muscles are challenged in new ways, they adapt and work harder. This makes them stronger while burning fat.”

Working out outdoors provides a number of benefits that gymgoers never get. Hudson believes that the number-one advantage of working out outdoors is the fact that it beats gym boredom. Another major advantage would be the convenience and affordability (free!). Then, there’s the multitasking: you can get your vitamin D and your suntan all at the same time!

In a gym, things are pretty simple for the muscles, as the main challenge is increased weight. In nature’s gym, the core muscles (abs, obliques, and other stabilization muscles) have to work harder. This doesn’t mean an outdoor workout is always superior, but when used for variety, it can literally work your butt off. “I remember a time when my body-builder husband was complaining that he wasn’t going to get a chance to go to a gym during our vacation,” Hudson says. “I offered to give him a ‘gymless workout.’ He assured me that one of my cute little workouts wouldn’t be effective for a strong guy. Of course, that was a challenge I couldn’t resist. My big buff hubby got very sore, and I proved my point. By the way, he’s never let me train him since.”

There are really no limits as to what you can do outdoors. Besides the obvious biking and running cardio routines, Hudson recommends swimming as a great way to get your heart rate up without ever noticing that you’re breaking a sweat. She also likes hiking in the great outdoors for a heart workout; and playing tennis, basketball, Frisbee, golf, or volleyball won’t even seem like a workout because you’ll be too busy focusing on scoring points.

Remember that when working in our warm climate, you must protect yourself from the heat. Remember to drink enough water, use sunscreen, and wear light-colored clothing, preferably made of 100 percent cotton.

“One great trick is to weigh yourself before and after a workout,” says Hudson. “If you weigh less after, you didn’t drink enough water.”

If you’re not ready to completely give up the gym, by all means, don’t. Instead, use outdoor workouts to add variety and intensity to your normal routine. Most importantly, do them to have fun!

By Cynthia Boggs

The three most glorious months of the Sonoran Desert are here, bringing 80-degree days, spring desert flowers, lots of blue sky, and the sun. Everyone is getting out his or her bicycle, going to the park, and hiking.

Along with all this fun comes the question of how to keep your skin healthy and soft in this dry air and intense sun. Fortunately, we who live in the North Valley are surrounded by some of the most luxurious spas and salons in the world, each offering its own signature methods to entice you to come in and get your skin looking as young as you feel!

The number-one most popular treatment is the scrub. This treatment goes by many other names—body buff, exfoliation treatment, skin polish—but whatever you want to call it, it is fabulous. A vast array of ingredients is used to remove those dull skin cells: powdered French coral, coarse salts from the Dead Sea, crushed bamboo, white sugar, brown sugar, even poppy seeds—all are very effective. Most spas mix in aromatic oils of lavender, sandalwood, sage, lemon, and sometimes vanilla to create a centuries-old sensory experience of peace and balance.

Increasing numbers of spas are building water-therapy rooms to perform these treatments. Most include a comfortable table to relax on while a warm rain bar filled with water nozzles mist you from head to toe and envelope you in a fragrant beauty fog.

Wraps come a close second in popularity, and an innovative assortment of recipes does the work beautifully. A favorite is the seaweed-gel wrap, a treatment in which warm emulsified seaweed is painted in a thick layer on your skin, and then you are swathed in warm sheets and blankets, like a heavenly cocoon. Seaweeds are used worldwide to replenish the trace elements and minerals that we lose to the dry air, and the seaweed actually acts like a skin food that nourishes us.

Ahhhhh, the massage. Actually, the massage is two treatments in one, combining the power of touch to sooth the muscles with the hydrating benefits of massage oil. Hot stone therapy massages are also appealing and somehow translate into a body therapy that remind us of Arizona’s magnificent stone landscapes and the healing power of the desert. Most often, the stones are basalt rocks tumbled to a smooth finish and warmed in a water bath to the perfect temperature; they often hold an even heat on the body for fifteen minutes, which gives enough time to relax a tight muscle, allowing a truly deep therapeutic experience.

Whichever body therapy you choose, know that here in the North Valley are some of the best skin-care and massage therapists in the world waiting to rejuvenate your sun-kissed body with expert care and a treasure of treatments.

By Diana Bocco

Getting in shape for a wedding should begin as soon as the wedding date has been set. “My recommendation for brides is to make it a part of the wedding planning,” says exercise physiologist Heather Nettle. “Just as you would schedule appointments with photographers, caterers, and [dressmakers], make sure each week includes at least one fitness appointment with yourself.”

Here are nine other tips for making the most of your prewedding workout:

MAKE IT CLEAR. Fitness personality Rocco Castellano emphasizes the importance of setting realistic goals. When setting goals, remember to make them specific: “I will lose fifteen pounds of fat or three inches off my waist for my wedding.” It’s okay to set big goals—don’t sell yourself short—but also remember to set realistic deadlines—losing one or two pounds per week is a good start.

INCLUDE THE GROOM. Not only will you be toning up and looking great together, but it’s also an excellent way to spend quality time together and bond. Nettle suggests taking ballroom dancing or salsa dancing lessons together. It allows for fun for the two of you in an otherwise hectic time, not to mention giving yourselves something to show off on the Big Day.

STICK TO THE WEDDING THEME. Find a special class geared specifically toward the event: bridal or bride/groom boot camps, butts and guts, specific arms-only classes, abs classes, and so on. Group exercise classes are a great way to focus on what you need while making the most of a 60-minute exercise session.

CONCENTRATE ON YOUR UPPER BODY. A variety of bicep, triceps, and shoulder exercises will help arms look great in a sleeveless wedding dress. Shapely biceps are a symbol of fitness and strength. In combination with the triceps, they give your arms an eye-catching appearance and make you look great in any sleeveless outfit.

BE REALISTIC AND EFFICIENT. “The time before a wedding is hectic enough without taking on a really time-consuming or intimidating new exercise program,” says Ben Roman, part of the sports medicine team at Columbia University Medical Center Eastside. “Shared fun activities like a bike ride can let both the bride and groom get healthy and blow off stress together.”

EAT WELL. “One of the most important things is to eat regular, well-balanced meals,” says Karen Lush, a corporate dietitian and program development manager for Jenny Craig, Inc. “Skipping breakfast on the way to a fitting, for example, may seem like an easy way to cut calories, but it may actually set you up for overeating at lunch or dinner.”

REACH OUT. Having a workout/healthy-eating buddy can also help you stay motivated. Lush also advises future brides to go over the latest wedding plans with their fiancés during an evening walk, and discuss flower arrangements with their bridesmaids during a round of golf. Of course, if you don’t play golf, there’s always biking or walking.

FOCUS ON CARDIO EXERCISE. This will help you eliminate stress, burn fat, and increase your energy level. Toning arms and trimming around the midsection can be accomplished most quickly by doing cardio five times a week for thirty minutes or more in your target heart rate (60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate, which is calculated by subtracting your age from 220).

Finally, remember that brides come in different shapes and sizes. You can’t change your genetics. ”Keep an open mind and work with your body type when choosing a gown,” says Holli Ehrlich, founder of the Wedding Workout network. Do not focus on the dress-size number. The more confident you feel in you gown, the more beautiful you will look.”

By Alfonso Gonzales, master stylist

Fried hair. Split ends. Wilting curls. Fading color. Does this describe your hair? Even in the Valley, where the winter weather is more tolerable than in other cities, high pollutants during this time can play havoc with your do. Taking a trip to the salon will revive your hair with the right conditioning treatment. One of two treatments may be the right prescription for your damaged hair.

Is your hair feeling flat or lifeless? No bounce or shine? Has it lost its elasticity? Sometimes hair is abused by color, shampooing too often, blow-drying, or ironing (flat or curling). Consider a protein treatment. Protein is a source of keratin, a major building block of hair structure. When your hair loses its stretch or movement, your hair may lack keratin, and would benefit from a protein treatment.

Does your hair crackle with static electricity? This sometimes occurs when the hair becomes too dry or is faced with unusual exposure to pollutants in the air. Dull color and lackluster shine often accompany high levels of static electricity. This conditioning treatment replenishes the moisture in the hair, and revives the color and shine that might be temporarily lost.

Conditioning treatments can be used on all types of hair—curly, long, or short. They can also be applied to hair that has been permed, straightened, or colored. The treatments are not for women only—men also are brought to recognize that conditioning treatments add shine, body, and protection to their hair.

Your scalp can also benefit from either treatment. Sometimes the scalp can get dry, causing flakes. We don’t want that! Your stylist can assess your hair and determine which treatment will add the right zip to your hair.

A good conditioning treatment can last for several weeks if you follow the treatment with good products and care at home. Always use a gentle, professional care shampoo recommended by your stylist. A regular conditioner should be used as part of your daily regimen. By doing this, the hair will continue to be protected and will retain the glow from the original treatment. Supermarket shampoos often have high levels of detergents that will strip the hair, removing the moisture and nutrients deposited on the hair from the conditioning treatments.

Most people think that having a conditioning treatment at the salon takes hours, but this is certainly not the case. Professional treatments are concentrated and work pretty quickly. It is very important to pay attention to treating and maintaining the hair and scalp. Hair is an important part of your persona. Therefore, conditioning treatments should be a crucial part of your visit to your hairdresser. If you’re not getting a conditioning treatment, you’re not listening to your hair.